MAX 28 MMM Issue

[mitchash]

I mowed for the second time yesterday with my MAX 28 and it does cut well but I hit our sidewalk (pavers) with the left front caster wheel and bent the shaft, so bad that the wheel hit the deck and I dug a nice trench around the lawn before I realized it was bent. I took it off and straitened the shaft on a press today. I have hit those pavers many times before with our Cub Cadet 3000 series and never had a problem. Anyone else have a problem bending the caster wheels? Anyone have any fixes or modifications on the Mahindra decks? Thanks

 

[jhasafety1]

I have talked about this before
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/mahindra-owning-operating/280897-mahindra-max-28-60-mower.html
last year I had a machine shop make me new ones for when the old ones won't straighten anymore. I think I paid $110 for 8 new shafts which is cheap compared to the $103 each that Mahindra wanted last year. I about ready to change them out. I also did a post on the issues I have with the amount of crap that the mower allows to go forward and clog the air intake vents. The challenge there is the motor air is pulled from in front of the radiator and is sucking all the dust and grass into the air filter. I have to blow it out every time I mow.

 

[Browneyesvictim]

My gut response would be- Quit hitting immovable objects with your tractor! But that's just the antagonist coming out in me. Ha ha!

FWIW, I've been pretty rough on my deck and haven't ever bent a caster shaft on my deck before, but I did lose a caster once when the axle bolt came out. Now they are loc-tited in. Although the casters on the 28 deck are different than the 25/22, I can't complain about my Mahindra deck build quality.

Now... The clogging of the air intake vents with grass fodder, I can certainly relate to! It requires cleaning several times in a mowing session. Gotta keep a close eye on the temp gauge or the tractor will overheat! I did learn recently you can change the forward/aft angle of the mower deck with the forward mounting bracket bolts. The book says the deck should have a slight forward tip to it. I haven't tried to mess with those yet to see if that helps with the airflow.

 

[chvfrk98]

The dealer bent mine when they delivered it. it bent the arm, not the caster. I had to cut it with the plasma, bend it back and reweld. The arm is boxed all the way up until the last 2", then it's thick angle. I think I may box the front ones in if I have any other issues.

 

[Bigtyme]

Yes. I've had the same issue on the left front caster. Bent the arm and the caster. I was thinking about finding oval wheels that would pull it over the walk a little easier. Also want to reinforce the arms some how. It would be great to see some ideas.

 

[Bigtyme]

The dealer bent mine when they delivered it. it bent the arm, not the caster. I had to cut it with the plasma, bend it back and reweld. The arm is boxed all the way up until the last 2", then it's thick angle. I think I may box the front ones in if I have any other issues.

By the way. How do you like the chipper with the max28?

 

[chvfrk98]

I think I just need to sharpen the blades. I smell more burning wood than chipping!

The tractor had not issues running it.

On the reinforcement, I'm not sure how much better you could get with such a short cylinder.