[korndogg]

Hi All,

I have an '83/'84 JD 317 that I've fixed up a lot. I use it every week year around just about (mowing/snow). I haven't been happy with how it has been cutting grass (uneven, leaving strips between the blades), so have purchased new OEM JD blades. Tonight I worked on the deck for several hours. This tractor has had many previous "fixes" so I can't be sure what is by design and what is a screwup. So, a few silly questions...

1) all 3 blades should be on the same plane (at the same mowing height), right? My center blade (spindle) was about 3/16" lower than the other two.
2) aside from being on the same plane, all blades should be parallel, right? My blade (spindle) furthest from the chute was cocked at an angle.
3) it shouldn't matter how the 3 blades are aligned, right? As they're belt driven I figure they may move some anyway..

I've used washers and such so that all 3 blades are nice an even, at the same height (fixing 1 and 2 above). But now two of the blades touch very lightly and I can't do anything about that unless I want to file down the ends of the blades a hair. It's unlikely that it would ever be a problem but that is why I ask the questions above.

Thanks!

Tommy

 

[korndogg]

Hmm. Maybe not such newbie questions. Anyone know the answer to these 3 questions?

 

[littletractorguy]

Hi All,

I have an '83/'84 JD 317 that I've fixed up a lot. I use it every week year around just about (mowing/snow). I haven't been happy with how it has been cutting grass (uneven, leaving strips between the blades), so have purchased new OEM JD blades. Tonight I worked on the deck for several hours. This tractor has had many previous "fixes" so I can't be sure what is by design and what is a screwup. So, a few silly questions...

1) all 3 blades should be on the same plane (at the same mowing height), right? My center blade (spindle) was about 3/16" lower than the other two.
2) aside from being on the same plane, all blades should be parallel, right? My blade (spindle) furthest from the chute was cocked at an angle.
3) it shouldn't matter how the 3 blades are aligned, right? As they're belt driven I figure they may move some anyway..

I've used washers and such so that all 3 blades are nice an even, at the same height (fixing 1 and 2 above). But now two of the blades touch very lightly and I can't do anything about that unless I want to file down the ends of the blades a hair. It's unlikely that it would ever be a problem but that is why I ask the questions above.

Thanks!

Tommy

Hi Tommy,

1) yes, you're right, they should all be the same height.
2) yes, they should all be parallel with each other, in my experience... Front of your entire mower deck should be 1/8 to 1/4" lower than the back for proper cut/airflow.
3) Not necessarily... On my 38" deck the two blades are almost 90 degrees off from each other. And it still seems to work just fine... I would THINK that having them lined up might be a bad thing, from an airflow perspective... But I don't have any definitive sources on that...

 

[korndogg]

Ok, great. I wanted to make sure what I was describing (1+2) was not by design. I couldn't imagine it was, but wanted to make sure before I go clearancing blades.

Thanks!

 

[sadixon49]

You're on the right track, the blades should all be on the same plane, level and parallel with each other. There should be no interference between blades, the offset from front to back of the blades should allow the blades to rotate freely of each other without leaving skipped/unmowed streaks between the blades.

steve

 

[korndogg]

Thanks Steve. It must be that my center spindle is off to one side a hair. I'll take another look at it this evening and see if I can move it (although I tried last night).

The bolt holes for the spindles were rusted out in places and the previous owner installed some reinforcement places on the bottom of the deck. They were not installed with great care, though.

Thanks for the help, guys!