Uneven deck Ariens Zoom34

jdunn618

jdunn618

Member
I recently been having issues with the cut being slightly high on the right side. I know how to adjust the deck front/back & side/side. However screwed in the front left as far as it will go, got it decent & the right side is even front to back. But the right side sides about half inch too high still & I ran out of thread to lower it on the right side & used up all the thread to pull it up on the left. Am I missing something? I can't physically move it more but its still uneven. Yes I checked my tires those are even as well.
 

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I have an uneven duck too. He walks with a waddle. :) Just getting a smile. There are some folks here who will be by sometime today and they will be able to help. Might try a search. Sometimes it is a spring missing etc, or someone hit a stump and tweaked things.
 
sgkent said:
I have an uneven duck too. He walks with a waddle. :) Just getting a smile. There are some folks here who will be by sometime today and they will be able to help. Might try a search. Sometimes it is a spring missing etc, or someone hit a stump and tweaked things.
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I don't see where I said duck? Lol But I already tried looking it up. It just shows how to level em but I appreciate it! I'll check springs but i don't believe that is it
 
I said "duck" to get a smile, you didn't. :) Uneven decks can be hard to troubleshoot especially if it is due to a tweak from hitting a stump. I just have followed a couple similar threads recently and in at least one a support spring was missing.
 
Now it might take so doing but raise the mower up first and using a straight edge (here I use a 4 foot level ) place it across the deck. with the centered on the measuring tool. Both L and R side blade tips [both blades] should be the same distance from the measuring tool. If not then one of the deck spindle mounts or deck housing is probably bent.

I just straighten out a MTD mower where the customer bent a blade by running over a stump. It did more than just bending the blade it actually bent the deck housing. Knowing where to smack with a 3# sledge helps.

Also make both blades are the same manufacture as different manufactures bend them differently.
 
Those units came with a mid-range setting. Your are suppose to have threads in the adjustment left over for minor correction.. You are at the extreme end with no threads left tells me you need to take the deck off and start over. You have something wrong in the mounting. You never should run out of threads in the adjustments. Reinspect the connections and see where you went wrong. Something might be connected incorrectly, broken or worn beyond normal thus causing you to tweak that far. Get it back to the middle both sides and go from there.
 
bkeller500 said:
Those units came with a mid-range setting. Your are suppose to have threads in the adjustment left over for minor correction.. You are at the extreme end with no threads left tells me you need to take the deck off and start over. You have something wrong in the mounting. You never should run out of threads in the adjustments. Reinspect the connections and see where you went wrong. Something might be connected incorrectly, broken or worn beyond normal thus causing you to tweak that far. Get it back to the middle both sides and go from there.
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So far I got: 1) back left thread is snug but not super tight on the bracket it hangs from & I have it placed in the middle. 2) back right is tight but the threads are as far out/low as it can go 3) front left is tight & threads are in the middle 4) front right is loose/not sitting right but in the middle. It makes sense to adjust them but the pitch is solid, just left to right is half inch lower on left side. So if I put the threads from the back left to where it sat in the middle- it would raise the right side too high but if I did that to adjust the threads it would make it even higher on the right side & my goal is to get my left even but the threads shouldn't be that extreme. Like u said. No springs seem worn/gone! I'm so frustrated. If any of that makes sense uhhhggg
 
Let's say it is parked on a fairly level concrete floor when doing this. Is there a way you can use two levels to measure the mounting point on the mower frame from the ground at each corner and see if they are all level. I would GUESS they should be. If they are then you would know 100% that the tweak is in the deck. We used to drop a line from known points on the race car to the floor and measure the spot and distance to be sure the frame was straight. You can't do that because the deck is in the way, but I am wondering if two levels would give you that measurement to the mount points. One level for the height, and one across to the mount point. Or if you are contractor with a laser level that might or might not work. Basically you want to find out what is tweaked.
 
Pull the deck and inspect all of the mounting parts in particular the double bent pin
Inspect the holes for ovaling
In use the left side tends to lift because of the belt rotation , and this is common to all belt driven decks .
And has already been mentioned try backing all of the adjusters off to their mid positions then level the deck from scratch.
Remember to both LOWER the high side as well as raising the low side.
Check where the hanger brackets are connected to the deck often they will bend , stretch or wear .
It is not uncommon to find the deck itself to be bent up where the hanger is fastened
Usually this is worse with big decks where the customer steps onto the deck when mounting the mower .
To be Zoom specific, the only one I work on is a mini Zoom and it required a lot of work to get it to lift square .
Despite the lift shafts being bushed , all 4 holes were oval and each had a different shape
The holes on the brackets welded to the deck were also oval and again each one was a different shape
The two drag links were badly worn as was the holes they sit in .
It is a very robust deck mount but it does require regular lubrication which this customer ( and probably most of them ) never did .
It was a big job but a lot of building up and welding on some high tensile washers + replacing the 4 bushes plus both drag links did the trick .
Down side was the two seasons later they ran it along a slope & siezed the engine
 
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