128 Owner - Need 44C deck swap advice

[Lscman]

I own two Cub Cadets (128 and 149). Both have rusty 44" decks with manual lift. As you probably know, these models were the earliest wide frame design. From what I can tell, Cub Cadets of that era came with the first (earliest) 44" mower that is somewhat different than later 44A and 44C.

Anyway, I just drove 14 hours to fetch a brand new 44C deck. It came complete with the 44C mower support assembly (mule drive and arched deck lift frame).

Should I adapt an old 44" deck frame to fit the new 44C deck or should I try to adapt the newer 44C mower frame assembly to fit my early tractor?

The only precautions I found through searching were to stay away from the taller, high vacuum GT decks (newer than 44C) because they will not fit under the older tractors.

I understand there may be an issue with mule belt width & I'm not sure how to best address it. I think my PTO used a thinner belt compared to a 44C tractor. Perhaps I need to swap the center pulley on the 44C deck or something.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

 

[chris28]

i think you should sell the tractors as they are and buy 2 new ones

 

[Lscman]

i think you should sell the tractors as they are and buy 2 new ones

Great info, thnx

 

[Fordlords]

That is about the only real difference between the 44A and 44C decks- the 44C has the center pulley to use the 5/8" wide PTO belt, the 44A will have a pulley for the 1/2" belt. You can easily just switch the pulley. You will have to adapt the mule drive or the deck to be able to use the 44A or C with your tractor as it predates these decks, people have done it and from what I gather it's not too hard.

-Fordlords-

 

[Lscman]

That is about the only real difference between the 44A and 44C decks- the 44C has the center pulley to use the 5/8" wide PTO belt, the 44A will have a pulley for the 1/2" belt. You can easily just switch the pulley. You will have to adapt the mule drive or the deck to be able to use the 44A or C with your tractor as it predates these decks, people have done it and from what I gather it's not too hard.

-Fordlords-

That's great help, thnx. I see the center spindles are the same on 44A and 44C which should make swapping the pulley a non-issue.

Now I need to confirm the physical differences between the early 44 deck that came on my 128 & 149 tractors compared to the later 44A deck. I understand they're not the same either.