Tip Rake

[troberts]

How do you measure tip rake?

Thanks,

TMR

[Runner]

Arrange your discharge chute side blade so it is pointing straight forward and backward. Now, take a tape measure, or any other type of measuring device, and measure the height of the blade at the front tip, and again at the back tip. You should have between 1/8 of and 3/8 of an inch difference. That being the front lower than the back.

[troberts]

Thank you, but one other question...

How would I do this with the Micro Mulch installed (No shoot to look through)?

Is there a next best alterantive?

TMR

[LAWNGODFATHER]

I have not heard it called that but it should be less than 1/4" back to front. This will help in striping and the mowers cut. Make sure it is less than 1/4" or you mower will not cut well. I try to make it between 1/8" and 1/4" to have a great cut and a nice stripe. this does well for me .

LGF:blob1:

[Runner]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by troberts

How would I do this with the Micro Mulch installed (No shoot to look through)?

Well, you can't. Sorry.

[Guido]

your hand under the deck with a small tape measure and hold your fingers on the measurement so you don't loose it? Or you could block the mower up evenly all around and measure to the bottom of the tires using a level below the two tires to stay straight.

[geogunn]

Originally posted by LAWNGODFATHER
I have not heard it called that but it should be less than 1/4" back to front. This will help in striping and the mowers cut. Make sure it is less than 1/4" or you mower will not cut well. I try to make it between 1/8" and 1/4" to have a great cut and a nice stripe. this does well for me .

LGF:blob1:

LGF--but what about fixed deck mowers where the only height adjustment is pulling spacers on the front spindle?

with the rake set as you describe, and the front of the mower set high, when you shift the spindle spacers to lower the cut you are gonna have a bunch more than 1/4 inch rake.

my lesco fixed deck cuts great regardless how the deck height is adjusted and I hear the exmark metro does too. :)

GEO

[David Haggerty]

I use a block of wood mounted on a stick about 3 feet long.

The block has a groove cut about 1/8" deep all the way around it at the desired cutting height. The bottom of the groove is for the front of the blade, the top of the groove is for the rear.

I lay a trouble light on the floor on the opposite side of the deck and the silhouette is easy to see.
The stick and block are strong enough to push the blades into a front to rear alignment so I don't have to reach on top for a pulley or something.

I wrote the height of cut on the handle with a felt tip marker.

I have to use this because some of the decks are rear discharge back toward the mower and there's no chute to look in.
I tried using blocks cut exactly to the height of cut, but they kept getting stuck under the tip of the blade, and it was hard to judge how much the blades were off by.

This works for me, maybe it can help you.

Dave

[jannan]

Since what you are adjusting is the pitch of the deck, why not just measure the distance from the bottom of the skirt to the ground. This would save alot of of extra effort(Laying on ground, reaching inside chute etc). You might have to find a straight line (or put one on, by measuring from the top of the deck down) on the skirt to measure to if the skirt is worn on the bottom

[jannan]

After reading my last post I noticed I was having a dumb--- attack while posting. Just measure from the ground to the top of deck instead of measuring down, marking, and then measuring.

[jnjnlc]

I keep check on mine by using a set of inside callipers. They adjust to what the height is and I take it out an measure the height. Works great.

[LAWNGODFATHER]

geogunn on my Lesco 36" we set it at 3" all the time so that one stays like that. When I had Ferris and Lesco fixed deck mowers. We set them at almost no pitch at 3.5" and when you dropped them to 3" you had about 1/4" pitch. BTW they cut like crap at 3.5" like that. The best thing to do is figure out what height you are going to cut at most of the time and set it for that height. If you ever noticed that on a fixed deck mower you have 1/2" spacers on the front casters and the deck realy only moves about 1/4" per a spacer mover. After a while, what we did was figure we will stay at 3.5" and cut at that height all the time so we put more air in the back tires to adjust it. Now I only have one fixed deck mower, the 36" and I don't have to worry about it changing on the other mowers any more, Once it is set we forget about it. I just check them at the beginning of the season and leave it be.

LGF:blob1:

[geogunn]

LGF--thanks for the reply. I have noticed that the one inch adjustment frpm moving two spacers does not translate to a inch of cut.

my lesco was set up good when I got it so I haven't messed with it except to rearrange the blade spacers.

I will only drop two spacers down for my minimum cut.

GEO