Craftsman Variator 135 Manual

							  
MAINTENANCE 
HOWTOCHECKANDADJUSTTHEDRIVEBRAKE 
Completelypushtheclutch/brakepedalforward.Settheparking 
brake.Movetheshiftlevertotheneutral(N)position.Pushtheunit. 
Iftherearwheelsrotate,adjustorreplacethebrakepads.Adjustthe 
drivebrakeasfollows. 
1.Thelocationofthedrivebrakeisontheleftsideofthegearbox 
(Figure15). 
2.Makesuretheparkingbrakeissetandtheshiftleverisin 
neutral(N).Turnthehexnutinaclockwisedirectionuntilthe 
rearwheelsdonotturnwhentheunitispushedforward. 
3.Releasetheparkingbrakeandpushtheunit.Iftheunitdoesnot 
roll,turnthehexnutinacounterclockwisedirectionuntilthe 
unitrolls. 
4.Settheparkingbrake.Pushtheunit.Iftherearwheelsdonot 
turn,thedrivebrakeiscorrectlyadjusted.Releasetheparking 
brake. 
WARNING:Ifyoucannotcorrectlyadjustthedrive 
brake,replacethebrakepads.Correctreplacement 
partsandassistanceareavailablefromaSearsSer- 
viceCenter. Gearbox DriveBrake 
Figure15 
MAINTENANCEFREEBATTERY 
HOWTOREMOVETHEBATTERY 
Tochargeorcleanthebattery,removethebatteryfromtheunitas 
follows. 
WARNING:Topreventsparks,disconnecttheblack 
batterycablefromthenegative(-)terminalbeforeyou 
_disconnecttheredcable. 
WARNING:Thebatterycontainssulfuricacidwhichis 
harmfultotheskin,eyesandclothing.Iftheacidgets 
onthebodyorclothing,washwithwater. 
1.Disconnecttheblackcablefromthenegative(-)terminal 
(Figure16). 
2.Disconnecttheredcablefromthepositive(+)terminal. 
3.Todisconnectthebatteryretainerfromthebatterytray,push 
inonthelowerendofthebatteryretainer. 
4.Removethebatteryfromtherightsideoftheunit. 
HOWTOCLEANTHEBATTERY 
1.Removethebattery. 
2.Washthebatterywithasolutionofonegallonofwaterandfour 
tablespoonsofbakingsoda(sodiumbicarbonate).Makesure 
thesolutiondoesnotgetintothebatterycells. 
3.Cleantheterminalsandtheendsofthecableswithawire 
brush. 
4.Installthebattery. 
5.Topreventcorrosion,applygreasetothebatteryterminals. 
HOWTOCHARGETHEBATTERY 
_WARNING:Whenyouchargethebattery,donot  smoke.Keepthebatteryawayfromanysparks.The 
fumesfromthebatteryacidcancauseanexplosion. 
F-020611L 21 1.Beforeyouchargethebattery,removethebattery. 
2.Tochargethebattery,usea12voltbatterycharger.Chargeat 
arateof6amperesfor1hour. 
3.Installthebattery. 
_WARNING:Topreventsparks,fastentheredcableto  thepositive(+)terminalbeforeyouconnecttheblack 
cable. 
4. 
5. Fastentheredcabletothepositive(+)terminalwiththefas- 
tenersasshown. 
Fastentheblackcabletothenegative(-)terminalwiththefas- 
tenersasshown. 
Positive(+) 
Terminal 
A 
RedCable 
BatteryClamp Black 
Cable 
Figure16  
						

							  
MAINTENANCE 
WHERETOLUBRICATE 
Applygreasewithabrushtotheareasshown. 
Lubricatetheareasshownwithengineoil. 
NOTE:Applygreasetothesteeringgearassembly. 
CAUTION:Iftheunitisoperatedindryareasthathavesand, 
useadrygraphitespraytolubricatetheunit. 
Figure17 
F-020611L22  
						

							  
MAINTENANCE 
ENGINEHOWTOCHANGETHEOIL 
HOWTOCHECKTHEOIL 
NOTE:Donotchecktheleveloftheoilwhiletheengineruns. 
