GT2544 not cutting level

toadtown · Aug 23, 2005

I got a new GT2544 in April with the wheel weights. I have never really been happy with the way it cuts. I replaced an eight year old Simplicity. I have leveled the deck as it says in the manual, but it leaves streaks in my yard. The right hand side cuts too low.

I mow in the No. 5 position. The wheels are in the bottom holes which mades them about 1" from the ground. My yard is a slope that winds around. As I mow I turn to the left. I have noticed that while the mower is on a level surface, the deck lowers as you turn the front wheels to the left and raises when turned to the right. Is this normal?

Anyone have any ideas. It's 40 miles to the dealer.

Steven

anthonyk · Aug 23, 2005

Toadtown, that is exactly what my 1046 did!
I leveled with a ruler to within a 64th of an inch using the "blade tip" method described in the owners manual and still the right side scalped. Finally just lowered the left side till it looked uneven and made a few passes. Kept adjusting till it didn't leave that scalp. Very strange. Now it cuts perfectly, but is definitely NOT set up the way the manual describes. Maybe it's because we're both cutting across a downward slope and the lower side (right side) of the tractor is dipping due to gravity.
I give up. At least it now cuts perfectly.
Hope this helps.

Anthony /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Frank03 · Aug 23, 2005

toadtown,
Call your dealer to come to your house and either fix it there or take it back to the shop and fix it. You have a "1" year service free warranty on that machine and deck even if they have to come and pick it up, fix it , and deliver it back again. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif disregard this post if you bought the tractor at a box store /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

ducati996 · Aug 23, 2005

( toadtown,
Call your dealer to come to your house and either fix it there or take it back to the shop and fix it. You have a "1" year service free warranty on that machine and deck even if they have to come and pick it up, fix it , and deliver it back again. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif disregard this post if you bought the tractor at a box store /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif )

Was this a special offer from the dealer or Cub? It dosent sound like a standard Cub offering for service issues that sound like its not a warranty issue. Sounds like Deck leveling, in its purest form, he has had the machine since April...Use a John deere leveler, which gives you an accurate guage...
Check tire pressure in all tires..double check the blades, to make sure they are the right part number, mounted in the correct positon (not upside down), not dull, check and make sure the grass isnt built up too much....

cyberkrazze · Aug 24, 2005

If you read your warranty statement on the back of your owners manual, it clearly states that adjustments are not covered under warranty. Unless this was an agreement for 1 year free service that was made between the customer and the dealership before the sale, which usually does not happen. Warranty covers "defects" in the workmanship of a unit, not adjustments.

Frank03 · Aug 25, 2005

I don't care what the aggreement says, if you are having this problem and it has been doing it from day one, I would be on the phone getting results. If his dealer is any thing like mine, they would be there in no time to help him out, but that just might be how my dealer operates. He has come to me for much smaller problems /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

JTKub · Aug 25, 2005

( ... If his dealer is any thing like mine, they would be there in no time to help him out, but that just might be how my dealer operates. He has come to me for much smaller problems /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif )

I dunno of a dealer for any brand that will 'come to the house' for a $2999 GT. If you had 2-3x that worth of business through them maybe. You have an exceptional dealer, or have spent thousands thru him.
G/luck
Joel

toadtown · Sep 5, 2005

I have leveled this deck till I'm sick. I used the pencil method another forum member described. The deck is level from side to side, but it dips on the right side, making a terrible cut.

So I tried anthonyk's idea. I raised the right side of the deck 3/4" just to test. Now it cuts almost as good as my old Simplicity. I may have over shot a little. I will try again next weekend. After all, it is the trial and error method.

My dealer will come and get the mower and repair it under warranty unless it is an adjustment issue. If it is just an adjustment, they will charge a premium. That is why I posted here first. I have learned a lot from reading these messages.

I loved my old Simplicity, but it had a weakness. The transmission could not hold up to my almost 300 lbs and my hill. I shopped around and read this board and chose the 2544 in April. I bearly had enough time to mow, no time to tinker. I was juggling a job and helping my wife take care of my sick mother. Now that we are trying to get back to normal, after the funeral, I want to get this problem solved.

Steven

anthonyk · Sep 6, 2005

glad it helped.
that's wierd, isn't it?
I'm still trying to figure out how high to set the anti scalp wheels. Originally, I had them setting on the ground, but someone told me that the deck wheels shouldn't touch the ground. I'm moving them up to the highest position now.

anthony

wsx7 · Sep 6, 2005

For the anti-scalping wheels - put your deck in the position for the height you will normally cut at. Then raise/lower the wheels until the bottom of the wheels protrude no more than 1/2" below the edge of the deck. That is the recommended position, and works good on my machine.

Hope everything works out okay for you.