Thanks. Yeah, we really like our S130. We had Craftsman lawn tractors in the past, which were good, but I think even these entry level John Deere’s are a step up. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!
I watched a video couple months ago. Guy showed sealed bearings taking grease, even those they had the seal. Grease has enough pressure to get past the seal. He showed before and after results. There's no need to remove the seals. As long as you pump in enough grease, it will find it's way inside the race area.
Yeah, a previous commenter said something similar. He said he saw a video where they removed the seals and found green grease inside. Then put the seals back on and added red grease to the spindles. Then, they found red grease inside the bearings. I believe that I will approach it that way. Thanks for the info!
Great video!! Thanks for posting. I just got through greasing my S130 which has 23 hours on it. I found all 5 on the front end and the two on top of the belt spindles so hopefully I'm good for another 25 hours or more. Glad you shared that the S130 didn't come with the belt shield on the discharge side as I was wondering if someone stole it or if it got left off at the factory just now after lubricating everything. Thanks for clearing that up!!!
Thanks! You’re welcome! Always glad to hear that the videos are helpful. Yeah, I guess anywhere that they can save a few pennies, they will. That spindle and pulley are more out of the way than the other side so I’m guessing they figured it wasn’t necessary.
I purchased a John Deere S130 in June of 2024. Thank you for your excellent video showing us where the fittings are for greasing the John Deere tractor. On the model I purchased there is no zerk fitting on the tire hub as your video shows. Do you have any idea why I would not see that? Did John Deere think that it's no longer needed to have two zerk fittings on the front tires,😮
From what I can tell, it seems that John Deere may have changed over to sealed bearings on front wheel hubs on some of their models, and therefore eliminating grease fittings on the wheels. I say that with some hesitation because I couldn’t find a lot of information on the subject. I think documentation generally lags changes in design and I did see a mention in a John Deere operation manual that notes that the S180 does not have fittings on the wheel hubs. I found a discussion online from an S100 owner that also discovered that he had no front wheel fittings. The responses varied from “don’t worry about it if there’s no fittings” to “check with your dealer if you’re concerned it’s a mistake”. Someone mentioned that his dealer had no explanation for it and offered to swap his tractor out for another that did have fittings. From my experience with trying to find information on the correct mulching insert when I bought my S130, I definitely see lagging information, or non existent information. So I would guess that you more than likely have sealed bearings in the wheel hubs, and therefore don’t need to be concerned with it. However, it wouldn’t hurt to contact your dealer to see if they have any information on the topic to be sure. Thanks for watching and I’m sure you’ll be enjoying your new S130!
I have seen videos with differing opinions also. My feeling is if the manufacturer put zerk fittings on the spindle and recommends adding grease, then that is what I will do. I even saw one video where the mechanic opened the sealed bearings before adding any grease, they had green grease packed in. He then resealed them added red grease to the spindle opened the sealed bearings and they had red grease in them.
That’s interesting. Yeah, it seems that there is never a definitive answer to a lot of procedures that we research. Very interesting though, that the spindle grease does get inside the “sealed” bearings.
I agree. Can't pass up greasing a zert. Finding them all is the trick. Thats why this video is so helpful! Glad there's smart folks out there willing to share ideas.
"You can see when you're getting too much around the wheel hubs it will squirt out of a rubber boot." Will it hurt having too much grease? What happens to the old grease?
It doesn’t hurt to have too much grease, however I try not to overfill to keep from making a mess. The old grease degrades over time. Grease is porous and contains oil which “bleeds” with usage to do its lubricating. The life of the grease varies depending on mechanical energy and operating temperature.
Personally, I decided to go with the John Deere brand grease since John Deere recommends using their Multi-Purpose SD Polyurea Grease for heavy-duty protection on grease points like wheel bearings and U-joints. This grease is designed to withstand high temperatures and extreme pressures. If you decide on using another grease, I would suggest looking at the characteristics to see if it is comparable to what the JD grease provides. But that’s just me, you do you. Thanks for watching!
The hose is flexible (at least with the type of gun that I bought). With the deck lowered, it’s no problem to access the top of the spindles. I see you can get a 90° coupler if the the gun doesn’t have a flex hose. See link below. www.amazon.com/Slippery-Pete-Degree-Coupler-Fittings/dp/B083M95QX5/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?adgrpid=55725711973&hvadid=580737988023&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9022344&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2848343288609102171&hvtargid=kwd-347358705565&hydadcr=25583_13491101&keywords=90+grease+gun+fitting&qid=1689395318&sr=8-3
My S130 is three years old , just changed spindles , took the old one apart , the upper bearing is a shielded bearing so no grease pumped in the top get to the bearings , the only grease exit hole on the shaft is above the top bearing , so the grease zerk on top is useless ! There is no grease zerk on side of spindle housing , only the one on top of spindle shaft . The bottom bearing had the upper shield removed but with the only grease exit hole on the shaft above the upper bearing , no grease could get to the lower bearing ? Poor design / engineering on John Deere's end ......
