Cleaning Under Zero-Turn Deck After Every Session: Really Necessary?

[walnutman]

Somebody teach me the right way.... I have the same mower and use the crank the same way he did. I'M MAKING A FOOL OUT OF MYSELF AND I CAN'T HELP IT!!!

My wife is apparently aware of me making a fool of my self and not knowing it... but I'm not sure the mower is the reason for that...

Once you unfold the handle, make sure you push it in. That keeps the handle from articulating at that joint.

 

[Brown Dog]

Somebody teach me the right way.... I have the same mower and use the crank the same way he did. I'M MAKING A FOOL OUT OF MYSELF AND I CAN'T HELP IT!!!

My wife is apparently aware of me making a fool of my self and not knowing it... but I'm not sure the mower is the reason for that...

When you fold the orange crank handle out : push it strait in onto the square shaft to crank it smooth & easily.
IF it won’t push in OVER the square shaft : loosen the lock nut on the bolt & possible lubricate it so it’ll easily slide strait in about 3/4 of an inch.
Also Keep the exposed threads well lubed too as dust & clippings stick to it while mowing.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I found the answer to the dirt problem, and it's really easy. Kubota was extremely stupid to leave the left end of the jack assembly open so it lets dirt in.

Disassembling the jack is not hard as long as it's not seized up with dirt and rust. Once you have it apart, clean the tube and the screw carefully, and make sure the bearing is okay. Then put good grease all over the screw.

This still leaves you open to dirt, so you need to fire an enormous glob of sealant into the left (not threaded) end of the tube, sealing it off completely. When the silicone cures, put the jack together and reinstall it.

This seals crud out. It can still get on the screw when the deck is raised, but you're not going to have a lot of dirt in the air while the deck is up.

 

[walnutman]

Oh but some here say they don't bother cleaning the deck LOL

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I don't know whether I will clean under my deck or not. It seems like the type of grass I have just falls off. I never saw an accumulation under the deck of my JD. Just bare rust!

This area has really bad grass.

The dirt is mostly sand, so it doesn't stick.

 

[lilranch2001]

I don't know whether I will clean under my deck or not. It seems like the type of grass I have just falls off. I never saw an accumulation under the deck of my JD. Just bare rust!

This area has really bad grass.

The dirt is mostly sand, so it doesn't stick.

Some people never understand that point Plowboy!

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I have noticed that the zero-turn accumulates way more crud than a tractor. There is ancient stuff stuck under the fenders and so on. But the underside of the deck doesn't seem to have this problem.