# John Deere 220E (2013) Reel Replacement and Reconditioning



## g-man

I recently acquired a John Deere 220E from Global Turf via their auction. It was a good experience and one do recommend for folks that cant find reel mower locally. Most of the cool season guys cant get their hands on reel mowers in the used market.

I received the mower today and I plan to use this thread to document a tear down, improvements and rebuild. This will be a way for me to ask questions (I'm new to the reel ownership) while also it might be useful for someone in the future (ie. eric gautier)

This is the mower as I received it today. 

It has a 14 blade reel and a greens groomer.

My current plans:

I plan to mow at 1in +/- 0.25in (25mm +/- 6mm). This means that I have to use a 7 blade reel instead of the 14 blade to try to get the Frequency of Cut (FOC) close to the Height of Cut (HOC).
I will replace the bed knife to a fairway hi cut (5 degrees front angle). 
i will either replace the greens groomer with a fairway one or adjust the spacing to 1/2in.
replace bearings and remove old grease and general cleanup
replace oil, filters, etc
the engine fired on the first pull and seems to be fine, so i wont touch it.

I discovered that the Reynolds John Deere store that is 6miles from my home is also www.greenfarmparts.com Therefore getting parts should be easy. I need to stop by and see if they might also grind the reels.

This should be a fun project for the winter months.


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## Ware




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## Pete1313

I can't wait to see you transform the new toy into the perfect setup for reel mowing cool season grass. Don't hesitate to ask any questions. That machine is beautiful! Once again, congrats!


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## wardconnor

What Ware Jerry Seinfeld said.


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## MasterMech

Ware said:


>


This ^^ :nod:


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## gene_stl




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## SCGrassMan

Following. May I ask what you paid, what freight was, what you budget for the rebuild? I'm looking to do something similar if not the exact same


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## g-man

SCGrassMan said:


> Following. May I ask what you paid, what freight was, what you budget for the rebuild? I'm looking to do something similar if not the exact same


Sure. A lot of info are in these two threads: 

Winter 2017 http://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1533
 Aug 2017 http://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=637

Being an auction, the price will depend on how many they have to sell at that time and the number of interested folks. I wanted a 220E and getting one around indy was really hard. Buying a used one straight from Global Turf (not at auction) was $3k + shipping. They only had 4 at auction (all 2013). The first two had ~2000 hours and they both sold for $170. I think that was a great price. Of the other two, one went for $400 and mine I got it at $375. I was ready to go up to $1000 (I really really wanted one).

My budget was around $500 for rebuild. This includes a new reel (~350), new bedknife (~60), bearings/ seals, etc (~100). I'm doing the work myself, so labor is "free".

Freight was the most challenging part, just because the logistics. I ended up using a carrier broker. It is one of the 3 that global turf uses when they sell equipment. He handled the logistics. I did multiple quotes before the auction (I recommend you do this) to see how much it was going to be. Before Christmas prices seems to be higher. They have two options: direct to your house or terminal. Terminal means it gets delivered to a warehouse close to you and you go pick it up. Global turf places the items on a pallet for free (this is a big help). The price to Indy terminal (1000 miles) was 350. Direct to home cost $100 more than terminal. I chose direct to home to avoid the hassle of taking a day off in winter to load it.

I did consider the option of flying to Tampa in a one way southwest flight on Thursday night and renting a pickup or SUV. Picking it up on Friday and driving it back (14hrs). I think it was $120 for the flight, $200 for the 2 day rental plus gas/hotel. This was my backup plan if I could not get the freight arranged before the 14 days window they give.


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## Ware

^^^ Great analysis. I'm stoked for you!


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## SCGrassMan

Awesome info everybody, thank you. I have Zeon Zoysia, and I plan on a HOC somewhere in the 0.75" to 1.5" range. What is the contraption between the front roller and the bed knives called?

Sounds like auction is the way to go - I've been seeing $2000+ on eBay.


