Cub Cadet Mower LT50 Cutting Even Issue - Please Help
 

Hello,
I hope to get some answers on my new Cub Cadet XT1 LT50 that I purchased back in July. Ever since it was brought home it would not cut my lawn even. It leaves streaks of high and low grass. My lawn is pretty flat and I can’t figure out why. I called Cub Cadet and they referred me to a local authorized dealer to repair the problem. I took it to them and after having it a month it was discovered that the mower deck was bent. This was due to Tractor Supply loading it in the bed of my truck with a forklift. Then I had to wait over 2 more months for Cub Cadet to have a mower deck available to ship to the repair shop. Finally in Mid-November it was shipped and the repair shop installed it and called me to come pick up the mower. When I got it home I tried the mower out and it still was cutting uneven. I checked the deck level, tire pressure, etc. to make sure that it was ok and it was. I called Cub Cadet again and they told me to send it back to the repair shop and they would go over it again and check the frame to see if it was bent, changer the blades and check every possible thing that could be the cause. They came to pick it up the mower and kept it 5 days and brought it back to me after Christmas. They said the deck was off and the tire pressure was not right and that they changed all 3 blades. I was eager to try it out. Once again it was cutting uneven. I am so sick of this, I have called Cub Cadet about this issue so many times. I want to exchange it for another one but Cub Cadet seem to want to keep trying to fix this one, what else could it be? I am at my wits end with this. I spent good money for a mower I can’t use. I have added some pics. The lawn looks much worse than the pics show. Any Ideas?

Could it be the deck wheels not in the right position? My mowing height is the deck all the way up (set to 4).

Thanks,
BB

Only suggestion I have for you is to get the mower on a flat floor, set the deck at the height that you mow at and measure the blade clearance to the floor both with them 90 degrees to the tractor and then turn them in line to the tractor and see what you come up with.

Make sure your tire pressure is correct. The rear is the most important. Also measure from the bottom of the rim to the floor. Both should be the same.

Thanks for the info, but all that has been checked, and found to be correct.

This is a NEW mower? Couple things come to mind. Make sure the rear tires are the same diameter, a dealer I know had this issue once with a larger mower, they caught it while the lawnmower was still on the showroom floor.

I've been in manufacturing for almost 35 years. It's possible something is wrong in the manufacturing/welding/stamping of the decks--it happens. Same dealer had a large 60" deck that had to be replaced, it was warped from the factory.

Did Cadet replace the entire deck assembly or just the shell? If they replaced the entire deck, here is an idea. Assuming you have 4 gauge wheels, check the deck for level with it unhooked from the tractor. There is a cheap plastic tool made that goes under the lip on the deck to level decks by checking blade height. If all checks the same here, then sounds like you have an issue with the lifting mechanisms (including a warped tractor chassis) or varying tire height--hopefully its as simple as the lift mechanism is improperly adjusted.

If the mower is not cutting level, it is anyone's guess why, if it appears adjusted properly.
You state TSC picked it up with a fork lift, that is the first mistake.
What else was bent/damaged beside the deck, is again a roll of the dice.
is it lift brackets? is the frame of the mower bent? was it previously damaged in transit? all unanswered questions.

Cutting to the chase,( no pun intended) TSC is liable to make it right, as they were the ones we assume, damaged it, but that is an assumption, no one has a crystal ball and without setting it on a jig checking various parts against a drawing of specifications everything is a guess.

If it were me, I would elevate the situation to the top people at TSC first. If the situation is not taken care of, then move on to an elevated case at Cub Cadet, as it actually could be a manufacturing snafu. The "authorized repair facility" just puts on new parts that they think might be the problem. In the mean time you have no use of the lawnmower.
if all this fails, then legal action needs to be started.
But, it should not have to go this far as the mower does not function as intended.

I'd be going back to TSC as they do have a 100% customer satisfaction policy.
They need to pick up the mower and drop off a completely new one that has not been damaged in any way, with no cost to you!
You are the injured party here, not the bad guy who drove it off a cliff.
(which at this point prolly sounds very inviting):bigthink:
But this is just my thoughts -----