Jump to content

Unofficial Home of Old Simplicity & Allis-Chalmers Garden Tractors

7117 mower deck cutting height adjustments?


mroman59

Recommended Posts

On my mower deck there are two height adjustment handles, one on each side located on the deck. When I turn these levers I can see the back of the deck raise and lower, however it does not seem like they allow for raising enough for allowing for high grass depths. Are these handles just for leveling each side only? Do you normally use the lift for adjusting for grass depth? I thought the hydraulic lift was just for raising the deck when going over something you wanted to avoid hitting. If I were to use the lift to raise the deck for cutting then the rollers may not touch the ground, depending on the setting, and you will not get the advantage of the free floating design. If I let the deck all the way down. Could other adjustments come into play for raising the deck for cutting various depths of grass. sorry this tractor is new to me, picked it up on ebay and put new engine on it and have only had recent desire to adjust it to leave that grass high so it does not burn out grass in the summer, plus we have had a lot of rain and the grass has gotten high a couple of times and by the time i go to cut it I have to much clippings to rake up that I am trying to avoid but cutting it high.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

You just found out one of the complaints on the sovereigns. The cutting height is only like 3 1/8 inchs when everything is in good working order. Worn rollers both inside and out, worn rod, and suddenly you are under 2 1/2. I am replacing the rod and rollers on mine as soon as the new rollers hit the doorstep.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can also adjust the height of the front of the deck, which, depending upon how it is set, can help too. There are two turnbuckles in the very front of the deck that adjust the height of the mounting bracket. New rollers are a big help too. I have new rollers on order as we speak, and as it is I currently cut with the deck as high as it will cut.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

with many modifications I was able to cut 4 1/2 You do have to keep the front of mower 1/2 inch higher than the back I have put Sovereign tires and rims on my old Broadmoor to achieve this also
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The lift Hydraulic/electric/manual is for lifting the deck only not for setting cutting height. Using the lift to adjust cutting height can result in damaged drive belts. the cutting height is adjusted by the turn buckles in the front and the T handle adjusters at either end of the roller bar. Worn roller bar and worn rollers will effect the adjustment height.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ron, I was going to weld in some length on the rear adjusters...the flat stock part, say 1/2 or 3/4 of an inch...is this what you did?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

hat was part of it and the trun buckles in front. Was a lot of experimenting , I think i may have redrilled mounting holes
Link to comment
Share on other sites

How about bigger tires on a sovereign? Maybe ag lugs in the back and slightly bigger ribbed tires (vredestein v61s) on the front? The other option I have found (hate to mention it) is to use a JD mower for cutting tall stuff- I have a JD 140 which is good for this purpose. I will say though, that it will never cut as nicely as the simplicity, for average lawn heights.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Burntime, Agreed, in regard to the back of the deck- maybe slightly larger dia. rollers? In regard to the front of the deck, the bigger tires should raise it up, no?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Larger diameter tires in the front might make a difference for the front adjustment but larger diameter tires in the rear will not make a difference as the back of the deck floats on the rollers. The rear adjusters and condition of the rollers determine the cutting height. The front adjustment just levels out the deck.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Since the deck mounts to the front axle, very close to the front tires, large back tires won't help a tremendous amount. Larger front tires would make more difference.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bummer, and I have 2 new take off front tires to replace my old GTH-L fronts. As far as rollers go, the stock are 2.5 inchs diameter. Unless the mounts are re done I do not think you could get anything bigger then 2 3/4 if that. I looked and could not find any so I settled on the 2.5 inch ones. I have the other thread where I am redoing my rollers so it was nice to see other ideas here as well.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Getting new or larger tires would be a waste of money, IMO, if purchased simply to raise the front of the deck. I believe you can raise the front of the deck more than you would want to simply with a turnbuckle adjustment. It can be significant. As stated by Ron, you want the front of the deck about 1/2" higher than the rear. That can easily be obtained, and more, with the turnbuckles.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Done, deck raised by adjusting turnbuckles. Next I might replace my rod and rollers, looking at simplicity's 3 1/2" rollers or after market rollers for that size with bearings.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 7 months later...
Hey guys, I am just getting around to trying to improve my blade cutting height before the spring roles around. As of now, I have my deck off the tractor and the front end jacked up to the same height as if it were attached to the tractor. I have my adjusters set at the highest setting and the back end of the blade is 2 1/4" off the ground and the front of the blade is 2 3/4" off the ground (1/2" diff.). My rollers are worn down to 2" in diameter instead of the 2 1/2". The roller bar looks in good shape except at each end it is showing more ware. I did not mic them. Last summer I adjusted the turn buckle as suggested in this forum to get a higher cut. Can't remember if it helped much. Not much more to adjust. Questions: 1. Does anyone know the min. and max height that one should be able to obtain if everything was new? If I change the bar and rollers, I am estimating a gain of 1/2 max, if that(giving me 2 3/4" in the back). Burntime mentioned that max. was 3 1/8" with everything in good working order. What would be the min. in good working order? 2. Is the front end supposed to be 1/2" higher than the back end? 3. Has anyone made modifications to get higher than 3 1/8" and if so, what did you have to do? 4. Using Simplicity's 3 1/2" rollers would help (giving 3 5/8" max., 1"/2 = 4/8", assuming Burntime is right), but it looks like those rollers would rub on the deck, except at the very ends. Do you think installing 3 1/2" rollers at the very end "only" would work, or would there be too much weight distributed to them? That would mean eliminating the rolled look that these deck give to the lawn, but most manufactures have two wheels in the back anyways. I am trying to figure out how to add some John Deer 5" deck wheels, while still using the adjusters and eliminating the rolled lawn look also, but I don't think it is possible. If 3 1/8" is the max, then maybe I just have to live with that. Any suggestions is appreciated. Mike
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The bars that the 5/8 inch bar goes thru could be remounted to get more height or you could cut it and weld 1/2 inch spacers in it. I found the higher you go, the less suction you get and the cut diminishes. 3 1/8 inch cut does not look as nice as 2 1/2 inch. I was going to add to mine but am happy with the max height now. Hope that helps...
Link to comment
Share on other sites

One thing to realize is these decks are designed to move the air over the grass to lift it up for a clean, even cut. It also relies on this air flow to help the discharge push the grass out correctly. Raising the deck up too far disturbs the designed airflow so it may have consequences later.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Who's Online (See full list)

    • a_sannine
    • ShaunE
    • SmilinSam
    • maxwood
  • Recent Status Updates

    • gwiseman

      gwiseman

      As you know SimpletrACtors.com has changed some recently. Working through this so PM me with questions, suggestions, and/or challenges you have. Appreciate your patience and feedback.
      · 0 replies
    • gwiseman

      gwiseman

      Site programming updates were made 3/23/2024. As a result some things have changed including dues payment options. We will continue maintenance and work with technicians to regain credit card payment option and clear up minor challenges. On positive it appears attaching pictures is now easier. Good day. Gene 
      · 1 reply
  • Adverts

×
×
  • Create New...