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## Ware

SCGrassMan said:


> What is the contraption between the front roller and the bed knives called?


It is called a groomer and is optional equipment. They are expensive to add if you buy a mower that doesn't already have one, but I have mixed feelings about its usefulness at the HOC range you're targeting.


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## SCGrassMan

Is that the contraption that chops up the stolons underneath etc?


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## g-man

JD has two type of groomers, they call them Greens Tender Conditioner (GTC) or Fairway Tender Conditioner (FTC). The intent is to cut stolons or lift the blades up right before cutting. The shape of metal in the Greens is a bit more aggressive than the fairway one. The green spacing is 1/4in between knifes and 1/2in for the fairway. Pete1313 reno thread has assembled pictures of it (http://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=436#p8113).

The fairway knifes for the JD 220 E are MT2624 - here is an image https://www.rrproducts.com/Knife-~-Greens-Conditioner-product51815

The greens knifes for the JD 220 are ET14707 - here is an image https://www.rrproducts.com/Verti~Cut-Blade-~---025-x-2--375-product29575?k=ET14707

Here is JD sales info on the groomers. A groomer is geared with the reel, so i adding it involves some work like Ware said. http://salesmanual.deere.com/sales/salesmanual/en_NA/golf_turf/2009/feature/cutting_units/qa5_fairway_tender_conditioner.html


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## SCGrassMan

Gman that's great and detailed info, I appreciate it!


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## MasterMech

Ware said:


> SCGrassMan said:
> 
> 
> 
> What is the contraption between the front roller and the bed knives called?
> 
> 
> 
> It is called a groomer and is optional equipment. They are expensive to add if you buy a mower that doesn't already have one, but I have mixed feelings about its usefulness at the HOC range you're targeting.
Click to expand...

Where do you think they start to become useful? I've not used one before, but with warm season turf I'm now curious. I have a few areas that are a real pain in the rear to vary the mow pattern on and I'm wondering if a groomer is an option to keep from developing "grain" in those areas.


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## SCGrassMan

g-man said:


> JD has two type of groomers, they call them Greens Tender Conditioner (GTC) or Fairway Tender Conditioner (FTC). The intent is to cut stolons or lift the blades up right before cutting. The shape of metal in the Greens is a bit more aggressive than the fairway one. The green spacing is 1/4in between knifes and 1/2in for the fairway. Pete1313 reno thread has assembled pictures of it (http://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=436#p8113).
> 
> The fairway knifes for the JD 220 E are MT2624 - here is an image https://www.rrproducts.com/Knife-~-Greens-Conditioner-product51815
> 
> The greens knifes for the JD 220 are ET14707 - here is an image https://www.rrproducts.com/Verti~Cut-Blade-~---025-x-2--375-product29575?k=ET14707
> 
> Here is JD sales info on the groomers. A groomer is geared with the reel, so i adding it involves some work like Ware said. http://salesmanual.deere.com/sales/salesmanual/en_NA/golf_turf/2009/feature/cutting_units/qa5_fairway_tender_conditioner.html


I think you may have the greens and fairway knives backwards, just FYI. Although I managed to figure it out


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## g-man

SCGrassMan said:


> I think you may have the greens and fairway knives backwards, just FYI. Although I managed to figure it out


It should be correct. These is the maintenance part list for the 220E.

https://jdparts.deere.com/partsmkt/document/english/featbene/kg_maintsheet_220E%20.pdf


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## SCGrassMan

That's weird - they call the fairway knives "greens conditioner" on the parts site, thats what threw me, but the part numbers match.


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## g-man

Update:

Mud in the garage walls, 50% done
Work meetings - finished for 2017 (I hope)
Built in drawers in the closet with double rods thus keeping the wife happy - almost done
Reel tear apart - 0% complete

I'm off from work next week, but temperatures might be too cold for my garage (high of 20F). I might take the QA5 head off and work from the basement.

