Cracked deck

[Allyn]

Well I inspected my deck on my new Z master (toro) and found a 3" crack in the deck. It was by a weld. My neighbor has a welder and we fixed it. I only have 128 hours.

I was wondering if this a going to be a problem? Do any of you have this problem with your machines? I don't think that I am hard on my machine. I kind of baby it.

It only took about 5 minutes to fix, but I thought that it would be alittle stronger than that.

Allyn

[dhicks]

Why didn't you take it back to the dealer and get a new deck? That deck should not be cracking. I hope you did not void the deck warranty.

[Eric ELM]

I agree with dhicks on this. I would of demanded a new deck. Now if it breaks next to your weld, they probably will tell you it's your fault. Most breaks usually happen next to a weld.

[Allyn]

It probably is under warranty. You would not be able to tell where the weld is. The people I bought it from are in SL, but there is a dealer here in Vegas. I haven't talked to him yet. It was underneath were the grass is.

I was more concerned about down time than the deck and waiting for them to fix it.

Allyn

[Allyn]

I was more concerned about the down time. You would looking at it you would not know that we fixed it.

Allyn

[Dave]

I agree with Eric & DHicks,you should have brought it to the dealer and demanded a new deck.If they find out you welded it you will void the warrenty,Hopefully you will be all set,curious did you undo the ground wire to the battery before welding it

[Allyn]

The guy who welded the job was a pro. He does this for a living, but no we didn't disconnect the ground. It started fine after he was done.

Allyn

[Fantasy Lawns]

I had this happen to one of my 60" deck .....10 month old unit .....took it to the dealer ......they welded it on the spot ....ordered a new deck ....when it came in he called ......I only ended up with at most 4 hours down time

a good dealer is a must have :-> ......I'd call the dealer to see if something can be done

[mowingmachine]

Where did the crack happen at. Is it something that could just as easily happen on a new deck. Chances are it is a design flaw and even if you asked for a new deck the problem could still be there. I think you should tell Toro engineering personally about the problem but just stick with the same deck because you most likely fixed the problem. If Toro engineers are like most they will be happy to discuss the problem and maybe help to improve your problem. It's good for them to hear about problems directly from the consumer. I've learned that going directly to the engineering department is the quickest way to get a problem taken care of. Hope this helps.

mowingmachine

[Allyn]

It is where the outside of the deck meets the bar that goes to the machine. I thing that the weld was not very good, or when they first did the weld the metal was not quite touching each other.

I was more concern about down time than the weld. If I was to take it to the dealer, he would have done the same thing. I don't believe that they would give me a new deck. They would have had the dealer fix the problem and then bill Toro for the work.

It would have cost me more to take it to the dealer than to my neighbor.

Allyn

[TLS]

I once refurbished an old 48" SCAG WB. The deck was cracked, and while I was at it, I reinforced it in different areas. You wouldn't believe how many cracks you see after sandblasting!

Anyway, after all that welding and reinforcing, the deck was permanently warped. It never cut level after that. Its a shame, because it was totally bulletproof! All the heating and cooling of the welder must have tweaked it. Todays decks (mine anyway) are built very heavy and reinforced more than I could ever imagine.

Another thing.... Welders like to screw up spindle bearings and alternators. I remove spindles before any welding.

[dhicks]

I spoke with my Toro dealer today re warranty repairs. According to him, if I buy a Toro from him and move to California, the California Toro dealer has to make warraty repairs providing the machine is still under warranty. Failure to do so would/could result in the loss of his/her Toro dealership. I would think you are covered.

[Dave]

yes he does,I was a self employed fisherman for app 15 years and we bought all of our equipment from the same dealer ,boy he treated us good dropped everything to work on his boys equip.some people bought outboards from NY and saved a thousand or two,but if they had repairs that needed to be done by the dealer he would say yes I will fix it when it is convinent for me as I have to fix my guys equip. first..The equip. manufacture or dist. could care less as long it was done in a fair amount of time,and that the dealer was selling a fair amount of equipment.good luck as some dealers are great and some are no good .I am speaking from both sides of the fence,

[eslawns]

I am not completely familiar with Toro decks, but I thought they were stamped. Is this something on the outside?

BTW, I would have let the dealer take care of this. I can see a problem with spindles not being covered under warranty because of your repair. Also, if a weld is properly done, it will not break. It's stronger than the work pieces by themselves. This is a quality control problem.

[mowingmachine]

Why would spindles have anything to do with welding a crack on the mounting part of the deck. Also welds are typically where a crack begins. The bead of weld itself is harder but the areas around the weld are typically undercut slightly and most definitely a stress concentration. No matter how good the weld is it will be the source of failure if placed in a high load area. Weld placement in designs is very critical to prevent failure.

mowingmachine

[TLS]

Spindle bearings (roller or ball) will tend to fuse or weld themselves to thier races when high electrical currents are passed through them. Alternators' diodes will also be harmed and rendered useless. This is why it is important to remove the ground wire whenever welding on any motor vehicle.

[mowingmachine]

TLS,
I guess I have never heard that before. It makes perfectly good sense and it is something to keep in mind. I have welded decks before without any trouble at all. I guess I will have to pay a little better attention next time to my spindles. Thanks.

mowingmachine

[eslawns]

The spindles are the source of all the stress your deck faces except impact with an object. There is an enormous amount of vibration when the blades are engaged. If there is a crack in the deck, or an improper repair to a crack, these vibrations will be enhanced, and your spindle bearings and housings will wear prematurely. If you read your warranty, this is an exclusion. Some states don't allow them, but if you live in one that does, let the dealer make warranty repairs.

Also welds are typically where a crack begins.

This is a quality control issue. The manufacturer doesn't think it's necessary to ensure proper welds. In our industry, they probably let dealers worry about it.

The bead of weld itself is harder but the areas around the weld are typically undercut slightly and most definitely a stress concentration. No matter how good the weld is it will be the source of failure if placed in a high load area.

Wrong. A proper weld will always be stronger than the work pieces joined together. One of the places I worked tested materials, and I learned a lot about welding. There is a lot more to it than running a good bead.

[mowingmachine]

If it is possible you never want to place a weld in a high stress area. It is considered a stress concentration. Weld material is harder which in turn means more brittle too. That means fatigue and crack propigation can take place more rapidly. Also no matter how good the weld is there will be undercuting of the cross-section in the base material right around the weld. I've got a few years of experience with testing and design and a degree in Mechanical engineering. Almost every failure I have seen starts at the weld or other stress concentrations.

mowingmachine