Handy Don 12,235 #51 Posted July 4, 2022 3 hours ago, Jeff-C175 said: So I installed them with flat washers underneath You've given me a great idea, thanks! I'll use nylon washers, though. 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EB-80/8inPA 1,653 #52 Posted July 4, 2022 4 hours ago, Jeff-C175 said: I didn't like the fact that the flange for the belt covers sat directly on the top of the deck, and this was an area where there was quite a bit of rust. Dirt and moisture would collect there and abrade the paint and rust. So I installed them with flat washers underneath in order to create an air gap between the flange and the deck top. Also, I decided against using seam sealer on the reinforcement plates on the bottom of the deck. Pretty much for the same reason... unless I can 100% guarantee that ZERO water would get in, they would only TRAP the water. At least there would be SOME chance of it drying out if they are 'open'. I tried something similar but used nuts instead of washers to retain the screws for ease of later removal. Now the cover sits too high and rubs the deck drive belt when raised. I was going to simply remove them and apply some Fluid Film or something, but now I think I’ll try your washer idea and see how that lines things up. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #53 Posted July 7, 2022 (edited) I'm not terribly thrilled with the way the RD throws out the clippings. I thought it would lay down an 'even' layer of clippings but it doesn't do that at all. I get worse clumps of grass than I do with the 48" SD deck. Maybe the grass was too long? Need to mow more often than with the 48" ? Also, I think I need to do a good rebalance of the blades. I did a quick check and they seemed OK, but when I run this up to speed I get this weird sort of harmonic vibration. It's pretty loud too, the Treasurer heard it all the way in the house and came out to see what was going on. I can best describe it as a " WOOOOO ---- WOOOOO ---- WOOOO --- WOOOO " sort of noise with a repetition of say 1 second or so. It gets WAY worse the faster I run it. Does this sound like a blade balance issue? Anyone ever have the same or similar and traced it to blade balance? The reason I believe this to be a balance issue is based on a problem I had decades ago with a Mercury Cougar. Around town, no trouble... on the highway at a constant speed the same sort of thing would happen, Vibration / Quiet / Vibration / Quiet ... and it turned out to be the driveshaft balance. A balancing weight weld on the driveshaft came loose and the weight fell off. I think the harmonic issue came from interplay between the wheel balance (which was also bad) and the drive shaft. The vibration would SUM, then CANCEL, then SUM, etc... Also... the bottom of the MID Attach-a-Matic release handle/bracket thingy will hit the top of the deck with the adjuster thingies at the bottom of the bottom of the slot. I had to raise the adjuster thingies in the slot in order to prevent the interference of the deck and the A-A-M handle/bracket thingy. I might start by cutting say a half inch off the bottom of the A-A-M bracket. AND, with the deck fully raised, the rubber pads don't contact the bottom of the footrests as I believe they should, they're about 1/2" away. I need to look, I think there's maybe an adjustment for this? Didn't notice until I took the picture that the lift arm had been hitting the footrest at some point in time. Not now that I can see though... wonder why that is? May have contributed to the broken/cracked brackets. It also seems that there is an issue with the 'lock' in the raised position. I have to pull it back really hard to get it to engage at all, and then if I drive with it raised, it will unlatch by itself and fall. Maybe another adjustment, or possibly something worn in the mechanism. You can see that the rod isn't going all the way into the slot. So far I'm feeling like I did all that work for nothing... Edited July 7, 2022 by Jeff-C175 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Horse Newbie 7,073 #54 Posted July 7, 2022 I am anxiously awaiting answers to these questions… never had a RD deck… without ever having one I was already mainly concerned that those clippings coming out the back would contaminate and clog areas to the rear of tractor too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #55 Posted July 7, 2022 Just now, Horse Newbie said: I am anxiously awaiting answers to these questions… never had a RD deck… without ever having one I was already mainly concerned that those clippings coming out the back would contaminate and clog areas to the rear of tractor too. Don't remember who said it, but it was mentioned that a tow behind sweeper is the 'implement du jour' for a RD deck. That would be difficult to use on my property though, too much reversing... I know I'd jack knife it first pass... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #56 Posted July 7, 2022 47 minutes ago, Horse Newbie said: contaminate and clog areas to the rear of tractor too One of my concerns also, specifically the trans cooling fan, etc... