Conquest repairs
I am new to the forum but have been very interested. I have an older Simplicity Conquest that I have about 350 hours on. I have Simplicity package 2690101 which includes a 44" deck. I also have a turbo, wheeled cart, and DR vac lawn vacuum. I use it primarily for spring and fall clean ups. I do my own maintenance, but so far that has been routine engine Maintenace.
I have had a lot of trouble with the turbo, but perhaps more on that later. I have it in my garage this winter so I can work on it. In checking the
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mower deck, it is clear that the spindles need help. I am about to order new spindles, washers. and some of the pulley hub pieces. I have not fully disassembled it yet. Any advice before I get too deep?
Thanks,
Allen
I have had a lot of trouble with the turbo, but perhaps more on that later. I have it in my garage this winter so I can work on it. In checking the
mower deck, it is clear that the spindles need help. I am about to order new spindles, washers. and some of the pulley hub pieces. I have not fully disassembled it yet. Any advice before I get too deep?
Thanks,
Allen
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I just removed the primary spindle, and it does not show the wear that I see on the spindle that is in the picture included. However, the blade on this spindle is similarly a smaller diameter than is in the blade. It appears to me that the standard blade hole diameter is .75 which is what I have. It looks like this "slop" is intentional. Is that correct?
Thanks,
Allen
Thanks,
Allen
Thanks for your comments.
Yes, this is the "slop". Note that when I took the picture The bolt and washers that normally hold the blade are removed and the deck is standing vertically, not horizontally as it would be used. I used this to show how much larger the hole in the blade is over the spindle.
I have several sets of blades and they are all 3/4 inch dia hole. I have done internet searches and it appears to me that that is normal for simplicity 44" decks. When I look at the specs on new simplicity blades it shows 3/4" diameter hole in the blade.
I agree it does not look good. I thought the spindles were worn to create the slop, and was about to replace the spindles. However, all of the 3 blades/spindles have the same slop, and two show no significant signs of wear on the spindle.
Still a quandary for me. What am I missing?
Allen
Allen
Yes, this is the "slop". Note that when I took the picture The bolt and washers that normally hold the blade are removed and the deck is standing vertically, not horizontally as it would be used. I used this to show how much larger the hole in the blade is over the spindle.
I have several sets of blades and they are all 3/4 inch dia hole. I have done internet searches and it appears to me that that is normal for simplicity 44" decks. When I look at the specs on new simplicity blades it shows 3/4" diameter hole in the blade.
I agree it does not look good. I thought the spindles were worn to create the slop, and was about to replace the spindles. However, all of the 3 blades/spindles have the same slop, and two show no significant signs of wear on the spindle.
Still a quandary for me. What am I missing?
Allen
Allen
I have had a bnch of different Simplicities, but not a Conquest, but that looks like an unusual configuration for the blade to be held on.....not being concentric, it appears to be out of balance, which will cause damage to the blade and the spindle...check this site for the manual and see if it offers any help
Manuals | Simplicity
Looking for Simplicity parts or manuals? Find an owners manual or parts list for your Simplicity product.www.simplicitymfg.com
not yet. i have the tractor manual, but not the mower deck. I will get it.
I will try to post pictures later. for now, I have found the manual which makes no mention of the difference in diameters between the hole in the blade and the shaft. I do have the hex and spring washers. The hex washer is flat, with nothing on one side to center the blade. The hex washer engages the hex on the shaft so it will not spin. The blade is the same size as the outside diameter of the washers, so you can center the blade in one direction by feel as you tighten it. the perpendicular direction is a guess. Once assembled and tightened, it does not appear to move. As I mentioned above, two of the spindles do not show significant signs of wear. One spindel does show wear as if the blade was twisting on it. Perhaps it was not assembled properly or tight enough at one time.
It still seems that the blade will be out of balance without something to locate it better prior to tightening.
I will try to do more pictures later, but I do not think that will help. I expect you understand what is going on with only FLAT washers and two different sizes of holes.
Allen
The mystery is solved. The joint shield under the blade should have a shoulder on it to center the blade. The shoulder was completely worn off, so much so that it was not obvious that it was ever there. In the first picture below the old shield is on the left and the new part is on the right. the next is with the shield on the arbor, and the third with the blade sitting on the assembly. Now it is centered.
Thanks for all the interest and comments.
Allen
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Thanks for all the interest and comments.
Allen
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