I plan to go tomorrow the JD store near my with a shopping list of parts.


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## g-man

I went to the JD store this am. They are the store for www.greenfarmparts.com . Great facility with a lots equipment. They have an area just for golf equipment with multiple warehouses full of triplex. It was a toy store for a lawn nut. They have the equipment to grind the reels, but their machine needs the entire cutting unit instead of just the reel. They had 3 head from the Victory Field greens and he showed me how they do it. In short, they spin the reel mounted on the QA5 or the mount a 220B into it and the spin the reel like ************ without the bedknife mounted. Overall every person I interacted was very nice and interested in helping the non-farmer.

They then mount the bedknife to the cutting head, set it up and also grind the bedknife to get it parallel and true to the reel. At the end it cuts an entire sheet of paper (11 x17) and it is ready to mow (no ************ needed). The do this service for multiple golf courses. He stated around 200 heads from January to March at $125 per head.


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## Pete1313

Awesome that you found the perfect place to get your reel serviced at! I look forward to seeing this beauty get reconditioned and ready for spring!

Regarding parts-
- you might want to confirm, but I think you need 13 bedknife screws.
- you will need 3 additional groomer spacers part# MT7280(2 each between each knife, but only 1 after the last knife before the nut. 75 total, and your GTC should have 72 on there already.)
-you will need 38 knives part# MT2624
-also a good idea to get a new collet bushing part# TCU24920, a new tube nut part# TCU24919, and a new lock nut part# N198341


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## Pete1313

Looking at the FTC setup, once the pin and retainer are in place(on the left in the picture), first you slide a knife on, then 2 spacers, another knife, 2 spacers and so on until you have 38 knives installed. Then only one spacer after the last knife(right side of picture), and then the lock nut. Hope this helps. Way cheaper to convert it over then buying a new pre-assembled FTC which I believe is part# BM22671 and costs over $500.


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## g-man

Pete thanks for the guidance. It was late when I started to look into the FTC parts. The diagram is too small and I could not tell if I selected the correct bearings. I decided to buy those parts once I take it apart. I might start the tear down this afternoon.


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## g-man

Managed to start to take it apart last night. I was hoping the QA5 head was not so heavy to take it to the basement. I might need some help or to take it in pieces. I looks like one of the reel seals was leaking a bit (near the FTC seals).

I've created a shared album to host the images. I hope it works: https://photos.app.goo.gl/DCeK4ejz8bV7Y5ef2

Here is was looks like a leak:


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## Pete1313

Thanks for the pics. That seal does look like a leaker. Should be an easy fix when you take the reel out. That 14-blade reel looks to be in really good shape and lots of life left.


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## g-man

Pete1313 said:


> Thanks for the pics. That seal does look like a leaker. Should be an easy fix when you take the reel out. That 14-blade reel looks to be in really good shape and lots of life left.


The seal is either bad or someone overgreased it. I already have new ones to replace it.

I will measure the 14 blade reel diameter to see how much it has left. It does need to be grinded since it doesn't have the relief cut. Pete do you want the 14 reel? Or some other TLF member? I don't think it will ever mow low enough to use it.


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## Pete1313

When you go heavy on the grease it will ooze out between the side panel and motor/gtc gear assy before leaking on the reel side. I have no use for a 14-blade, but does look to be in good shape!


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## g-man

Last night I managed to work on the machine. It was a nice 60F in the garage with the warm front we had (ice and snow today).

In summary I started to take most of it apart. I had to stop the blade removal because it was 10:30pm and hitting the impact screwdriver with the hammer was waking up the kids.

Problem areas I discovered:

The rear roller is attached with two allen wrench screws that looked like someone used the wrong size wrench to screw them on. I managed to take it off, but I will replace those bolts.




 I did not like one of the bearings for GTC. It looked like the shaft was spinning on the bearing raceway instead on the bearing. One of the seals looked like it was not holding the grease anymore. All of this will get replaced.


