How do you lift the Ventrac 4500 Tough Cut Mower deck?

[MountainBuck]

I cannot lift this deck either which was a big disappointment since I discussed my back problems with the sales person and he never mentioned that this might be an issue.

Luckily my garage has an overhead I beam so I attached a small hoist to it. To flip the deck I tie a rope to the front wheels and hoist it up after taking the pins out. This isn't a perfect solution because I have to be aware of the forces exerted so as to not damage anything. I park the pivot plane of the deck slightly forward of the hoist to again reduce any backwards pressure against the ventrac.

I'm sure this is not the "approved method" but ya gotta do what ya gotta do..

As a side issue, I'm beginning to have doubts that greasing the spindle bearings is actually doing anything productive. I asked the parts woman in person if these bearings are open or sealed and she couldn't answer the question. I never see any grease come out of these bearings so I suspect they are sealed and so the grease is not getting inside. But I've never taken these apart yet so I can't know for sure.

 

[johara1]

I used a 2x4 and put it under the bar like in the pic and on top of the deck. I screwed an small piece of 2x4 for a stop, and slid it under the bar and on top of the deck till the stop hit and you can lift the deck easy. mine is about 4.5 long... jim

 

[Chris616]

PRS - Thanks for the sharpening and balancing equipment recommendations. I wonder if your mower deck configuration is different from mine. Here is mine in the flipped-up position with the hydraulics lifting the deck as far as possible . The gap under the back edge of the deck is less than 3/16" (and the rear rubber skirt is folded forward under the deck on the other side of that gap). I suspect that something would get damaged if I did this on a nearby slope then tried to drive in either direction back to the shop.



MountainBuck - I just finished lubricating the mower deck. The grease was definitely going into the zerks on the swivel wheel spindles. With one pump of the grease gun I also couldn't see any old grease coming out, but that was the same for every other lube point where the manual details to put in just one pump (or three for the blade spindles). The manual shows to "Grease Until Fresh Grease is visible" only for the swivel wheel axle bearings (I was surprised that this took 25-30 pumps of my lube gun).

James (johara1) - Thanks for the idea about the 2x4. I made mine as long as possible (60 inches) to get the maximum leverage. I have to slide it in from the tractor side. As you say, it's an easy lift this way. My slightly built wife tried it out and was able to lift it.



The only downside to having the pipe across between the swivel wheels, at least for me, is that my arms are not long enough to reach down over the pipe and put the pins in to hold the deck in the upright position. For a few seconds I thought about reaching in between the deck and the pipe, but then I imagined what injuries would result if I lost control of the deck and it came down with me in there. My trusty helper is usually available nearby when I'm mowing, so I can get her to insert the pins while I hold the deck up. If I had to do this singlehanded I'd have a fixed length rope dedicated to this job with a carabiner at each end. One end would go into a hole at the ROPS hinge and the other would be sitting on the hood of the tractor where I could reach it after lifting the deck to snap onto the pipe and hold the deck up while the locking pins were inserted.

Chris

 

[Gator6x4]

People wanting something to lift the deck with look around on Craigslist and other places for a automotive engine crane, or look at the lawn mower lifts at Harbor Freight.

 

[Chris616]

People wanting something to lift the deck with look around on Craigslist and other places for a automotive engine crane, or look at the lawn mower lifts at Harbor Freight.

Gator6x4 - the problem with those solutions is that they only provide a vertical lift. When flipping up a mower deck like this the lift starts as vertical, but requires mostly a horizontal push to complete.

Chris

 

[johara1]

PRS - Thanks for the sharpening and balancing equipment recommendations. I wonder if your mower deck configuration is different from mine. Here is mine in the flipped-up position with the hydraulics lifting the deck as far as possible . The gap under the back edge of the deck is less than 3/16" (and the rear rubber skirt is folded forward under the deck on the other side of that gap). I suspect that something would get damaged if I did this on a nearby slope then tried to drive in either direction back to the shop.

View attachment 610670

MountainBuck - I just finished lubricating the mower deck. The grease was definitely going into the zerks on the swivel wheel spindles. With one pump of the grease gun I also couldn't see any old grease coming out, but that was the same for every other lube point where the manual details to put in just one pump (or three for the blade spindles). The manual shows to "Grease Until Fresh Grease is visible" only for the swivel wheel axle bearings (I was surprised that this took 25-30 pumps of my lube gun).

James (johara1) - Thanks for the idea about the 2x4. I made mine as long as possible (60 inches) to get the maximum leverage. I have to slide it in from the tractor side. As you say, it's an easy lift this way. My slightly built wife tried it out and was able to lift it.

View attachment 610671

The only downside to having the pipe across between the swivel wheels, at least for me, is that my arms are not long enough to reach down over the pipe and put the pins in to hold the deck in the upright position. For a few seconds I thought about reaching in between the deck and the pipe, but then I imagined what injuries would result if I lost control of the deck and it came down with me in there. My trusty helper is usually available nearby when I'm mowing, so I can get her to insert the pins while I hold the deck up. If I had to do this singlehanded I'd have a fixed length rope dedicated to this job with a carabiner at each end. One end would go into a hole at the ROPS hinge and the other would be sitting on the hood of the tractor where I could reach it after lifting the deck to snap onto the pipe and hold the deck up while the locking pins were inserted.

Chris

I forgot to say to get a couple of tarp straps to hold the bar in place, and don't forget to make a stop from a short piece of 2x4 so it won't slip when you raise the deck... sure saves your back. ask me...lol... jim

 

[prs]

Lots of us with bad backs around here. Chris, I have had no problems with ground contact when moving with deck locked back. My favorite "slope" for that purpose is a dressed side area of my paved driveway that is almost a 20 slope.

I can tell Ya for sure to NOT get anything you do not want sliced off into those interior joints! I had the main belt jump track once, lifted to inspect and saw that I needed to get to the shop and let the deck back down. It sliced that belt so easily I did not even realize it until I opened again. Very clean cut! PIA to rebelt too.

prs

 

[Gator6x4]

Gator6x4 - the problem with those solutions is that they only provide a vertical lift. When flipping up a mower deck like this the lift starts as vertical, but requires mostly a horizontal push to complete.

Chris

The wheels on the automotive engine crane would make it a ideal tool then. Look at the titan here.

automotive engine crane - Google Search

 

[prs]

Using some of the methods described above to get the deck vertical, once there it is not difficult to keep there. The areas where the safety pins are to be placed are right up front close to the now upper surface. So far as I know, there is no hydraulic lift option for the tough cut mower.

prs

 

[tookielee]

Looks like you could make a set of ramps from 2x6s, maybe 18" - 20" high... line them up
with the wheels, drive forward until deck is up, lock the brake... should lift the rest of the way
by hand a little easier