Wow, surprising that a bearing failed within three years with or without adding grease. Curious to know if you added grease as recommended. Even though the bearings are sealed, a couple commenters described experimenting by adding different colors of grease than the existing grease to see if it made its way inside the “sealed” housing. They found that it actually does get inside when adding grease occasionally. But I’m really puzzled by how the grease is supposed to get to the lower bearing with that design. Interesting though, especially if you have been adding grease. Thanks for the heads up! I will certainly be paying close attention to the spindles/bearings on mine.
@@DIYBoomers Adding grease was futile , it just came out the top of the spindle , as I wrote above , the exit hole for the grease is above the top of the upper bearing ,which is sealed on both sides so the grease just comes right out the top . I'm considering drilling and tapping a hole on the side of the spindle husing and installing a grease zerk there like other brands have , has anyone here done this ? ? Only one spindle had a rough bearing , the other was fine , the main culprit producing the noise was the large , wide idler pulley towards the front , the pulley on the tensioner arm was also rough , so I just shotgunned ithe deck , change everything and be done with it - for another three years . 😀
Hmmmm, I’m approaching 100 hours with mine. Sure hope that it doesn’t end up the same way! I don’t recall that the spindles wouldn’t take much grease the one time that I added grease to this point. I will check it out next time. Thanks again for the info!
I saw a great video by a licensed repairman who demonstrated greasing a spindle bearing. He showed pumping grease into the spindle will be forced into the bearing pushing passed the seals. Essentially just keep pumping grease till you see it coming out near where the blades are mounted.
Yeah, sounds like the grease does in fact get forced into the “sealed bearings”. @freddevito3801 says the same thing was found in a video that he saw. I’d say the best way to go about it is to keep the spindles packed. Thanks for the info!
Awesome! Took a look at your S120 plowing through the big snow that you got last year. Looks like the blade does a good job! Very seldom do we get more than 8 to 10” here in the Midwest, although we do keep an old 5 HP snow blower around for the occasional larger snow.
I enjoy your content. I picked up a 2023 S120 this year. I just got a John Deere grease gun and will be following their recommended maintenance.
Thanks. Yeah, we really like our S130. We had Craftsman lawn tractors in the past, which were good, but I think even these entry level John Deere’s are a step up. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!
Thanks for video. Cleared up a lot of questions I had. Just got my 130 today so studying up.
You’re welcome! Always good to hear that the videos are helpful! I’m sure you’re happy with your purchase, we’re enjoying our S130.
I watched a video couple months ago. Guy showed sealed bearings taking grease, even those they had the seal. Grease has enough pressure to get past the seal. He showed before and after results. There's no need to remove the seals. As long as you pump in enough grease, it will find it's way inside the race area.
Yeah, a previous commenter said something similar. He said he saw a video where they removed the seals and found green grease inside. Then put the seals back on and added red grease to the spindles. Then, they found red grease inside the bearings. I believe that I will approach it that way. Thanks for the info!
Great video!! Thanks for posting. I just got through greasing my S130 which has 23 hours on it. I found all 5 on the front end and the two on top of the belt spindles so hopefully I'm good for another 25 hours or more. Glad you shared that the S130 didn't come with the belt shield on the discharge side as I was wondering if someone stole it or if it got left off at the factory just now after lubricating everything. Thanks for clearing that up!!!
Thanks! You’re welcome! Always glad to hear that the videos are helpful. Yeah, I guess anywhere that they can save a few pennies, they will. That spindle and pulley are more out of the way than the other side so I’m guessing they figured it wasn’t necessary.
I purchased a John Deere S130 in June of 2024. Thank you for your excellent video showing us where the fittings are for greasing the John Deere tractor. On the model I purchased there is no zerk fitting on the tire hub as your video shows. Do you have any idea why I would not see that? Did John Deere think that it's no longer needed to have two zerk fittings on the front tires,😮
From what I can tell, it seems that John Deere may have changed over to sealed bearings on front wheel hubs on some of their models, and therefore eliminating grease fittings on the wheels.
I say that with some hesitation because I couldn’t find a lot of information on the subject. I think documentation generally lags changes in design and I did see a mention in a John Deere operation manual that notes that the S180 does not have fittings on the wheel hubs.
I found a discussion online from an S100 owner that also discovered that he had no front wheel fittings. The responses varied from “don’t worry about it if there’s no fittings” to “check with your dealer if you’re concerned it’s a mistake”. Someone mentioned that his dealer had no explanation for it and offered to swap his tractor out for another that did have fittings.
From my experience with trying to find information on the correct mulching insert when I bought my S130, I definitely see lagging information, or non existent information.
So I would guess that you more than likely have sealed bearings in the wheel hubs, and therefore don’t need to be concerned with it. However, it wouldn’t hurt to contact your dealer to see if they have any information on the topic to be sure.
Thanks for watching and I’m sure you’ll be enjoying your new S130!
First time checking out your videos. I like your channel!
Thanks! Glad to hear that. Hope that you’re gaining some useful information! Share it with friends with the same interests.
