2086 Good, Bad, or Ugly

[jstertz]

Hey guys, I am new to the site. I have found a bunch of good info already. I currently own a 2005 CC1050 lawn tractor. It is a good mower but I am hesitant to put a snow blower on it because of the light duty rearend, frame, etc. I have a '70's CASE 224 with a 48" blower that I currently use. The CASE blower is a single stage and works really well except if the snow gets deeper than 12". Lately, here in Wisconsin we have been getting some heavy snowfalls again. However, a local is selling a '97 2086 with a cab, 54" deck, tire chains, and two stage snow blower for $2500. It doesn't have the rear PTO, the three pt hitch, or wheel weights. I have no knowledge about this animal except for what I have learned on this site. The tractor has 1690 hours on it with a new Kawasaki 20hp about 300 hours ago. It has some surface rust on the sheetmetal but seems solid. There is no damage to the hood or side panels. We ran it today and it started and ran really smooth with no smoke but it had a fairly loud pump sound upon startup that gradually lessened the longer it ran. It sounded like it was coming from under the hood. Since I have no prior experience with these tractors, should I be concerned about this. Are there other problems that the 2086's are known to have, that I should inspect for. How durable are these tractors. I would like to purchase it, repaint it, and sell my 1050 LT. Are there common wear points to look for? Tell tale signs of problems with the hydro unit, rear end, p steering, etc. Any thoughts on the price or durability of these machines would be much appreciated by this newbie!

 

[agitch]

If I had the money i'd probably buy it since it has a new engine, thrower, and cab. Go for it.

 

[rpatton]

Josh , overall they are a nice tractor , I had quite a few of the supers like that with kohler ,kubota diesel and kubota gas .
weak points are plastic front end , expensive to replace . Make sure the rear end is tight where it bolts to the frame , they tend to come loose and the brake where they mount at the front . I have had a few broken in that area .
you will love cutting grass with it , they are comfortable to run

 

[jstertz]

Rich, thanks for the info. Do you think I should be concerned about the pump whine I heard on start up? It was a similar sound to a automobile power steering pump running low on fluid. The temp outside was about 20 degrees the day we ran it. It gradually got quieter as the tractor warmed up. Do they all make this noise?

 

[mgonitzke]

They will all do that when it's cold. Or at least every one I have had has done that. That's why you let the tractor warm up before using it.

 

[jstertz]

Thanks Matt, that is good to know. What is the fastest ground speed that these will typically cut grass? My 224 Case was pretty slow and my 1050 is around 4.5 mph.

 

[mjdewitt]

My 1862 had a bad pump whine when I got that went away as it warmed up. I think a bad whine will travel along the driveshaft/tunnel and echo off the engine making the sound appear as if it coming from the front of the tractor as well. I think that this is what you heard.

My hydro fluid was full of water and was very milky. Changing it has made it much better and now only whines badly when it's freezing cold out. I think a couple more changes and the fluid will be much clearer. With all the hydraulics of these tractors, I think it is difficult to get all of the bad fluid out in one shot without taking the lines apart. Since my tractor is not leaking anything anywhere, I am loathe to touch anything

Although noisy, my hydro is very torquey and strong. If you have a chance, take it for a ride and see what the launch and responsiveness is like after it warms up. I have found if you move the hydro lever quickly, you should get a quick reaction that you can feel in the seat of your pants. Also, Check the hydro fluid on the tractor for level, color and viscosity. I bet it hasn't been changed in a long time.

Even if the hydro proves eventually to be a problem, you can pick them up fairly easily. Not knowing how bad my hydro was, I picked up a backup used hydro for $100. I capped all the ports and it has been sitting in a box in my basement for a year now.

Best of luck.

Mike

 

[agitch]

Mine is also noisy when it's really cold. Even noises will come from the area of my hyd valve and cylinder. Once warmed up it quiets down.

 

[jstertz]

I will go over and take it for a "test drive" tomorrow and observe for responsiveness. Pardon my ignorance but do I need a wrench to check the hydro fluid or is there some sort of fill tube or dipstick! Have you guys had any experience with the Kawasaki motor. If it is built with the same quality as my bike then it should be a solid motor. I seem to remember some issues someone had with one of these referenced elsewhere in this forum. Does this motor tend to be reliable providing proper maintenence?

 

[mjdewitt]

If you move the seat forward, you will expose the the hydro dipstick.

 

[T-Mo]

That Kawasaki engine is commercial grade - a very good engine. The only thing is that it probably has the plastic cam gear that Kawasaki used in the 90's. These plastic cam gears have a history of breaking, using after 500 hours. If it does have the plastic cam gear, there is a steel cam gear kit you can get to upgrade it. Some of these units might have already been retrofitted with the steel cam gear.