Rear Finish Mower How to narrow a three-point attachment arms

[Gord Baker]

View attachment 4137833
The two front sides of my landpride finishing mower somehow separated over the years. Unfortunately this makes it tough to mount it for use as the lower arms keep scraping the inside of the rear tires. Don’t ask me how it happened as I don’t have a clue.

Anyone got any ideas on how to pull the two sides back closer together so they have a normal 29” spread? Popping it with sledgehammer didn’t budge it. I don’t have a torch so I’m looking for some way to clamp the two sides together and squeeze them back into the normal position.

Thanks in advance!

It looks like they are not installed properly. Unbolt them and switch them to the opposite side. Mount both on either inside or outside of Frame.

 

[part-time-Farmer-NC]

Looks to me you could drill a 1/2 hole in each side about 2" from the parts that hitch up. Use 1/2 threaded rod with washers and tighten em down. Or weld a thick walled pipe. Looks like it will be under the PTO shaft. That will reinforce it.

 

[JBF43]

Or $250 will get you a 20 ton press from hf.

I have one of those and have used it many times to straighten bent tractor and many other parts. Well worth the investment.
Here's a thought. Something I have never tried, but do any rental places rent presses? In the past, when I didn't have a press, I made one from some scrap steel and a bottle jack, and some imagination.

 

[Fetch_21]

Since it won't work for some reason to swap the sides, If you have a welder, or know somebody that does - grind a groove on the back side to the point that it's easy to bend how you want it. Fill in the groove with weld, super-easy weld. Grind smooth & paint. You can stiffen it by adding some angle-iron on the surface. The high-lift jack should be able to bend those brackets also - or grind as needed & fill with weld. Once where you want it, add a strap of pipe, square tube, angle, etc & weld / bolt between.

 

[Too many Kubotas]

I have one of those and have used it many times to straighten bent tractor and many other parts. Well worth the investment.

For this particular task there's not even a need for a press, just the bottle jack.
Or a Hi-Lift.

Most everybody has something heavy enough to put the jack under, and unless living on a boat there should be basic ground nearby to put the bent parts on.

 

[Jaygyver]

If I got it right, the welded orange upright metal brackets that connect the top link lower braces and the 3 point mounts is what's bent. Took me a bit.

Actually BOTH the lower link brackets and the main brackets are bent. Think about it, if you straighten the main bracket the wheels come together, the wheels will then hit the lower link brackets even more. So over time they BOTH have bent. So you will still have to bend/straighten the lower link brackets at the same time.
Like it's been mentioned you will have to figure out how to bend/squeeze the main mounting brackets back together. But it does look like it will be a commercial endeavor to do it right. OR, you can just bend/straighten the lower 3-point link brackets to make up the difference. It won't do any more harm to the main brackets.

What happened was when you were mowing, the wheels or even the sides of the mower hits something solid like a small stump, deep holes, larger brush, etc. like maybe bumping a tree? Even fairly rough ground over time it will bend like that.
It seems the welded brackets and the lower link brackets are the weak points, they're the ones that take the damage to save everything else, just the way it is.

 

[Little Red Tractor]

They look bent. Maybe unbolt them and flip them over?

That would be my first suggestion as well. Looks easy enough.