I have seen videos with differing opinions also. My feeling is if the manufacturer put zerk fittings on the spindle and recommends adding grease, then that is what I will do. I even saw one video where the mechanic opened the sealed bearings before adding any grease, they had green grease packed in. He then resealed them added red grease to the spindle opened the sealed bearings and they had red grease in them.
That’s interesting. Yeah, it seems that there is never a definitive answer to a lot of procedures that we research. Very interesting though, that the spindle grease does get inside the “sealed” bearings.
I agree. Can't pass up greasing a zert. Finding them all is the trick. Thats why this video is so helpful! Glad there's smart folks out there willing to share ideas.
"You can see when you're getting too much around the wheel hubs it will squirt out of a rubber boot."
Will it hurt having too much grease? What happens to the old grease?
It doesn’t hurt to have too much grease, however I try not to overfill to keep from making a mess. The old grease degrades over time. Grease is porous and contains oil which “bleeds” with usage to do its lubricating. The life of the grease varies depending on mechanical energy and operating temperature.
Greasing is a must for longevity and a non- greasable bearings do not last near as long as greasable bearings that have been maintained properly
Absolutely. And thanks for watching.
Do I have to use John Deere brand grease or can I use multi-purpose grease?
Personally, I decided to go with the John Deere brand grease since John Deere recommends using their Multi-Purpose SD Polyurea Grease for heavy-duty protection on grease points like wheel bearings and U-joints. This grease is designed to withstand high temperatures and extreme pressures.
If you decide on using another grease, I would suggest looking at the characteristics to see if it is comparable to what the JD grease provides. But that’s just me, you do you.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks. Great video!
You’re welcome! Always glad to hear that the videos are helpful.
How do you get your gun on top of the spindles? Do they make a 90 degree gun?
The hose is flexible (at least with the type of gun that I bought). With the deck lowered, it’s no problem to access the top of the spindles.
I see you can get a 90° coupler if the the gun doesn’t have a flex hose. See link below.
www.amazon.com/Slippery-Pete-Degree-Coupler-Fittings/dp/B083M95QX5/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?adgrpid=55725711973&hvadid=580737988023&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9022344&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2848343288609102171&hvtargid=kwd-347358705565&hydadcr=25583_13491101&keywords=90+grease+gun+fitting&qid=1689395318&sr=8-3
Thanks. I had a flexible spout. Need to find it or grab a new one.
My S130 is three years old , just changed spindles , took the old one apart , the upper bearing is a shielded bearing so no grease pumped in the top get to the bearings , the only grease exit hole on the shaft is above the top bearing , so the grease zerk on top is useless !
There is no grease zerk on side of spindle housing , only the one on top of spindle shaft .
The bottom bearing had the upper shield removed but with the only grease exit hole on the shaft above the upper bearing , no grease could get to the lower bearing ? Poor design / engineering on John Deere's end ......
Wow, surprising that a bearing failed within three years with or without adding grease. Curious to know if you added grease as recommended.
Even though the bearings are sealed, a couple commenters described experimenting by adding different colors of grease than the existing grease to see if it made its way inside the “sealed” housing. They found that it actually does get inside when adding grease occasionally. But I’m really puzzled by how the grease is supposed to get to the lower bearing with that design.
Interesting though, especially if you have been adding grease. Thanks for the heads up! I will certainly be paying close attention to the spindles/bearings on mine.
@@DIYBoomers Adding grease was futile , it just came out the top of the spindle , as I wrote above , the exit hole for the grease is above the top of the upper bearing ,which is sealed on both sides so the grease just comes right out the top .
I'm considering drilling and tapping a hole on the side of the spindle husing and installing a grease zerk there like other brands have , has anyone here done this ? ?
Only one spindle had a rough bearing , the other was fine , the main culprit producing the noise was the large , wide idler pulley towards the front , the pulley on the tensioner arm was also rough , so I just shotgunned ithe deck , change everything and be done with it - for another three years . 😀
Hmmmm, I’m approaching 100 hours with mine. Sure hope that it doesn’t end up the same way!
I don’t recall that the spindles wouldn’t take much grease the one time that I added grease to this point. I will check it out next time. Thanks again for the info!
I saw a great video by a licensed repairman who demonstrated greasing a spindle bearing. He showed pumping grease into the spindle will be forced into the bearing pushing passed the seals. Essentially just keep pumping grease till you see it coming out near where the blades are mounted.
Yeah, sounds like the grease does in fact get forced into the “sealed bearings”. @freddevito3801 says the same thing was found in a video that he saw. I’d say the best way to go about it is to keep the spindles packed. Thanks for the info!
@@DIYBoomers Just serviced my John Deere deck this morning and can verify pushing grease thru the spindle does come out at the mower blades.
Awesome! Took a look at your S120 plowing through the big snow that you got last year. Looks like the blade does a good job! Very seldom do we get more than 8 to 10” here in the Midwest, although we do keep an old 5 HP snow blower around for the occasional larger snow.