 


 Lastly the connection between the GTC geardrive and the reel was missing an oring. The grease in this side of the reel looked broken down and more liquid. Again, bearings will get replaced and a new oring will be installed.




Today I took off all the blade bolts when I got home from work to avoid waking up the kids. I will try to work a bit more on it tonight.


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## J_nick

You call that a blade? It's a bloody knife mate... Crocodile Dundee accent


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## g-man

I think it is time I update this thread. Overall I've spent the last weeks cleaning. I took apart every single bolt from the cutting unit, remove old grease, clean and used rust removing solutions. I also sanded, primed and painted parts that had some rust. Taking pictures is hard when the hand are full of grease, but I took some.

Key observations:
* I think at some point the machine was greased with an incompatible grease. The JD manual recommend a JD that is polyurea. Polyureas are good, but cant be mixed. I'm doing a deep clean and using the JD grease going forward.

* the reel bearing side missing the oring had some issues. It was like the bearing was rolling in the roller only.

* this is my first time taking the head apart, so I did stumbled to figure out some items that are not in the manual. The worm gear used to adjust the rear roller needs to be remove from the vertical first, then remove the adjusting screw.

* Most of the screws/bolts use a 16mm socket. I've also used 15mm, 13mm and 11mm. I find these sizes weird since mostly use 17, 14, 12 and 10mm on cars.

* the rear roller has a bad bearing. Taking the bearings apart looks to be a challenge since they are pressed fit. I'm just going to buy a new roller and figure out how to replace this later.

* currently I cant get the groomer shaft nut from releasing. Cheater bar on one side and me standing on the other wrench and it will lift me. Tomorrow I will try with a torch. At worst I will need to do use it as it is and deal with it later. I have a lot of work travel and I would like to drop off the head at the JD shop to be sharpen before the end of February.

Tonight/tomorrow I will start the reassembly.


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## Pete1313

Making progress! A cant believe that collet is still fighting you... are you sure you are turning it the right way. :lol:

If it is on there that good, you can still change over the knives and spacers without removing the collet and shaft from the gear drive. Just clamp down on the hex part next to the collet and then remove the nylon lock nut on the other side and then remove the knives and spacers.


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## g-man

I sure hope i am. Counter-clockwise when looking at it from the gear drive, correct?


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## Pete1313

Yeah.. did you try the torch?


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## g-man

@Pete1313 We tried the torch. It did not help. I went to the house of a friend to help me out. At first, he was teasing me for not being strong enough to take it out.

1.5hrs later we got it out. Two 3ft cheater bars. One against the floor and using our body weight on the other one. Every turn was hard. Then we had to pry the shaft out and then pry the nut and collar. It had sand and rust inside the collar. The threads in the shaft look good, so just a collar. When I reinstall it I won't torque it too much.


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## g-man

I lot to update on this thread. I've been taking pictures whenever my hands are clean. I've been also trying to keep mental notes of some of the key observations. Currently, it is all assembled except the GTC gear case and the groomer.

This is the collar/nut that took a while to get loose. I'm replacing with a new one.









The gear drive that adjust the back roller has a bit of a trick to assemble. 
1) Grease the bottom part. There is a small groove/area above the bushing. I inserted grease in there. This will help to keep it lube, but also prevents from dirt to get into the top assembly. 

2)Insert the vertical shaft with gear and everything. Ensure the 3 spring washers are touching at the edges (not spooning).

3)To get the top gear nut tight, you will need to install the worm screw first and use the it to prevent the shaft from spinning. Then install the top cap nut.

4)Lastly the worm gear screw uses two nuts (locking nut). Get the tension right to allow the adjustment to work (too tight is a problem), and then use the lock nut to keep it in place. Test it to ensure it all works.









