Mowing Loader & Mower in winter??

Anonymous Poster · Dec 16, 2000

I just got my 4100 and it seems great! It came with 60"deck and loader on it. Can I keep mower deck on this winter while using to move some snow??

Caretaker · Dec 16, 2000

Carl, congrats on getting a really nice machine! There's no reason why you have to take the mower off when using the loader, assuming you're gonna use the loader to move snow. The mower is raised & lowered via the 3-pt hitch controls, which are completely seperate from the loader controls. If you need to use something on the 3-pt, you might want to get the clamp kit from JD - holds the mower deck locked up against the tractor frame, even when the 3-PT hitch is lowered. I bring that up because you might want to get the JD 3-PT ballast box - when you start lifting something heavy with the loader, (and you will start lifting heavy material!) the ballast box makes the tractor a lot more stable. Good luck! I hope you enjoy your green machine as much as I enjoy mine!

jyoutz · Dec 17, 2000

Carl, I too have a 4100. As was mentioned in another post, you can leave the mower deck attached and locked in the upper position, but if the snow is any deeper than 12" you will have problems with it packing under your deck and dragging. Removing the deck is really fast and easy. Do this on a hard level surface like concrete. Turn your front wheels all the way to the right (if I remember correctly, but maybe could be left). Turn the guide wheels so they face side to side instead of front to back. Lower the deck all the way to the ground. Shut off the machine. Disconnect pto shaft from tractor, pull j-pins from rockshaft, and release and remove front latch mechanism. Then roll the deck out from under the tractor. It takes me 5-10 minutes to do this. You'll be glad you removed it, since you don't have to worry about hanging up on the deck or damaging it. Reinstalling the deck is the same process in reverse. The only real trick is discovering how the pto shaft snaps onto the tractor. It's a ring that is a push-pull and twist type of setup. Hard to describe, but very easy to do once you figure it out.

Anonymous Poster · Dec 17, 2000

how do you like your 4100. How many hours? What service have you done?

Anonymous Poster · Dec 17, 2000

I have my ballast box filled with sand? It seemed to come out the drain holes? I put some tape on them. Any tips, tricks, other good ideas? What service have you done to your machine?

Anonymous Poster · Dec 17, 2000

I cleared 14" of snow off my drive (about 250 ft) with a rear blade (JD 4100), and would never have made it with the mower deck on. I have the Deere device to hold the mower deck up and I would still have been pushing way too much snow. By the way, before spending over $70 for the device to hold the deck up, see if you can find someone that has it on their tractor that you can look at. I think you could make something to do the same job a heck of a lot cheaper. Other than a bracket that bolts onto the tractor, the device is basically a couple of short adjustable chains on each side of the tractor that holds the mower linkage up.
I agree with others, if you have much snow to move, get a rear blade. The front loader will take a lot of time if you have much to move.

DFB · Dec 17, 2000

Carl, those holes are for drainage. Unless its always kept dry, water has to drain away somehow or the box will eventually rust out. I have 1 1/2" crushed stone for weight in my ballast box instead of sand. I know the Deere manual suggests using the sand but stone will give better drainage because it won't pack so tight

jyoutz · Dec 17, 2000

Carl, I've been very happy with mine so far. I just have 75 hours on it though. I've just done the 50 hour service, lubrication, and changed the outer air filter (since I've done a bunch of dusty dirt work). So far my uses have been: mowing with the mid-mount deck, snow plowing and dirt shaping and ditching with my 5 foot rear blade, grading gravel and dirt with a 54" box scraper, rototilling with my 52" tiller, moving dirt with my rear scoop and plowing with my one bottom plow. The 4100 has done everything I could ask a 20 HP tractor to do and without any problems. Of course any dirt work other than rototilling really needs front weights on the tractor to improve performance. I'm looking forward to the day when I can plunk down the money for a 410 loader.