What’s the easiest way to prop the mower up to remove the blades for sharpening?
be it’s time
What’s the easiest way to prop the mower up to remove the blades for sharpening?
be it’s time
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Replies
I get the ramps out for the pick up truck and drive it half way up and park it. I can then get under it easier to get them off.
BTW...Better to drive it up there yourself than lay under it and have your wife drive it up. ;)
Well, as long as I got you on the horn...
Is there a way to get the mower deck rollers up off the ground?
I looked but didn't readily see what the setup was and sometimes want to use it without the drag of the rollers touching the ground.
Thanks
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I lift my Troybilt w/ a hydaulic jack ( at the rear trailer hitch plate) and put 8" crete blocks under the tires for blade changes.
As far as the anti scalp wheels, if you take em off, the deck can tilt outta whack and cause headaches. But they should unbolt. the front roller on the deck is gonna affect cutting height IIRC.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Welcome to Poo-ville, can I have your socks?Seriously Folks, I need a home for 3 lovers of your life.
There should be a lever between the seat and the floor- at least that's where it is on my Dad's 12hp mower.
The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man.- Fyodor Dostoyevski
Simplicity is the simplest deck to remove and reinstall... did it through college summers at a dealer and as an owner for many years.
Two hitch pins and a push (or pull) a handle to release the belt tension and pull the belt off the pulleys, Raise the front deck bar off the support under the engine. Turn the steering wheel to full lock and slide the deck out, Reverse for installation.
I can remove or install the deck in less than a minute. You can too after a bit of practice.
A La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.
Was looking at that yesterday.
Thanks.
Still seems the design could have had a feature that would raise the rollers off the ground if needed.
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Edited 4/23/2008 11:07 am ET by rez
Yes, that was a piece of cake. Amazing what reading and following directions sometimes will do.
If you are somewhat versed in these Simplicity machines could I bend your ear a moment.
Removed the mower deck and drove it a hundred yards to where I was to swap out a flat tire. Had it blocked up where the wheels were just off the ground, fixed the tire and thought I was good to go.
But what I had done during the lift of placing the backside of the tractor on the block is pulled the Release Lever on the back (Hydro model) and after pushing it back in I cannot get the thing to engage.
Tho' the lever is pushed all the way back in I can still push the mower as it is not engaged.
Is there an easy fix to this as the location of the other end of the lever is way cramped for access without what looks to be a major removal to get where I can see what the problem is (hopefully as in a simple disconnect perhaps).
Thanks
That lever is a PITA, almost as bad as pushing a Hydrostat.
I had that happen and fought with it for a bit. The actuating rod actually gets longer as the bends straighten. I've always been able to move the mower a bit while working the actuator and it eventually engages the 'stat. If that doesn't work, you could bend one of the angles in the rod with some rather large pliers/crescent wrenches.
Keep at it... it'll go. A La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.
Well that beats having to tear into it so that's some good news.
Thanks
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Well I got playing around with it today and found my hand is able to access the connection end of the rod and the 'stat' is completely closed as it is touching the molded stop and can go no further.
I am out of options trying to think of what it may be as all I did different after driving it to the work area is pull out that rod and lift it up on to the block so the wheels weren't touching, changed the tire and let it back down.
Any last bit of advice to try before I fix it with a hammer? 8-o
Thanks
To change blades I always just pull the deck off my JD. It's a hassle, but not too bad really. As far as cleaning the deck goes, I give it a quick scrape with a painter's 5 in 1 to get the big hunks and then hit it with a wire cup in the angle grinder. Does a real nice job. I blow the loose dry stuff off the deck, mower, and motor/housing with the backpack blower as soon as I get off it.View Image
Did you release the parking brake before hitting it with a hammer?A La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.
Yes, it's an odd thing.
I'm thinking it has to(hopefully) be something simple.
It will start and sit there running and be able to push it around by hand.
Stick my hand up by the tranny and manually check and make sure the linkage mechanism at the end of that actuating rod is engaged
and the knowledge that all I did was drive the mower up by the house to switch the tire, manually lift the tractor up by hand to pull it back the couple inches to rest the trailer bracket on a block thereby putting the tires a half inch off the ground.
Can't see how I could have messed something up doing that little deal.
You thinking it's time to call the dealership?
be in the meantime the spring grass is growing
Edited 5/13/2008 11:34 am ET by rez
I assume you checked the fluid level in the 'stat... kinda ticky about that. Also, try pushing the mower backwards/forwards a bit while holding tension on the engagement rod... sometimes works.
