Peerless Transaxle 205-024

[Carl]

Some people get lucky. In my case, I always buy standard shift tractors, I actually like going through the motion of shifting. However, if I were to try your trick, the thing would never run right again. Glad some of you have good luck. Carl

[Mek-a-nik]

Thinking, that's great!

[T-Man]

THIS....Peerless repair effort should go into the books as....INNOVATIVE,
CREATIVE, and RESOURCEFUL. As they say, "Where there's a will....there's
a way". This proves it. As they also say, "Who am I....to mess with success" ???
I learned a LONG TIME AGO.....never to question the tactics and principles if
they were successful in the end. As they also say...."To each....his own".

T-Man

[archibald tuttle]

This is a great thread on this transaxle. I'm looking for any updates or thoughts. Just bought a Murray 46" 42591x8B with this transmission. It seems reasonably responsive in the drive department. I'll clean the top off, that's probably never been done.

I'm wondering if anyone has found a cheaper source for these transmissions as a back-up. Probably the simplest is to go to craigslist looking for a parts machine.

anyone know the difference in the small letter suffix. I've got a 205-024c and I think this all started with a 'b'. But the whole bellows assembly stuff looks the same.

I'm also interested in how these transaxles compare and crossmount to others I have on murrays.

I have a slightly smaller Murray 42" with a Spicer 093264 that operates identically to the 205-024. Pedal forward and reverse. no shift lever.

I also have a Murray 46" very similar but the transmission is a Peerless MST-202-555A.

The Spicer and Peerless MST look very similar and neither looks anything likke the 205-024.

But the MST stands for Manually shifted transmission. Yet you don't use a clutch for shifting so I'm thinking it is nonetheless hydrostatic of a sort. It has 2 ranges forward and 1 reverse.

It has started shifting very stiff. Can't get it into Reverse (linkage just flexes and doesn't rotate shifting rod on transmission far enough - I can get under the tractor and intervene manually but that obviously doesn't work well in the field).

Peerless specificies 90 weight gear oil for this transmission and maybe it is just a manual but I don't know if it has some variability or how it can be shifted with no clutch.

These transmissions are available cheaply ($79) so despite my interest in knowing how it works I might just replace, although I like the pedal style operation of the 205-024 I'd consider looking one up and switching transmissions despite it costing a bit more. I have to measure the bolt patterns. The two murray 46" tractors are very similar so I'm hoping the axles would cross fit. The other problem may be whether the brake/clutch linkage is in the way. On the MST model tractor the brake/clutch is on the right but on the 205-024 style it is on the left.

Probably for the money, I may just go for the straight replacement at the moment to keep the tractor moving but I'm definitely interested in trying to chase down a 205-024 to try such a swap over the winter or keep it in the stable as back-up.

Anyone have any experience between the 205-024 and MST styles in terms of durability under load (I pull a york rake with this tractor pretty regularly and keep chains on it year round, it definitely has to pull harder than the ones I use for mowing)? Also, if anyone has any idea on what could cause stiff shifting on the MST style I'd appreciate it help troubleshooting that. Losing very minor bit of gear oil at seal end by axle break but I doubt I could have lost enough to really make it 'low'. Another one of these pain in the ass plugs to get out and I haven't been able to find any measurement specs to even know what the level should be. There is apparently a special dipstick tool that is to be inserted in top plug at 45 degrees. Any info on how to read level without this would be useful.

Thanks,

Brian

[T-Man]

First of all, by your Murray model number, it's a 42" and not a 46".
Probably just a typo on your part, huh? The 2-speed MST 202-555
(by the way....204 = 4-speed, 205 = 5-speed, 206 = 6-speed...in case
anyone ever wondered?). This forward-reverse setup was used sparingly
by Murray. I've seen quite a few of these with input pulley and input shaft
damage because of the WEIGHT of the input pulley (IMHO). If unit
is abruptly shifted from F to R....the keyway in the pulley and/or input shaft
can be damaged over time. Since Peerless is now owned by Husqvarna/Electrolux,
Peerless units will become less and less available. I would imagine Husqvarna
will continue making and selling parts for Peerless units, but "who knows" if
any will be sold by them to other OEM's ?? The 799030 oil & bellows kit is
about the easiest and most effective way to try and get a few more seasons
out of the VST205 series hydros. Once the oil and bellows is changed properly,
and the dirt/debris is kept cleared off top of unit....they seem to work OK.
Because the hydro units are "foot pedal" drive.....converting to a gear drive
system will require MUCH re-manufacturing. As long as you can figure out
a way to shift the gear drive....it will surely work, since gear drives and hydros
were regularly used interchangeably by Murray and others.

In terms of towing and/or ground engagement work of any kind.....these units
(gear drive OR hydro) will do modest amount of pulling of yard carts, spreaders,
etc....BUT, we NEVER MEANT TO be a garden tractor or tow heavy weights. They
were designed to.....CUT GRASS, primarily, and if properly cared for....will do a
pretty decent job doing that. As I said earlier, though.....I'm always OPEN TO
INNOVATION and REMANUFACTURING. If it works.....I'M HAPPY !!!

