Thank you! I bought this neglected mower for $50 because it literally would not steer. I followed your instructions exactly and now it feels like it has power steering! My wife is so pleased!
Hi John - this video was like a prayer answered! I have a 1996 Honda Harmony 2013, and the steering had gotten so bad that I could barely get the lawn cut today. I found your video and followed your instructions exactly, and (like you said) the thing steers like new! Many thanks!
Amazing... just like you said, the repair shop wanted over $300 to rebuild the front end, plus labor... Your fix saved me a small fortune and finally fixed a many year old problem. What fooled me, was that I put grease in the fitting so I didn't think the problem was at that location. Now, after doing as you instructed, a slight breeze in the air is able to move the wheels, when up on jacks. I would like to add one thing as a suggestion. When cleaning it out with brake cleaner, I found that I could wrap the plastic tube from the can with a rag and jam the rag/tube in the zerk fitting hole. Then squirt the fluid into the hole and it washed out all the rust/grease quite well. Doing this, helped since getting the cleaner in from only the top was not very efficient. John Flanders aka "THE MAN"
John Flanders, YOU ARE THE MAN! You just saved me at least $500 in a new front end, which is what my mechanic quoted me. Two things you said gave me the patience to persist: it took you 4 hours (I can verify!) and a sledgehammer was part of the mix. One side moved easily, the other was absolutely frozen up. So...spray brake cleaner, pound the steering stops with the sledgehammer, spray PB Blaster, pound the stops with sledge. Repeat about 100 times. I had to go to the full size sledge, but after a full can of brake cleaner it finally broke free. My steering is now an absolute joy. You have done a noble deed. Many thanks!
John McCann beat me to it in thanking you John Flanders. I was sick when I thought I had to buy a new mower because this one (1996 model #2013 hydrostatic) absolutely would not turn, even a half an inch. I love my Honda mower but because of its age and because the Honda mower dealership in Wenatchee has caused more problems to my mower than they have solved, I just didn't think a professional repair was an option. So I went searching online and came across your video. I followed your instructions to a T and although I could not get the bottom clearance clean enough for the liquids to come out, I flushed until all the spray liquids came out clear. I let it dry, cleaned it off and used my grease gun to lube it up, replaced all the other parts and VOILA! WOW! I can't thank you enough for saving me the price of a new mower. I have 2 1/2 acres to take care of, 2/3 in field weeds, so I am thrilled to have this workhorse back in action. (I was given another Honda 2013 with a manual shift as a parts mower because they couldn't get the steering unfrozen. Now I will pull it into the garage and do the same thing with it.)
Thanks for this video. I have a super old Honda riding mower that my wife loves. The steering was completely seized up. I was about to junk it. Took about 3 hours but got it working great in the end.
Just did my Honda H1011 rear engine riding mower. It has snap rings on top and it was an all day job getting the spindles off. Hammering, heating, spraying, jeeze what a job. Thanks for your video, as I had no clue as to why it got so hard to steer. I tried replacing the grease fittings as it wouldn't take any grease. Thanks again.
Thanks very much for making this video. I have an '80 something HTR 3009 riding mower that was nearly unusable because the steering required a large amount of torque to get it to turn, especially when making u-turns. I was thinking of getting another mower but decided to search Google for a solution and found your video. The front steering on my mower is almost the same as yours. I followed your advice and the mower now turns as good as it ever did. Great video on the hows and whys of the job and very detailed instructions. Thanks again for taking the time to do it.
Thank you very much for making this video. The last few years I have been fighting stiffer and stiffer steering with my Honda Harmony 2013. I did what you showed and bingo!
Glad to hear that the video helped you. I encourage everyone to share any similar information about problems you've been able to solve. TH-cam is a great community and I've benefited from the work of dozens and dozens of others.
Thank you! I was having so much trouble steering my mower! I added grease, thinking it needed to be lubricated, when that didn't work, I went looking, and found you! I did not take the wheels off, I had a lot of trouble last year removing the clip/ snap ring, even with the correct tool. I took off the rod, sprayed the brake fluid, alternating moving / turning the tire by hand and spraying. After each spray I would let is sit for a few minutes and let the cleaner do it's work! One wheel was very quick, the other took most of the time, but it worked great! I turns better now than when I bought it 20 years ago. I can steer it with one finger. Awesome!