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snoopy11 5,714 #57 Posted July 7, 2022 How about a flap of rubber material that hangs down and rubs on the ground on the back of the deck, Jeff? Don 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #58 Posted July 7, 2022 20 minutes ago, Snoopy11 said: How about a flap of rubber material that hangs down and rubs on the ground on the back of the deck, Jeff? Don Like this that's already on there, but longer? 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snoopy11 5,714 #59 Posted July 7, 2022 1 hour ago, Jeff-C175 said: Like this that's already on there, but longer? Yeah, that is what I was thinking... maybe another couple of inches... Don 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #60 Posted July 7, 2022 24 minutes ago, Snoopy11 said: Yeah, that is what I was thinking... maybe another couple of inches... Don I might try that, I have some material I can use. I believe that it will only 'ball up' the clippings though, but it's easy enough to try. Need to get the other problems figured out first... like why it won't stay UP ! Playing 'doctor', I stripped the patient down a bit and took a look into the deep dark parts... When I pull the handle all the way back, the lift arm is hitting the steering bracket. I need to take the deck off again to be sure, but it appears that the lift arm may actually be bent a little bit. I'm also going to take a look at my other machine and compare the two. Maybe they're all like that? Loosening adjustment nut #23 is no help because then the deck does not come up high enough... in fact, it already seems to not raise high enough. Need to check bushing at #28 and I'm not sure what's at the other end of that. Thinking is just a hole in the frame that may be wallowed out and allow that arm to move over and hit the steering thingy. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EB-80/8inPA 1,653 #61 Posted July 7, 2022 (edited) 3 hours ago, Jeff-C175 said: I'm not terribly thrilled with the way the RD throws out the clippings. I thought it would lay down an 'even' layer of clippings but it doesn't do that at all. I get worse clumps of grass than I do with the 48" SD deck. It was explained to me by a guy who mowed for a cemetery and maintained their WH equipment that the primary benefit of the RD deck was that it didn’t spray the headstones with clippings (the cleaning of which would be another needless maintenance task). So, to my knowledge, that’s the primary benefit of the RD deck type, which would be consistent with the tendency of clippings to pile up behind the machine and hence the need for a collector. I have no idea why they come out clumpy. I don’t know why that deflector is angled side to side either. To make clumps? Edited July 7, 2022 by EB-80/8inPA 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snoopy11 5,714 #62 Posted July 7, 2022 3 hours ago, Jeff-C175 said: I can best describe it as a " WOOOOO ---- WOOOOO ---- WOOOO --- WOOOO " sort of noise with a repetition of say 1 second or so. It gets WAY worse the faster I run it. A couple of thoughts... Loosen, wiggle, and retorque the blades. Second... I would try a rubber cogged belt, and try... just to see if that helps... (I had the same issue you are describing on one of my machines... and when I changed to the rubber cogged, it stopped)... I think the coated belts slip some... causing that sound... Don 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snoopy11 5,714 #63 Posted July 7, 2022 (edited) 22 minutes ago, EB-80/8inPA said: I have no idea why they come out clumpy. I don’t know why that deflector is angled side to side either. To make clumps? Well, it is a type of 'rotary mower' that we see on big tractors... which I have seen 3 versions of. The first version uses a piece of rubber that drags the ground... The second version uses chains The third version uses a roller... Don Edited July 7, 2022 by Snoopy11 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #64 Posted July 7, 2022 1 minute ago, Snoopy11 said: a roller Thought that was for 'striping' ? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EB-80/8inPA 1,653 #65 Posted July 7, 2022 2 minutes ago, Jeff-C175 said: Thought that was for 'striping' ? What? That’s not for finishing off any mice that might have escaped the whirring blades of death? 