New respect for my 54in deck
 

The front gauge wheel broke off the deck and got eaten by it before I could stop. I always had a healthy respect for the spinning steel blades and the damage they could do. But the deep cuts into 3/16th steel surprised me. I could not find any significant damage on the blades. Luckily I had an extra set of blades, the wheel bracket and a spare bearing assembly. I worked on the assumption that the blades and bearing were suspect and should not be re-used. This made for an interesting afternoon.

OMG.....ouch!

:bigeyes:

DAMN!:bigthink:

I'll bet that got your attention, metal on metal and fast moving parts.
While mowing with my 54" today I was just pondering the speed of those
blades as I listened to them go round.. Glad that's all the damage you had.

Ken

Glad you're ok Frank. Mount that thing and hang it up in the shop as a reminder!

Putting it up as a reminder is a great idea. It definitely got my attention when it happened. I mowed today and it appears that the damage was limited to the wheel mount and the castor assembly. No weird vibration or noises. That was a close call.
Below is what broke. It looks like the welds were only half done. I wonder if it is worth repairing? I do not have much experience with welding.

I have about ten of the 48"/54" decks of that style. At least half the ones I have either should be re-welded or they've already been welded.

It's not uncommon to see those decks with the outriggers missing.

From the looks of mine, it looks like whoever did the fabrication on them didn't get a good weld to start with.

If you re-weld yours back on, make sure it's perpendicular to the deck. New replacements aren't cheap.

Yep Cub could have welded them all the way around but that would have cost about fifty cents extra. :beatdeadhorse: