Flail Mower Flail Mower bearing removal help
- Thread starter Blake13
- Start date
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leonz
Super Member
Hello Blake13,
I just found your response with the dry ice I am glad it worked.
If you have time see if you can rent a bearing heater from an auto repair shop or a KAMAN industrial office or tractor repair shop a local NAPA to heat the bearings and bearing housings and then you can just slip them right over the stub shafts and then put the bolts in from the inside of the flail mower shroud.
Short of leaving the bearings in an oven for an hour at low heat I have no other idea to help as using a smoke wrench to heat a bearing is not good as it will ruin it.
Nope, nope, nope,nope, no cutting!! It will screw up the rigidity of the flail mower on that side and weaken the side weldment.
The stub shafts and the rotor end discs are either welded with MIG and wire,stick welding or spun welded.
The rotor went in with the balancing weights welded to the rotor and it will come out in one piece.
The flail mower rotors are spin balanced at 2,200 rpm+ and the knife mounting stations are welded using jigs to hold the knife mounting stations in place.
Its just going to take more cleaning. Even if the bearing looks good I will tell you that those bearings rotate at 2,200+ RPM and you need a new pair of bearings as they are both damaged.
I just found your response with the dry ice I am glad it worked.
If you have time see if you can rent a bearing heater from an auto repair shop or a KAMAN industrial office or tractor repair shop a local NAPA to heat the bearings and bearing housings and then you can just slip them right over the stub shafts and then put the bolts in from the inside of the flail mower shroud.
Short of leaving the bearings in an oven for an hour at low heat I have no other idea to help as using a smoke wrench to heat a bearing is not good as it will ruin it.
Nope, nope, nope,nope, no cutting!! It will screw up the rigidity of the flail mower on that side and weaken the side weldment.
The stub shafts and the rotor end discs are either welded with MIG and wire,stick welding or spun welded.
The rotor went in with the balancing weights welded to the rotor and it will come out in one piece.
The flail mower rotors are spin balanced at 2,200 rpm+ and the knife mounting stations are welded using jigs to hold the knife mounting stations in place.
Its just going to take more cleaning. Even if the bearing looks good I will tell you that those bearings rotate at 2,200+ RPM and you need a new pair of bearings as they are both damaged.
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pmsmechanic
Elite Member
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2013
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- Southern Alberta, Canada
- Tractor
- 4410 and F-935 John Deere, MF 245
I'm wondering if there are access holes on each end that covers up an internal set screw or bolt. Once you loosen those then the shaft can be pushed to one side far enough to let that side of the drum fall out. On your second picture (post 10) it looks like there is a small plate pop riveted onto the drum.
leonz
Super Member
Hello Blake13,
The one thing you are lacking is light on the flail mower rotor. please flip the mower over on its back(after you drain the gear box and)then use a very high power work light to examine the underside of the flail mower shroud and fully exposing the flail mower rotor and its stub shafts.
Please also post wide pictures of the side weldments. My Mathews Company Lawn Genie Pick Up Mower has an access door that is removed/unbolted to remove the flail mower rotor in one piece to do bearing work after the set screws are backed off.
No worries your are getting there and we will help you.
The one thing you are lacking is light on the flail mower rotor. please flip the mower over on its back(after you drain the gear box and)then use a very high power work light to examine the underside of the flail mower shroud and fully exposing the flail mower rotor and its stub shafts.
Please also post wide pictures of the side weldments. My Mathews Company Lawn Genie Pick Up Mower has an access door that is removed/unbolted to remove the flail mower rotor in one piece to do bearing work after the set screws are backed off.
No worries your are getting there and we will help you.
Well some good and some bad news.
The good- I was able to get the rotor off. The bad- The cast iron bearing support flange exploded when i was using a jaw puller to remove the bearing from the stub shaft....
When i got the extra clearance from removing the bearing support, which ideally would have came off in one piece with the bearing, i was able to lower the drive side down the slot. Even though it didn't look like it was going to have enough 'wiggle room' on the opposite side, the rotor dropped low enough on the slotted side to clear the flail frame and pull free. NOW i am desperately hoping i can find a replacement part....
I still haven't been able to budge the drive side bearing, so when i take the rotor in to have new weldments welded in place I will also have the shop remove the bearing.
Really crossing my fingers on finding a replacement bearing support flange....
The good- I was able to get the rotor off. The bad- The cast iron bearing support flange exploded when i was using a jaw puller to remove the bearing from the stub shaft....
When i got the extra clearance from removing the bearing support, which ideally would have came off in one piece with the bearing, i was able to lower the drive side down the slot. Even though it didn't look like it was going to have enough 'wiggle room' on the opposite side, the rotor dropped low enough on the slotted side to clear the flail frame and pull free. NOW i am desperately hoping i can find a replacement part....
I still haven't been able to budge the drive side bearing, so when i take the rotor in to have new weldments welded in place I will also have the shop remove the bearing.
Really crossing my fingers on finding a replacement bearing support flange....
leonz
Super Member
The flange castings with the mounting holes come with the new bearings as a rule Blake when you buy them new so no worries there.
NO worries Blake; the repair shop can get 2 new bearings with the mounting flanges as they come complete as a rule.
You have a great flail mower it was abused but it only needs a little time at the flail mower hospital.
Be doubly sure to invest in new fine thread bolts and blue loctite to mount the bearings and be sure to torque the bolts to avoid having them loosen up-coarse thread bolts and nuts will loosen over time unless a blue loctite is used.
I hope they have a bearing heater you can rent or borrow to make you life easier as it may be simpler to just bring the entire mower with you to the shop as heating the new bearings at the repair shop will save you lots of work as they will install the carrier bearing side first and then the driven side bearing and then lock the set screws in place and bolt the bearing flanges to the side weldments before the driven pulley is installed.
I am not trying to make life harder for you its simpler to let them install the new bearings with the new housings in one afternoon.
Leon
NO worries Blake; the repair shop can get 2 new bearings with the mounting flanges as they come complete as a rule.
You have a great flail mower it was abused but it only needs a little time at the flail mower hospital.
Be doubly sure to invest in new fine thread bolts and blue loctite to mount the bearings and be sure to torque the bolts to avoid having them loosen up-coarse thread bolts and nuts will loosen over time unless a blue loctite is used.
I hope they have a bearing heater you can rent or borrow to make you life easier as it may be simpler to just bring the entire mower with you to the shop as heating the new bearings at the repair shop will save you lots of work as they will install the carrier bearing side first and then the driven side bearing and then lock the set screws in place and bolt the bearing flanges to the side weldments before the driven pulley is installed.
I am not trying to make life harder for you its simpler to let them install the new bearings with the new housings in one afternoon.
Leon
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