1.Makesuretheunitislevel. 
2.Cleantheareaaroundthedipstick(Figure18).Removethe 
dipstick.Wipetheoilfromthedipstick. 
3.Insertthedipstickintotheoilfilltube.Turnthedipstickclock- 
wiseuntilitistight.Removethedipstick.Checktheoillevelon 
thedipstick.TheoillevelmustreachtheFULLmarkonthe 
dipstick. 
4.Ifnecessary,addoiluntiltheoilreachestheFULLmarkonthe 
dipstick.ThequantityofoilneededfromADDtoFULLis 
shownonthedipstick.Donotaddtoomuchoil. NOTE:Donotdraintheoilfromacoldengine.Beforeyoudrain 
theoil,lettheenginerunforseveralminutes.Makesureyoudo 
notgetoilonthebelts. 
1. 
2. Removetheoildraincap.Draintheoilcompletelyfromthe 
engine.Installandtightentheoildraincap. 
OnlyuseahighqualitydetergentoilratedwithAPIservice 
classificationSForSG.SelecttheoilsSAEviscositygrade 
accordingtotheexpectedoperatingtemperatureusingthe 
temperaturechartbelow: 
RequiredSAEviscositygrades 
z 
< 
F2,0o_o3_10e,o8,oloo 
= 
c302b1o_lb_o3040 
TEMPERATURERANGEANTICIPATEDBEFORENEXTOILCHANGE  AirScreen 
Dipstick 
/ 
OilDrainCap 
EngineShroud 
Figure18 NOTE:Althoughmulti-viscosityoils(5W30,10W30,etc.) 
improvestartingincoldweather,theywillresultinincreased 
oilconsumptionwhenusedabove320F.Checktheengineoil 
levelmorefrequentlytoavoidpossibleenginedamagefrom 
runninglowonoil. 
3. 
4. Cleantheareaaroundthedipstick.Removethedipstick. 
Slowlypourapproximately32ounces(1quart)ofoilintothe 
oilextensiontube. 
Insertthedipstickintotheoilextensiontube.Turnthedipstick 
inaclockwisedirectionuntilitistight.Removethedipstick. 
Checktheoillevelonthedipstick.Theoillevelmustreachthe 
FULLmarkonthedipstick. 
HOWTOCLEANTHECOOLINGSYSTEM 
Theengineisaircooled.Theairthatcoolstheengineentersthrough 
theairscreenontopoftheengine.Cleantheengineevery100 
hoursoreveryyearasfollows. 1.Removeanygrass,dirtordebrisfromtheairscreenwitha 
clothorbrush. 
2.Inspecttheedgeoftheengineshroudforgrassordebris. 
Removeanygrassordebrisvisibleatthebottomedgeofthe 
engineshroud. 
HOWTOCHECKTHEMUFFLER 
Checkthemufflerevery50hours.Makesurethemuffleriscorrectly 
mountedandisnotloose.Ifthemuffleriswornorbumt,replacewith 
anewmuffler.Awornmufflerisafirehazardandcandamagethe 
engine. 
F-020611L 23 Ifyoumountasparkarrestertothemuffler,alsocheckthespark 
arresterwhenyoucheckthemuffler.Ifthesparkarresteriswornor 
damaged,replaceitwithanewsparkarresterpurchasedfroma 
SearsServiceCenter.  
						

							  
MAINTENANCE 
HOWTOCLEANTHEAIRFILTERS 
Someengineshavetwofilters,anouterfoamfilteraroundaninner 
paperfilter.Cleantheairfiltersevery50hours.Ifyouoperatein 
dirtyconditions,servicemoreoften. 11.Assembletheairfilterswiththenut. 
12.Installthecover.Fastenthecoverwiththeknob. 
NOTE:Neverruntheenginewiththeairfiltersremoved.Theair 
filterswillhelpprotecttheengineagainstwear.Forthecorrect 
replacementfilter,seethepartslistfortheengine. 
