Winter work continued 2013 update

Eagerly waiting for my Toro Fall Booking order to arrive . After my weeks vacation I started going over the smaller machines . The Toro Pro Force need an oil and filter change and a good cleaning . My hub grease nipple idea worked great . No / little bearing play and just pump grease in them . http://golfcoursemechanics.blogspot.ca/2013/01/installing-grease-nipples-in-wheel-hubs.html

Best idea ever 2 seasons and it still looks like I just installed the gel battery .

http://golfcoursemechanics.blogspot.ca/2011/12/gel-battery-for-my-toro-pro-force.html

I heard a few rumours that the blower did a roll over , over all it looks pretty good . I see the shut has been cut down . Now there will be less  air velocity. I have seen a few other alterations I don't agree with but that is sometimes part of the job .

Also had time to work on our Tru-turf roller . The smoothing roller bearings are still great .Should get another season out of them . The sealed bearing trick works fantastic to get more life out of them . http://golfcoursemechanics.blogspot.ca/2011/11/sealed-bearing-tip.html
One of the rollers was sticking a bit do to the fact the hitch keeps the front of the machine pointing down and a rock must have bent the spacer washer .My hydraulic  press made quick work to straighten it back out . It's pretty hard to get the staff to tow it slower so I made a few more adjustments to the tow bar .

 I removed the spiker attachment last season and this winter I removed the framing that it was attached to .
This past week our Toro grounds master 3500D ( sidewinder ) made the trip in for winter service . Most of the items needed for repair I had on hand but the front deck rollers will have to wait till my order gets here .

The sidewinder is a 2008 and is starting to show her age a little . It's a good idea to protect the course investment and save yourself some big problems in the future. I'm starting to use Rust check once a year in hard to get at places to slow down rust on machines .

A can goes a long way . $10 dollars can save you thousands $$$ in the future . I can get 2 or 3 machines hitting just key areas , framing connections , steel lines etc. .

 
There are a lot of steel lines in the front end that traps the grass really well .

Blowing out all the old clippings so that the Rust check can do it's work.

Here is a prime example . The front frame tubes carry a lot of weight . You can see the rust starting where the tube is welded to the frame . Not likely it will go , Toro has some pretty heavy gauge material here but I have seen saddles holding the front axle on a fairway unit ( different company )break away causing some pretty weird issue with acceleration and traction .

Machine was also due for it's hydraulic oil change . Keeping filters marked for next change interval sure speed things up .

I had a few lines that needed some padding .

 Line / hose pad kit from Lawsons . Pretty beefy and easy to attach with zip ties .

 
Brand new tire going on the right front .

This past season the tire pressure was kept at 18 PSI. It's the first time that we didn't loose a couple of tires do to sidewalls breaking down . Wow a worn out sidewinder tire . That's a first for us . Our machine runs on side slops all day . Notice the wear is still on the edges and not the center .

Last season there were issues with the park brake seizing up . After they where freed up I decided to drill an access hole in the backing plate so it can be blown out occasionally . You can see the plug at the bottom in the pic.

Not to bad fairly clean .

Decks where a lot easier to clean by removing them from machine .

Last season they where waxed on the top side of the decks to help them stay cleaner during the season . It worked so well I'm going to do it again . Some rewiring and solid solder connects were done on the lights and the battery holder had to be removed and repainted , it was getting pretty corroded .

I'll get a picture tomorrow of what it looks like in the cold storage building ,

Not bad for a 2008 .