I'll add my thanks to all the others. Great video, John. Just had engine rebuilt on my Harmony 2013 due to oil leaks then encountered steering problem. I was so bummed, but your solution saved the day for about 10 bucks and some patience.
You're the MAN John! Great video for what seems to be a common issue on these mowers. I was about to break out the angle grinder when I found your video. Thanks so much for posting this.
Hello Jim, Glad to hear this was helpful to you! Prayer works! I told my wife that if even one person was helped by the video, then it was worth making. Thanks for the note and congratulations!
Thank You!! I tried everything and just couldn’t figure out why the steering was so hard. I have the 2013 model but it’s exactly the same. I did exactly what you suggested and now I have what amounts to power steering. I struggled for many years yanking on the steering wheel. It is Awesome now!!
Great video John. I have the same tractor but no steering issues. Your instructions were clear and along with the great camera work you made that fix look easy. Do post other fixes as you get a chance. I agree with you about the tractor. It is the finest rider I have ever owned.
Thank you very much for posting this video! My steering has been stiff to where I can barely turn it for six months. Just started working on it tonight and after two hours it's finally starting to loosen up. 😄
Thanks John for putting this video together. The instruction is very clear and easy to follow. I was trying to help my 87-year-old father to fix his mower and found your video. Unfortunately, I don't live in the same state as him and have to translate it to Chinese as well so I followed your instruction on the video and wrote an instruction to show him how to do it step by step. I'll let you know how it turns out. May I ask what grease would you or anyone would recommend? Thanks a million. Jennifer
As Gizzy says, this is a tough problem that is hard to solve.....but.......the remedy I've shown does work and has worked for all who have tried it and followed the steps. Good luck!
Thank you. I got one of these with steering issues for 300 bucks. I didn't know what part of the steering assembly was giving me problems. I'm going to try it without removing the wheel. I figure I'll just cover the rubber so the break cleaner doesn't eat it.
+Northwest Gaming This repair takes time and patience and it IS MESSY! Removing the front wheels is not difficult and is probably going to be necessary to get the grease dissolved with the brake cleaner. Beware: the brake cleaner is very toxic, caustic and be sure to have plenty of ventilation when using it! It is dangerous to breathe!
Oh and a helpful tip for this. for moving the shaft back-and-forth I used a 3 foot length of PVC pipe on the axle to help get leverage to move it back-and-forth
Thanks J Flanders , good video ...... The steering on my YardMachines ( MTD ) mower was hard to turn ....... it has No grease fitting on the vertical shafts like yours does ..... greasing down at the wheel did not help ...... had a mechanic look at it and grease the 2 fittings ....... then I later chacked the air pressure in the front tires .......... Low , 5-6 lbs instead of rec 14 lbs .......... filled both ~ Steers nice again .. fun to use now instead of straining unpleasant work
I have an H2013 tractor with the same front axle and steering mechanism as your H2113. The front wheel spindle on one side is badly worn. Replacing the entire axle is really expensive. I was hoping that I can just replace the spindle with some generic version. Do you think if I cut the weld at the top of the tube, the spindle will drop out of the bottom? Any suggestions on an alternate approach?
bonjour auriez vous la vue éclaté de votre honda 2113 afin que je puisse bien remonter le mien ,j'ai changer le carter de coupe mais il y a un ressort qui m'inquiete voila bien amicalement
This helped! Mine was locked up tight on right side when I bought it, figured it was rusted badly. Beat on it enough to get it free, but still so very tight. I was going to put the heat to it, red hot. That probably would have fixed it, but the brake cleaner did the trick! Thanks. BTW-, I could not get the tie rod off the right side, wouldn't clear the axle!
I can't believe Honda made these spindles non serviceable. For a quality machine that is a joke. Even the cheap AYP, MTD and Deere tractors have replaceable spindles and bushings. I was preparing to grind the welds off mine. What happens when they wear out? A $500 new axle, and hope they are still available then?
Thank you! I bought this neglected mower for $50 because it literally would not steer. I followed your instructions exactly and now it feels like it has power steering! My wife is so pleased!
I guess I got ripped off. I paid $75 for mine and it wasn't running either! It runs great now though.
Hi John - this video was like a prayer answered! I have a 1996 Honda Harmony 2013, and the steering had gotten so bad that I could barely get the lawn cut today. I found your video and followed your instructions exactly, and (like you said) the thing steers like new! Many thanks!
