[crazydane]

So I had been mowing this steep area with my 1025R and 60D, but given how rough the area still is, I decided to use something else for the time being. Turns out that might not have been the best decision.

As I was mowing the 2nd pass, all of a sudden the tractor bogged down and was no longer turning the blades. I disengaged the PTO and backup a little and then tried engaging the PTO again, it would not turn the deck at all, period.

Drove back down to the shop building and popped to top covers to have a closer look. Turns out the pressed in bearing on one of the flat pulleys had come undone which caused the pulley to wedge up against the cross brace is was connected to. This is what it looked like:

Rather than trying to press it back on, I went ahead and ordered a new pulley (with the bearing already pressed on). Once it gets here, I'll see about pressing the bearing back on the pulley pictured above to have as a spare.

Since I had the mower deck in the shop, I decided to go it over to see if it needed anything else maintenance wise. I'm glad I did!

Here are what the blades looked like:

Pins that hold the blades and the PTO end U-joint. I'm sure those are the original pins from 1996 although I'm pretty sure I have gone through at least 2 sets of U-joints since getting the mower some 20+ years ago.

And one of the caster wheels:

Bearing is completely missing, cup and all.

So I'll be placing a rather large order to get everything back in order again.

The Woods RM990 is rather unique in that the blades swing much like a bushhog, but it is a finish mower. John Deere also sells it under the Frontier brand as the GM1190.

Here's what the whole mower deck looks like:

It makes the 7-iron 72" deck behind it look like a toy, lol.

The really odd thing is that there was no loud noise or anything when the mower deck just stopped mowing. From the look of those 2 center blades, they must have really hit something solid, but there's nothing in the area where it happened, so I guess it must have happened a while ago, but I can't think of when it would have been. Also, I would have expected some major vibrations with that center spindle unbalanced like that.

Anyway, I guess it would have been a lot worse. All the spindles are in good share, as it the center gearbox. I'll be putting a shear bolt back in when re-connecting the driveshaft. I might have put a grade 8 bolt in there by mistake last time I replaced it, which is probably 10+ years ago. That mower is from 1996!

 

[theduke]

Nice deck. I've not seen a finish mower with swing blades but I like it.

Is the bad pully related to the bad blades..??

 

[crazydane]

I think so. Pulley that jammed up is the one the red arrow points to:

D is the center spindle, so yeah, if that stopped instantly somehow, it would have put a lot of strain on pulley E I would imagine. The belt is a stout double V style that I just replaced last year.

Here are the parts that make up the main deck. Pulley 28 is the one that pressed up against cross brace 8 to where it would no longer turn.

I guess no wing nuts are allowed in the U.S., lol.

 

[ddinham]

I bought the 110 inch Befco RFM because it had swinging blades like a brush hog. 6 years and a lot of mowing so far. Replaced the blades for the first time last year or the year before. Can't remember for sure. Also replaced the blades on my 10ft brush hog, so get confused when I did which one.

Dave

 

[crazydane]

Got some of the replacement parts today, including the new flat pulley. Much improved design:

c-clips on both sides which will keep the bearing from walking out over time.

 

[letmgrow]

I have the Frontier version of the same mower GM 1190 I bought in 2007. I have replaced the blades twice since owning the mower but I do remove and sharpen them two or three times each season. They are about due for replacement now.
The belt tensioner did seize up once. I removed the tensioner, cleaned everything and lubed it well. I do this annually now as a precaution. I remove the covers every now and then and clean out any debris trapped in there and use my shop vac to get it really clean. I keep the three quill bearings lubed well, lube the caster wheel shafts and bearings every time I use the mower as well as check the tire pressures. Each time I use the mower it to do 5 to 7 acres of borders around my fields and between the rows of Spruce trees I have planted. 1400 trees in all. I also raise the deck and clip my clover plots at least once or twice each year.
This has been a great mower with the only problem being the tensioner I mentioned and having to replace a couple tires and the belt.
I had to have the belt replaced after I had run the mower about 1/2 hour the day I bought it. My salesman (a friend) told me this mower would mow anything I had to mow in my fields. The first time out the mower quit mowing. Not too happy, I drove right to my dealer and we had a discussion. Upon disassembly we found when the mower was assembled the belt had been run on the wrong side of one of the guides. They got a new belt delivered overnight and installed it. The same belt is still running strong with no sign of wear to speak of. I would safely say this mower has north of 200 hours of use on it cutting hay over a foot tall, clover and alfalfa. I have brush cutters for the tougher mowing jobs.
Looking at the newer version of the same mower it looks like they have lightened them up. I'm glad I have the older version and would almost bet mine will outlast a newer one.

