HOW TO REPAIR RYOBI EXPAND-IT CULTIVATOR

In this video the drive shaft has slipped in my Ryobi cultivator attachment. This resulted in the failure to connect to the power head. The repair involves disassembly and adjustment of a keeper that has allowed the shaft to slip out of position.

[@rocqitmon]

Thanks for posting this video to show the repair. After rescuing a Mantis with a Honda GX25 from the curbside, and getting the neglected motor working, I dug my dead Ryobi expand-it tiller and try this on it before I throw it out. Mine froze and also the shaft had sunk into the handle. It looks doable but I will have to open the case. I think those allen nuts are forced grease access ports - I'll let you know.

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks; I will look forward to hearing from you.

[@rocqitmon]

@@richardspaulding5035 Wow, I opened the transmission case and found the cylindrical(?) gear was broken into about three pieces. The cable turning the worm gear seemed okay. I know I didn't overpower it but it broke many years ago. Looks like the design is the same but now using battery powered power heads is in use. Your welcome to a pic of it but I don't think this comment box supports attachments. I really feel ripped off by Ryobi. Such junk. I found the Mantis tiller and just need the PA6 oil and hopefully have a good tiller/cultivator with option for other attachments. Cheers for a good growing season.

[@cloverleaf64]

Thank you for videos like this. Very easy to follow. Fixed ours in the garage tonight with your help!!!!

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks for the kind words Codi and thanks for watching my channel.

[@arconiluka]

Thanks for the video Richard and greetings from Australia . I picked up a display model as it was cleared out at 30%. I watched your video to see how the drive shaft is attached to gear box. In my case I wanted to know how to remove the shaft so I could shorten the shaft so I could attach Victa fittings to the shaft . Victa and Ryobi use the same type of shaft and tube but the fittings used to attach accessories are entirely different. I will be hacksawing around half an inch off the shaft to make my fittings work with the victa trimmer.

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks very much for your greeting from Australia. I is a lot of fun to hear from someone on the other side of the world. I am about 50 miles southeast of Boston half way between Boston and Cape Cod. My New England accent is a dead give away. A lot of my viewers like to make fun of me. Thanks for watching my channel.

[@woozin24]

Very detailed. Thank you good sir

[@richardspaulding5035]

thanks

[@scooterbob7885]

Thank you !!! Thank you!!!! I thank you just might have saved me a lot of time and frustration. I didn't even think about that I don't think mine Even has a keeper on it.

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thank you; glad you found my video and found it helpful

[@TheRabidfan]

Thanks for posting this. It was a good temporary fix. Do you know if they sell replacement drive cables maybe a little longer?

[@richardspaulding5035]

I am not aware of that

[@thegameandwatch2799]

Helpful vid. Do you happen to know the name of the main piece that was sticking out too far? Similar problem with mine but im having trouble finding it in parts

[@richardspaulding5035]

I am very sorry I have taken so long to reply. I think it is a drive shaft or drive cable

[@rkparis3064]

Thanks much for taking the time. Much appreciated. Do you know if the shaft itself is more or less universal? I bent mine and would like to replace. They are available but Ryobi sells it with the gearbox for mucho denaro, while others (Trimmer Plus . . . I think) sells the shaft alone for considerably less. I'm thinking one company actually makes the tiller/cultivator and Private Labels for all the others. The shafts all seem to look the same. Thanks again.

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks for the question RK; I don't know for sure but I can't see why not as long as the generic shaft is dimensionally the same. If you decide to try it by all means please let me know if it does indeed work. Thanks for watching my channel

[@jans1056]

THAT SWAG NUT IS THREADED!!!
When I tried the hammer approach, shaft through the swag nut videoed, my swag nut exploded into 2 pieces(crap). Should have used a plyers and turn it up the shaft cable closer to the end. FYI in my case that swag nut it threaded to the shaft. The swag nut he hammers through is threaded to the shaft. It's not a slip. So when I hammered it to move it it shattered into 2 pieces (crap). My problem was with a transmission piston end coupler that disintegrated at the of the drive line. Pieces ended up in the gear that locked the unit un-turnable. Lots of various pieces in the gear box that apparently ultimately got stuck in the main planetary gear which locked it solid. Understanding that I figured out the main issue with crap pieces in the trans I figured go ahead with adjusting the swag nut as the the video depicts.... bad idea in the end . Picked the end shaft pieces out of the transmission grease but the swag nut disentegration says to me ,,,, not fixable......

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks Jan for that information. I don't know if what you say is correct how I got away with tapping it. I don't want to mislead anyone. do you think I should pull the video?

[@tiberiuswade8789]

Would be nice see where/how you remove the blades also. Someone may not know how to

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks for your concern. I just reviewed the video as it has been number of years since posting. You are correct I did not actually show the blades being removed. However, beforehand I did explain how to mark the location of each blade and just before cutting away mention that they needed to pull the pins. In an effort to make my videos a little shorter I sometimes will not show very simple procedures such as that. If a particular viewer cannot figure out something as simple as pulling the pins to slide the blades off then perhaps, he / she should not even attempt to pick up a wrench.

[@hunter23453]

Does the tiller have gear oil or grease in it?

[@richardspaulding5035]

I made the video several years ago and I don't remember, I would think it has to have some sort of lubricant in there.

[@michaeltaylor5249]

It has grease. Pack it full. I don't know if it is a special kind but multo-purpose grease should work.

[@jamesb1889]

@@michaeltaylor5249where do I add grease ?

[@accidental_relevance]

Does the Ry15550 require any type of gear lube ? I didn't see any lubricant run out when you loosened the case bolts. But seems like it would need to be greased periodically. Sorry if you mentioned it in the video I was not able to watch it in it's entirety. Good job on the video.

[@richardspaulding5035]

Thanks for your question, as I recall I never fully opened the case. I loosened it just enough to pull the handle out. However as I removed the handle there was some sort of lubricant on the end. I did not seem to lose any of the factory lubricant so I did not worry about it. One other thing worth mentioning is I received a comment from a viewer that instead of using a hammer to adjust that keeper it can be turned. Thanks for watching my channel.

[@accidental_relevance]

@@richardspaulding5035 thank you for replying. I wasn't able to find any mention of maintenance in the owners manual or on line. So I guess they used grease that will last for the expected service life. I tried to send Ryobi an email on their website but I had to have a password. And passwords never seem to work for me.

[@kenwest15]

Ryobi is going to say that's its unservicable oart.. which is crap. Im watching this to figure out how to change that oil in the transmission. After all they dont really want this stuff lasting forever... but i do

[@accidental_relevance]

@@kenwest15 agreed. I'm going to look at lubricating it with something soon. Probably Amsoil synthetic gear lube.

[@dalriada842]

@@kenwest15 Those Allen bolts are possibly grease points.