2305 Fan Shield

[chipsndust]

chipsndust I did make a shield from your drawing and only problem I had was I used to thin of metal ....Drive shaft for mower would hit while mowing on slopes and lifting mower up to high..
I need to take another try but with some diamond plate . Also I was looking at
Joe Gremlin photos and his has much deeper bends that mine..
Wondering how is is working out...???

But thanks chipsndust for all your help with this project.

et:

I had the same problem with MMM PTO shaft interference with the first one I made.

You probably need to trim away some of the material along the taper. Also, if your bends aren't deep enough, it may cause the shield to extend downward, causing interference.

I used the dents and rub marks on the prototype to refine my finished template. (Trial and error fit).

I usually get a year or two out of mine before it is dented or torn, but at least I know it's doing it's job.

Still waiting for that 2305 owner/machinist to come up with one made from stiffer material!

chipsndust

 

[Joe Gremlin]

Joe Gremlin:

Looks like a great job with the shield, I'm glad to hear someone else has tried it. :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

I'll have to take another look, but I think when I tried to make the shield wider, like you did, it interfered with the PTO shaft for my front-mounted snowthrower. I remember that my first design would hit the MMM PTO shaft when the mower was all the way up, that's why I ended up with the "tapered finger" at the front.

Of course, not everyone uses the same implements, so I think 2305 owners can start with a cardboard cutout of the template I posted, and then "tweak" it for fit with their implements. Just be sure to save the "tweaked" template. It's easier to trace the flat template when you have to make another shield!

I'm still waiting for someone to come up with one made of thicker material.

Let us all know how it works out for you.

Chipsndust

Good points one and all.

In the interest of full disclosure to those who are following along at home, I have not yet done any type of testing with the plate in place. I haven't mounted/tested the 54C mower deck mounted nor have I done so much as fired up the engine and driven it around a bit. Chalk it up to to busy work week. I just posted the pics because I was really excited about how easy it was to make the plate with your template and how well it seemed to fit once I was done.

But I won't be shocked if it turns out that I end up with some interference which requires modifications. In fact it I wouldn't be shocked if I ended up having to make a new plate from a fresh piece of steel. I hope it doesn't come to that, but in the interest of helping others, I'll post any and all findings as I discover them. I'm hoping to do some testing tomorrow and I'll post an update as soon as I do.

 

[chipsndust]

Joe:

Have you test drove that fan shield yet?

 

[Joe Gremlin]

Joe:

Have you test drove that fan shield yet?

I have, but only without the mower deck attached. I put about two or three hours on it picking up leaves and moving dead fall in the woods the other day. My visual inspection afterward revealed no signs of rubbing or interference. I'm planning to mount the mower deck soon and do a final cutting of the lawn. I'll post again when that's done.

 

[Joe Gremlin]

Ok I had some time after work today so I mounted up my 54C deck. The long and short of it is there is some interference with the shield. The u-joint of the pto shaft contacts the shield when I raise the deck all the way up.

I'm not sure how I'm going to resolve the issue yet. I wondered about trying to adjust the up stops down so the deck won't raise as far but I suspect that this is something I probably don't want to do.

So that leaves me with two choices. Either figure out how to modify the shield so the u-joint and pto shaft won't touch it, or find some sort of quick-release fasteners that will allow me to install and remove the shield with minimum effort.

Right now, the second option seems a bit more desirable to me because I really like how the current shield doesn't leave any open space for anything to sneak by and find the fan. I'm afraid that any modification I make will end up leaving a path for objects to get through. So if installing/removing the shield was a simple matter of pulling a couple of pins or tightening up a couple of wing nuts, I would gladly swap it on and off in place of the mower deck.

I'm going to see if I can come up with a workable modification tomorrow but I'll also be looking for a fastener solution that will allow me to install/remove the shield without tools. And of course, I'm open to ideas if anybody has one.

 

[chipsndust]

Joe:

Thanks for the feedback.

I trimmed a little away, and bent mine to accommodate the PTO universal. If you raise the deck without the mower running, you can see where the universal hits the shield, then lower the deck, cut and bend.

I like your idea for an easy removal, which would allow the shield to be bigger, and eliminate the trial and error trim and bend.

How about three pins, with flat head on one end and through hole on the other? The pins would drop down from the top, through the shield, and a 電-clip cotter pin through the hole in the pin? Or, instead of a through hole maybe a groove around the end? The pins and clips could stay in place with the shield on or off?

 

[Joe Gremlin]

How about three pins, with flat head on one end and through hole on the other? The pins would drop down from the top, through the shield, and a 電-clip cotter pin through the hole in the pin? Or, instead of a through hole maybe a groove around the end? The pins and clips could stay in place with the shield on or off?

That's kind of what I was thinking as well. What I think I'd really like is some sort of thumb turn Dzus fasteners like we used on airplane cowlings back in my pilot days.

They're cheap and easy enough to source from aircraft parts suppliers. But they're generally designed to work with thin aluminum so the thickness of the steel might be an issue. Plus they're in two parts (the thumb turn fastener and the reciever that it clips into) which would both need to be riveted or otherwise attached to both the shield and to the steel plates under the tractor respectively.

If it could be done, it would be amazingly elegant in form and function. Just slide the plate in place, turn the two thumb clips and you're done. But I'm afraid the amount of modification and fabrication required to get it to work would be beyond my pay grade.

So that brings us back to drilled staight posts and cotter pins. I'm going to head out to TSC to see if I can find anything that will fit the bill. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

 

[Joe Gremlin]

Went to TSC today and bought a few cotter pins and posts. I enlarged the holes in the shield to make it easier to install and remove it. I also drilled a hole in the factory shield and installed a bolt with some washers and a nylock nut. I left the nut just loose enough so the back edge of the shield can slide under the washer. This keeps helps keep the rear edge secure which should keep it from bending down if I happen to snag it on anything while backing up.

This all makes installation and removal fairly quick and painless. So far, I'm satisfied.

 

[etcallhome]

Thanks looks nice... Good job When I made mine I didn't have near that amount of angles ..mine had just a slight angle.. Still have not taken time to cut and bend the next one with some heavier metal..
I'm guessing at bottom of photo is near the trans filter..

 

[chipsndust]

Went to TSC today and bought a few cotter pins and posts. I enlarged the holes in the shield to make it easier to install and remove it. I also drilled a hole in the factory shield and installed a bolt with some washers and a nylock nut. I left the nut just loose enough so the back edge of the shield can slide under the washer. This keeps helps keep the rear edge secure which should keep it from bending down if I happen to snag it on anything while backing up.

This all makes installation and removal fairly quick and painless. So far, I'm satisfied.

Looks great, Joe!

You've inspired me to upgrade mine.