NOS 324 54 inch deck
 

I have been using a 54 inch deck on my 2364 for close to twenty years. I have close to 2 acres of crass to cut. The deck does a great job. It finally started to rust through a couple of years ago.
I was able to get a NOS deck from IHCCW a few years ago. It had some surface rust that I sanded off and applied primer. I left it sitting in my garage until a finally found time to work on it last year.
I always liked 324 deck, but it had a few issues that I wanted to fix.
The front gauge wheels are mounted loosely. The gauge wheels bounce all over the place and the support arms like to break. See my post on this. https://www.onlycubcadets.net/forum/...ad.php?t=57120
The rear gauge wheels are off center which can cause the mounting parts to bend.
The gauge wheels that CC uses are not very good. They wear out pretty fast.
Up front I modified the mounting system to accept the gauge wheel assembly from the 3000 series. In back I remove the 3/4 inch mounting tubes and replace them with 1 inch tubes. I am now using JD gauge wheels in back.
Here they are unpainted. Finding tubes that were exactly one inch in diameter was harder then I thought. I never knew there was such a thing as Drawn Over Mandrel. I was able to get foot of DOM tube for a reasonable price. I cut the tubes and mounted them to the assembly and had them welded by a local guy. I had to extend the left one an inch for the gauge wheel to clear the deck.
More to come.

NOS 325 deck
 

You did a terrific job stripping the paint off those parts. I think it would look really cool if you had them chrome plated! If you strip the whole deck like that, it would really look fantastic in chrome! A one of a kind!!!

Seriously Frank, I have restored my Dad's 44GT, My 54GT and I am working on a newly acquired 48 GT. I have had to weld the same parts you are talking about on the 48 and 54 decks. I believe that the reason why is that the previous owners used to let the decks ride the ground when mowing...causing everything to wear out before its time.

I like to have the deck suspended under the tractor with the wheels set at 2 1/2 inches cutting height and only touching the ground when there is a hump in the lawn to prevent the blades from scalping the grass. The deck wheels and parts will last much longer if you suspend the deck.

I find that the grass looks smoother and more even...like a carpet, when I mow with the deck off the ground. I generally mow at 3 inches with the wheels skimming over the grass. Occasionally, like in the fall, I cut a little shorter when doing the leaves.

After going through all the work to restore one of those decks, the last thing I would want is to wear it out before it's time! :biggrin2:

P.S. The title should read NOS 324 Deck (not 325)

Bushing stock has a much thicker wall then regular DOM

Chrome plating, there's an idea that would be cool. I am not sure I could afford it. The parts are already painted using Restoration Shop epoxy primer and School Bus Yellow Urethane paint. Here it is partially assembled. I bolted the gauge wheel assembly together instead of using the pins that Cub used.
I have always mowed with the deck floating on the gauge wheels. I may try suspending the deck to see how the cut looks. Not sure if the DOM I used was bushing stock or not. The 1/4 wall thickness seemed like more than enough.
It is interesting that some of the CC gauge wheels come with cage bearings in addition to the bushings and others do not. I found the cage bearings and installed them in the wheels I already had. The bushings wear out really fast without bearings to help.

NOS 324 54 inch deck
 

Wow! That deck is sure lookin' purdy!! I'd say your restoration is definitely a first class job...no need for chrome! Keep up the great work! :beerchug:

The deck is done and mounted on my 2364i. Ignore the weird yellow color in the photo. Just an artifact from the shrinking process. You may notice the small metal plated added to the caster.

Every front caster assembly I could find had been bent. The shaft itself did not bend. Instead the top where the shaft attached became bowed up. I removed the old shaft and found a 325 steel bolt at McMaster that matched the cub bolt. I had it welded on and then had them add a small plate across the front of the assembly to help resist bending in the future.

Now the weird part. With the new idler pulleys on the mule drive the belt is much tighter then before. Both idler pulleys are at least 3/4 of an inch further to the rear. With the old deck and pulleys the pulleys were right where they were supposed to be using the same PTO drive belt.

If the paint stays on, the deck should be good for another 30 years.