Next each head get the front roller adjustment. I set mine up to 7 which is the highest hoc. In the bottom right I installed the bedknife pivot. The pivot needs to be switched depending on the age of the reel. This image is setup for a reel with less than 4.8in. I'm using a 7 blade reel with 4.77in diameter. 


Install a new oring for the reel connection. Take your time since it is not easy. I applied a thin layer of reel grease first. The oring needs to be pushed inside the groove. I used the back of a screwdriver (round surface) not to damage the oring. The image below shows it with it not fully installed. 

Lastly, install the reel seal until it is flush, apply reel grease (not the SD grease), then pack the bearing with grease and insert it. At the end insert the bearing raceway. It should slide in with minimal tapping force. If you feel that you need to hit it hard, it is because it is not straight, pull it out and start over before you damage the reel frame. This is a messy job. If you ever replaced a car wheel bearings, then it is very similar. I took an image with the mess I created installing it. 

I installed a new pressure relief valve (PRV) and grease ports. The PRV is important since it allows grease to exit the hub without blowing out thru a seal when you add more grease.

I sanded, primed and painted most of the parts that had some rust to them. Here is the reel frame with all of the items mounted. Next post is the bedknife.


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## g-man

The bedknife frame had some rust in the exterior. I also sand it and painted it. I avoided the surface that the knife mounts to. After painting I sanded that area down to remove any of the paint that transferred from the edges. I wanted the knife to mount flush with the frame and avoid any warping. 

The bedknife was installed with new bedknife screws. The screws got anti-size in the threads (per the manual). Starting at the center and going to the edges alternating sides, each got torque to 35 and then 62 (per manual). I did not like how the screws looked at the end. As I torque them the head was squeezing on towards the center. The flat head bit got tight at the end and I had to pull it out from the slot. I think the screw metal is too soft (SS 303?) for this application. I got the screws from the JD store near me, but they came in a small unmarked zip lock bag instead of a JD bag. It is possible that they ordered bulk screw of the correct size/thread but not the correct stainless.



While I dont like how the look, they will work. 13 screws are sharing the load and there is barely any load in them. Further the whole knife frame pivots on the two springs.


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## g-man

And this is my nemesis: GTC gear case.



Yes the grease should not be the brown color. It should be like the circle in the top of the image. Because the reel frame was missing a $3 oring, water got into this side of the reel. The water broke down some of the grease and allowed rust to build up. I'm replacing all of these sealed bearings.

As you could see, this is a mess. Grab several shop towels and start cleaning. At the end it should look like this (old bearings in this image). 

The biggest problem was getting the bearing off the shafts. One of the shaft had damage to it. I had to use a bearing separator. I also had to pound on the shaft to get the bearings out (using wood blocks). 


Theory of operations. All the gears turn 100% of the time the reel turns. The level at the top mechanism pushes the gear toward the brass bushing. When pushed the bushing will push against the seal bearing inner race, thus making that shaft turn. That means that the bushing is also a slip clutch. I found the part number for it once and now I cant find it. Since my setup was working, I'm reusing it.

Notice the brass bushing in the top of the image. Inside there is a curved groove that I haven't figured out why it is there. It will be a very expensive thing to do, but I cant find the logic behind it.

Also notice that all the bearings are sealed except the one facing the reel. I though about changing it to a seal one, but then I figure out why they did this. There is a grease port for this housing and I think they dont have a sealed bearing there to allow the excess grease to go into the reel grease PRV. I would have not design it this way. I would have kept this sealed and separate from the reel with it own PRV.

I will be assembling this gear case this weekend.


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## g-man

I got the spacers and knifes off the GTC shaft. It took 3-4hrs. The spacers had sand and rust in them. I had to use a small screwdriver to push each spacer out at 3 locations. Once I had to clear the distance that allows rotation, then I use pliers to rotate it a couple of time and break from the sand away. This then allowed to remove that one spacer and knife out. Repeat 72 times. Tedious. This is some of the rust/sand that got to the floor.


