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‘Downtime’ shop checklist
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A strong magnet (salvaged from an old car speaker) will pick up iron and steel shavings in drain oil, detecting problems early. Make sure to use a plastic drain pan. Photo by Scott Nesbitt |
Spring is seriously busy as northern snows melt away and southern grasses green up. The shop is usually busy finishing up winter rebuild projects and doing routine pre-season lube and filter changes.
While the machines are in the shop and things are not yet jumping on the course, spend a few extra hours doing a chassis check. You may avoid oodles of downtime you really can’t tolerate when the season is jumping.
Wheel bearings: Nothing messes up a green quite like the skid from a locked-up wheel. Take off the wheels. If there are tapered roller bearings, pull them out, clean them in solvent, and check them for gall and bluing on the rollers and races. Make sure the seals are in good shape. Re-lube with a premium waterproof grease and follow the factory specs for pre-loading and adjusting the bearings. For sealed-ball bearing systems, closely examine for torn seals and smooth operation.
Steering linkage: While the wheels are off, wiggle and rotate the tie rod ends and replace anything that impedes smooth operation. Tighten mounting bolts for steering boxes, and check hydraulic lines on power-steering systems. If it’s not too tough, drain, flush and refill the power steering fluid, and make sure the power steering pump belt is in good condition and good adjustment.
Wheels and tires: Tires that slowly leak throw off the precision of any mowing equipment, so avoid the problem. Pressure wash the inside face of the wheels and tires and check the rubber for cracks and bubbles. During the season, you never look at the inside face of the tires. Look for rust along the wheel bead face. If they’re ugly, dismount the wheels, clean up the rims and seal with a good paint. Make sure the paint is good and dry before remounting the tires.
Drive axle bearings: While changing transmission and hydraulic oils, let the old oil settle in the (plastic) drain pan, then slowly swirl a magnet around the bottom of the pan. If you pick up a serious load of iron or steel shavings, you may have a plugged filter that’s being bypassed. Or there may be a serious problem. It’s a judgment call based on experience. If nothing else, install a new filter and check again after several hours of operation to see if the problem persists.
Get underneath with some wrenches and a small hammer. Check the tightness of all transmission mounts and rubber mounts. Tap the frame rails, especially the areas around welds, and listen for the dull “ponk” that indicates a crack. There’s no such thing as a minor crack, and they don’t fix themselves.
Finally, before you re-install the wheels, clean up the threads on the wheel studs or lug bolts, replacing the ones that look iffy. Coat the threads with a water-resistant grease or anti-seize compound.
Turf Pride LLC introduced the Power Edge II reel sharpener earlier this month at the GCSAA Golf Industry Show in Orlando. The Power Edge II incorporates the patent-pending linear grinding concept present in all of the company’s Power Edge series of reel sharpeners. Linear grinding is said to produce a sharp cutting edge on the reel blades without the impact spin grinding common in automatic sharpeners. The reel turns at 1-2 rpm while the grinding stone travels across the blades to produce a sharp edge. The sharpener features all-pneumatic operation, which eliminates the need for electronics, micro switches and circuit boards, and the possibility of electric shock, the company adds. The Power Edge II can sharpen most professional reel mowers completely intact, including walk-behind models. Contact Turf Pride LLC, (www.turfprideusa.com). Stihl Inc. has entered an agreement with LawnGrips LLC to sell LawnGrips footwear through its network of independent Stihl dealers. Three models of LawnGrips — the Classic, the Pro and the Pro8 models — will feature the Stihl logo and be sold at Stihl independent dealers. |
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