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ronhatch

IMPROVING 42" SD DECK

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ronhatch

I'm tired of the grass clipping blowing out from under the front of my SD 42" mower deck!  SOOO, this weekend I'm installing a 3.5" wide piece of SS with a very small lip (facing inward) on the inside front on the deck shell. It will be only about a 3/4" to 1" below the the existing front lip. The deck is about a 1966/67 vintage mounted on my 1979 C-101. I'll report back on the success or the lack there of.   Now, if only we could get some rain here in northern IL

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JC 1965

I'm very interested in how this will improve the mower deck. Keep us posted.    :thumbs2:

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N3PUY

A lot of decks have the front edge raised.  That is so that the grass can pass under it without getting bent over.  If the grass gets bent over and the blades don't have enough lift then it won't get cut.  

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Ed Kennell

This is a common complaint and many are interested in the results.    Please document with pictures.

A before and after video would really be great.

Edited by Ed Kennell
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953 nut

I changed over to a rear discharge deck a couple of years ago and have not had this problem. When I was using the side discharge I had to take a foxtail bench broom along and sweep off the flywheel screen a few times for each mowing. Not a real big deal, but a minor PITA.

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Sarge

My 48" decks , both from the early '80s do the same thing - I want to add a strip of rubber and back it with a metal strip just as you describe . Half to prevent clippings from being thrown forward and onto the engine's flywheel screen , the other half to increase the side discharge air flow to better spread the clippings out instead of leaving wind rows .

 

Sarge

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pacer

Heh! as usual - different strokes for etc etc.

 

On my yard that would never work, what with the uneven terrain and above ground roots --- and then the REAL reason! Bahaia Grass!:ranting: With its long stems sticking up 8-10" and tough as wire I need the deck to allow them to pass under with out much bending so the blades can have a better chance of cutting. In fact on one of my decks I trimmed off an inch to allow this -- with only minimal help I might add, and, It really did allow more clippings to 'spew' out the front. I sure cant use that deck with the Cyclone Rake:-o

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ronhatch
On 9/16/2017 at 7:21 AM, Sarge said:

My 48" decks , both from the early '80s do the same thing - I want to add a strip of rubber and back it with a metal strip just as you describe . Half to prevent clippings from being thrown forward and onto the engine's flywheel screen , the other half to increase the side discharge air flow to better spread the clippings out instead of leaving wind rows .

 

Sarge

I did that very thing on one of my other decks several years ago using a 4' length of vinyl baseboard from HD and a length of 1/8" thick X 1 1/2" wide flat iron to back it up. It worked fine, but eventually I replaced it with a strip Stainless Steel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by ronhatch
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ronhatch

 Several years ago I added a strip of SS to my other mower decks.

  My 4016 Case with a 48" deck is made out of very thick steel and is a built up unit rather then a stamped unit, therefor there are a lot of sharp corners. I smoothed out the path for the grass clippings by adding a SS front baffle that also hung below the front lip of the deck itself. It now mows great and really blows out the grass clipping from the discharge, not the front of the deck.

  My other garden tractor is a 1966 B-10 AC (same as a Simplicity) with a 42" 3 bladed deck which, many people will agree, has one of the best designed decks on the market. Even though it mowed very well, I was disappointed to see the clippings leaving the discharge in clumps. So once again, I installed a front SS baffle that followed closely the 3 blades and was also about 1" lower then the front of the deck. No more clumps!

  Maybe my northern IL. Kentucky Blue/Fine Fescue grass mixture is just too thick and healthy. :lol:

Edited by ronhatch
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MalMac

Toro made a what they call a leaf baffle for the 42" SD to help with 'this problem. Part # 79-7300-03

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Navig8r

A bit off topic, but not really, my Exmark (pre-toro) 52" had an optional "anti-blowout baffle" available....I added it, and it was night and day.... it dropped the front edge of the deck down, slightly, but I believe not across the whole deck.. I'll try to get more info and a pic.

 

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ronhatch

MY PROGRESS REPORT;

 Removed deck from tractor and cleaned underside of deck using a putty knife, high pressure water and a wire wheel on my right angle grinder.

Using my right angle grinder with a 1/8" cutting wheel, I cut a 5' length of 1/16" stainless steal to 4" wide with a small1/4" lip.

I carefully bent and fitted the piece to follow the inside of the front curve of my deck with the 1/4" lip about a 1/4" below AND facing the blades.              

Using several C clamps to hold everything together, I drilled 6 equally spaced, 1/4" holes for attaching the piece to the deck,

I then removed the SS piece so I could give the complete underside a nice thick coat of E-Z Glide paint. 

After the paint dried, I bolted the whole thing back together using 1/4" SS round head bolts. 

Today, after sharpening the blades, I with mount the deck on the tractor and test out my modification to see if it is all worth while.  :think:

 

After 3 weeks without rain, we finally got a 1/2" a couple of nights ago, so unfortunately, the grass is not exactly growing like crazy. :(

Edited by ronhatch
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ronhatch

  Finally received lots of rain this weekend in norther Illinois, 9.15" to be exact, soooo the grass is growing again. I mowed the lawn today with my new stainless steel front baffle AND I'm happy to report it worked beautifully! Grass clippings/leaves blowing out the side discharge with more 'oomph' then usual, rather then blowing out the front of the deck. :greetings-clappingyellow:                                  Now I'd like to replace the center spindle double pulley with a smaller double pulley from a 36" deck to speed up the blades.  There is always room for improvement!

Edited by ronhatch
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