1.Removetheknobfromthecover(Figure19). 
2.Removethecoverfromtheaircleaner. 
3.Removethenutfromthefilters. 
4.Removetheairfilters. 
5.Cleantheinsideofthebaseandthecoverwithacloth. 
6.Removethefoamfilterfromthepaperfilter. 
7.Ifequipped,washthefoamfilterinadetergentandwatersolu- 
tion.Toremovethewatersolution,tightlyrollthefoamfilterin 
adrycloth.Removethefoamfilterfromthecloth.Completely 
drythefoamfilter. 
CAUTION:Donotwashthefiltersingasolineorother 
solventsthatwillburn. 
8.EvenlyapplySAE30Woiltothedryfoamfilter. 
9.Tocleanthepaperfilter,lightlytapthepaperfilteragainsta 
hardflatsurface. 
10.Ifthepaperfilterisverydirty,replacethepaperfilter. Cover r 
k. Knob 
Nut 
PaperFilter 
FoamFilter 
Base 
Figure19 
HOWTOCHECKTHESPARKPLUG 
1.Checkthegapofthesparkplugwithafeelergauge 
(Figure20).Thecorrectgapis0.030. 
2.Foreasystartingandgoodperformance,replacethespark 
plugeverytwoyears. FeelerGauge 
0.030 
SparkPlug 
Figure20 
F-020611L24  
						

							  
SERVICEANDADJUSTMENT 
HOWTOADJUST 
THEREMOTETHROTTLECONTROL 
Forthebestengineperformance,settheremotethrottlecontrolas 
follows. 
1.MovetheremotethrottlecontroltotheFASTposition(see 
Figure21). 
2.Theholeinthegovernorcontrollever(locatedjustbehindgov- 
emorcontrolplate)mustalignwiththeholeinthegovernor 
controlplate(seeFigure22). 
3.Ifthetwoholesdonotlineup,thenloosenthecasingclamp 
screwandmovethegovernorcontrolrackuntilthetwoholes 
arealigned. 
4.Tightenthecasingclampscrew. 
5.Checktheoperationofthethrottle.Movethethrottlecontroltothe 
STOPposition. 
6.Thegovernorcontrollevermustmakegoodcontactwithstop 
switch(ifequipped).Readjustifnecessary. 
IMPORTANT:Donotchangetheenginegovernor.Iftheengine 
governorneedsanadjustment,gotothenearestSearsService 
Center.Theyhavetheequipmentandexperiencetomakethe 
adjustment. / 
RemoteThrottle 
Control CHOKE 
FAST 
SLOW 
Figure21 
GovernorControlLever 
HoleInGovernor 
ControlPlateStop 
GovernorControlRackCasingClampScrew Figure22 
HOWTOADJUSTTHECARBURETOR 
Differencesinfuel,temperature,altitudeorloadmayrequireminor 
carburetoradjustment.Theaircleaneranditscovermustbe 
assembledtocarburetorbeforestartingengine. 
Thecarburetoronthisengineisequippedwithanidlemixturevalve 
withalimiter(seeinset),whichallowssomeminoradjustment,and 
anidlespeedadjustmentscrew. 
1.Toadjustidlespeed,startengineandwarmupabout5minutes. 
2.Withenginerunning,puttheremotethrottlecontrolinSLOW 
position(seeFigure21). 
3. 
4. Rotatethecarburetorthrottlecontrolleveragainsttheidle 
speedscrewandholdit(seeFigure23).Then,turntheidle 
speedscrewtoobtain1750rpm(useatachometer). 
Rotatetheidlemixturevalvefulltravelclockwiseandthen 
counterclockwise. 
NOTE:DONOTremovelimitercaps.DONOTforcebeyond 
limits. 
5.Then,positionidleidlemixturevalveinmiddleoftravel. 
F-020611L 25 6.MovetheremotethrottlecontroltotheFASTposition.The 
engineshouldacceleratesmoothly.Ifitdoesnot,adjusttheidle 
mixturevalvecounterclockwise1/8turn. 
