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I purchased the 50" Timeline mower in early June, 2021 and although it cuts grass very well, it sprays dirt and grass cuttings all over me when I mow. I don't know if it is because the seat is so low to the ground, but i am covered from head to foot and the foot rest will have at least an inch of debris on it. Also, the blades became dull within a month. I had a Bad-Boy for 14 years and had only periodic dusting during drought conditions, but not grass all over me. Has anyone else experienced these issues?
Thanks for your input in advance.

Please double check the model you have, I’ve never heard of a Toro Timeline mower. When you post back include the model and serial numbers.

Rivets said:

Please double check the model you have, I’ve never heard of a Toro Timeline mower. When you post back include the model and serial numbers.

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I apologize for incorrect information. The model is a 75742 50" TimeCutter Toro mower with the serial #409478822. Does this give you additional to address my concerns of this mower? Thanks for reply. I should have included this in the thread topic, but I had just walked back in the house covered with dirt and grass and was livid. I should have waited a while before posting.

First, model 75742 is a 42” TimeCutter, not 50”. Second, did you have a dealer setup the mower for you, or was it purchased at a big box store, where you were responsible for setup. I’ve never run across a TimeCutter blowing the amount of debris you described on the operator. I‘m wondering if the deck was leveled properly. Please answer while I see if I can find a manual.

Yes my thoughts as well, having had a great Toro Timecutter 4260 for about 7 years.

I got mine thru my Dealer, but I still set the deck myself to be sure it was accurate to the height setting. And mine had a rubber Toro® mat on the floor board, which kept it nice & clean for me. That mower never gave me any issue to complain about.

You are probably getting blowout from the deck being higher in the front than the rear. Adjust you deck according to the operators manual. The deck needs to be 1/4” lower in the front. That shouldn’t be too hard. The adjustment rod is right up front and center of the mower. Good luck getting it level from side to side. I had a MX 5000 and could never get it level from side to side.

Six things which must be considered when leveling a deck.
1. Tires pressures must be correct.
2. Good flat surface. Doesn’t have to be level, just flat.
3. Blades are not bent and installed correctly.
4. You are leveling at the blade tips, not the deck frame.
5. You level side to side first, then front to back.
6. Time and patience are your friends, I’ve been doing this for a long time and about once a year I’ll get one that takes me over an hour.

Rivets said:

Six things which must be considered when leveling a deck.
1. Tires pressures must be correct.
2. Good flat surface. Doesn’t have to be level, just flat.
3. Blades are not bent and installed correctly.
4. You are leveling at the blade tips, not the deck frame.
5. You level side to side first, then front to back.
6. Time and patience are your friends, I’ve been doing this for a long time and about once a year I’ll get one that takes me over an hour.

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I agree however, the Toro in question is the lower end residential mower. There are only two points of deck adjustment on those mowers. One is the rod to adjust the pitch, located on the front centerline of the frame cross member. The other is on the left rear side of the deck, near the hanger.

Yes, I do know about how to adjust Toro mowers, I’ve worked at Toro dealerships since the early 80’s. If you think these are hard, try doing a Toro commercial 60 inch with a fabricated deck

Rivets said:

First, model 75742 is a 42” TimeCutter, not 50”. Second, did you have a dealer setup the mower for you, or was it purchased at a big box store, where you were responsible for setup. I’ve never run across a TimeCutter blowing the amount of debris you described on the operator. I‘m wondering if the deck was leveled properly. Please answer while I see if I can find a manual.

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I purchased the mower at Home Depot. They gave me the paperwork which I submitted for warranty registration. The picture shows the 50" deck and it is a TimeCutter model. This picture is after I swept the majority of the debris off. It covers it from front to back. If the last two digits of the model number are the deck width, it appears they gave me the wrong Operator's manual. I will have to go on line to find a correct operators manual to check the adjustments.