Have you checked to make sure the drive belt/tensioner is correct? Sounds simple, but you may have relocated it in your efforts.
Call your servicing dealer with the symptoms. Most of the time the service dept will give some free information... that kind of service call will not be a happy one for the guy who needs to push it on the trailer. ( "why, oh why, to they always fail at the bottom of a hill from the driveway?")A La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.
Ah, the drive belt/tensioner.
the plot thickens
mucho gradis
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I fear I may have screwed the pooch.
Seeing the mower could be pushed even with the release lever engaged and one could see the belts were spinning and the tranny pully was turning,
I concluded that the worst of my fears were being realized as with the parking brake released and the engine running
and forward and reverse pedals were engaged but no movement except an ever so slight movement in whatever direction the pedal was engaged.
So I checked the tranny oil and it was down a tad in that it wasn't covering the filter in there and was suppose to be up at a mark in the neck
so I added the appropriate oil which took about a 1/4 quart which accomplished zilch as trying to move it again afterwards changed nothing.
However, in the process I notice on top of the tranny near where the tranny oil is filled, I noticed a single hole facing up like a bolt was needed in it.
Checking the online manual diagram I see that hole is suppose to contain a vent valve which must have bounced out somehow. Now I fear junk has found it's way thru the open hole which might have screwed the tranny up.
This is once last charge up the mountain before I'm forced to take in in somewhere.
Any last ditch checks I could make before that grand finale?
Thanks
Edited 5/26/2008 7:50 pm ET by rez
uh ohA La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.
You spoke of a filter, any possibility it needs cleaned or changed ?
I dunno. Fairly new tractor. Less than a couple hundred hours at most.
knees are shaking and I got the pushmower out the other day.
My mowable yard suddenly decreased in size dramatically.
Looks like the orchard will go back to a field.
Edited 5/28/2008 11:20 am ET by rez
The hydrostat on mine has a couple little pins that stick out of valves located on top of the hydrostat housing. There is a rod with a lever on one end and a bend in it over these pins. When you pull the lever down it pushes these pins in allowing the valves to bypass so the mower can be pushed.
In the past I have had trouble with these pins, it's a good place for dirt to collect around them. I don't know if there are springs to make them return to there original possition, or if oil pressure pushes them back out. I sprayed them with WD or PB blaster and tapped on them lightly, when I started the motor they did come back out, and the hydro worked ok.
Keep in mind this is a tractor that Boss would not own, and a 1984 model so your situation might be a little different.
I was asking about the filter because you said the vent piece was missing, if the filter still has factory paint on it, might want to consider changing it.
Good Luck
Thanks. This Simplicity has the rod deal ending at a lever on the housing that is either engaged or not. I can move it with my hand and it is engaged flush against a stop. Wish that were it.
Ugly thing is I can see the wheels move ever so slight like it wants to go when crouching down there next to it while running and moving the forward and reverse pedals back and forth.
Hard to figure out as it always ran great and I drove it up to the house after removing the mower deck with no problem so I'm stumped.
Bet it's that damn rod not engaging something inside the tranny.
be Don't Fear the Dealer
Edited 5/28/2008 8:41 pm ET by rez
rez, on my old LawnBoy tractor I have a speed selector for H-L range that sometimes doesn't quite engage if I'm using it, and then the tractor behaves like yours .. just a thought !but I would pull the drain plug change the filter and then attack the hyd valve if mine was acting the same way before I finally bit the bullet and took it in since mine is 20 yrs old
and I have all the manuals to rebuild itooops.... two pictures.
.
.. . . . . . . .
Congratulations!
rez receives the
Prize Bonehead Award.
Saaalute!View Image View Image
UHMMM, OK so what is the story?
Did you get it running?
They can't get your Goat if you don't tell them where it is hidden.
ya
Spill the beans.
Be a beanerSpheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations
"We strive for conversion,we get lost in conversation, and wallow in consternation. "Me.
well, I kept thinking it should be something simple since all I did was remove the mower deck and then drove it up to the house to work on it.
Swapped the tire and rim out with a replacement and then let the mower back down off it's one inch perch. I'd had a prob with the drive belt getting wedged down off the pulley a tad so I had to take that into consideration too but couldnt see how that would fug anything up and seeing it drove up to the house ok after that.
