Owning a Remington lawnmower can significantly boost your garden maintenance. But what if your lawnmower doesn’t cut straight or is challenging to steer around the edges? This could become counterproductive. In this article, we’ll look into some common cutting and drive-related issues that most Remington lawnmower users face.

Remington lawnmower drive & cutting problems:

If your Remington lawnmower cuts irregular patches of grass, check for blunt and damaged blade edges. Ensure the blade is securely mounted and the spindle assembly doesn’t vibrate during cutting. Check that the mower deck is perfectly horizontal. If the lawnmower doesn’t drive even with the engine running, it could be due to a loose or worn-out drive belt or a fault in the transmission assembly.

If you’ve faced these problems before, read the following sections of the article to learn more about fixing them.

Remington Lawnmower Cutting Problems: How to Fix?

Remington produces both riding and self-propelled lawnmower variants. In both these types, the blades are located under a deck mounted on a spindle assembly driven by a belt and pulley mechanism.

Whenever a problem related to the cutting mechanism arises, these components must be inspected.

1. Remington Lawnmower doesn’t Cut Straight.

If your lawnmower doesn’t cut in straight lines, the blades should be inspected and sharpened if blunt edges are found. Ensure that the deck level is perfectly horizontal.

Lawnmower blades can wear out rapidly if constantly exposed to dirt and not sharpened regularly. The blade edges become blunt, and the cutting speed and performance drop.

Moreover, the blades generate a positive suction due to their aerodynamics, which aids in cutting. When the edges become blunt, the suction effect reduces, causing irregular grass patterns.

– Solution: Blade Sharpening

I recommend sharpening lawnmower blades after every 25 hours of use. To sharpen the blades, first remove them by turning the deck over and using an appropriate-size wrench. Place a block at one end of the blade to prevent its rotation.

Loosen the mounting bolt with the wrench and remove the blade. I recommend removing the spark plug wire while the blade is being removed to prevent an accidental startup. After removing, sharpen the blade using a bench grinder.

If a grinder isn’t available, fix the blade on a wise. Use a hand file tool and some sandpaper to sharpen the blade edges on both sizes. Ensure the blade is balanced about its center of gravity after sharpening, ensuring a smooth rotation.

When the blades are sharp, check that the mowing deck’s level is horizontal. A deck tilting towards one side cuts more grass from that end. You may need to use a level tool to correct the deck level.

Place the tool on the deck to determine which side it leans on. Using the adjustment screws provided on the deck, adjust its height until the level shows it to be perfectly horizontal.

2. Remington Lawnmower Cuts Uneven Grass.

Uneven grass patterns result from a blade wobbling about its axis during rotation. This may be due to incorrect installation, mass imbalance about its center, or mechanical play in spindle assembly.

First, you should check if the mounting bolt isn’t loose. Normally, the bolts self-tighten as the blade rotates. Next, try rotating the blade and check if it wobbles during rotation.

Also, check if the blade is correctly balanced. You can hand it on a nail in the wall. If there is an imbalance, sharpen the other end of the blade and check if it is correctly balanced. If you do not manage this, replacing the blade is the only alternative.

– Faulty Spindle Bearing:

The shaft rotating the blades is also known as the spindle assembly. Occasionally, a slight axis misalignment caused by a faulty bearing could result in blade vibrations. At high RPMs, these vibrations might result in uneven grass patterns.

A faulty is easily recognized by a mechanical play in the blade shaft along with a squeaking sound whenever the blade rotates. To replace the bearing, the blade and spindle need to be disassembled. If you are unsure how to do this, ask a professional for help.

3. Remington Lawnmower doesn’t Cut at all.

If a lawnmower doesn’t cut any grass despite the engine/motor running, it’s due to:

• Disengaged Blades: The blade engagement lever needs to be engaged for the blades to cut any grass. Please check if this lever is activated or not and then proceed to the next step.
• Debris/Grass Clippings: Lift or flip the mower over to see if any grass clippings are stuck between the spindle and the blade, preventing it from rotating. Make sure the blades can rotate freely underneath the deck.
• Damaged Belt: The last thing to check is the blade belt, which might have broken or lost contact with the pulley, which rotates the spindle. If the belt is damaged, replacement is the only alternative.

Remington Lawnmower Drive Problems: How to Troubleshoot?

Some of the common drive problems many Remington users face are discussed in this section, along with their solutions.

1. Remington (Riding) Lawnmower doesn’t move forward.

If a riding lawnmower gets stuck despite the engine running, it’s due to a fault in the drive belt or a disengaged transmission lever.

