Got my used dixie today. Just a few questions, as I have yet to receive the owners manual: Are the hydraulics supposed to make a slight whining sound? What is the red handled lever to the left of the seat supposed to do? Is there any way to adjust the wratchet deck height adjustor? My foot is tired from trying to get it to go down, no prob going up. How do you measure deck pitch? (I want to set it up for stripping) Can you eventually learn to turn on this thing without breaking turf!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks. Matt
Not a Dixie Chopper guy.. yet, but I think I can answer your questions.. Yes the hydros will whine. The red handle may be the emergency brake. The ratchet design for deck adjustment is not the best but you will get used to it after a while. Deck pitch... You need to have the front of the deck 1/8" - 1/4" lower than the back. Yes... hopefully you will learn to not tear the turf when turning. Try a 3 point turn until you get more comfortable with the zero turn. Good luck with your new machine.
The ratchet design for deck adjustment is not the best but you will get used to it after a while I hope so, It is very foreign to me now.
When changing height, only push down on the bottom part of the footpedal, this will allow the deck to drop down ( and make sure if it has a "lock" on the pedal that it is in the up position). Of course pushing on the top will raise the deck. Once you get the hang of it it is easy and you can change deck height on the fly. The lever on the left side of the seat (ours are black) is the parking brake, if you twist the end of it, the brake will get tighter. I wouldn't worry too much about deck pitch yet, the mower should stripe great regardless. If you notice the deck cuts a bit lower when you turn, than adjust it. Take your turns slowly and you will get used to it, I'm glad to hear you got the mower- finally. Best of Luck
lbilawncare--- Thanks for the reply. When I push on the bottom of the pedal, the deck does'nt drop. If i'm lucky, after about the 4th time it kinda does. If I reach down and pull the pedal back while i'm pushing it down, it will move back, but it is very awkward. Any ideas?
Look on the side of the pedal. You should see a small lever a couple of inches long. This lever is intended to keep the deck from dropping when you are using the mower on rough ground. I simply tightened the bolt that goes through the lever tight enough so the lever doesn't lock ie: it stays in the up position. Or Someone may have adjusted the deck tension spring too tight. Remove the floorpan and look on the right side of the mower (from the seat). You will see a large spring with a threaded "eye" bolt. The end of the eye bolt will go through a flat bracket with a nut on the other side. Loosen or tighten the nut to get the desired tension so the pedal will work easier for you.