I see 50” decal on the deck and 75742 model on your registration card. Please find the ID tag on the mower and see if those numbers are the same. Second, from the other picture I can see what you are talking about. I’ve got to run a few errands now, but I’ll get back to you with a few suggestions this afternoon. Am I correct in assuming your cutting conditions include sandy soil, uneven ground and areas of overgrown vegetation? Let me know about those numbers.

Probably mowing more dirt than grass.

Just looked at your picture. See some dirt action going on.

Rivets said:

Yes, I do know about how to adjust Toro mowers, I’ve worked at Toro dealerships since the early 80’s. If you think these are hard, try doing a Toro commercial 60 inch with a fabricated deck

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I didn’t say it was hard. I’m saying that there is not a lot of adjustment on the entry level Timecutter mowers. If you run out of adjustment on the left side, you are pretty well screwed. Because, there is no adjustment on the right side. The best I could do on my former MX5000 was 1/4” from left to right. The Timecutter HD and Titans have a lot more adjustment and it’s as easy as can be. I loved the chain setup on my 75202.

It looks like a MX5000 with MyRide. That would make it a MX5075.

I agree, that is definitely not a model 75742. Need to hear back from the OP. Would like to know which model he was expecting to purchase and what he paid for it. There are a few unanswered questions here. To the OP, can you provide us with a few pictures of the landscape you are cutting?

I stand corrected! Well, it looks like Toro has upgraded their deck leveling system since 2018. My former 2018 MX 5000 only had 2 points of adjustment. I guess that they got enough complaints that they changed the setup. Sometime between 2018 and now, they changed the hanger system and added an adjustment to the right side of the deck. They now have three adjustment point instead of two. Anyway, follow the operators manual on adjustment. Put the anti-scalp wheels in the top hole. Make sure the tires are properly inflated before beginning your adjustment.
I still have a pair of 2 5/8” 2x4s and a pair of 2 7/8” 2x4s.
The Timecutter HD and Titan models have chain hung decks and are much easier to adjust.

I recommend you not touch this unit until you figure out if you have the unit you purchased and how it was set up. With that amount of debris there may be more problems. Plus you may not have the correct owners manual.

Rivets said:

I agree, that is definitely not a model 75742. Need to hear back from the OP. Would like to know which model he was expecting to purchase and what he paid for it. There are a few unanswered questions here. To the OP, can you provide us with a few pictures of the landscape you are cutting?

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I just got back from Home depot and they gave me the right Operators Manual. Attached is the Model & Serial numbers from the frame of the mower. I attached a couple of pictures of our yard. I had to reduce the file size and converted them to pdf's. Under a few trees where it is shaded the grass is not as thick and is dustier than elsewhere. We are also have not had a rain in 2 weeks, but during Jully we had a bout 3 rains a week and still had grass and dirt on me & mower. I am about to read the manual to see how and if I can get the deck in the proper pitch to minimize or eliminate powder coating. There were two Toros available when I purchased it and I wanted the 50" since I do mow quite a bit. So the one I picked is the one I have. I don't know how inventory is where you live, but I searched everywhere in a town of nearly 200k and only found a handfull of zero turns. I couldn't get parts for my Bad Boy or I would have fixed it.

Coxfarm1 said:

I just got back from Home depot and they gave me the right Operators Manual. Attached is the Model & Serial numbers from the frame of the mower. I attached a couple of pictures of our yard. I had to reduce the file size and converted them to pdf's. Under a few trees where it is shaded the grass is not as thick and is dustier than elsewhere. We are also have not had a rain in 2 weeks, but during Jully we had a bout 3 rains a week and still had grass and dirt on me & mower. I am about to read the manual to see how and if I can get the deck in the proper pitch to minimize or eliminate powder coating. There were two Toros available when I purchased it and I wanted the 50" since I do mow quite a bit. So the one I picked is the one I have. I don't know how inventory is where you live, but I searched everywhere in a town of nearly 200k and only found a handfull of zero turns. I couldn't get parts for my Bad Boy or I would have fixed it.

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I forgot to include I paid about 3,600 for the mower.