T-Man

[cverneau]

Glad I found this forum!!

Towards the end of last years cutting season, the mower was a little slower and had problems getting up a couple of slopes - the same thing documented elsewhere on here.
I didn't think much about it as I was going to do a full tune-up this spring and install new belts as I figured that was the problem.
Fast forward to this past weekend - I did the full tune-up, new belts, adjusted the clutch linkage (it was a little off) and the drive forward speed - mower runs like a champ and gets up the slopes with no problems.

Here's my issues:
During the cleaning, I noticed what appeared to be oil slightly leaking from where the forward-reverse engagement shaft (control lever in the parts diagram) enters the transaxle. I cleaned the area really well and found that what's leaking is almost clear. From reading on here I now know it's the hydrostatic fluid. It only leaks slightly when running the mower and is only noticable after cutting the lawn - it does not leak after cooling down. From reading on here, I now know that the only way to fill this hydrostatic fluid is with the bellows kit (799030) or at least taking the plate off, filling and re-using the bellows. I did remove the black rubber plug on the right side (when standing behind the mower and looking at the top) and found very little gear oil inside. I filled with 75w-90 gear oil (about 8 - 10oz) and purchased a new plug as the old one was destroyed when I removed it (p/n 792154).

So here's my question:
Am I correct in understanding that the bellows kit will not help me with the slight leaking problem??
Is there any real fix for this problem or is just replacing the hydrostatic fluid repeatedly the only answer??
For those of you that have pulled one of these apart, is there any bushing or gasket that can be replaced where the control lever enters the transaxle??

The mower (Scotts sold by Home Depot but manufactured by Murray) is 16-17 years old and has been a great workhorse for me and I've never had a problem until now, but I'm not going to buy a replacement transaxle at $500+.
Any thoughts, opinions or pointers??

Thanks....

[T-Man]

This hydro transaxle was never meant to be worked on. Aside from
some external parts (fan, pulley, brake parts, etc) there are NO internal
parts made for it. As far as a leak is concerned.....about all you can do
is try some kind of cold weld compound, or pack the leaking area with
some kind of high temp silicon. The bellows/pressure boot expands
and contracts with changes in heat and pressure inside the case. It's
included with the 799030 kit to allow you to REPLACE THE FLUID inside,
and then purge the air out of the case using this bellows and bellows
plate and some duct tape. The leak will remain only until you find some
way to seal it. If the leak is coming from around the shaft and the case
housings....it will be the toughest kind to try and "jury rig" to fix using
silicon or other kinds of sealants...especially if the case is worn.

T-Man

[cverneau]

For anyone curious...
I removed the rear transaxle this past weekend. Six bolts and two seperate linkages and it drops free.
I drained the hydro side and the gear oil side for about an hour. There was very little fluid in the hydro side (less than a quart), and what was there was completely black and very thin.
I then filled the hydro side with a mixture of Mobil1 15w-50 synthetic and Lucas Oil Stop Leak. I was able to re-use the existing bellows and rear plate and made sure I got all the air out.
Re-installed the transaxle, filled the gear oil side with 75w-90 and fired it up.
It ran better than new!! It moved extremely fast in both forward and reverse and had a lot more power for the couple of hills I have. It tackled everything with no problem like it was new.
Mowed the lawn (about an hour) and then checked where the forward-reverse engagement shaft enters the transaxle to see if there was any leakage. There was a little bit, but nothing like before. I'm hoping that after a few mowings, the mixture of oil and stop leak will sufficiently work its way through everything and hopefully stop the leakage completely. I don't believe it will as this is a rotating shaft that enters the transaxle and not a static seal. If not, at least the new mixture is much thicker than before and should get me through possibly two mowing seasons before I'd have to do this again.
I figure I'll start looking towards the end of this mowing season for a good deal on a new clearance or possibly a used commercial walk behind.
I strongly suggest that this should be done anyway as part of the general maintenance after approximately 100 - 150 hours on the mower as this will greatly improve the longetivity of the mower...

[janb92]

There is a VST to LTH 2000 (successor) conversion kit, order # 799031, available to replace VST models 205-023B and 205-024B,C used in Scotts/Murray tractors.
The kit includes an LTH 2000 hydrostatic transaxle plus any additional parts for those Murray tractors (V-belt, pulley's).

[T-Man]

Some outfit on Ebay called "Mel-Co Parts" has got (what they say to
be) the 799031 conversion kits for $410. That's REAL CHEAP !!! Last
price I saw on these was $600 or more. Do an Ebay search using 799031
I don't mention these because most folks don't want to sink another $600
or more dollars into a 12-15 year Murray tractor. At $410....may be a good
idea for some ??

T-Man