Then messing with that release rod used when needing to push the mower was something else to investigate.
Then the tranny oil level down below the filter where it took 1/4 quart to bring it back up and that didnt seem like anything.
Then noticing the hole like a bolt hole in the housing next to the tranny oil tube deal and that was a whattheheyIdon'tknownothingaboutthatkindofdeal thing so I order the little 4 dollar plastic cap with a $6 dollar shipping charge apparatus and had to drive 20 miles to the dealers to pick it up when it came in and then back
and still don't know about that cap thing since the dealer didn't know too much about it after looking at a diagram from what might have been a similar but not exact schematic of my model and it doesn't seem like that capvent thing belongs in that hole.
Told the guys at the dealers I couldn't figger out what happened and they couldn't either till a bored mechanic came in from out back listening in to the conversation where I retold the story of what I did and what could it be when he said
" I bet you lost yer key on the axle. Those aren't positraction and if the key is gone it won't move."
Well, I did line it up with the key on the axle and then pushed the rim on instead of adding it from the outside after the rim was on.
So I got the metal dectector out since they had no keys in stock and went out to where the mower had been when the deed transpired and threw a screw to the ground to adjust the detector.
Moved it over 6 inches and a beep was heard so 30seconds to locate the key. Put it on and she runs back to normal. Lubed 'er up and mowed all day playing catchup.
Was happy to get it fixed without a big expense so I didn't care if I told on myself here.
I figger others have prob done bonehead stuff like that before so what the hey, maybe I am normal after all.
The End
Edited 6/6/2008 8:35 pm ET by rez
Sweet!
BTD close to T with a few times myself.
Happy it's happy and running.
They can't get your Goat if you don't tell them where it is hidden.
I hook a come-along to the rear hitch of my big Monkey-Wards mower, the other to a beam on the tractor shed, and pull it up. Two empty 5-gal paint buckets shoved under ensure that if it falls it will only maim me...
It's interesting what extraordinary methods people will go to to clean their lawnmowers. Until three years ago, when I lived on ten acres, this was a problem for me too. I had a Kubota tractor, and the mower would not lift high enough to really get at the packed grass. I tried several ways to avoid the sweaty job of just getting on my back under there and scraping. I also had a Cub Cadet. About once a week I had to take off the cutting deck to turn it over and clean it. Way too difficult!
These problems could be solved by some decent engineering, but I don't think the major mower companies (a few make most of the brands) are going to move off of the starting line on anything that makes life easier. That would be like Detroit making cars more maintenance-friendly!
I just crank the compressor up and blow the packed grass out with that instead of water, which can cause rust. Gotta lift it up to get to the blades. Pressure washer for a shredder.
A friend of mine with a 14 acre orchard has a SKAG zero-turn commercial mower that allows you to change the blades from the top.
Wish they weren't over $5K or I'd have one as soon as I could get DW to get a second job...
I tried the air compressor route. Believe me, I tried! I tried water too, and a 3000 psi sprayer. These methods are great for starters, but a thick putty knife and elbow grease is still the best method out there. Better accesibilty through better engineering would make the manual cleaning method less difficult.
Wonder if a good thick coat of wax after cleaning might help for next time?
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I think that the only thing that will prevent or retard buildup under a mower deck is to have smooth surfaces. Most mowers have baffles, projecting bolts, ridges etc. Once grass starts collecting there and getting compressed, especially when very wet, nothing will stop it from packing.
It is more difficult to design and manufacture a superior deck. Why should they do it as long as people are buying the ones that are out there now?
The other thing needed is a better method of getting under the deck - through removal or tilting up. This would be less important if the deck were self-cleaning.
I'm half tempted to smear the undercarraige with a coating of grease
that way once the buildup begins there would be that coating against the metal and what can adhere well to grease?
Seems that would simplify the scraping procedure anyhow.
What part of the country do you hail from?
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Edited 4/26/2008 10:04 am ET by rez
Leavenworth. I think the grease would help for a while, but do you want all that grease in your yard?
Take the deck off and clean it with a wire wheel or such as clean as you can get it. Then spary the bejeezus outta it with PAM cooking spray. It may not keep all the grass from sticking, but what does will release easier.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Welcome to Poo-ville, can I have your socks?Seriously Folks, I need a home for 3 lovers of your life.
I've tried spraying with SlipPlate graphite spray. Didn't appear to do any good.
What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite. --Bertrand Russell