@Coxfarm1
After your deck properly leveled, try hitting those spotty areas with a weed eater. That will also help.

Thank you for clearing up a lot of questions. Couple of things you are going to have to do. First you are going to have to contact Toro to clear up your warranty information. Because Home Depot gave you the wrong registration card, I’m assuming you sent it in, Toro has you purchasing a model 75742 and you have a model 75755. Because they have no record of you purchasing a 75755, you will not have any warranty nor will you receive any info from Toro, if a problem should occur with your unit. Second, did Home Depot inform you that you can get an extra year of warranty if you purchased a maintenance kit at the time you purchased the unit? Need both on the same receipt. Now let’s get to your problem. First, looking at your pictures I can see that your landscape contains a lot of sandy soil, and this is the main reason for your problem. This model has a deck designed to lift the grass very strongly for a better cut. Because of this extra lift it is sucking up a lot of sand and other debris. This will do two things. One because of all that sand being sucked up, your blades are going to wear much faster than your old unit. Not much you can do about it, because that is a problem for anyone with sandy soil. This also causes more dust in the air around the unit. Second, if the deck is not leveled properly, discharging all that much debris is going to come out everywhere. Should be able to reduce much of it by setting the deck up properly. I have attached a download of the service manual for your unit, so with it and your owners manual you should be able to set the deck up properly. Hope I’ve answered your questions. If you need more help please feel free to ask more questions. Plus please let us know how everything works out. Good Luck.

Rivets said:

up
I just got back from Home depot and they gave me the right Operators Manual. Attached is the Model & Serial numbers from the frame of the mower. I attached a couple of pictures of our yard. I had to reduce the file size and converted them to pdf's. Under a few trees where it is shaded the grass is not as thick and is dustier than elsewhere. We are also have not had a rain in 2 weeks, but during Jully we had a bout 3 rains a week and still had grass and dirt on me & mower. I am about to read the manual to see how and if I can get the deck in the proper pitch to minimize or eliminate powder coating. There were two Toros available when I purchased it and I wanted the 50" since I do mow quite a bit. So the one I picked is the one I have. I don't know how inventory is where you live, but I searched everywhere in a town of nearly 200k and only found a handfull of zero turns. I couldn't get parts for my Bad Boy or I would have fixed it.

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I cannot imagine why you could not get parts for your badboy. Please explain. Lol

Forgot to mention that those units MSRP for $4199, so you did get a good price, but not good enough to overcome all your problems.

Rivets said:

Forgot to mention that those units MSRP for $4199, so you did get a good price, but not good enough to overcome all your problems.

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I got the proper operator's manual from Home Depot and have sent in the proper registration of the model 75755. I went through the directions on leveling the deck. I must say whomever wrote those instruction on trying to measure the height of the left side blade set at 3" must of had a 6th grader's hands to get under the deck edge and even see. I revised the instructions to a 4" deck height. After all it is just relative geometry. The side to side was just under 1/4", so I left it as is. I then checked front to back difference and found the front was 3/16" lower than the back. I lowered it to 3/8" and mowed 2 strips about 80' in length. I was probably cutting less than 1/2" of grass and still got quite a bit debris on me and the mower. This was in our front yard where we have the thickest grass cover. We really haven't had enough rain to actually mow the yard yet.

I wanted to see if the air filter needed to be changed and was able to only get part of the plastic shroud pulled back. The instructions said there was a rubber tube between the filter and the engine, but in reality the filter sits right on a aluminum manifold. I am starting to wonder why is something like this so different than the printed manual. Having said this before, I purchased a Bad Boy mower 13 years ago and got a CD with the operators manual, schematics of all parts with their part # to reference if ordering. They did not have the Kohler engine information but all the other mower parts. The schematics and parts matched what was on the mower.

