Mulch kit problem

[JimCald]

I am a relatively new owner of a BX1500 and I am very satisfied with it's overall performance. However I have a problem.

I decided that installing and removing the grass catcher was to big a job to do on a regular basis, so purchased a mulch kit for my 48" MMM. The kit was very well constructed with heavy steel baffle and new blades. I installed it per the relatively simple directions paying close attention to the warning about checking the clearance between the blades and the baffles. However there was no indication on how much clearance was needed. I then proceded to test out the installation. It seemed to be OK as I was mowing for about 3 to 4 minutes. Then there was a loud bang and the tractor came to a literal dead stop, engine included. I removed the deck and what happened was one of the blades had hit the baffle, almost cutting completely through it. As an aside, there was almost NO damage to the blade itself, pretty impressive considering the damage to the baffle.

The blade did show a small amount of bending however that would cause it to contact the baffle.

My questions,

1) any idea as what could have caused the blade to hit the baffle, considering that it had been checked and was running OK for a period of time.

2) If I make repairs, how can I be sure this won't happen again?

3) Do you think that there could be some hidden damage to either the tractor or mower deck

Jim

 

[edney]

I have a mulch kit on a 54" on my BX2200 and have been very happy with its performance. When I mounted mine I just made sure it was centered in the baffle. You may have hit some object or even a high spot in the ground. One problem I have noticed is that since the baffles stick down out in the middle of the deck they can catch on a high spot in the lawn if you straddle it just right. This could bend the baffle into the blade if you hit something solid. Striking a big rock or stick could also cause a problem like this I think. Like I said mine works great so far but I thought the steel shold have been a heavier guage.

 

[JimCald]

Thanks for the information. It didn't seem like I had hit something, as I checked the spot where it happened and there was nothing there. I did notice that the blade that hit was bent very slightly and actually hit the deck 1st, not the baffle. Anyway, I cut off the bent metal and made sure that the blades could not hit anything and returned the deck to service with no indication of a problem, so far.

Overall new blades did an excellent job of cutting the grass, with no signs of the clumping that I had with my older Craftsman mower.

Jim