honda harmony HRM215 lower oil seal replacement

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I took my honda lawnmower out of winter hibernation today. It had leaked a fair amount of oil from the lower shaft seal. The past few winters it had leaked a few drops, but this time it dumped enough to cover a floor mat thay i had underneath it.

Does anyone have any hints or tricks before I dig into it?

Its a 1998 honda harmony 215 (hrm2153hxa)
 
Make sure it's the shaft seal. My 215 leak turned out to be the of the crankcase screws fell out. These screws are up underneath and bolt the lower portion of the crankcase to the upper. The screws were loose long before the one fell out, and it leaked slightly.
 
Thanks for the tip. I will check the scews out.

I had stopped for the night. I couldn't get the center 14mm shaft bolt out. I could't figure out a way to lock the clutch or shaft so it wouldn't turn when you try to remove the shaft bolt.

But, I will check the screws first.
 
Yikes! If the lower crankcase cover bolts are loose, there's little/nothing supporting the output end of the crankshaft. Gotta make sure those are tight.

Also, a leaky crank seal on a pushmower can be indicative of a bent crankshaft.

Joel
 
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Thanks for the link. The parts pictures help me take things apart.

It was the lower shaft seal.
2012-04-15_21-36-37_391.jpg


It took me a few hours to figure out how to remove everything. I was amazed at all the grass that I found hidden above the plate that shields the belt. It was packed in there.

I am going to replace the seal and the belt. The belt lookes good but its 15 years old.

Here is where I am at now:

2012-04-15_21-37-02_967.jpg

2012-04-15_21-37-42_858.jpg


For those searching on the net for how to do this, here a few tips:

1. Impact gun helps to remove the 14mm center shaft bolt. The shaft just turns if you try a socket set.

2. You don't have to remove rear transmission spring. You can just tilt the trans down to release tension on the belt.

Those are the two things that took me the longest to figure out.
 
Ross, good info and nice pics!

You've might have read me chirping about this in other threads... Where you've got that left rear wheel removed, see that little drive gear in there? Behind those gears are the drive axle bushings. They bind-up so bad over time and put so much drag on the hydrostat, that it will cook the trans.

There's a couple of snap-rings, a key, bushings, and washers in the way, but the only way to lube them is to remove or just replace them with new.

Joel
 
Thanks for the heads up Joel. I will remove the snap rings and lube them.

I went to the local honda parts store today and ordered a new belt and seal. Hopefully i will remember how it all goes back together again.
 
Originally Posted By: Ross
Thanks for the heads up Joel. I will remove the snap rings and lube them.


I generally line the parts up the way they go back on and/or take some pics. It's a pretty clever setup. Fairly simple.

If the bushings are tight, you can run some emery cloth thru them, spray them out with something like WD40, then re-grease. If they are already snug (lot of friction to roll the axle), just re-greasing won't cut it. They'll tighten right back up. I know that's where I'm at with my old HRS216SDA. I need to replace the bushings on that one. I took it apart, cleaned and regreased, but they tightened right back up after one use. It's ~13yrs old.

Joel
 
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I removed, cleaned and greased the drive bushings and put everyting back together. Thankfully everything is working too!

One question. Can you drain and fill the hydrostatic trany, without having to remove it from the mower?
 
Good to hear!

In regards to the trans, I don't know of a way to drain/fill it w/out removing the whole thing- in stock form anyway.

You could probably drill/tap the case for a drain if you wanted to.

Joel
 
Mine is honda hrb215 k4 hxa built in 2000 and have exactly the same symptoms i.e. slow leak for last couple of years and this year, all the oil leaked out during the winter storage.

I am uncertain about the clutch and/or blade brake clutch mechanism. do I to take it apart to get to the oil seal? I have impact wrenches, so taking off the center bolt should be straightforward as long as it was torqued under 100 ft-lb. Using the impact, I can change the blades in literally 30 seconds flat!

After taking off the center 14mm bolt, what else do I have to do? Does the blade holder just drops down or I need some puller to remove it from the shaft?

In the other topic, you mentioned fair amount of work. I would love to hear more from you.
 
Vikas, try googling your model Honda mower. Some of the Honda parts diagrams online can be quite helpful if you're unsure how something comes off.

From my experience with Honda OPE, they're certainly not built like tanks, but they tend to come apart (and go back together) smartly and easily.
 
I did fix the driving wheels; as long as the seal replacement is no more complicated than that procedure, I should be able to do it. I do have a printed service manual which I picked up on the ebay but somebody else who has done it for real can provide real world advice.
 
There is a youtube video that shows how to change the belts on a honda engine. I think its a craftsman steel deck but the procedure is the same as ours.

That video was a great help to me. Search honda lawnmower belts in youtube.

The center bolt is not an issue. I didn't have a impact gun, and it came off without to much effort.

The seal come out with the use of a small pick or pointed object.

The job isn't that bad.
 
I can't get the piece that holds the blades on! Any clues on how to do that! I have already taken the 14mm bolt off but it's not coming off!
 
Its been 5 years since anyone posted - maybe I'm the only one still using my 1990 lawnmower !

My oil seal finally went, and was leaking like crazy. The sump ran out, the engine stopped, but when I gave it more oil it came back to life! Amazing motor!

Anyway, I just replaced the seal:

- got the seal from amazon after getting the number from Plano Power Equipment's web site

- to get the center nut out, take the gas tank off and use a crow bar between the flywheel and either the magnetic pickup or a post
NOTE: be VERY careful to NOT go between the magnet that is glued to the flywheel! Double check the torque direction!!!!!!

- getting the guard housing off requires removing the left wheel (to get at one bolt), and removing he captured nut from inside the discharge chute
NOTE: you can try penetrating fluid, but usually the nut just spins and won't come off. I used a sawzall to cut the bolt off between the housing and the chute. This may slightly damage the guard housing but its the price you pay. This may be the most complex part of the job!

- note carefully how all the parts come off, its not immediately obvious later on how to replace them

- to get the blade clutch off, you need to compress the spring and then slide the cable end off. I found a C-clamp used for wood working worked well (the kind that slide on a rectangular shaft, then have a screw for finer control).
NOTE: my control was covered in oil and grass so removed it and cleaned it in gasoline

- I squirted penetrating oil for the inner pulley that uses a Woodruff key inside, and was then able to pull it off by hand without a puller.

Now you can access the seal!

- while others said they pried it out, I didn't want to scratch the crank so I drilled a small hole in the top of the seal (metal underneath), then slight screwed in a dry wall screw, and a slight pull got the seal to pop right out.

--- This is a good time to use compressed air to blow all the dead grass and leaves that tend to accumulate around the carburetor linkage! 111

Cleaned the receptacle well (don't spray it directly, fluid will get into the crank!), then lubed the crank and the interior of the seal, finally pushed in the new seal by hand.

When I got to putting the guard housing back, I used a normal bolt and nut, then with the sawzall trimmed the bolt end that protruded above the nut inside the chute.

RESULT: no more oil leaks!!!
 
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