ride on mower blades revisited

[Charles in Aus.]

The replacement blades for the JD X340 arrived , as far as I can tell they are identical so I have no doubts that they will fit .
It's a shame but the 54'' deck is a screaming Pain in the Fundament to remove and replace . So many skinned knuckles , colourful words and cramped hands , what should be a simple straightforward job is something I just don't want to do so soon after the last . Just why JD made it so hard to get the deck on and off is beyond me .The spring loaded U bolts are the product of a perverse mind , they really couldn't have made it more frustrating if they tried .

So are there any tricks to changing the blades while the deck is still fitted ?

The best I could think of was to run it up on ramps to the trailer and crawl underneath but the ramps will most likely get in the way . Otherwise I could lift the front with a chain block in the barn , just not sure if that will allow oil into parts of the Kawasaki twin engine where it shouldn't be .
Thanks as always .

 

[Steve@Advance]

I never remove the deck to change blades unless there is another problem
that needs to be addressed.

The chain hoist is my preferred method. I crank it up high so I can sit on
the mechanics stool and reach under. Nothing in the way when using the
hoist. Never had any issues with oil. Just watch for fuel or the battery
leaking.

 

[RESLLS]

Last time I used the loader on my ford to
lift the front. The zero turn, I drive up
on car ramps. Which they both need
sharpening.

 

[504]

Me neither,cherry picker,chain hoist and on my big from deck I just run it up on car ramps and grab a creeper. I will say to anyone be careful, I had a friend who always had a side hustle going. Plowing snow,painting what ever. He started a mowing business on the side, he hooked up a cable hoist to his rafters and lifted him big zero turn to sharpen the blades. His wife found him two hours later.

 

[Goose]

We have a Toro zero turn mower with a 24 hp Kawasaki engine.

When I change blades I hook a chain onto the front and stand it up high enough with a loader to easily crawl under and change the blades. After I let it back
down, I let it set for a few minutes for the oil in the engine to drain back to where it should be.

I've always done it like that. The mower is 10 years old and hasn't complained yet.

 

[timcasbolt]

Keep in mind that the dealer that sold you the mower would be only too happy to take care of your maintenance for you. It's his bread and butter. This is not lost on Mother Deere.

 

[redtom]

Sadly, a week or so ago, not far from me, a
man was found dead under his zero turn
mower. The chain from his front end loader
on his tractor holding it up slipped or
failed and he died.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

(quoted from post at 10:49:25 07/13/23) Sadly, a week or so ago, not far from me, a
man was found dead under his zero turn
mower. The chain from his front end loader
on his tractor holding it up slipped or
failed and he died.

Sad, but his fault for not blocking up the machine just in case the chain failed. Probably done it that way dozens of times, never had a problem. Suggest to them that maybe they should use some jack stands, get accused of being a safety nanny. They know what they're doing.

 

[jaoneill]

I simply lift the front as high as the floor jack will go. Just let it sit for a few minutes before starting it after you let it down.

 

[DoubleO7]

JD has always built their lawn tractors so that it is difficult at best to remove the deck. Since the first ones to come out in the 60s.
Even the newer decks that are advertised as drive on/drive off are a pain to actually get hooked/unhooked to mow from what I have heard.

My Dad was shopping for a garden tractor in 1970 and bought a Cub Cadet vs a JD just because the deck and snowthrower were so easy to get hooked up.

 

[Charles in Aus.]

[b:e5ff351cd8]Thank you all[/b:e5ff351cd8] , some particularly sobering warnings that I will take to heart .

As annoying as it is I am almost pleased ; in some warped way , that others have the same difficulty and aversion to removing the cutting decks , truly one of the worst maintenance jobs .
I will use the chain block , it's strong enough and so is the dedicated lifting beam it's attached to , front up only and secured with blocks and maybe a strut or two . I have no wish to find out what grass feels under a deck !

Monday's job when I'm back there .

 

[Jim in LA]

I just changed the blades on neighbors X320 couple hours ago. I use a Harbor Freight mower
jack. Engine hoist, block and tackle, boom pole are ok to lift with( use safety stands) The mower
jack has lift cradle lock pins built in so you have a little more room to maneuver under the deck. I
have taken the deck off a couple times(54 inch) with the assistance of YouTube videos. The rear
deck latches are usually the most aggravating.

 

[sammydwm]

i picked up one of these
https://www.homedepot.com/p/MoJack-HDL-500-Lawn-Mower-Lift-45501/205691650

 

[Charles in Aus.]

(quoted from post at 08:33:02 07/14/23) The rear
deck latches are usually the most aggravating.

Most certainly Jim .
Frankly if they were replaced by bolts threaded into the deck frame hangers you could have them on and off with an impact wrench in a matter of moments .
To remove the deck the first time I had to resort to a hand winch to persuade the U bolt to release . It tuns out that the nut allowing space for the spring to compress was tightend too much . Once I slackened this off it was a little easier, but only a little.

 

[WNYBill]

Get a cordless impact wrench and crawl under the lifted mower. I use the front loader and 2 chains. Be careful. The impact wrench
makes it easy, don't even have to block the blade.

You can have your mower serviced by the dealer but it would be cheaper to sell the mower and hire a lawn service.

 

[chuckthin]

They should all be like scag decks. One nut on top. Impact wrench and 5 sec later blade is off.

 

[Russ from MN]

I have a 1 ton chain hoist on a rail in my shop, I lift the front of our JD Z-turn high enough to reach
under with my air impact, works well for me. I've never had a problem with the oil in the 20 hp Briggs
relocating.

 

[wh]

Have a j d x485.with a 62 inch deck. Takes about 3 minutes to remove deck. Had a jd 245 prior to this one. Deck came off very easy. Get a mower jack. Get a
cordless impact. Bing bang boom. DONE! Check your manual. I bet deck comes off easier than you think. I change my oil every spring. Every other year i let
dealer do it. They check everything, level deck, sharpen blades, change all filters for not a whole lote more than all the filters and oil costs. This year they found
that main driveshaft was cracked. It cost but i know i wont break down in mid season for unlimited time.

 

[J.Wondergem]

I have a Toro Z master front mount. Flip it up, use the impact and done.

This post was edited by J.Wondergem on 07/14/2023 at 09:14 am.

 

[cityboy]

I also have a X340 but mine has a 48" deck. Bought it used at an estate sale. I have zero clue why owner swapped to a small deck.

Few weeks back, deck belt broke. I ran into the same colorful words as you. I found a floor jack on the front end of the mower gave me enough clearance to remove the deck and not get in the way. Yea...I also R&R'ed the blades while I was there.

HTH...Don.