Amazing... just like you said, the repair shop wanted over $300 to rebuild the front end, plus labor... Your fix saved me a small fortune and finally fixed a many year old problem. What fooled me, was that I put grease in the fitting so I didn't think the problem was at that location. Now, after doing as you instructed, a slight breeze in the air is able to move the wheels, when up on jacks. I would like to add one thing as a suggestion. When cleaning it out with brake cleaner, I found that I could wrap the plastic tube from the can with a rag and jam the rag/tube in the zerk fitting hole. Then squirt the fluid into the hole and it washed out all the rust/grease quite well. Doing this, helped since getting the cleaner in from only the top was not very efficient. John Flanders aka "THE MAN"
John Flanders, YOU ARE THE MAN! You just saved me at least $500 in a new front end, which is what my mechanic quoted me. Two things you said gave me the patience to persist: it took you 4 hours (I can verify!) and a sledgehammer was part of the mix. One side moved easily, the other was absolutely frozen up. So...spray brake cleaner, pound the steering stops with the sledgehammer, spray PB Blaster, pound the stops with sledge. Repeat about 100 times. I had to go to the full size sledge, but after a full can of brake cleaner it finally broke free. My steering is now an absolute joy. You have done a noble deed. Many thanks!
John McCann beat me to it in thanking you John Flanders. I was sick when I thought I had to buy a new mower because this one (1996 model #2013 hydrostatic) absolutely would not turn, even a half an inch. I love my Honda mower but because of its age and because the Honda mower dealership in Wenatchee has caused more problems to my mower than they have solved, I just didn't think a professional repair was an option.
So I went searching online and came across your video. I followed your instructions to a T and although I could not get the bottom clearance clean enough for the liquids to come out, I flushed until all the spray liquids came out clear. I let it dry, cleaned it off and used my grease gun to lube it up, replaced all the other parts and VOILA! WOW!
I can't thank you enough for saving me the price of a new mower. I have 2 1/2 acres to take care of, 2/3 in field weeds, so I am thrilled to have this workhorse back in action. (I was given another Honda 2013 with a manual shift as a parts mower because they couldn't get the steering unfrozen. Now I will pull it into the garage and do the same thing with it.)
Thanks for this video. I have a super old Honda riding mower that my wife loves. The steering was completely seized up. I was about to junk it. Took about 3 hours but got it working great in the end.
Just did my Honda H1011 rear engine riding mower. It has snap rings on top and it was an all day job getting the spindles off. Hammering, heating, spraying, jeeze what a job. Thanks for your video, as I had no clue as to why it got so hard to steer. I tried replacing the grease fittings as it wouldn't take any grease. Thanks again.
Be glad yours come apart. The 2013/2113 don't!. They are welded on and no serviceable parts were ever made!
Thanks very much for making this video. I have an '80 something HTR 3009 riding mower that was nearly unusable because the steering required a large amount of torque to get it to turn, especially when making u-turns. I was thinking of getting another mower but decided to search Google for a solution and found your video. The front steering on my mower is almost the same as yours. I followed your advice and the mower now turns as good as it ever did. Great video on the hows and whys of the job and very detailed instructions. Thanks again for taking the time to do it.
Thank you very much for making this video. The last few years I have been fighting stiffer and stiffer steering with my Honda Harmony 2013. I did what you showed and bingo!
Glad to hear that the video helped you. I encourage everyone to share any similar information about problems you've been able to solve. TH-cam is a great community and I've benefited from the work of dozens and dozens of others.
Thank you! I was having so much trouble steering my mower! I added grease, thinking it needed to be lubricated, when that didn't work, I went looking, and found you! I did not take the wheels off, I had a lot of trouble last year removing the clip/ snap ring, even with the correct tool. I took off the rod, sprayed the brake fluid, alternating moving / turning the tire by hand and spraying. After each spray I would let is sit for a few minutes and let the cleaner do it's work! One wheel was very quick, the other took most of the time, but it worked great! I turns better now than when I bought it 20 years ago. I can steer it with one finger. Awesome!
This saved me big time, took me 3 days to get it all moving again but now it moves like it's brand new, thanks John.
I'll add my thanks to all the others. Great video, John. Just had engine rebuilt on my Harmony 2013 due to oil leaks then encountered steering problem. I was so bummed, but your solution saved the day for about 10 bucks and some patience.
You're the MAN John! Great video for what seems to be a common issue on these mowers. I was about to break out the angle grinder when I found your video. Thanks so much for posting this.
