[scale21]

well....im almost done prepping one of the decks i have here and am getting ready to fix cracks and holes.

The bottom is really chewed up and thing.

What is the best way to fill the holes? Cover the topside with duct tape and pour in the epoxy or do that from the back side to fill the holes?

For the thin spots the plan is to just go over the bottom in the bad spots and pour the epoxy on and let it settle and cure in the low spots. Hopefully that will reinforce it a bit.

What has everyone else done for holes etc? There has to be a good process. I thought of covering them with the fiberglass mesh but that seems like it woudl just complicate things.

Maybe using some old metal screen door screen and make small patches to put over the holes from the bottom before pouring in the epoxy to reinforce the area? That seems like it would work. used a couple layers of that. Kinda like mini rebar for concrete

I dont know....looking for ideas

 

[LawnboyTim]

When I have little chunks missing or pitting in a aera I use JB weld to fix the, I know OMCjunkie restored a Bricktop and used Bondo on the top of the deck.

 

[junkie]

i have done alot of repair work welding etc. when the metal is so thin that you cant weld it , i have used fiberglass cloth and resin , just make sure the metal is grinded and free of oil. add some metal tec screws so the cloth can adhrere to and your golden. will last a long time good luck!

 

[steddy]

Used JB weld on my deck to fill in the gaps my welder left. Ahhhhh.... the advantages of steel deck.
Obvious disadvantage: it wore/rusted through.

 

[scale21]

i have done alot of repair work welding etc. when the metal is so thin that you cant weld it , i have used fiberglass cloth and resin , just make sure the metal is grinded and free of oil. add some metal tec screws so the cloth can adhrere to and your golden. will last a long time good luck!

what is metal tec screws?

When complete i dont want the repair to be noticable unless you really look for it.

 

[scale21]

i have done alot of repair work welding etc. when the metal is so thin that you cant weld it , i have used fiberglass cloth and resin , just make sure the metal is grinded and free of oil. add some metal tec screws so the cloth can adhrere to and your golden. will last a long time good luck!

what is metal tec screws?

When complete i dont want the repair to be noticable unless you really look for it.

i would think fiberglass cloth wouldnt work very well. DOes this along with fiberglass resin work better than jb or epoxy filler or repair jobs?

I still plan to use the mower....although not every day and my yard is small. I would probably only use it small handful of times just to exercise it. I have so many that i have to mow with a different one each time

 

[mhdi22]

Good question.....good reading/answers............:thanku:

 

[Kbeitz]

Epoxy floor paint would do a good job...

 

[HiPocket]

I used JB Weld and glass cloth to repair a hole in the tower of my 3018. Battery acid and old grass had stayed in contact with it for years until it burned through.

I was suprised how well it work. Real stable and takes paint readily. Tougher to sand than bondo but thats expected. Do not have that high of opinion of bondo so thought I try JB. Here are some picts I took at the time.

You can't really tell from the outside that its a patch as it sanded down with no seam and still after several months has not craced due to expansion/contraction or vibration. Give it a couple of years and we will know more. I left the inside builtup with just an application of paint

Heres the hole after sanding with palm sander.

The fixins and the mixed up goup.

The putdown

After sanding and before painting.

 

[D-Dogg]

I wonder if junkie meant to say tack screws. i.e. some short metal screws drilled through from the underside and cut off just above flush so the cloth is held in place better.

 

[Ferrstein]

This is a great thread. I just picked up a 10515 that I'm going to restore and clone onto a 22241, and the deck might need some reinforcing. No holes, but it does have some pitting and thin spots.

Have any of you guys had your decks sandblasted? That would certainly make preparation easier but I always worry about industrial sandblasters and aluminum...

I'm leaning towards JB weld in the rough areas and epoxy floor paint elsewhere. Should be a fun project. I bid on a deck on Ebay but lost. Anybody here? I figured a spare deck would reduce my downtime, but I have more mowers than I need anyhow.

 

[junk_jivin38]

just my 2 cents: a few small pieces of baling wire suspended in the J-B weld strengthens it when spanning larger holes....
i have found the autobody fiberglass mesh to be too fine...try some of the mesh tape for sheetrock...epoxy flows thru it more readily


jon

 

[scale21]

just my 2 cents: a few small pieces of baling wire suspended in the J-B weld strengthens it when spanning larger holes....
i have found the autobody fiberglass mesh to be too fine...try some of the mesh tape for sheetrock...epoxy flows thru it more readily


jon

Now that is a great idea. Those sheet rock patches might be perfect. They are a loose mesh of metal and fiber glass that should hold up well. Now i need to find me a ton of JB Weld cheap

 

[scale21]

well i got me the patches tonight and some 120 and 220 grit sand paper to rough things up.

I couldnt find any of the industro jb weld....only the small tubes. The industro stuff is the same.....but it comes in much much larger tubes. No place around here seems to carry it. I might have to order it online.

 

[HiPocket]

Bought the industro online, cheapest way to get it. But you have to wait for it to show. Why you try wall mart, pass on most parts store. The parts stores pricing seem really high as I recall.

 

[grn68rt]

I say fix it with metal or throw it out. That's my motto. If any of y'all ever buy a mower from me I promise you won't find any chicken wire or bondo in it...

:sorry1:

 

[scale21]

ya...they didnt have anything at walmart......and the part stores were outragous. I have an online order or two to make shortly. Ill order some then.

I have to find me a coil or 2 as well.

 

[scale21]

found some industro jb tonight locally for 11 bucks. That is pretty darn cheap! I hope this thing works out. My plan is a small plate behind jb'd in place....and then jb around the seems on the back of the plate.

Then cut and shape small pieces of the patch into the holes or areas that are weak and jb over that from the front eventally sanding it smooth and painting. I hope this will hold up. If not....it will be a fun experiment.

IM also curious to see how it fills in some of the pitted areas on the bottom of the deck. If memory serves me right...you can make the jb a bit runnier adn self leveling by using a heat gun to heat the metal a bit and warming the jb. Seems to me it settles better this way.