I like the ride in this Toro, but if I can't solve this debris problem and wear on the blades, I may need to sell it. The Bad Boy blades lasted at least 3 months before I would need to sharpen them. Within 6 weeks the leaves will start falling creating even more debris. I took the plastic covers off that were over the deck pulleys and the grass was packed as tight as stone. Had to use a screwdriver and a hose to get the debris out. We may have some sand in our soil but we aren't raising melons as the corn 200 bu/ac and soya beans 90 bu/ac. We have to have our fields tiled to remove excess moisture. If we had that much sand, we wouldn't need tiles for sure.
I really appreciate your information and advice. I will give you a heads up when we get some rain and need mowing. That is typical August for this area.
Bob

The tool circled in this picture is what I use to level decks. It is made from a rod coupler and bolt, costs about $2.50 and is much easier to use than anything else I’ve tried. 1/4” off side to side is too much, need to get close to 0. Front to back should be 1/4”. More than that will blow out more debris. From the pictures you posted, you definitely have more sand that you think, causing rapid blade wear. There is nothing you can do to change that. I have no idea why Bad Boy blades would last longer.

With the tires aired cold to spec, the front to back slope set @ 1/4", & when an operator gets on, the slope decreases depending on body weight. But that can change slope to front by 1/8" give or take a 1/16" or so., so you would be mowing with a 1/8" slope, which I set my Toro to w/ my weight figured in. And that cut perfect. No blow back at all.

Rivets tool outlined to be made is super. Here is a plastic tool that can get under the deck to blade tips to get the side to side as close to perfect as possible. Cost about $6. I use a large socket that measures 3" tall. Simple.

Technique can make a big difference in how much debris gets blown back on you.

If you're not already doing this, keep the discharge chute pointed downwind as much as possible. Take note of the wind before you start mowing a section and mow into the wind and downwind, not crosswind.

This will also make the air filter last longer.

Use a leaf blower or equivalent to blow off accumulated debris after each mowing. Remove the blower housing mid year and clean the cylinder cooling fins if they need it.

Rivets said:

The tool circled in this picture is what I use to level decks. It is made from a rod coupler and bolt, costs about $2.50 and is much easier to use than anything else I’ve tried. 1/4” off side to side is too much, need to get close to 0. Front to back should be 1/4”. More than that will blow out more debris. From the pictures you posted, you definitely have more sand that you think, causing rapid blade wear. There is nothing you can do to change that. I have no idea why Bad Boy blades would last longer.
View attachment 57838

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The bolt and a coupler makes great sense. A true mechanic shining through. I will go back through the leveling sequence as per the Oper. Manual and set the pitch for the front to back at a !/4'. I will try to get my wife to help measure the deck with my 200+ lbs to see what actual conditions I would be mowing at per "7394". The leaf blower is already standard operating procedure and along with usually a water hose per "cpurvis". We had 2.5" of rain over night, so mowing is back on the To Do List.
Thanks again

Coxfarm1 said:

The bolt and a coupler makes great sense. A true mechanic shining through. I will go back through the leveling sequence as per the Oper. Manual and set the pitch for the front to back at a !/4'. I will try to get my wife to help measure the deck with my 200+ lbs to see what actual conditions I would be mowing at per "7394". The leaf blower is already standard operating procedure and along with usually a water hose per "cpurvis". We had 2.5" of rain over night, so mowing is back on the To Do List.
Thanks again

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Well it is finally dry enough to mow after using the bolt/coupler to level the deck per manual. I was able to get a perfect balance on the side to side measurement and 1/4" lower front than the back. As would be expected the dust was not quite as prevalent today since the rain a few days ago. I attached a picture of the deck with grass cuttings. This is about 1/3 of the normal amount I had been experiencing. That is a partial victory in itself. I spoke with a friend and he said he installed mulching blades on his mower and it drastically cut down on the airborne grass cuttings as well as windrows of heavy grass. Is there any credence in that statement?
Thanks,
Bob

Did you do anything to the discharge chute? like raise it up?

hlw49 said:

Did you do anything to the discharge chute? like raise it up?

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No discharge chute is always down.

wow is it blowing from under the front of the deck?

aka: blow-back