Fairly new Craftsman T110 cut height too low !!

[ECOB00ST]

I have the cut height lever at the highest setting. The deck is leveled. Tires are aired up. Nothing is broken. It's just too low for my St. Augustine grass that prefers 3.5 - 4" to thrive. My little Honda push mower cuts at a better height on the highest setting and I catch myself often using it instead of the riding mower.

Are there any hacks or aftermarket things I can use to get the cut height up to that 3.5 - 4"? It's gotta be doing barely 3" at the most. The alternative is to just sell it but I love the idea of mowing my entire corner lot in 15 min or less.

 

[bertsmobile1]

The earlier models had a height adjustment on both sides
These can be retrofitted to current models so you adjust both sides and the front thus raise the entire deck
You need a little caution as you can end up with the deck fouling on the transmission if you lift too high.
The mounting point for the front drag link is pathetic and from new I have to bend a lot of them forward because they have gotten bent back in transit or left the factory faulty in the first place
The specifications for the new models are a lie and the 3.75" cut height means the blades are 4" above concrete with no one sitting in the seat
If your ground is a little soft & you weigh more than 60lbs then the mower will sink a little into the grass thus that 3.75" becomes a fairy story .
Going up and extra 5-10 psi in all tyres will add a little extra height .
You can fit bigger wheels that will give you a lot more height.
Being a manual gear box the bigger wheel size is no problem so swap the 20" for 22" on the back .
Not sure what the fronts are but you should be able to get tyres that are 2" bigger .
The front will be fairy cheap but the backs are in the arm, leg & first male born price range so look for some second hand wheels
IF you just have a suburban corner block then wide area walk behind will give you double the cut width but only 1/2 the exercise.
Fairly sure there is a 42" Toro walk behind

 

[ECOB00ST]

The earlier models had a height adjustment on both sides
These can be retrofitted to current models so you adjust both sides and the front thus raise the entire deck
You need a little caution as you can end up with the deck fouling on the transmission if you lift too high.
The mounting point for the front drag link is pathetic and from new I have to bend a lot of them forward because they have gotten bent back in transit or left the factory faulty in the first place
The specifications for the new models are a lie and the 3.75" cut height means the blades are 4" above concrete with no one sitting in the seat
If your ground is a little soft & you weigh more than 60lbs then the mower will sink a little into the grass thus that 3.75" becomes a fairy story .
Going up and extra 5-10 psi in all tyres will add a little extra height .
You can fit bigger wheels that will give you a lot more height.
Being a manual gear box the bigger wheel size is no problem so swap the 20" for 22" on the back .
Not sure what the fronts are but you should be able to get tyres that are 2" bigger .
The front will be fairy cheap but the backs are in the arm, leg & first male born price range so look for some second hand wheels
IF you just have a suburban corner block then wide area walk behind will give you double the cut width but only 1/2 the exercise.
Fairly sure there is a 42" Toro walk behind

Yes, mine only levels on one side. I'm a visual person. Going to have to try and find some videos of this hack your describing. Haven't seen anything yet on Youtube, that's what led me here to this forum. I looked at the tires and the rear tires are right up against the back of the cutting deck. I don't think I have room for anything substantially bigger. That was my first idea.

My 2nd idea, if there are no viable hacks is selling it and getting the Toro Timesaver you just described. But those are much more expensive than what I'll get for the used Craftsman. Takes about 1hr max to mow the yard with my trusty little Honda so I can't really see myself coming out of pocket too much to get the Toro. That's why I'm trying to make this thing work for me. I do enjoy cutting it in 15 min with no sweat.

 

[ECOB00ST]

@ECOB00ST
See page 21.

https://www-static-nw.husqvarna.com/hbd/tdrdownload/pub000004921/doc000018898/1167284008

Thank you, I'll see if my mower has similar adjustment points.

 

[bertsmobile1]

No it will not have similar height adjustments because MTD has been making all Craftsman mowers for the past few years
Why some one decided to link a video to a different model Craftsman that was made by Husqvarna is beyond me but it is an open public forum so you just have to put up will the well intentioned leading you the garden path
You bought a T110 which is an MTD 13AN77XS293 which uses the Deck lift MTD inherited from Cub Cadet when they took them over .

Without trying to be disrespectful you bought one of the cheapest mowers on the market made by the cheapest factory in the USA and you only ever get what you pay for.
Most people with ride ons mow way too low
While the mower has 7 height adjustments, they go from 1.5" to 3.75" so like everything else around MTD it is a con job because the deck swing is greater than the height adjustment increments of 3/8"
For the size of your lawn you would probably be better served by one of the Rear Engined Riders ( RER ) I am sure there is a Honda, Snapper Lawn Boy RER that has a 4.5" cut .

