Deere 455 & MC519
- Thread starter sacarmic
- Start date
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
Well today I put my new MC519 together, not very impressed with the hitch so far.
Made about 5 rounds on the lawn and the right side came loose. Looked everything over and will convert it to IMatch in the morning. I am not going to put up with the crappy hitch coming loose, I made certain the sliders and the springs were tight enough to work and the right side spring was hung up on the threads allowing the slider bracket to work loose.
I plan to cut the channel iron tongue back a few inches and allow enough room to trip the cart latch. As cheesy as the tilt mechanism is I plan to add a hydraulic cylinder for the tilt and to hold it in the downward position. Then forget the latch, won't need it.
Overall I think this is the poorest made piece of Deere branded stuff I have had.:thumbdown: The blower seems to work fine, should have bought just the blower and made my own cart.
Made about 5 rounds on the lawn and the right side came loose. Looked everything over and will convert it to IMatch in the morning. I am not going to put up with the crappy hitch coming loose, I made certain the sliders and the springs were tight enough to work and the right side spring was hung up on the threads allowing the slider bracket to work loose.I plan to cut the channel iron tongue back a few inches and allow enough room to trip the cart latch. As cheesy as the tilt mechanism is I plan to add a hydraulic cylinder for the tilt and to hold it in the downward position. Then forget the latch, won't need it.
Overall I think this is the poorest made piece of Deere branded stuff I have had.:thumbdown: The blower seems to work fine, should have bought just the blower and made my own cart.
pennwalk
Veteran Member
Overall I think this is the poorest made piece of Deere branded stuff I have had
I'd have to agree that there are some things about JD equipment that cause a lot of frustration. The MC519 has caused me more than its fair share until I got it modified to work more reliably The top latch still makes me want to scream. I keep wondering if the engineers who designed these things actually had to use them wouldn't they change them?
Chris
I'd have to agree that there are some things about JD equipment that cause a lot of frustration. The MC519 has caused me more than its fair share until I got it modified to work more reliably The top latch still makes me want to scream. I keep wondering if the engineers who designed these things actually had to use them wouldn't they change them?
Chris
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
I think these are made by some incompetent fool in their garage and Deere is marketing them. If this thing is engineered then they need to send them back to school.
The blower works pretty good and I am satisfied with its performance and design. The cart and cover is the issue, this thing may be going back.
The blower works pretty good and I am satisfied with its performance and design. The cart and cover is the issue, this thing may be going back.
beenthere
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2001
- Messages
- 18,094
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- Southern Wisconsin, USA
- Tractor
- JD_4x2_Gator, JD_4300, JD_425, JD_455 AWS, added JD_455, JD_110, JD_X485(sold)
I don't agree with the findings, as I've had good relations with my MC519 cart and all too many poor experiences with other competitors attachments.
I'm happy with mine.
One thing I did was to replace the u-shaped bracket that has the slider locks (although for awhile I just bolted them tight) with a piece of flat steel, and then pin it where the bushing studs are mounted. Doesn't take but a bit more to hook it up, and it for sure doesn't come off.
Another "fix" to protect my trees was to fill in at the rear of the cart with a tapered block of wood, so if the rear of the cart hits a tree it slides off rather than removing bark as it slides off.
I haven't found a better system than the MC519.
IB HAPPY with mine.
I'm happy with mine.
One thing I did was to replace the u-shaped bracket that has the slider locks (although for awhile I just bolted them tight) with a piece of flat steel, and then pin it where the bushing studs are mounted. Doesn't take but a bit more to hook it up, and it for sure doesn't come off.
Another "fix" to protect my trees was to fill in at the rear of the cart with a tapered block of wood, so if the rear of the cart hits a tree it slides off rather than removing bark as it slides off.
I haven't found a better system than the MC519.
IB HAPPY with mine.
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
I haven't found a better system than the MC519.
IB HAPPY with mine.
Well I want mine to be more like yours then
Dealer stopped by with a new U shaped bracket today (Sunday) said the parts man forget to give it to me. No wonder I was having fits with the bracket it wasn't the proper one for my mower.
The newly furnished bracket fits on the outside of the frame, lot easier to deal with, been running this across my lawn all afternoon so far it is holding together.
pennwalk
Veteran Member
I ended up getting the u shaped bracket that fits the outside of my 425 frame. One problem that I had was the bracket poping off the pins. After a lot of internet reading I replaced the springs on the latch with heavy duty springs. The other thing I do is to sort of baby it over uneven ground. Slow and gentle seems to help. I have messed with the top latch but it still pops open. Then clippings blow out and leave a trail. I love well made machines but this cart feels like a do it yourself project.
Chris
Chris
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
Well I was able to clean up my whole lawn with two trips across with the pine needle rake and two with the MC cart. No issues with the cart after replacing the bracket.
This will take the pressure off now and I can rig up for IMatch now before I need to use it again. Had to use the 4520 to run the PSR rake since I had the MC cart hooked up to the mower and I prefer not to use the heavier tractors on my lawn areas. Makes the IMatch conversion more important and worthwhile to me.
Most of the time I will be set up with the mulch blades and plug alot easier to use.
This will take the pressure off now and I can rig up for IMatch now before I need to use it again. Had to use the 4520 to run the PSR rake since I had the MC cart hooked up to the mower and I prefer not to use the heavier tractors on my lawn areas. Makes the IMatch conversion more important and worthwhile to me.
Most of the time I will be set up with the mulch blades and plug alot easier to use.
That's quite a set of rants. Just to balance that out, the MC519 I use on my 455 (got it used) has been flawless - easy to attach and detach, never comes off when you don't want it to, tilts and dumps easily, does a nice job picking up leaves and pine needles.
As the first poster found, having the right parts and attaching the unit properly makes a lot of difference - maybe those who are having trouble should check and make sure they have it set up correctly.
Tim
As the first poster found, having the right parts and attaching the unit properly makes a lot of difference - maybe those who are having trouble should check and make sure they have it set up correctly.
Tim
Last edited:
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
Well you work with what you have and I didn't have the right bracket to fit outside the frame. The first bracket provided fit closely inside the frame mounting.
As far as rants go I have had alot of Deere equipment and I think this is the first time I have had a problem with it. I don't like having to take the 3PH off to use the bagger, I still plan to make it IMatch compatible when I have the time.