Mowing Greasing finish mower spindles

[jdp]

Just got a used King Kutter 5' rear discharge finish mower. How much grease do you put in when greasing mower spindles. Are they sealed, so you put in a set amount? Should I see grease exiting bottom of spindle above blade? Manual just says to grease- no guidance.

thanks

 

[mostly_gas]

My spindles are sealed, and I have not seen any mowing decks with unsealed spindles. I grease (3-5 shots) mine at the beginning of the season and when I sharpen the blades, usually once a season.

 

[Mark Page]

The owner's manual for my 7 foot Woods calls for 1 pump every 12 hours. Gotta wonder where it goes. Not sure if they are sealed or not.

 

[CBW1999]

Sealed spindles don't usually have a zerk-

If you are able to push grease in, there has to be a way for it to seep out under pressure. I usually pump in till i see a little squeeze out, in my mind, that pushes out old grease, dirt and water and helps keep it from seeping in that way.

 

[Gary Fowler]

When I got my Craftsman 6000 ZTR mower, the mechanic said it had sealed bearing so I never really checked the spindles till the second year I had it. I then saw the zerks and began pumping grease into them till it came out. It took a tube and a half total for all 3 spindles to get grease to come out the spindle. That was beginning of this season and I havent greased them again. I figured that if it was good for a year without any grease, 20 oz ought to last for this mowing season. It takes me about an hour to mow and about once every two weeks so I dont think I put more than 12 hours per year. I no longer wash it off after use, just take a leaf blower and blow off the grass debris after use. Someone told me that washing allowed water to get into the bearings due to the way the spindles set in a depression in the deck, so I quit washing. Time will tell if this has any effect.

 

[Freddieboy]

Just got a used King Kutter 5' rear discharge finish mower. How much grease do you put in when greasing mower spindles. Are they sealed, so you put in a set amount? Should I see grease exiting bottom of spindle above blade? Manual just says to grease- no guidance.

thanks

I bought the same mower this spring from TSC and I had the same question....shipped dry and no guidance. I pumped in red grease until I saw it oozing from under the pulley's. After a few use's I put in 1-2 more pumps to be safe. No issues so far.

 

[Pooh_Bear]

I have an old Big Bee RFM. It says to grease it every 8 hours of use. That amounts to about every 3 mowings for me. I use an air powered grease gun and give each spindle about 5 pops of the trigger. I greased it once until grease came out from under the pulleys and it got slung all over the belt. So now I limit it to 5 pops with the grease gun.

Pooh Bear

 

[KubotaSam]

I always wondered this myself. I seem to use mine about 2 hours at a time. I give each spindle 2 pumps before each use. If I was to mow 2 hr in the morning an again in the afternoon I probably would not grease it again that day.

 

[Will_C]

I have always tried for one pump of grease for every hour of use-I am not saying that's right, but I have never replaced a spindle.

Will

 

[Turbys_1700]

My Woods PRD manual calls for greasing every 25 hours of use...
That would be approximately 2 times a year for me...
I grease every two cuttings...
My Land Pride RFM ran for 14 years...
My Woods has been running 6 years...
No spindle or bearing issues with either in 20 years of use...
Grease is cheap...