Hello Jim,
Glad to hear this was helpful to you! Prayer works! I told my wife that if even one person was helped by the video, then it was worth making. Thanks for the note and congratulations!
Thank You!! I tried everything and just couldn’t figure out why the steering was so hard. I have the 2013 model but it’s exactly the same. I did exactly what you suggested and now I have what amounts to power steering. I struggled for many years yanking on the steering wheel. It is Awesome now!!
Glad to hear the video helped you get your mower back in action!
Great video John. I have the same tractor but no steering issues. Your instructions were clear and along with the great camera work you made that fix look easy. Do post other fixes as you get a chance. I agree with you about the tractor. It is the finest rider I have ever owned.
Thank you very much for posting this video! My steering has been stiff to where I can barely turn it for six months. Just started working on it tonight and after two hours it's finally starting to loosen up. 😄
Great video. Took a couple of hours, but it completely solved the problem. Thank you!
Thanks John for putting this video together. The instruction is very clear and easy to follow. I was trying to help my 87-year-old father to fix his mower and found your video. Unfortunately, I don't live in the same state as him and have to translate it to Chinese as well so I followed your instruction on the video and wrote an instruction to show him how to do it step by step. I'll let you know how it turns out. May I ask what grease would you or anyone would recommend? Thanks a million. Jennifer
Very helpful. You would make a good teacher.
Thanks so much!!! Saved me thousands on a new tractor. Good as new.
As Gizzy says, this is a tough problem that is hard to solve.....but.......the remedy I've shown does work and has worked for all who have tried it and followed the steps. Good luck!
Thank you so much i appreciate you showing us exactly all we need and what to do. Cant wait to try it.
Thank you. I got one of these with steering issues for 300 bucks. I didn't know what part of the steering assembly was giving me problems. I'm going to try it without removing the wheel. I figure I'll just cover the rubber so the break cleaner doesn't eat it.
+Northwest Gaming This repair takes time and patience and it IS MESSY! Removing the front wheels is not difficult and is probably going to be necessary to get the grease dissolved with the brake cleaner. Beware: the brake cleaner is very toxic, caustic and be sure to have plenty of ventilation when using it! It is dangerous to breathe!
+Northwest Gaming Need to remove wheel. Brake cleaner goes everywhere.
Oh and a helpful tip for this. for moving the shaft back-and-forth I used a 3 foot length of PVC pipe on the axle to help get leverage to move it back-and-forth
Thanks J Flanders , good video ...... The steering on my YardMachines ( MTD ) mower was hard to turn ....... it has No grease fitting on the vertical shafts like yours does ..... greasing down at the wheel did not help ...... had a mechanic look at it and grease the 2 fittings ....... then I later chacked the air pressure in the front tires .......... Low , 5-6 lbs instead of rec 14 lbs .......... filled both ~ Steers nice again .. fun to use now instead of straining unpleasant work
Thanks for the information👌😃
Solved the problem! Thank you!
Took couple of days for me but it's moving now. Since I never done this before, how do you put grease back in? Thank you.
I watch the video again through the grease zerk but my didn't have the hole?
I have an H2013 tractor with the same front axle and steering mechanism as your H2113. The front wheel spindle on one side is badly worn. Replacing the entire axle is really expensive. I was hoping that I can just replace the spindle with some generic version. Do you think if I cut the weld at the top of the tube, the spindle will drop out of the bottom? Any suggestions on an alternate approach?
Did you ever try this? Replacement spindles are readily available for other brands, I was thinking of trying to adapt one to fit the honda...
The engagement quilt working
bonjour auriez vous la vue éclaté de votre honda 2113 afin que je puisse bien remonter le mien ,j'ai changer le carter de coupe mais il y a un ressort qui m'inquiete voila bien amicalement
Çheap design flaw welding arm on top of spindle
This helped! Mine was locked up tight on right side when I bought it, figured it was rusted badly. Beat on it enough to get it free, but still so very tight. I was going to put the heat to it, red hot. That probably would have fixed it, but the brake cleaner did the trick! Thanks. BTW-, I could not get the tie rod off the right side, wouldn't clear the axle!
I can't believe Honda made these spindles non serviceable. For a quality machine that is a joke. Even the cheap AYP, MTD and Deere tractors have replaceable spindles and bushings. I was preparing to grind the welds off mine. What happens when they wear out? A $500 new axle, and hope they are still available then?