I then placed them in a rust removing tank 24hrs. Then dried them and used sand paper to remove more rust from the inside. Then placed in a 2nd rust removing tank. I dried them again and this is how they looked. 

So I'm sanding a bit more and placing in a 3rd tank.

I've decided to keep these knifes (greens) instead of switching to the fairway ones. Mainly to save some $100 and give this a try. If I dont like how the aggressive they are, then I will swap it next winter. I'm changing the spacing to 1/2in instead of 1/4in.

Overall this project is coming to an end and I'm anxious to give the mower a try. I hope this write up helps someone in the future and feel free to ask questions.


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## Ware

Good stuff - great project. I'm sure it will be a big confidence boost to know you've gone through everything and understand how everything on the machine works. :thumbsup:


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## g-man

Yes I like to know that the risk of failure mid season is low. There is always the risk of infant mortality.

PS infant mortality ~= risk of a new part failing due to a manufacturing / assembly issue. http://www.weibull.com/hotwire/issue21/hottopics21.htm


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## zeus201

awesome work


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## Pete1313

Nice work g-man! I can't wait to see this machine in action!


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## g-man

g-man said:


> Notice the brass bushing in the top of the image. Inside there is a curved groove that I haven't figured out why it is there. It will be a very expensive thing to do, but I cant find the logic behind it.


I've been thinking about this bushing all day and researching it. The grooves are called oil grooves. They are used to distribute the lubrication. The bushing in the gtc gear is a loose fit and it spins on the shaft when the GTc is not used or it doesnt spin, so the lubrication does help in idle setting. Since I can't find the part number, I'm going to dimension this one in case anyone needs to replace it.

Info on the grooves: http://www.nationalbronze.com/News/oil-grooves-in-cast-bronze-bearings/


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## Fishnugget

Great job g-man with the documentation of your rebuild and congrats on your mower purchase. You are brave!

I am sure I will be there one day taking stuff apart to replace for my 220SL. What were the hours on your mower?

I dont know what half of those parts you have posted are for, :lol:


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## g-man

It had 1086hrs. The main issue it had was that water got into the grease. It is a risk of buying used. Unless you take it apart, you won't know the maintenance of the unit. I went above and beyond what was needed since I had it all apart.

It wasn't really hard, but I'm mechanically inclined. I have rebuilt car engines in the past (new pistons, etc) and transmissions. The amount of information online makes it easy to address issues, plus there are members with a lot of knowledge that also help out a lot.


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## wardconnor

Pete1313 said:


> Nice work g-man! I can't wait to see this machine in action!


+1


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## g-man

g-man said:


> The bedknife was installed with new bedknife screws. The screws got anti-size in the threads (per the manual). Starting at the center and going to the edges alternating sides, each got torque to 35 and then 62 (per manual). I did not like how the screws looked at the end. As I torque them the head was squeezing on towards the center.


So I figured this out. It was my screw up. Last weekend as I was starting to torque the rear roller screws I noticed the silly mistake. The manual calls for the screws to be torque to 62. And I set my torque wrench to 62lb ft. But the manual is 62lb in. Yes for this one they switched the units to inches. That's 5.2lb ft.

I've been traveling, but today I managed to stop at the JD store and got another 13 screws. I will replace them tomorrow and drop off the cutting unit on Friday for reel grinding.

I need to post pictures of the final assembly.


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## Ware

Just curious - what are they charging for the grind? And is it a relief grind or spin only?


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## g-man

$125. They grind the reel and the bedknife. I believe they will do a relief grind too(if needed). I will confirm when I drop it off. They maintain the JD heads for the local triple a baseball field and seem very knowledgeable.


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## g-man

I dropped off the QA5 this afternoon. I took the camera to the garage but forgot to take pictures prior to leaving. I will take pictures once I pick it up. He will have it ready on Monday, but I won't be able to pick it up until the following week. Im going to Europe on a business trip.