 

[Zebrafive]

I did not know a "swing" blade finish mower existed. Thanks for posting

 

[ddinham]

I have the Frontier version of the same mower GM 1190 I bought in 2007. I have replaced the blades twice since owning the mower but I do remove and sharpen them two or three times each season. They are about due for replacement now.
The belt tensioner did seize up once. I removed the tensioner, cleaned everything and lubed it well. I do this annually now as a precaution. I remove the covers every now and then and clean out any debris trapped in there and use my shop vac to get it really clean. I keep the three quill bearings lubed well, lube the caster wheel shafts and bearings every time I use the mower as well as check the tire pressures. Each time I use the mower it to do 5 to 7 acres of borders around my fields and between the rows of Spruce trees I have planted. 1400 trees in all. I also raise the deck and clip my clover plots at least once or twice each year.
This has been a great mower with the only problem being the tensioner I mentioned and having to replace a couple tires and the belt.
I had to have the belt replaced after I had run the mower about 1/2 hour the day I bought it. My salesman (a friend) told me this mower would mow anything I had to mow in my fields. The first time out the mower quit mowing. Not too happy, I drove right to my dealer and we had a discussion. Upon disassembly we found when the mower was assembled the belt had been run on the wrong side of one of the guides. They got a new belt delivered overnight and installed it. The same belt is still running strong with no sign of wear to speak of. I would safely say this mower has north of 200 hours of use on it cutting hay over a foot tall, clover and alfalfa. I have brush cutters for the tougher mowing jobs.
Looking at the newer version of the same mower it looks like they have lightened them up. I'm glad I have the older version and would almost bet mine will outlast a newer one.

I will have to look again to double check, but it seems like I remember something like 270 PTO hours on my tractor in 6 years when I Iook at the tractor plus app. Probably 95% of that is using my Befco RFM. I don't use my 10ft brush hog very much. I have nearly 800 hours total on it.

Dave

 

[crazydane]

I would say I have put at least 500 hours on mine. For the first 10 years I pulled it with a John Deere 4700. I sold that and got a 5085M which was almost too big for this 8' finish mower. So I then got a Ford 1700 which is perhaps a little on the small size with only 25hp and about 2,500 lbs and has a tough time if the grass is more than knee high. But that means I'm pretty gentle on the Woods these days since that little tractor is only barely big enough to run it.

I got the new pulley installed this afternoon:

There isn't a whole lot of clearance! You can make out the heavy duty 1/2" steel rail running front to back.

Here's the other side with the tension pulley. I had mine seized up as well about 10 years ago.

And you can also see the other heavy 1/2" rail on this side. The deck itself is 7 gauge.

Got the new blades put on. No tools needed at all. You just slide the blade in, drop in the pin, and twist the top plate 180 degrees and you're done. Takes maybe 30 seconds per blade if that.

View from below. You will also notice that each spindle has a "cleaner" that keeps grass from collecting on the hub:

Another neat feature is that once you lower the deck, it rides exclusively on the 4 large caster wheels and the lower 3pt attachment points just float:

I pulled off one of my front casters since it is bent pretty bad:

Been that way for about 15 years:

Was thinking about getting a new one, but at close to $400, I decided to pass. The new wheel alone was $200. Parts for Woods equipment is very pricey, but they make good stuff.

One day I'll take it all apart and sand blast everything and repaint.

Back when I was deciding on what mower deck to get, I came across several discussions about this particular model and a lot of the threads were about what tractor to get for the RM990, not what deck to get for the tractor they already had!

I also replaced the oil in the gear box for the first time in 7 years today. I was amazed and how clean the gear oil I pulled out looked. I do keep this deck in the pole barn at all times when not in use, so I'm sure that helped.

 

[Darryle]

Have you checked with Hoye, they have several styles of finish mower forks for about $43

Mower Parts

 

[crazydane]

Thanks for the link! Their prices seem much more reasonable than OEM Woods. They sell an entire caster/wheel assembly for $185 or so, which is way less than it would cost me from Woods (through my Deere dealer).

I did take that bent caster to my Deere dealer this afternoon. He should have it fixed for me by early next week. I think it might even be on the house given how much I have spent with them over the years. We'll see.

 

[letmgrow]

Just FYI, when I said the tensioner pulley seized up I wasn't very clear. It was the pivot which seized not the pulley itself. I've threatened to drill and install a lube fitting but haven't. I give the shaft a couple shots of used oil once in a while and it hasn't bothered yet.
CrazyDane,
You mentioned the blades are held in with a pin and twist the top plate 180 deg. My top plates are bolted down and I have to use a 15/16" box end wrench to loosen the bolts before I can twist the plates. There must have been a design change along the way. Like I said, mine is a 2007 model.

 

[crazydane]

Interesting. Yeah, mine is a RM990-3 from 1996. It was the pivot that seized on mine as well, not the tensioner pulley itself. I used this anti-seize grey paste when I re-assembled it some 15+ years ago. So far so good.

I recently did the blades on my 235GT (48" convertible deck) as well as my 60D. Here are all 3 sets of blades for comparison:

 

[crazydane]

Been busy with other projects lately, but the parts did come in and I got that one bent caster fixed:

Hopefully I'll get some time this week to get everything put back together. Since they painted the caster after fixing it, I might have to do the rest of the mower now. Looks like I'll also have to clean those other 3 wheels. lol