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snoopy11 5,714 #66 Posted July 7, 2022 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Jeff-C175 said: Thought that was for 'striping' ? BUT... if the rubber idea just makes it clump... I would try running the mower WITHOUT any guard.. and see if it is any better. If it is... I would go with chains... I have heard of people doing that on their zero turn mowers for this very reason... they claim that the more open the chute area is... the more the grass spreads. I'm not positive, but I think the chains just keep objects from flying out... like rocks... EDIT: matter of fact, before you make a new rubber dragger thingy... I would run the mower without anything and see how you like it... Don Edited July 7, 2022 by Snoopy11 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #67 Posted July 7, 2022 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Snoopy11 said: run the mower without anything Good thought... try easiest stuff first. Of course then I might need to figure out an alternate way to keep the clippings off the back of the machine. I hear that's a pretty major turn-off for RD users, and the PO told me that's why he put the cove molding on. I was looking at my chain collection earlier today trying to decide which ones I could sacrifice to the mower. I'm probably going to have to always rake that section of the yard anyway. I don't know what kind of grass it is, or where it came from, but it is a DENSE mat of grass that stays green even through dry July/August weather. It started about four years ago with a small patch and has spread to cover almost the whole front grass area. It's got a seed head that I've not seen before. Maybe it's aliens... Also interesting is that it is so dense that it excludes the clover from growing into it You can pretty clearly see where it ISN'T ... there's either clover, or dried up brown. It's not Zoysia or Bermuda, that I'm certain of. I would like to learn what it is because I would seed the entire yard with it. Edited July 7, 2022 by Jeff-C175 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
8ntruck 7,016 #68 Posted July 7, 2022 My 42" RD deck will leave a wind row between the center blade and the left hand blade. It is worse when cutting taller grass. I am following your investigation into the lift lever not latching in the up position. I have similar issues with the RD deck mounted on my 14-8. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #69 Posted July 7, 2022 5 minutes ago, 8ntruck said: between the center blade and the left hand blade Mine is more on the right side. I'll keep ya posted! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 12,235 #70 Posted July 8, 2022 5 hours ago, Jeff-C175 said: Like this that's already on there, but longer? I'll try to get an image, but the one I installed on the 42RD extends a good 4" and is notched at the ends to not hit the rear tractor wheels. On dry mowings running under an 8-speed, we get some dust/debris on the drawbar and a bit on the insides of the rear wheel rims, but not much. Biggest issue is that if cutting off more 2.5-3" of grass, the clippings lay on top of the mown lawn so I could see the sweeper idea for some folks. On the 42" recycler that we just put into service, we have no flap and no on-top clippings but we do have to run a bit slower to get a thorough cut if the grass is a bit high (a hydro is handy for this). 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 12,235 #71 Posted July 8, 2022 2 hours ago, Jeff-C175 said: Mine is more on the right side. I'll keep ya posted! Rounded ends on the blades can cause this. Also, be sure the tensioner is moving freely with enough tension to keep all the blades spinning. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #72 Posted July 8, 2022 (edited) 12 minutes ago, Handy Don said: Rounded ends on the blades can cause this. Also, be sure the tensioner is moving freely with enough tension to keep all the blades spinning. Blades in good shape, only a very very tiny bit rounded on the ends. I did have to correct the angle quite a bit when I sharpened them and the idler bar is nearly new along with new plastic bushings. It slides nicely. I think the grass was just a bit too long... trying to save gasoline! Edited July 8, 2022 by Jeff-C175 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
biged77 113 #73 Posted July 8, 2022 I also get a line of clippings toward the right side when mowing high grass or really thick grass like Zoysia. If it's really bad I mow over the line of clippings on the next pass. I don't have a guard on the back of the mower and have never had a problem throwing rocks, etc. I think you can get the deck to lock in the up position by adjusting item 23 even though the deck might be lower than desired. I tried to raise mine and when I did the deck wouldn't lock. That's some good looking grass, I'd like to know what it is. You have done a great job on the deck, I hope you work out the problems and are able to enjoy it. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff-C175 7,202 #74 Posted July 8, 2022 12 hours ago, biged77 said: like to know what it is Me too! All my searching on the web and I can't seem to make a definite ID. I had some pics of the seed head but can't find them now so I'm going to let some go to seed and get some pics to bring to the experts. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Horse Newbie 7,073 #75 Posted July 8, 2022 This is seed heads on Bermuda… 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