NOTE:Enginesoperatedatapproximately3000to5000feet(900 
to1500meters)abovesealevelmayrequireahighaltitude 
carburetornozzle.Iferraticperformanceisobserved,contacta 
SearsServiceCenterforcosttoinstallortopurchaseahigh 
altitudecarburetornozzle. 
• otte  0e xtu e 
C°ntr°l_I_.(_k/_ValveWith 
Lever_(___(__Limiter 
IdleSpeed---_ll\_7_lTf_,,___-f_ 
Screw_ 
Figure23  
						

							  
SERVICEANDADJUSTMENT 
HOWTOLEVELTHEMOWERHOUSING 
Ifthemowerhousingislevel,thebladewillcuteasierandthelawn 
willtookbetter. 
WARNING:Beforeyoumakeaninspection,adjust- 
_ment,orrepairtotheunit,disconnectthewiretothe 
sparkplug.Removethesparkplugwiretoprevent 
theenginefromstartingbyaccident. 
1.Makesuretheunitisonahardflatsurface. 
2. 
Checktheairpressureinthetires.Iftheairpressureisincor- 
rect,themowerhousingwillnotcutlevel.Makesurethetires 
areinflatedto:FrontTires22PSI(1.5BAR),RearTires14PSI. 
(1BAR). 
3.Openthecover(seeFigure24). 
4.MovetheliftlevertotheLEVELADJUSTMENTposition(see 
Figure24). 
5. 
Loosenthefrontandrearadjusterknobs(seeFigure24and 
Figure25).Makesurebothsidesofthemowerhousingareset- 
tingonaflatsurface.Also,makesuretheliftlinksandadjuster 
platesarelooseandcaneasilymoveupordown. LevelAdjustment 
Position 
Cover 
CuttingHeight 
Positions 
RearAdjusterKnob 
Figure24 
Front 
AdjusterKnobs 
Figure25 
6. 
Tightenthefrontandrearadjusterknobs.Makesurethead- 
justerknobsaretight.Ifnecessary,useawrenchtotightenthe 
adjusterknobs.Forplasticadjusterknobs,tightentoa 
torqueof7footpounds(9,5N-m).Formetaladjusterknobs, 
tightentoatorqueof10footpounds(13,5N-m). 
7.RaisetheliftleverfromtheLEVELADJUSTMENTpositionto 
aCUTTINGHEIGHTposition(Figure26). 
8.Closethecover. 
9.Mowforashortdistance.Iftheheightofcutisnotlevel,repeat 
theabovesteps. 
CAUTION:Donotoperatewiththemowerhousinginthe 
LEVELADJUSTMENTposition.IfyouoperateintheLEVEL 
ADJUSTMENTposition,themowerhousingandbladescanbe 
damaged. CuttingHeightPositions 
Figure26 
F-020611L26  
						

							  
SERVICEANDADJUSTMENT 
HOWTOADJUSTTHEATTACHMENTCLUTCH 
_ARNING:Topreventaninjury,theattachment 
clutchmustoperatecorrectly. 
Innormalusage,theattachmentclutchwillnotrequirean 
adjustment.However,ifthecuttingperformancedecreasesorthe 
qualityofcutispoor,makethefollowingchanges. 
1.Whenyoumow,makesurethethrottlecontrolinintheFAST 
position. 
2.MovetheattachmentclutchtotheDISENGAGEposition 
(Figure27). 
3.Stoptheengine.Disconnectthewirefromthesparkplug. 
AttachmentClutch 
EngagePosition 
Figure27 4.Checktheblade(s).Keepasharpedgeontheblade(s).Ablade 
thatisnotsharpwillcausethetipsofthegrasstobecome 
brown. 
5. 
6. 
7. Ifthequalityofcuthasnotimproved,replacethemowerdrive 
belt.SeeHowToReplaceTheMowerDriveBelt.Ifreplacing 
thebeltdoesnotcorrecttheproblem,taketheunittoaSears 
orotherqualifiedservicecenter. 
