I was wondering how many years or hours others have been getting on the mower belts. Mine look really good after a few years with only 300 hours? Also has anyone ever had to replace one of the long blade bolts?
Which model Scag do you have?
Generally there are two V belts on Scag mower decks. One that is driven by the engine mounted clutch and drives the 2nd V belt. The deck belts are in easy view, inspect them periodically, strictly a condition situation. Should a belt start to shred, inspect the pulleys and spindles for freedom of turning when replacing the belt(s).
The pump drive belt is recommended to be replaced every 400 hours although not specified in our operators manuals, I got this info from a Scag tech who printed the page from the service manual for me.
Some of us Scag operators have had to replace a blade bolt or two, not a big deal.
Operators that seldom change blades should drop the blades out yearly and clean them up to reduce corrosion problems.
The torque on the blade bolt nut is 75 FtLbs, dry torque.
I had to drill and split one nut that was seized and damaged the bolt threads in the process. Otherwise, no bolt problems, I change blades about 6 times a year.
The front of the machine must be raised up to allow the blade bolts to drop out of the spindles when removing them for a blade change.
A blade bolt can be bent and still drop out of the spindles due to the blade spacer above the blade. Roll the bolts on a flat surface to check the shanks for straightness.
I have the 61 inch Cheeteh. It has been trouble free so far. Thanks for the info on the bolts. Like I said the belts look ok, I was wondering how long they lasted for others?
#4
jekjr
I run three Tiger Cats which are pretty close in that aspect. 52" decks on all three. I got around 400 yours on two of my mowers on the first main deck belt. One has 900+ hours and I have not replaced that belt on it but one time. The second one has over 700 hours on it and I have only replaced it once as well. We have never changed the short deck belt on either.
The third is new with less than 100 hours on it.
We change blades daily. Some times we change mid day this time of year with the bahia grass being as tough as it is.
We just raise the front end with a small floor jack under the front of the deck. Then we take a cordless impact and take the nuts off the top of the blades. Then we put the new blades on the bolts and stick them through from the bottom and start a nut on each. Then we take the impact and tighten them up. It takes about 5 minutes to change a set of blades. Every once in a while there will be a nut that is tightened real tight. I think it is from the blade hitting something and actually tightening the bolt but can't prove it. In that case we take a long combination wrench and put on the head of the bolt on the bottom and foul it on the deck some where then take a breaker bar and put it on the nut and pull hard. We do not have to do this often but it does happen.
If you have a nut that seizes and can not be removed the easiest way we have found to get them off is to take a 4 1/2" side grinder with a wafer thin blade on it and cut the bolt off at the bottom of the nut. Make sure that you are not far enough down that you cut the hollow shaft instead of the nut. Once you do it once you can do this in minutes as well. We always keep a spare bolt or two in the truck.
Changing blades as often as well do we have to change the nuts every couple of months because they start to take on a mushroom look on the bottoms.
We changed pump belts at around 500 hours on both of the mowers.
Many times our mowers operate under brutal conditions and they have taken a licking and they keep coming back for more.
My deck drive belt is starting to shred its covering.
As I frequently strike unmovable objects, I have installed flat washers under the blade nuts which has made them easier to remove.
Every lawn customer that I have except for me, are lawns that regular full time lawn care operators have dropped due to extremely undesirable mowing conditions. Not patting myself on the back, I was able to make arrangements with neighbors of some of my customers to dispose of collection on their properties. Hauling away clippings, leaves, pine needles, etc., is a costly situation, a service that I had provided in the past and not easy to get paid for.