There is a good reason why the Toro push mower is more expensive than the Craftsman rider and it has to do with the word QUALITY .

 

[MParr]

@bertsmobile1 and @ECOB00ST
Evidently, I made a mistake in posting the earlier information. I can delete it if you like. When Sears carried the Craftsman line, they had mowers made by both MTD and Husqvarna. The Sears bankruptcy spun all of that brand off. However, the front deck adjustment is the same. The rear adjustment is a little different. I can delete the earlier posts.
Anyway, look at page 26 and 27 of the link.

http://pdf.lowes.com/useandcareguides/043033587650_use.pdf

 

[bertsmobile1]

Well I am not the forums factual accuracy policeman so you are not doing anything for me.
We all make mistakes.
When some one points out one of mine I correct it because I believe what is on a forum should be as accurate as possible because it can in theory remain on line forever.
Also when I have no idea about some thing, being led down the garden path is really annoying and adds to my confusions.
And as for who makes Craftsman tractors, even when Sears existed it was nothing odd to have 4 different manufacturers in any single season as I have found out the hard way when trying to repair older equipment
I do not know enough of the history of mower manufacture in the USA but from the lists of makers codes there are a lot of companies ho made some craftsman mowers like Roper for instance , who are now made by AYP but must of at one time had a factory

Back to Ecobost.
No easy way to do it now I have done the proper research as your height adjuster is welded onto the deck so you can not buy a second one to put on the other side. Sorry I allowed myself to be misled .
You will need to shorten the lift arms shown as part # 11 & 12 in the diagram linked to below
Easiest way is to cut the end off then bend a new one so the rods are 1/2" shorter
On older MTD's I cut a bit out of the middle thread both ends then fit a threaded joiner and lock nut .
T 110 parts breakdown

 

[hlw49]

Well I am not the forums factual accuracy policeman so you are not doing anything for me.
We all make mistakes.
When some one points out one of mine I correct it because I believe what is on a forum should be as accurate as possible because it can in theory remain on line forever.
Also when I have no idea about some thing, being led down the garden path is really annoying and adds to my confusions.
And as for who makes Craftsman tractors, even when Sears existed it was nothing odd to have 4 different manufacturers in any single season as I have found out the hard way when trying to repair older equipment
I do not know enough of the history of mower manufacture in the USA but from the lists of makers codes there are a lot of companies ho made some craftsman mowers like Roper for instance , who are now made by AYP but must of at one time had a factory

Back to Ecobost.
No easy way to do it now I have done the proper research as your height adjuster is welded onto the deck so you can not buy a second one to put on the other side. Sorry I allowed myself to be misled .
You will need to shorten the lift arms shown as part # 11 & 12 in the diagram linked to below
Easiest way is to cut the end off then bend a new one so the rods are 1/2" shorter
On older MTD's I cut a bit out of the middle thread both ends then fit a threaded joiner and lock nut .
T 110 parts breakdown

AYP is now part of HOP or Husqvarna Outdoor Products.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Has been for quite a long time.
They might be doing a name change but AYP was the first company the liberated Husqvarna company bought .
Sunbeam , a German company decided to exit the lawn & garden market so they sold off Husqvarna as a seperate entity
Husqvarna then went on a rampage & bought up as much of their supply chain as possible.
In slimy shinny suits mode they were protective acquisitions to make Husqvarna too big for Stihl to gobble up.
They bought out a lot of smaller EU factories as well which caused the remainder to group together as GGP ( Global gardening Products ) based in Italy with Stiga being the brand name most Americans would have heard of .
At that time AYP & Noma were making most Husqvarna ride ons & Murray were making the push mowers

 

[MParr]

Has been for quite a long time.
They might be doing a name change but AYP was the first company the liberated Husqvarna company bought .
Sunbeam , a German company decided to exit the lawn & garden market so they sold off Husqvarna as a seperate entity
Husqvarna then went on a rampage & bought up as much of their supply chain as possible.
In slimy shinny suits mode they were protective acquisitions to make Husqvarna too big for Stihl to gobble up.
They bought out a lot of smaller EU factories as well which caused the remainder to group together as GGP ( Global gardening Products ) based in Italy with Stiga being the brand name most Americans would have heard of .
At that time AYP & Noma were making most Husqvarna ride ons & Murray were making the push mowers

I was just working on my Poulan Pro 220 chainsaw. I had a need to look at the manufacturing sticker. Low and behold the parent company was Electrolux Outdoor Products at the time of manufacture. Electrolux spun off Husqvarna and Poulan and other former Electrolux outdoor power companies went with it.