In most situations, lawnmowers don’t move forward despite the engine running and the paddle depressed. If this happens, here’s what you should do:

• Transmission disengage lever: Several Remington riding lawnmowers have a lever to disengage the transaxle from the drive mechanism, particularly when manually moving the lawnmower. Ensure the lever is engaged to connect the transmission with the pedals.
• Drive belt: The drive belt connects the engine with the transaxle driving the wheels. If the belt gets detached from the pulleys or wears out, the transaxle won’t receive the engine power, and the lawnmower will become immobile.
• Hydraulic fluid: In most lawnmowers, hydraulic fluid is used in the transaxle. You should check the fluid level regularly and ensure it’s up to the mark. The absence of transmission fluid might have resulted in a transaxle failure in which a professional intervention becomes inevitable.

2. Remington (Self-Propelled) Lawnmower doesn’t move forward.

If your Remington mower doesn’t move forward, check if the drive belt tension is sufficient and if it has contact with the drive pulley. In some cases, debris clogging the axles might also prevent self-propulsion.

Self-propelled mowers are driven by pressing the throttle lever. To fix the self-propel feature of your Remington lawnmower, follow these steps:

• Control cable tension: Check the control cable tension and tighten it if needed to improve the wheels’ response when the lever is pressed. To do this, unscrew the cable by a few turns and see if the mower propels forward. While you’re doing this, do check that the control cable isn’t broken at any point.
• Drive belt adjustment: Turn the lawnmower over to notice the drive belt that runs over the transmission pulley. Check if the drive belt needs adjustment/replacement.
• Debris blocking the wheel: The wheels should be able to turn freely on the axle. Using a metal wire clean the axle and wheel assembly from grass clippings.

3. Remington Lawnmower has Loose Steering.

A riding lawnmower could have loose steering due to damaged steering shaft bushings or loose tie rod ends.

The steering mechanism consists of a steering shaft that drives a steering gearbox. The gearbox drives the tie rods that turn the wheel in either direction.

– Loose Tie Rod Ends:

The first thing to inspect is the tie rod and its ends. The tie rods are connected to the wheelbase through cotter pins or nuts. Ensure these fasteners are secure and that there is no mechanical play at these ends. Use an appropriately sized wrench to tighten these ends. Also, grease them if necessary.

– Steering Shaft Inspection:

If the issue persists, the steering shaft assembly needs to be inspected. The steering wheel should come off, followed by the top hatch to do this. When the shaft is accessible, inspect the gear assembly at the steering shaft’s base.

If you notice a backlash between the gear and the shaft, the shaft bushings need to be replaced. First, remove the shaft by unscrewing the 9/16 bolts at the deck’s bottom. Next, replace the worn-out bushing at the shaft’s end with a new one.

Apply WD-40 or any lubricant between the bushing and the gear assembly. Reassemble the shaft and the steering wheel back on the mower and test its steering performance.  

4. Remington Lawnmower Vibrates Excessively.

Your lawnmower could vibrate more than usual due to a defective spindle assembly or blades wobbling about their axes.

When a lawnmower vibrates excessively, it can be challenging to drive and may also produce uneven grass patterns. To troubleshoot the source of vibrations, here’s what you should do:

1. Inspect the blades:

If the blade’s center of gravity has shifted from its axis due to mass imbalance, it could wobble. At high RPMs, these vibrations can become quite intense. By flipping the mower over, notice if the blades show any signs of wobble when turned by hand.

Grind some metal from the heavier side using a bench grinder or a hand file to fix the mass imbalance. Also, ensure that the blade’s mounting bolts are securely fastened.

2. Spindle Assembly:

If the spindle assembly gets damaged due to the mower hitting a hard object, the blade shaft may wobble and cause the blades to vibrate, too. This can be further confirmed by the squeaky noise produced whenever the blade is turned manually.

In this case, the entire assembly comprising the blade’s shaft and bearings must be replaced. If you do not know how to do this or do not have the right tools for this, I recommend asking a professional for help.

Besides the blade, the only source of vibrations could be the engine itself. Hence, if the issue isn’t fixed after inspecting the blades and the spindle, the most likely cause could be a damaged crankshaft or loose/missing engine mounts.

5. Remington Lawnmower has a Flat Tire.

A flat tire on a riding lawnmower renders it immobile. In this case, determine the source of air leakage by inflating the tire with a hand pump and placing it in a tub of water. If bubbles originate, the tire is indeed punctured. If no bubbles are seen, the leakage was probably due to a faulty valve.

To fix a punctured tire, a puncture repair kit is recommended. First, remove the flat tire from the rim using a screwdriver. Apply the seal on the puncture site and exert pressure on it for 10-15 minutes. Afterward, pressurize the tire again by attaching it back to the rim.

Drive & Cutting Troubleshooting table

1. Lawnmower Cutting Problems

2. Lawnmower Drive Problems

Riding Lawnmowers

Self-Propelled Lawnmowers