455 Mower dies after blade change

Deere Dude · Oct 7, 2018

Does the PTO work with the deck driveshaft disconnected while sitting on the seat?

You can turn the driveshaft by hand I take it. Could it be something not part of the deck such as a safety switch?

It doesn't seem to me to be in the deck.

Diggin It · Oct 7, 2018

Armymutt said:
Everything turns by hand as long as the bolts are loose. As soon as I tighten it all up, it doesn't budge.

Sounds like the deck to me.

Armymutt · Oct 7, 2018

The PTO works. My FIL disabled the seat switch when he owned it, which makes it easier to check things like that. I'm not sure of the mechanics of it, but the blades would tighten up when I engaged the PTO. I noticed that they were a whole lot tighter trying to remove them after putting them on. The 455 fits in a trailer, so I can take it to the shop. I still have maintenance to do on the MF135 and the Ford 4600, so I don't feel too bad about this one.

zzvyb6 · Oct 7, 2018

Compare the assembly diagram with how your blades are mounted. Also check the thickness of the new blades compared to the old ones. OEM JD blades are usually 1/4" thick. Many non-OEM blades are 3/16" and require spacer washers to get the blades to be tight. This could account for the bolt

tightening issue.

Deere Dude · Oct 8, 2018

Armymutt said:
The PTO works. My FIL disabled the seat switch when he owned it, which makes it easier to check things like that. I'm not sure of the mechanics of it, but the blades would tighten up when I engaged the PTO. I noticed that they were a whole lot tighter trying to remove them after putting them on. The 455 fits in a trailer, so I can take it to the shop. I still have maintenance to do on the MF135 and the Ford 4600, so I don't feel too bad about this one.

Do advise the mechanic to report the cause so we can know the fix. Before I would take it in I would take the blades off totally and see if the deck would run like it is supposed to. It won't hurt anything.

Armymutt · Oct 12, 2018

Well, neither I nor the mechanic knows what is going on. I had the blades mounted upside down. He flipped them over, put it back on the tractor and hooked up the PTO. It started right up. The blades look the same in the mounting area - nothing raised on either side. I mowed 2 acres today with no issue.

tjkubota93 · Oct 12, 2018

Sounds like the upside down blades bogged it down

beenthere · Oct 12, 2018

Will be good for you to find out what was wrong.. there is nothing magical about it.
Surprised your "mechanic" didn't see it and/or let you know.
Just curious to know more too...

Armymutt · Oct 13, 2018

I don't understand how the blades being upside down did anything. It's basically flat bar stock. They turned backward just fine, but locked up turning forward.