RC60-mower deck, better wheels available?

[ryansmoneypit2]

B7100
belly mount mower deck, RC60


Problem I have:

The solid rubber caster wheels. My yard is 3 acres and full of bumps.. When i lower the deck to the turf and mow, it just beats the living crap out of the wheels and everything that attaches the deck to the mower. I think the main issues are:

1. wheel diameter
2. wheel material

I cant imagine this thing is going to last more than a year or two when subjected to such abuse. Mowing slower is a poor option. 3 acres once a week is a lot of mowing (to me, a city grown boy) so mowing slower is just as bad as when I sat in LA traffic.

Has anyone experimented with a larger, possibly pneumatic tire ?

As a side note, I tried mowing without the wheels last night. It was a lot more maneuverable especially where extreme yard angles converge. The down side? I dont think this wimpy .250" thick hanger assembly can take that load for very long. bearing loads on bolt holes, etc., etc.

 

[SDT]

B7100
belly mount mower deck, RC60


Problem I have:

The solid rubber caster wheels. My yard is 3 acres and full of bumps.. When i lower the deck to the turf and mow, it just beats the living crap out of the wheels and everything that attaches the deck to the mower. I think the main issues are:

1. wheel diameter
2. wheel material

I cant imagine this thing is going to last more than a year or two when subjected to such abuse. Mowing slower is a poor option. 3 acres once a week is a lot of mowing (to me, a city grown boy) so mowing slower is just as bad as when I sat in LA traffic.

Has anyone experimented with a larger, possibly pneumatic tire ?

As a side note, I tried mowing without the wheels last night. It was a lot more maneuverable especially where extreme yard angles converge. The down side? I dont think this wimpy .250" thick hanger assembly can take that load for very long. bearing loads on bolt holes, etc., etc.

I have a 60" terrain following deck (wouldn't own a suspended deck) bought new with my 1993/1994 (can't remember) B1750HST.

Unlike the BX series, the B1750 has position control (don't know about your B7100). I marked the position control lever at a position where the lift just begins to remove the weight from the gage wheels and mow with the position control at the marked position or slightly above in rough or soft ground. I've been doing this for 25 years without issue. In effect, I'm operating the deck in a semi-suspended mode.

The deck bounces around less on rough terrain and tracks less in soft ground. I've had no issues with the lift mechanism in 25 years.

SDT