A Little 36"RD Work

This deck was started on on Oct 31.  I've been meaning to get it in here but it's just been really busy this month.  Last month I sold a 37"SD and a 36"rd in the same week so I started digging around in the lot and found another one of each I didn't know was out there.  Who knows, there are may be more buried out there somewhere...  There's already a topic on the 37"SD getting redone, this topic is on the 36"RD.

It is a super nice deck with no rust holes or much in the way of rust pits, just mostly surface rust.  The worst of the rust was under the tensioner plate.  Most of it came apart pretty quick but the pulleys were soaked for a week trying to save them.  It ended up the left outer pulley came off the extremely hard way and was lost, but as an old song says, 2 out of 3 ain't bad...  





 

Everything was removed on the deck to check it out minus the wheels and spindles.  I like to make sure peeps are getting something that not only works like it should, but if they have to take anything apart it comes apart easily.   

If this deck were restored it would be a beauty, the paint under the spindles in the pics is the original paint.  I just painted the center where the rust was under the tensioner plate with rust preventative paint to make sure it lasted a long time.  After pulling the blades and adapters there was a good size rope piece under the right adapter.  The fit on these are so tight I have no idea how something that big got under there but that's why things get checked out around here.  Strange things happen sometimes.  

This one is a wrap and is out in the 4 car garage along with the 37"SD and the rest of the finished decks ready for sale.  I'm actually a little ahead now instead of behind on decks ready to go...     

 

could you post some photos of the finished restored 36 rd and 37 inch sd mowers - I would love to see how they look and what you have done to them - mechanically as well as cosmetically? i have done a few rehabs of decks - various degrees of rescuing them upgrading them. the biggest challenge is always removing the spindle pulleys which are often "rust welded" onto the shafts typically from being left out in the weather by prior owner. I recently tried every solution on a 36 inch deck - - penetrants, heat, pry bars, hub puller, etc and no luck - needed to cut them off which in this case the grinder disc to cut the pulleys off unavoidably did damage to the shaft threads -- thus, needed to order two new shafts for two outer pulleys. I have never seen that style pulley puller in your photo - If you can provide any info of manufacturer etc where i can purchase one would be helpful . Are those pullers generally successful? thanks Bill

here are photo of two 37 rehabbed decks

Hi Bill and good to see you.   Nice work on the 37's.     I did some work on a 37 last month, it's the post right before this one on the Grass Cutting Attachments main page, it is here -  37" SD Work
 
I don't usually restore them like you have, nor does a customer usually ask me to except on rare occasion.  Most decks I sell or work on for people go on non restored tractors and they aren't worried about looks, only that they are in good shape mechanically so they are trouble free.

The puller is a bearing puller used mostly on vehicles.  I used it mostly on pulling bearings on rearend carriers, pinions, hubs, etc, but it's good for pulling things in tight spaces where you can't get behind them on anything.  Being in the auto repair business for 30 years amassed a lot of tools around here that I just use mostly on the Horses now.  If I have to get that puller out then the pulley usually doesn't survive either, but it is a quicker way to get it off most of the time without hurting the shaft.  After getting the puller tight I'll use an air hammer on the main puller bolt to help with breaking it loose  The secret to cutting them off is to not go all the way through.  Cut it most of the way then use a chisel in the cutting groove to split and spread it from there.  You can also heat it with a torch but that means a seal or bearing will most likely have to be replaced.  The cutting and splitting with a chisel is the same way I get collars and other things off when trying to save the shaft.  

Sometimes I make a lot of tools around here because there is no tool available to do what I need it to do.  A few have been made in the past month and are in this section -  Home Made Tools  

Sometimes I'll buy a tool that's close to what I need and modify it from there, or buy something and use it where it normally wouldn't be used.  Whatever gets the job done.