Two pt425 questions

Kaon99 · Jun 30, 2003

I have a couple of questions I would appreciate some info on:

The first question concerns lubrication for the ball joints on the pt425. I could not locate the recommended super permatex so I have been using a general purpose white lithium grease from Walmart. It did not seem like much lubrication, so I tried smearing on some high pressure lithium grease from my grease gun. The smeared-on grease attracted so much dirt that I went back to the white lithium which is much less sticky. Recently, I noticed some grooves that had worn on the ball of one of the steering rams. I am concerned about the grooves getting worse and perhaps having to replace the ball joints prematurely. A friend that works with farm machinery said they just run the ball joints dry. What have been your observations/experiences on ball joint lubrication?

The second question is about the blades hanging up on my 48" rotary cutter when I hit something hard like a thick root or a rut in the ground. The blade is knocked back and gets stuck on the stump jumper or the other blade. Then the whole thing shakes like crazy until I shut off the pto and free up the blade. Terry at power trac said to put bolts in the other two threaded holes so that the bolt head would stop the blade from going back so far. I tried that and it worked--until one of the bolts got sheared off. Now I've got to drill it out. If I put another bolt in I will try a harder steel (not an Ace Hardware bolt like the first one). This must be a common problem, and I am curious as to what solutions you guys have come up with.

Thanks in advance for any info you can give me.

Ken in Mississippi

Charlie_Iliff · Jun 30, 2003

Kaon99:
You noted <font color="red">A friend that works with farm machinery said they just run the ball joints dry </font>
We have done the same, and have some balljoints so worn that we have to put big washers on them to keep them from falling apart. On my PT1845 I have been using a fairly light spray lube. It doesn't attract as much dirt as even the white lithium that I used a couple of times. I can't help thinking that running lube in the joints helps, but clearly they won't last as long as if they had seals and zerk fittings. Terry told me that the greased ball joints are so much more expensive that it will be cheaper for most of us to replace these some day than to have paid for the greased ones in the first place.

MossRoad · Jun 30, 2003

I just wipe mine off with a rag and re-lube them with spray grease every 8 hours. Seems to be OK after 110 hours. Not much time, really, so we'll wait a few years to see how it works out.

Anonymous Poster · Jul 1, 2003

I found a "dry" lube called Track & Cable Lube(TCL)(garage door lube), a Fabulous Blaster product that also makes rust penetrants and other lubes....There are similar products,I'm sure, in your area. There is never a dirt film on the joint after working...It seems I have to use this stuff about every 6-8 hours on the lower main joint or I get a "squeal" in the steering(it squeals only when I'm siiting on it, not if working the steering with me off the tractor.
Another name might be (GDL)Garage Door Lube...

Anonymous Poster · Jul 1, 2003

Terry recommended Super Lube during our Service Training. It's a teflon spray lube. I've used it before on other things, and it has worked well.

SnowRidge

BobRip · Nov 26, 2004

On the bolts breaking on the bush hog blades - I found that you can back out the remains of the bolt with an Easy Out. Drill a small hole in the bolt and then use the Easy Out turning it counter clockwise. Takes about five minutes and it sure beats dropping the center hub. I have broken about 3 bolts and had to use this twice I think. The first time I dropped the hub.