On May 28 Oliver550Dave posted about breaking the tilt adjustment lock bolt on his NH 451 sickle mower. I glanced at that bolt that day as I walked past my mower, and I wondered how in the dickens anyone could break that bolt. Guess what? I broke the exact same bolt on May 29 (mowing on Sunday!). I didn't hit anything and didn't trip the cutter bar - it just broke, I guess due to past abuse.
By now I'm sure that Oliver550Dave has figured out that there are two possible holes in that assembly that the 5/8'' bolt will fit into. One of the holes is at the far front of the adjustment and is useless, in my opinion. The other proper hole is in the center of the adjustment, and the head of the broken carriage bolt is probably still lodged in its hole because the cross bolt behind it is blocking its removal. It appears that what was thought to be a simple quick fix might turn into something more, due to the need to remove that cross bolt before anything can be done to the tilt lock bolt. Time will tell. Parts are ordered.
previous thread
By now I'm sure that Oliver550Dave has figured out that there are two possible holes in that assembly that the 5/8'' bolt will fit into. One of the holes is at the far front of the adjustment and is useless, in my opinion. The other proper hole is in the center of the adjustment, and the head of the broken carriage bolt is probably still lodged in its hole because the cross bolt behind it is blocking its removal. It appears that what was thought to be a simple quick fix might turn into something more, due to the need to remove that cross bolt before anything can be done to the tilt lock bolt. Time will tell. Parts are ordered.
previous thread
