Mower Corrosion Question

[Gord Baker]

And my Deere mower decks stay clean as well. Think it has to do with when grass is mowed, how wet the grass is, and how the mower decks are put away. Like they say about horses, don't put them away wet.
Enjoy the clean decks.

They say the same thing about women!
Constant maintenance is key.

 

[JTKub]

The Kubota decks that are "suspension" type as opposed to "ground riding" type seem to have been made of lighter structural material at the wheel supports. I've had those rust out and be weakened & had to be welded and strengthened on 2 different BX tractors. At the same time I have yet to see one (either suspension like on my BX tractors, or the older ground riders on the B2150's) rust through the deck itself. I have never taken time to go wash out/scrub the underside of any mower deck day-to-day , though I have much less often of course.

I think another key point with mid mount mowers that are designed to hang and not ride the ground is, people still think they're ground engage able and allow them to stay mashed against the ground while mowing. This beats the ever living heck out of them which not only breaks things, but also promotes rust.

This brings me back to years ago when I gave my father in law my Cub GT2544 with a stamped 44" deck. The whole machine was only about 4-5yrs old at the time. As much as I "suggested" to him how he needs to set the deck and why, he ignored it and trashed it in one season.

 

[Fallon]

I have a Peruzzo super bull flail mower. Normally it has a pretty caked surface underneeth. I looked after my job this weekend & it was clean polished steel. I spent 7 hours mowing super dry weeds. Sandblasted everything clean & no moisture or greenery to stick to anything. What you are mowing has a huge effect. I'm sure airflow & deck texture has an effect too.

I'm in Colorado & it's dry here, so I'm less concerned about buildup staying wet & rusting things. It normally dries out within a few days & often falls off.

 

[JWR]

I had seals leaking and was considering buying a New mower and Read on here to replace the Gear Oil with John Deere Corn Head Grease [Amazon] that was 3 years ago and it works great and it has not leaked even in middle of Summer. I had 1/2 gal of two-part epoxy garage floor paint left over and used it on Deck which will be ther forever.

What you are dealing with is a worn seal on the main shaft our of your gearbox to the blade holder. That is always the issue when hogs get some age on them. Many years ago the good rednecks down south started using what is labeled as "Double Zero grease" which amounts to a very heavy replacement lube for normal 90 weight gear oil. In effect that thicker lube slows down the leaks to the point where people get many hours if not years out of their hogs without expensive seal replacement. I know in my case I had an old JD 413 which was a very useful tool but paying to have the main seals replaced would have cost more than the hog was worth in the market ! "00 Grease" did the trick. It is sold at Tractor Supply, on-line, etc. Good bit cheaper than corn head grease and just as effective.

 

[Fallon]

What you are dealing with is a worn seal on the main shaft our of your gearbox to the blade holder. That is always the issue when hogs get some age on them. Many years ago the good rednecks down south started using what is labeled as "Double Zero grease" which amounts to a very heavy replacement lube for normal 90 weight gear oil. In effect that thicker lube slows down the leaks to the point where people get many hours if not years out of their hogs without expensive seal replacement. I know in my case I had an old JD 413 which was a very useful tool but paying to have the main seals replaced would have cost more than the hog was worth in the market ! "00 Grease" did the trick. It is sold at Tractor Supply, on-line, etc. Good bit cheaper than corn head grease and just as effective.

Same for my old Ford 917 flail. Paid $100 for it, new seals would have been $80. Pourable grease went in years ago & it still works. It's now a backup mower now, so rarely gets used. But I bet the gearbox will outlast the rest of the cracked rusty hood & frame.

 

[wheelbuilder]

I bought a used 1988 Iseki tractor with a 3 point mower. Had always been (and still is) stored indoors. mower was somewhat pitted from rust, but its built quite heavy. I wire wheel it in the fall now, and give it a light coating of old engine oil to protect it over the winter. I don't reapply it, and it stays quite grass free all year. I don't see any rust any more on it. I've done the same to my garden tractor for 25 years and it is in far better shape than my Dad's newer version.

 

[Davenj4f]

I have a B2100HST that I bought used in ~2005. It has the 60" mid-mount mower. I was watching a video on Tractor Time about keeping your deck clean to prevent rust. It hit me that I have had no corrosion that I can see on the deck even though I never clean under it. When I do look under it to sharpen blades, I see very little build-up of grass. So, did Kubota use some magic alloy for decks back then? Are newer ones equally good?

I have a Woods 72" mower and see corrosion that will need to clean and paint but nothing on the Kubota. I will be replacing my Kubota since the seals on the transmission are leaking badly and they want $5000 to repair it, and I wonder if a new one will have such a good mower.

Thanks

Having been in the mowing business for about 10 years, I have never seen rust on my mowers, and that's because they are used almost every day. The only time I have seen rust is when they aren't used enough, giving rust time to form. Down here in SC, there's too much sand in the dirt, so mostly I wear out my deck and blades. Have already replaced my deck once ($2000), and blades don't last too long. I replace my blades almost everyday with a resharpened set. Usually keep 8-10 sets on hand.

 

[greenie]

27 year old 5' John Deere mid mount mower under a 790 compact tractor. The underside is pristine - the painted top surfaces are rusting despite the tractor living in a garage. The other issue with this mower are the drilled holes the mower mounts to getting worn (slots rather than circles). Mowing dry grass keeps the underside clean. This mower can ride as high as 8" above grade so it's used as a sort of bush hog too. All original spindles.

 

[Mcdust]

My problem has been with the powder coat. Unfortunately for me the yard has springs everywhere so it’s always wet. All it takes is a pinhole in the powder coat, water creeps underneath and it doesn’t take long. Sandblasting and painting with rust oleum helped some.

I have a 2019 rice tandem trailer and the powder coat has come off in sheets, same for a simplicity snow blower. We seem to be stuck with it though.

 

[Jaygyver]

As far as the smaller mowers I learned my lesson years ago when I replaced the deck because it rotted out and when I was almost done with the last bolt it dawned on me it would have been the same price to buy the whole new mower as the cost of the new deck.

I always take the hose or pressure washer to the bottom of the riding mower decks now when done mowing. Just use the strap on the bucket and it only takes a few minutes. The JD seems to rust a bit faster than the Husvarna but I use the built in "deck washer" on the HV every time (well most of the time). Then I'll just jet them all about every 2nd or 3rd mow in the summer if I got lazy.

The 28 yr old 3pt 5' Sitrex finish mower if the field was dry then I can get away with every other time but here in the PNW that's few and far between. I doesn't show much rust under the thicker matted grass if I wait but it seems to blow out better (rear discharge) when it doesn't have 3 or 4 inches of matted grass in it, and for me it's one less thing to worry about.

 

[lcain]

fwiw, I have an RM59 mower that is 50 plus years old. After scrapping the deck with a putty knife each fall before putting the mower away for the season, I take old used motor oil and brush the oil all over the underside of the deck. I realize this is harder to do with a belly mower, but I feel it helps prolong the life of the deck and doesn't cost anything.

 

[lman]

fwiw, I have an RM59 mower that is 50 plus years old. After scrapping the deck with a putty knife each fall before putting the mower away for the season, I take old used motor oil and brush the oil all over the underside of the deck. I realize this is harder to do with a belly mower, but I feel it helps prolong the life of the deck and doesn't cost anything.

I don't want any dripping from the mower on to the cement floor in my barn so I just clean it up good before storing it. I use a power washer to clean the underside of my 12 ft. batwing finish mower.