Bent mower deck

[Droppinloads]

Hi all-

I searched around a good bit for answers on this but I'm looking for something a little more definitive. I hit a stump or something & it bent my MMM. It bent it so much so that the blade started buzzing the bent part of the steel.

My initial plan was to take an angle grinder & just grind off some of the bent spot & leave it so the blade stops making contact. Then i thought it might be best to try to straighten it. Will heating it with a propane torch & hammering it straight work? I have no experience heating/bending metal. I do have a small propane torch. Not sure if propane will get the metal hot enough. I tried hammering it back but there's not a lot of room there to work so the hammer alone isn't making a dent (pun intended!).

Appreciate any suggestions.

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[dirtydeed]

slip an adjustable wrench over the lip and pry it back into place. Use a pipe over the end of the wrench if more leverage is needed. There shouldn't be any need to heat it.

 

[Dave_eng]

I understand your issue to be with the blade making contact with the underside of the deck.

Hammering without heating is the "fix." Usually done with the deck off and positioned so that the area around where you want to bend is supported so the bent area can move b ut the surrounding areas are fixed.

Use a serious hammer (ball pein hammer) not a carpenters hammer as I see on too many youtube videos.

The bent back flange is nothing to worry about.

When metal is bent it "work hardens." After being bent it is stronger than before it was bent so trying to straighten it for cosmetic reasons us not usually successful as the adjoining parts are weaker and more likely to bend.

You have experienced a common problem

Dave

 

[SidecarFlip]

Comment number 2 is the way to do it actually. Better than beating on it, much better.

 

[D2Cat]

This is what works for the job. You can find them at various tool supply stores. Often called a "monkey wrench". Has a long handle and nearly 3" jaw capacity.

 

[dirtydeed]

This is what works for the job. You can find them at various tool supply stores. Often called a "monkey wrench". Has a long handle and nearly 3" jaw capacity.

Bingo. That's what I was getting at.

It would be damn near impossible to swing a hammer with enough force to straighten out that bend considering that the bend is on the inside of the mower deck.

 

[SidecarFlip]

Actually, a Stillson (pipe wrench) will work as well. I have a huge aluminum handled Rigid that is 2 feet long, plenty of leverage.

Never knew those were called 'monkey wrench's' Wonder why.

 

[GeoBx2680]

Did the same with mine I bent it back with a pipe wrench.

Just make sure you got clearance when you bend it back. And remember the blade might flex some with the PTO engaged.

 

[08quadram]

Been there, done that. Bend it back and all is good. I used a large pair of vice grips.

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[JeffL]

I think we all use the tools we have on hand. My choice is a 12" or 15" Crescent wrench. A good one with a pipe if necessary. Try to work the lip in little steps from both ends if possible. Work across and then come back and work across again. Repeat as many times as necessary. The smaller the movement from each lift will result in less stretch in the adjacent metal. End result is less distortion and near original shape. Good chance a straight flange will return the main body to original profile.
Experience form a person that has bent almost everything I have owned..

 

[GreensvilleJay]

I use a pipe wrench. It's got GREAT Grrrrip and will NOT come flying off, launching you into whatever 'stuff' is behind you,causing no end of 4 letter words to 'magically' be said........

Cresent wrenches usuallut have smooth jaws...NOT what you need.

I add a 3' pipe onto the wrench and slowly, gently pull to get the ding out.
The big issue is holding the deck rock steady while working on it.

One of those slow and steady wins the race deals.

 

[JeffL]

Smooth jaws is why I use them, will not mark or distort the flange. I think what ever works for you is the correct tool for you. At least the OP has a few good ideas and options.

 

[AverageJoeNY]

I have had to this happen serval times to my RCK60B-23BX mower decker to the point that it is very chewed up. Does anyone think that it would hurt grinding this chewed up portion off? What is the purpose of this lip?

Thanks!
Joe

 

[Pau7220]

I have had to this happen serval times to my RCK60B-23BX mower decker to the point that it is very chewed up. Does anyone think that it would hurt grinding this chewed up portion off? What is the purpose of this lip?

Thanks!
Joe

Will it hurt? No. Will it work as designed? No. Purpose is to help the blade create a vacuum to lift the grass... like a fan shroud. It also adds strength to the bottom edge of the deck. Better to straighten it than grind it off.

 

[Cathy Liebchen]

That can be bent back with a Stilton wrench. I’ve seen people cut the bent skids on a bush hog back to get clearance with a grinder or sawzall but they are a lot thicker than that lip and too thick to bend back

 

[AverageJoeNY]

Will it hurt? No. Will it work as designed? No. Purpose is to help the blade create a vacuum to lift the grass... like a fan shroud. It also adds strength to the bottom edge of the deck. Better to straighten it than grind it off.

Thanks for the feedback! I didn't realize that the lip was helping to create a vacuum. I might need to file down a few of the metal burrs, and work on bending the lip back into place. Since this seems to be a common occurrence, it would be nice if this lip was bolt on to make it easily replaceable.

 

[Taghkanic]

I’m sure this is not at all recommended, and your mileage may vary, but:

With my old 60" mower deck for a B2620, I used to use the winch on my truck to bend the deck verrrrry carefully back into plumb. I used some of the holes in the deck to rig up some strong loops of thick gauge wire which could handle a tow strap.

Definitely a little sketchy but it did work for about 8 years.

I haven’t tried this hack on my (already bent) RC72-30BB deck, mainly because there isn’t as obvious a way to rig up something to hold onto the outer edge of the deck.

 

[dan_m]

I’m sure this is not at all recommended, and your mileage may vary, but:

With my old 60" mower deck for a B2620, I used to use the winch on my truck to bend the deck verrrrry carefully back into plumb. I used some of the holes in the deck to rig up some strong loops of thick gauge wire which could handle a tow strap.

Definitely a little sketchy but it did work for about 8 years.

I haven’t tried this hack on my (already bent) RC72-30BB deck, mainly because there isn’t as obvious a way to rig up something to hold onto the outer edge of the deck.

This just happened to me, I was able to bend it back using just a pair of locking pliers - surprisingly no cheater bar needed. It looked like it would be harder to bend than it turned out to be. Link to my post below.

little body work on the deck.

We've been getting our daily (sometimes twice) summer storms here in Georgia. Happy to be getting the rain, but it also means a huge growth spurt for the the grass and weeds. I knew I had to drop the deck to clean off all the wet grass, but found an unexpected surprise. I can't say I'm sure...

www.orangetractortalks.com

Dan

 

[lugbolt]

worked with a guy who was a hammer mechanic. If a hammer couldn't fix the problem, he would go into orbit trying.

Had a TG series show up same deal, the lip was bent uwpard. Easy. Pull the deck and straighten the lip. Of course with him being a hammer mechanic, he quickly started inventing a new language trying to figure out how to beat on that lip from the top down; no room to get a swing on it. So he cut a hammer off to make it shorter and beat on it for an hour or so. I walk over there with a pipe wrench, bent it in 10 seconds and walked off. Even more new words were invented.