Service Manual

Service Dealer’s Guide to Great Quality of Cut 4 - 15
Checking and Adjusting the Blade Level
38- and 44-inch (96.5 and 111.7cm) Cutting Units
On mowers with multiple blades, not only do the blades
need to be a minimum of 1/8 inch up from the bottom
edge of the housing, but they must also line up where
the tips come together. Take the two blade tips and
point them towards each other. They must be within
1/8-3/16 inch of level with each other, or both must be
the same distance from the blade to the ground
(Figure 48).
Figure 48
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An alternate way to check this is to remove the mower
housing and turn it over. Remove both blades and lay a
straight edge on both blade saddles (Figure 49). It
should lie flat. If not, either the spindle or the housing
where the spindle mounts may be bent.
Figure 49
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To check for a bent spindle, remove the belt and spin
the blade spindle. Look at the center; if it rotates in a
tight circle, the spindle is not bent. If the center appears
to wobble, the spindle is bent and should be replaced.
Yet another way to check this with the blades attached
is to align the blades (two blades at a time on three
blade mowers), then run a string across the cutting tips
of the blades. The string should be straight. If it is not,
the blade or spindle could be bent.
If the saddles or blades do not line up and the spindles
are not bent, a shim between the spindle housing and
the mower housing may help align them. Loosen the
spindle to mower housing bolts and insert shim
washers until the saddles are in line (Figure 50). Then,
if you used washers to shim the spindle housing,
remove the bolt and reassemble through the washer to
secure it.
Figure 50
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