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mower deck care


Smokey

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Ok guys and gals, the cutting season is upon us and time to pull the chains and plows off and yank out those mower decks from hybernation. Some of us who stored our decks properly will have no worries, while the others may find the worse enemy of steel....rust. My deck is 23 years old and am fortunate to only have a couple of areas of concern, and that's due to frequent cleaning...it does pay off!! I scrape off the built up grass every time I sharpen the blades (once a month) and avoid cutting wet grass. When it is time to sharpen the blades, I will try to mow when the grass is slightly damp from the dew. That will soften the dirt, chaff and built up grass already collected an allow for easy cleaning (using a putty knife, it peels off like a banana) That's my secret, what's yours? Now that I have a irreversible problem (rust) what do you guys recommend to do about it? How can I kill the rust and at the same time repair the small holes? Roof tar, fiberglass, vehicle undercoating, spray-in bedliner, etc? Is there any miracle product out there? Let's here what yall do to care for your decks and what yall recommend to cure worn out, rusting mowers. Thanx Smokey
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i spray graphite or plow sheer coating on agco 918.it doesnt kill rust but does protect decik and makes the grass not stick to deck as much. i to clean deck out and keep everything greashed up.agco918
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Just a little note I went to K-Mart today to buy a putty knife for scraping the decks of my tractors and I found thin plastic ones and there is no way that they can scratch the paint job but they will scrape off the grass. I paid under aq dollar for them so even if they only last a season who cares. Doug
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Smokey, I just placed a deposit on a new Regent today and I asked the dealer the same question. He suggested a product called Mow Ease. It comes in a spray bottel and all you have to do is spray it on. He claims it keeps the grass from sticking to the deck. Has anyone else heard of this? Also, while shopping for the tractor, several dealers mentioned a fitting you can put on the deck to attach a garden hose. I guess you turn that hose on while you engage the blade and let it spin with the water coming in. Has anyone had any experience with this setup? I would be concerned that all the water would cause rust eventually in the pulleys and drive mechanism. Smokey, can the rust spots be sanded and repainted? I would use Rustolium spray paint to touch up the rust areas. Start with a primer coat. Good luck. Marc
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Anybody every try POR-15, a rust inhibitor paint-like substance that actually "loves" rust -- it bonds to it, changes the chemical composition and protects the surface from further rust. It is more like an "undercoating" than paint, but it works on cars... I also restore old VW bugs -- POR-15 really works and can take a beating. I am going to use it on the underside of my SIMPLICITY 36-inch mower deck. (I'm now restoring my 'ol Smokey' 5216H). POR-15 can be bought from auto parts houses and through ads in auto restoration magazines like Hemmings Motor News. Larry Wandel, Sykesville, Maryland
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Grass is acidic, it should be periodically cleaned off metal surfaces. Any paint applied in the beginning of the yr is better than nothing.Epoxy is best.Also any 'swiss cheese' rot holes can be repaired after cleaning and sanding off rust with fiberglass matting and painted.
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I second the recommendation to use POR-15. This stuff is worth it's weight in gold. I use it with fiberglass cloth instead of resin to fix holes in floorboards. The best trick is to cover the outside of the hole with duct tape or if hole is really big use cardboard covered in plastic wrap then apply the POR-15 to the metal let it tack up and then stretch the cloth and wet it out. I have done holes 12" across with 2 layers of cloth and POR-15 and you can still jump up and down on it 5 years later. Good luck, be shure to heed the warning to wear rubber gloves cause it takes at least 5 days to wear off your hands once dry.
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The 800 phone number for por-15 is (800) 457-6715 The web site is POR15.com You have to use it before the time date runs out or it loses some of it rust proofing ability
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