I like this one. Pretty cool video. I don’t believe you can beat this old John Deere mowers. I’ve not had one bigger than a 318 yet. Other than my Ag 3010 but it’s in a totally different class. I can put a belly mower under it. That would be over kill for my yard
Thanks for the video. I'm picking up a 2000 445 tomorrow for 1900 (if it passes the smell test). It has 1500 hours on it and looks very well maintained. Anything I should look for? I found a blade for it already. Thanks for the video!
These where good machines , Change the oil and filter , Service it as it needed. They would Last man long long time with out much or any trouble at all...
For sure! What's really amusing is how many people will complain about EFI engines on newer tractors or zero turns and how the average person won't be able to work on them anymore and parts will be more expensive and I always point out the John Deere 445 in these conversations. How often do you ever have an actual EFI related issue on one of these tractors? Almost never! Even at after all these years.
Anyone know of vids on how to replace the cam (and what all parts to get & replace while doing that job)? I've done plenty of motorcycle engine work, but never on a lawn tractor. This will be a new experience :)
If you have one of these older tractors and it had the plastic camshaft, I would suggest replacing all of the other plastic gears (governor gear, water pump gear, oil pump gear) while you have it apart. It's a pretty straight forward job on one of these bigger tractors and in most cases you can do it without removing the engine from the tractor. I would suggest that you go to a Kawasaki dealer to get the parts if you want to pay for parts and not just a name added to the parts. These are Kawasaki engines and any decent knowledgeable parts guy will be able to cross the John Deere part numbers to Kawasaki numbers.
The engine info is on a sticker and there is a good chance it is long gone by now. You might be able to get some info by using the tractor serial number. But honestly, the only way to know for sure is to look at the cam gear itself. If you remove the water pump you will be able to see the cam gear and tell if it is the metal gear or plastic gear.
I have a 445, it does not want to stsrt after I let sit for a day or so. After initial start it will keep starting but hard to start cold, any suggestions
Soooo! How many gallon gas tank and how much hydraulic fluid does it hold? Also, I don’t want to pay the outrageous price for the JD Low Viscosity HY-GARD transmission and hydraulic oil. What OTHER BRANDS would you suggest is comparable? Thanks 🙏
I hope you can help me with a silly problem. Unfortunately my dad died and I am trying to maintain the lawn on my own. This is my first time using the tractor and I can’t get the blades to engage. It’s pretty beat up but a friend of mine had it working last week. I need a step by step guide to get the blades running. I can get everything working EXCEPT the blades! Is there something I’m missing? Like... push the brake before pulling up the PTO... any help would be appreciated!
If it is a John Deere then you should not push the pedal when engaging the blades. Most newer John Deere garden tractors built in the past 15 years or so and the X300 series have a safety switch on them that actually turns off the blades when you press the brake pedal. If it's one of the cheap lawn tractors then it would not have this feature and is something else not working properly.
Very nice machine. I wish they would've made the hood and sides out of metal instead of the flimsy plastic! Other than that it's a very trouble free machine if kept up.
Nice vid...I rebuilt one of these from ground up to include a complete paint job. I use it for my main go to lawn tractor every day.
I may be doing something similar. I know if one sitting broken I'm hoping to get. Mind if I ping you with questions, when (if) I get into it?
I like this one. Pretty cool video. I don’t believe you can beat this old John Deere mowers. I’ve not had one bigger than a 318 yet. Other than my Ag 3010 but it’s in a totally different class. I can put a belly mower under it. That would be over kill for my yard
The 420 is still my favorite. It's like the big brother of the 318.
Deere has replacement valve covers for the 425, 445, aluminum now and minus the filler neck, will remedy the leaks and helps improve cooling.
Yeah the aluminum valve covers are why they came out with graphoil style valve cover gasket.
Thanks, a good John Deere tractor video.
Thanks Ron! We enjoy your beer reviews!
Thanks for the video. I'm picking up a 2000 445 tomorrow for 1900 (if it passes the smell test). It has 1500 hours on it and looks very well maintained. Anything I should look for? I found a blade for it already. Thanks for the video!
Very nice video and bay 1 for $950 and is fantastic
A very good video. An informative video for me who would like to own one of these 4_5 series tractors. Dif lock and foot peddles for forward reverse
...make it very nice to operate. 425 has smaller tires than the 445 and 455.
Thanks 👍
Good video, one of the only vids that is very in depth and detailed about one of these. Any idea where I could find one of these tractors at?
Facebook market place is a good place to start.
I have a 445 and I am trying to figure out what size deck I have. Is there some type of marking or identification number somewhere on the deck ?
If the serial number sticker and all the other stickers are gone from the deck shell or covers, just measure the length of the blades.
These where good machines , Change the oil and filter , Service it as it needed. They would Last man long long time with out much or any trouble at all...
For sure! What's really amusing is how many people will complain about EFI engines on newer tractors or zero turns and how the average person won't be able to work on them anymore and parts will be more expensive and I always point out the John Deere 445 in these conversations. How often do you ever have an actual EFI related issue on one of these tractors? Almost never! Even at after all these years.
Anyone know of vids on how to replace the cam (and what all parts to get & replace while doing that job)?
I've done plenty of motorcycle engine work, but never on a lawn tractor. This will be a new experience :)
Marine450x greenparts.com or google search a JD dealer near you. Beware though, dealer will charge you more than an online retailer 99% of the time.
If you have one of these older tractors and it had the plastic camshaft, I would suggest replacing all of the other plastic gears (governor gear, water pump gear, oil pump gear) while you have it apart. It's a pretty straight forward job on one of these bigger tractors and in most cases you can do it without removing the engine from the tractor.
I would suggest that you go to a Kawasaki dealer to get the parts if you want to pay for parts and not just a name added to the parts. These are Kawasaki engines and any decent knowledgeable parts guy will be able to cross the John Deere part numbers to Kawasaki numbers.
I can't find the engine ID plate.
You can tell if cam gear is metal it plastic by the number. Can you let ne know where to find it?
The engine info is on a sticker and there is a good chance it is long gone by now. You might be able to get some info by using the tractor serial number. But honestly, the only way to know for sure is to look at the cam gear itself. If you remove the water pump you will be able to see the cam gear and tell if it is the metal gear or plastic gear.
I have a 445, it does not want to stsrt after I let sit for a day or so. After initial start it will keep starting but hard to start cold, any suggestions
Soooo! How many gallon gas tank and how much hydraulic fluid does it hold?
Also, I don’t want to pay the outrageous price for the JD Low Viscosity HY-GARD transmission and hydraulic oil. What OTHER BRANDS would you suggest is comparable?
Thanks 🙏
I hope you can help me with a silly problem. Unfortunately my dad died and I am trying to maintain the lawn on my own. This is my first time using the tractor and I can’t get the blades to engage. It’s pretty beat up but a friend of mine had it working last week. I need a step by step guide to get the blades running. I can get everything working EXCEPT the blades! Is there something I’m missing? Like... push the brake before pulling up the PTO... any help would be appreciated!
If it is a John Deere then you should not push the pedal when engaging the blades. Most newer John Deere garden tractors built in the past 15 years or so and the X300 series have a safety switch on them that actually turns off the blades when you press the brake pedal. If it's one of the cheap lawn tractors then it would not have this feature and is something else not working properly.
This mower is very similar to my x485 and the blades will not engage if the parking brake is set.
I want to see the one with a diesel motor
What year did they switch to plastic?
93! 92 420 w/Onan P220G
Oil cooler is in the radiator
Very nice machine. I wish they would've made the hood and sides out of metal instead of the flimsy plastic! Other than that it's a very trouble free machine if kept up.