MovetheattachmentclutchtotheDISENGAGEposition. 
Stoptheengine.Disconnectthewirefromthesparkplug. 
Checktheoperationofthebladebrake.Rotatethepulleywith 
yourhand.Makesurethebrakepadispressedtightlyagainst 
thepulley(Figure28). 
_WARNING:Ifthebrakepaddoesnotpresstightly  againstthepulley,taketheunittoaSearsorother 
qualifiedservicecenter. 
8.MovetheattachmentclutchtotheENGAGEposition. 
9. 
Checkthepadforthebladebrake.Ifthepadisexcessively 
wornordamaged,replacethebrakepadassemblies.Correct 
replacementpartsandassistanceareavailablefromaSears 
servicecenter. 
10. 
11. Attachthewiretothesparkplug.Mowforashortdistanceand 
againchecktheoperationoftheattachmentclutch. 
WhenyoumovetheattachmentclutchtotheDISENGAGE 
position,allmovementwillstopwithinfiveseconds.Ifthereis 
movementofthebeltorthebladescontinuetorotate,engage 
anddisengagetheattachmentclutchfivetimestoremove 
anyexcessrubberfromanewmowerdrivebelt.Ifyouneed 
assistance,taketheunittoaSearsorotherqualifiedservice 
center. 
BladeBrake 
(PadAgainstPulley) 
Figure28 
F-O20611L27  
						

							  
SERVICEANDADJUSTMENT 
HOWTOREMOVETHEMOWERHOUSING 
1.MovetheattachmentclutchtotheDISENGAGEposition. 
2.Movetheliftlevertotheleveladjustmentposition(Figure29). 
3. 
4. 
5. 
6. 
7. 
8. 
9. NOTE:Makesuretheliftlever 
islockedintheLEVEL 
ADJUSTMENTposition. 
Removethehairpinsandthe 
washersfromtherearsuspen- 
sionarms(Figure30).Seeil- 
lustrationsC*andD*.LevelAdjustment 
Removethehairpinsandwash-PositionFigure29 
ersfromthesuspensionlinks. 
SeeillustrationsWandB*. 
Disconnecttheextensionspringfromthebladecontrolrod. 
SeeillustrationE*. 
Disconnectthefronthangerfromtheframesupport.See 
illustrationF. 
Removethemowerdrivebeltfromthestackpulley.See 
illustrationG*. 
Pullthemowerhousingawayfromtherightsideoftheunit. 
Tooperatewithoutthemowerhousing,movetheliftlevertothe 
TOPposition. HOWTOINSTALLTHEMOWERHOUSING 
1.Pushthemowerhousingundertherightsideoftheunit. 
2.Putthemowerdrivebeltaroundthestackpulley.Makesure 
the_sideofthemowerdrivebeltisagainstthestackpulley. 
Also,makesurethemowerdrivebeltisnottwisted. 
3.Attachthefronthangertotheframesupportwiththehanger 
rod.Fastenwiththefastenersasshown.SeeillustrationF. 
4.Makesurethemowerdrivebeltisbetweenthestackpulley 
andthetwobeltguides.SeeillustrationG*. 
5.Attachthesuspensionlinkstothelifterassembly.Fasten 
withthewashersandhairpins.SeeillustrationsWandB*. 
6.Attachtherearsuspensionarmstothesuspensionbrackets. 
Fastenwiththewashersandhairpins.SeeillustrationsCand 
7.Attachtheextensionspringtothebladecontrolrod.See 
illustrationE*. 
8.MovetheattachmentclutchtotheENGAGEposition.Make 
surethemowerdrivebeltisinsideallthebeltguidesandis 
alsobelowthespacertube. 
9.Makesurethemowerhousingislevel.Seetheinstructionson 
HowToLevelTheMowerHousing. 
10.Checktheoperationoftheattachmentclutch.Seetheinstruc- 
tionsonHowToAdjustTheAttachmentClutch. 
LiftLever 
_Attachment 
Clutch 
BeltGuide- 
Je 
StackPulley 
G .) 
