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Lifting Z for Deck Clean-Out

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Simple question guys, but not having owned a Z until now....

How do you guys lift the front end of your mower up to do occasional clean outs/scrape downs? Do you use jacks(if so, what kind), or jack stands, or other? Would car ramps work?

I am used to just lifting up my Quick by hand on the front end and supporting with a 2x6 but that wont work with a Z400.

Thx
 
#3 ·
Floor Jack in the shop, out in the field run one wheel up the gate of the trailer to get underneath it.
 
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#4 ·
jungle jacks are great, actually lift better than the bigger ones with pnuematic wheels, we have tried them both. for heavier mowers, we could use ramps and have them, but just got a mowjack. maybe not economical for all, but wehave 15 mowers to service every day.
 
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#5 ·
I've just been using car ramps for my ztr's, but I'm considering buying a jungle jack, mostly because it lifts the mower higher and will be easier to work around than ramps. I personally hate using the ramps since they are hard to work around when I'm changing the blades and cleaning the deck. The jungle jack looks much better and safe too.
 
#8 ·
I have a very high tech way of doing it...

A 18" diamater, approx 24" long log, cut on an angle at one end.
A 3" x 6" sleeper of cut about 2.5' long.

Sleeper screwed into angled end of log so it creates approx 45Âş angled ramp.
Ramp is positioned against a pole so stop forward movement when running front left caster up it.

Its all about the angle! Ive tried the car and trailer ramps, they either get in the way or dont make it high enough to get the impact under there.

To be honest, I should make up something a little safer but it didnt cost anything and its only my arm that goes under there.
 
#10 ·
lotsagrass said:
Many of the zero turn brands make their own receiver that you can attach to the front so you can then use one of those jacks like you see here on mine...
Click to expand...
That's a great idea, never thought of that one... Does it hold pretty steady? Seems like 1500 pounds on a 2-3 inch pole would be kind of topply.
 
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#12 ·
very nice option on many mowers now, our kubotas i think were the first to offer integrated machine lifts, it is tied into the front pivoting axle. works great. forgot aobut those, and it has come in handy often for more than service.
 
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#13 ·
all you need is a john deere 7-iron deck and you can forget about having to clean the underside.....even mulching wet grass the deck stays unbelievably clean....didn't have to scrape it last season....just use air compressor to blow spindles off when changing the blades and you're good to go...
 
Discussion starter · #15 ·
Many great ideas thanks guys.
I do have car ramps so will try them first and if I don't like will move on.

BUT, I could just He-Man the whole mower over my head while my wife scrapes it out, then set it back down ever so gently:)
 
#16 ·
I just run one front wheel up on my trailer ramp like someone else mentioned our pick up the front with one hand and slide an axel stand under with the other..or if it's a smooth surface pick up with 2 hands and slide under with my foot. I'm tried car ramps but they kind of get in the way and are not tall enough for me to get my battery powered impact wrench under for blade changes. It can be kind of a pain to do in the field if it's really wet and you have to scrape in between each lawn or even once or more on the same lawn, so I tend to just use my walk behind in conditions like that. I don't have to hold my walk behind up at all...but this thread isn't about that so I'll skip the details.
 
#17 ·
I have a 48" JD Z-trak. When in the field, I always have a place where the terrain is uneven and I can drive one front caster on the "up slope" to get clearance enough on the other side. No, the height isn't very much, but enough to reach under with scraping knife and clean out. I suppose that is one advantage of working in an area with such terrains -- so many negatives, however.

For blade changing, I use a hi-lift jack to lift the front. I do this operation on a flat driveway. When in the up position, I put a jack stand under the deck for safety. Also, I block the rear wheels. This gives me plenty of room to get under for scraping, and for reaching underneath for changing blades. I lay down a tarp first, drive over it, then do the lifting and scraping. When done, and I drive the machine off, the tarp is folded and the debris dumped off; no extra cleanup.
 
#18 ·
Jungle Jack, with one caveat. If you have a front heavy mower, like my Gravely 260's, you have to be a horse to muscle the machine past the breakover point. I solved the problem with a $30 floor jack from Walmart. I simply use the floor jack to raise the machine to near the breakover point, then finish the job with the Jungle Jack with ease, avoiding back strain.

I have an EZ lift system for my Gravely, but didn't even install it on my last mower, as it is really only practical for in the field use. Just too slow to deploy, and it doesn't raise the mower nearly as high as the Jungle Jack.
 
#19 ·
Another vote for the Jungle Jack. Shop around though, you can sometmes find them at local dealers that are just sitting there because no one knows what the heck they are. Rental shop/crappy dealer here had one sitting on the floor for a couple years with a $130 price tag on it. I bought mine online for about that, shipped.

The trailer jack for the front is a pretty neat idea, but I get sick of cranking the jack on my trailer because it's slow... I'd really ge tired of it on the mower. I'd use my floor jack if I wanted a slow way to lift the mower.... I bought the jungle jack because I can lift it all the way up in about 2 seconds and you don't techinically need jackstands because the jack IS a jackstand (no hydraulics to bleed or fail).
 
#20 ·
toro also has nice for field jack lift on the mower (lever type): you dropping it on the ground, driving forward, it lifts front of the mower; (minuses- heavy and not removable deisgn, can damage asphalt surface (even leave deep scratches on concrete floor)

another trick - to tie (strap) ROPS to something solid and drive - would lift front
 
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