I had the first part break on my GT 3235. The mount for my deck height adjustment knob broke. Its covered under warranty, but transportation to and from the shop is not. Turns out its cheaper $ 30.64 plus tax if I buy the part myself than have the dealer pick up my tractor. I set both the wheels(casters/rollers) on the 48 inch deck and the adjustment on the deck to the same height. My yard is still a little bumpy, but I just kind of suprised that it broke. Should I not use my deck height adjustment knob?
deck height adjustment broke
DenRS
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I had the first part break on my GT 3235. The mount for my deck height adjustment knob broke. Its covered under warranty, but transportation to and from the shop is not. Turns out its cheaper $ 30.64 plus tax if I buy the part myself than have the dealer pick up my tractor. I set both the wheels(casters/rollers) on the 48 inch deck and the adjustment on the deck to the same height. My yard is still a little bumpy, but I just kind of suprised that it broke. Should I not use my deck height adjustment knob?
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Did you have your gage wheel set at the proper height. Can you call the dealer have him give you. You pick the parts up and save on the pickup costs plus having to wait for the tractor for a simple fix? Doesn`t hurt to ask seeing this is the busy part of the season.
I have a Cub 3205 with 60" deck. My setup doesn't have the height adjustment knob. I also have a JD 400 with 60" deck, and it has the screwjack height adjustment setup, in addition to the hydraulics. I think the screwjack thing is what your GT3235 has.
I use my deck height screw on my JD exclusively for cutting height. Once I have the height set, I set the screwjack lower limit stop. Then, I simply lower the deck to the stop, and head off mowing. It's handy.
On the Cub, my deck height is a black plastic knob adjustment which controls position of rear rollers. My adjustment knob is coming apart. Maybe these knobs on the Cubs are just so cheesy they won't hold up. I can work around not having the knob on my rear roller adjustment. Don't know if you can on your height adjustment or not (find a substitute, that is; you do need a knob on there).
I use my deck height screw on my JD exclusively for cutting height. Once I have the height set, I set the screwjack lower limit stop. Then, I simply lower the deck to the stop, and head off mowing. It's handy.
On the Cub, my deck height is a black plastic knob adjustment which controls position of rear rollers. My adjustment knob is coming apart. Maybe these knobs on the Cubs are just so cheesy they won't hold up. I can work around not having the knob on my rear roller adjustment. Don't know if you can on your height adjustment or not (find a substitute, that is; you do need a knob on there).
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Not exactly sure which part broke from your discription.DenRS said:
Is it possible for you to take the broken part in to the dealership and exchange it for a new one. Wouldn't hurt to ask/try. Dealer should know the tractor is still under warranty.
If you are controlling the cut heigth by the deck wheels and roller, I'd make sure the adj on the tractor is set to a lower position so the deck will alway follow the ground contour even if there is a low spot under the tractor. Adj this way will insure there are no shock loads to the tractor's lift stop. May prevent any further breakage.
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The part should be in tomorrow, so I'll double check with them if they will cover the part. Either way, it should be a simple fix so I'll tackle this myself. If I can restore a 69 Camaro, this should be a little easier. The cost of the part is not really what's bothering me. Its the fact I bought a heavy duty $6000 tractor and they use a cheap part like this. Anyway, I can adjust my deck height either on my deck or the knob on my tractor. I figured it would be best to set both to the same height. I wonder if this caused the bracket on the tractor to break. My mower deck has adjustable casters in the front and a knob in the back of the deck to adjust the rear rollers and both on my deck are fine. I set the casters and rollers to postion 5. Then I set my deck height knob on my tactor to 5. When I was done mowing my lawn and I just happened to notice the knob is not sitting flat and thats when i noticed the bracket was broken. My deck is fine, its the bracket that holds the deck height adjustment knob on the tractor. According to my parts diagram the bracket is held on by two bolts, so once I remove the deck I should have access to it.
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Well, I installed the new bracket for the deck height knob. Took a little longer than I expected and had to remove more parts than I thought, but it went in within a couple of hours. I think by setting my casters on my deck to the same height as the deck stop on my tractor, I put too much stress on the deck height adjustment which broke the bracket that attaches it to the frame. My tractor manual says to set the deck height with the knob regardless of the whether my deck as the casters or not, but thats not what the deck instructions say.
My deck instructions say I can set the height with EITHER the casters or the deck height adjustment knob on the tractor. It states that if I set the height with the casters, I should lower the deck height knob to the lowest position. However, if I decide to use the deck height knob to adjust the deck height instead, my casters should be a half inch above the ground. I guess the deck floats above the ground this way. Seems the deck instructions were the correct ones. Hope this info helps someone else.
My deck instructions say I can set the height with EITHER the casters or the deck height adjustment knob on the tractor. It states that if I set the height with the casters, I should lower the deck height knob to the lowest position. However, if I decide to use the deck height knob to adjust the deck height instead, my casters should be a half inch above the ground. I guess the deck floats above the ground this way. Seems the deck instructions were the correct ones. Hope this info helps someone else.
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The only way to get the dealer to cover the part was if they performed the repair. I can understand that. Unfortunately I can't have my tractor out of comission for a long time, so I bought the part and fixed it myself. At least I know it was done right. I have 1.5 acres of a hilly landscape and it takes me between 3 1/2 - 4 hours to mow, trim, and weed wac. If would take me double that without my cub.
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You should use either the deck wheels (deck rides on ground) or downstop (deck floats or suspends from tractor) to control cutting height. FWIW....We've never broken either knob on 3000 series. Also, do the adjustment knob on the tractor with weight of deck OFF the linkage (in up position). We have had people strip the trunion by getting all jammed and forcing it.
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Thanks Neil. It wasn't the knob that broke. Its the zinc coated bracket that attaches to the frame that the long threaded bolt of the knob goes through. Seemed like a pretty strong piece, but as always, I'll find a way to break it. When I reinstalled the new bracket, I set the knob to the pretty much the lowest position before I installed the deck. I have the deck wheels set at position 5, so I don't plan on touching the knob. I like the way it cuts with the deck wheels on the ground.
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Glad you got it fixed.....down here most yards so rough.....people run in float....its true though, if you have a good yard,running on the ground gives a nice cut.
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Coming a bit late to this thread, but how exactly is the Down Stop knob supposed to work? Mine has never seemed to work, I follow the instruction but my deck still floats down as I mow....any suggestions?
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Bump................
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Does your deck have height control knob or are your deck wheels nonadjustable? If your deck wheels are nonadjustable, then I think your deck has to float. My deck has front casters and a height control knob near the back wheels on the left side. I set the deck knob to the desired height, then I pull the cotter pins for the front casters and set it to the same height as the rears. Then I lift my deck and set the deck height knob on the tractor to 1. My deck follows the ground this way.
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Not sure who you are asking but Mine has adjustable rear roller and front casters and the Deck Height adjustment (see image in previous post). It has just never worked. No matter how I turn it up/down my deck does not stay in place. Guess I will have the dealer take a look at it in the spring when I take it in for its checkup....
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