Adjuster 
Arm 
C 
Suspension 
Link Mower 
Drive DLifter 
Assembly 
Adjuster 
Arm Suspension 
Link 
HangerRod 
FrontHanger 
A Extension 
Spring 
Figure30 
F-020611L28  
						

							  
SERVICEANDADJUSTMENT 
BeltGuide.  HOWTOREPLACE 
THEMOTIONDRIVEBELTS 
ENGINEDRIVEBELTREMOVAL 
1.Removethemowerhousing.SeetheinstructionsonHowTo 
RemoveTheMowerHousing. 
2.Removetheenginedrivebeltfromtheidlerpulley(see 
Figure31).Ifnecessary,removetheidlerpulley. 
3.Removetheenginedrivebeltfromthevariatorpulley.If 
necessary,loosenthebeltguidesatthevariatorpulley. 
4.Removetheenginedrivebeltfromthestackpulley. 
NOTE:Becauseofthewidthoftheenginedrivebelt,thebelt 
mustbetwistedandthenpulleddownwardtoslipbetweenthe 
stackpulleyandthebeltguides. 
ENGINEDRIVEBELTINSTALLATION 
1.Toinstalltheenginedrivebelt,reversetheabovesteps. 
2.Makesurethattheenginedrivebeltisinstalledcorrectlyand 
isinsideofallthebeltguides(seeFigure31). 
3.Makesurethatthefastenersforthebeltguidesaretight. 
4.Installthemowerhousing.SeetheinstructionsonHowTo 
InstallTheMowerHousing. Figure31 
F-020611L29  
						

							  
SERVICEANDADJUSTMENT 
TRANSAXLEDRIVEBELTREMOVAL 
1.Removethemowerhousing.SeetheinstructionsonHowTo 
RemoveTheMowerHousing. 
2.Removetheenginedrivebelt.SeeEngineDriveBelt 
Removal. 
3.Therearoftheunitmustbesupportedwiththerearwheelsoff 
ofthegroundsothatthetransaxtecanbelowered.Settherear 
oftheunitonjackstandsorasimilartypeofsupport.Donotset 
thetransaxleonthejackstands;settheframeonthe 
jackstands. 
4.Removethehairpinandwasherfromtheadjustablenut(see 
Figure32).Removetheadjustablenutfromtheshiftyoke. 
5.Removethecarriageboltfromthetorquestrap(see 
Figure33). 
6.Torelievetensiononthetransaxledrivebelt,depressthe 
clutch/brakepedalandsettheparkingbrake. 
7.Removethetransaxledrivebeltfromthetransaxleidler 
pulley(seeFigure34). 
8.Removethetransaxledrivebeltfromthevadatorpulley. 
9.Loosenthemountingboltsontheleftsideofthetransaxle. 
Loosenuntilthemountingnutsareattheendofthemounting 
bolts(seeFigure33). 
10.Removethemountingboltfromtherightsideofthe 
transaxle.Thiswillallowtherightsideofthetransaxletodrop 
downandprovideclearanceforthetransaxledrivebelt. 
TRANSAXLEDRIVEBELTINSTALLATION 
1.Toinstalltheenginedrivebelt,reversetheabovesteps. 
2.Makesurethatthetransaxledrivebeltisinstalledcorrectly 
andisinsideofallthebeltguides. 
3.Makesurethatallfasteners,allthemountingbolts,andallthe 
beltguidesaretight. 
4.Installtheenginedrivebelt.SeeEngineDriveBelt 
Installation. 
5.Installthemowerhousing.SeetheinstructionsonHowTo 
InstallTheMowerHousing. 
6.Checktheoperationofthedrivesystem.SeeHowToCheck 
AndAdjustTheClutchandalsoHowToAdjustTheSpeed 
ControlPedal. 
AdjusterNut 
ShifterYoke 
HairPin 
Figure32 Remove 
Mounting 
Bolts Loosen 
Mounting 
Bolts 
Troque 
Strap 
Figure33 
Figure34 
F-020611L30