GT235 Deck Height - How High Can It REALLY Go ?

[snpower]

I have a service do lime, fertilizer, aerating, etc. They tend to tell me I need to mow the lawn at 4" to avoid turf damage. My 48" deck is set @ 3.5 on the dial, and I mow with the deck in the transport position. I'm getting 3.25 or so inches of height. Can I just crank on the lift rod bolts and get more height, or is this unwise?

 

[LD1]

Not real familiar with that model....but I have yet to see a mower where the height scale was even close to accurate. Just about all of them mow 1/2" - 3/4" closer than the dial or pin says when measured on a concrete floor. And its a pet peeve of mine, especially when servicing mowers for a landscape company that uses a fleet of mowers. You cant set them ALL at 4" according to their "dial" and expect them to all cut the same.

But, as painstaking as it is....I have been able to calibrate every mower thus far to read accurate.

A few things.....most decks have a front to rear adjustment to set the deck pitch. You can crank them all the way and get what you can get out of them...but still keep the front ~1/8" or so lower.

Also watch and make sure the deck doesnt physically touch anything under the tractor.

Another thing to try.....some mowers used a blade that offsets closer to the ground....and some use a spacer between the spindle and the blade. If yours has either of these, you can try some straight blades......or a shorter spacer (stack some washers to try what you like). But adjusting the blades can disrupt airflow and not cut as well.....but this aint a commercial ZTR either....

 

[beenthere]

Sounds like you are at the height limit.. The dial number doesn't mean anything, it is the adjustment lift rods that determine the actual height of the mower blades. Look underneath and you will see those lift links. At some point, the deck will hit the frame. The GT235 isn't a "lawn mowing service" type machine.

Another option to get height, is to switch out to larger diameter wheels. That may have another set of problems regards space under the fender deck and room between mower deck.

 

[BravoXray]

You should be able to adjust the lift links, #23 in the picture, enough to get another 1/2" to 3/4" in height. Just make sure nothing is hitting or rubbing.

 

[gabdow]

You can get close to 4" in the transport position. Two nuts raise each side.

 

[deezler]

Crank it all the way up, it doesn't hurt anything (just look that everything still clears).

On my GX335, I have hydraulic deck lift, but the principle is the same. I adjusted my front and rear lift arms to get the deck to just barely kiss the stops on the undercarriage when lifted. Something like a 5 or 5.5" cut in this position, and can still lower it to the #4 for roughly 4" of grass height. I have my deck gage wheels set to never let me cut anything less than about 3". I like long grass.