@Ware Rick does the reel gridding. He explained that he first will do the relief grind, then spin it and then he grinds the bedknife.


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## J_nick

You dropped it or dropped it off?


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## g-man

Dropped it off. I fixed the post.

It would be easy to drop it to the floor too. It is heavy.


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## Ware

g-man said:


> Ware Rick does the reel gridding. He explained that he first will do the relief grid, then spin it and then he grinds the bedknife.


Awesome.


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## Pete1313

g-man said:


> It would be easy to drop it to the floor too. It is heavy.


Weighed one of my QA5 units when I was done rebuilding it and my setup was just about 130lbs with both solid rollers and yokes. Surprisingly heavy.

Did you need to leave the groomer off when you sent it out for grinding?

$125 seems like a good price. Take some pics when you get it back!


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## g-man

I kept everything on. Just like he said to do. They mount the qa5 or 7 on the grinding machine. They then drive the reel using an electric motor.

When they are done, it is ready to mow.

By the way, I did ask about replacing the bearings on the rollers. They have the puller for it. He said that some times it could be removed with a sliding hammer puller, but not always.


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## g-man

The QA5 is home with a fresh relief cut. I manage to move some meetings around and pick It up. I won't be able to use it today. Today I will mow with the rotary and hopefully Sunday mow at 1.25in with the reel.


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## J_nick

:thumbsup: looks beautiful g-man


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## Pete1313

That 7-blade reel sure does look familiar..  alot cleaner then the last time I saw it. It looks sharp! I can't wait to see what you can do with it!


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## g-man

Last year I took off the side covers to the 220E to clean and adjust the drive system chains. I noticed one sproket looked bad . I ordered it with the plan to replace during the season. Well, I wanted off the list to do.

I ordered the other side too and installed sprokets and chains yesterday. The sproket was really bad. New vs old.


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## J_nick

Wow! Caught it just in time, not much life left in that sprocket


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## g-man

Nah, I like to live dangerously.  it would last another season on my 5k lawn.


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## Reelmower

G-man
I recently purchased a 2012 220E with the same setup. Hopefully you had a full season. Pros and cons you would like to share? Thanks


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## g-man

@Reelmower I've used mine for 2 seasons now. It is a great mower. The turns can be a workout.


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## soupy01833

How do you scalp with the electric driven reel? is it a problem?
I am thinking of going to 7 blade reel myself. I bought a machine with 500 hours and 11 blade reel.


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## g-man

@soupy01833 I don't scalp. I have a cool season lawn. I would not use a new reel to scalp.


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## soupy01833

@g-man

thanks. I have Bermuda so a little different


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## coreystooks

@soupy01833 Although I don't have a JD with my Jacobsen eclipse it is not fun to do a scalp with. When the electric motor gets too much load on it the computer will shut it down so you have to go at a snail's pace and not take off too much at a time.


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## soupy01833

Thanks. It might not be until next season. The biggest choice I need to make is whether I choose to go to 7 blade reel right away since I will be cutting around 3/4 to 1 inch to start. At the moment I cut at 2 inches with a rotary

This thread made me feel like it is easy in the 220e since the bearings are not pressed


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## kay7711226

Would you recommend the same as below for a 220A if I want to cut from 0.25-1in?

"I plan to mow at 1in +/- 0.25in (25mm +/- 6mm). This means that I have to use a 7 blade reel instead of the 14 blade to try to get the Frequency of Cut (FOC) close to the Height of Cut (HOC).
I will replace the bed knife to a fairway hi cut (5 degrees front angle)."


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## g-man

Go with the least amount of blades as the machine can handle.


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## g-man

The alternator motor of the 220E started to make a noise a couple of mows ago. The noise comes and goes while the machine seems to work fine. I suspect it is the sealed bearing 6003.

I started to take it apart today. 1) You will need to remove the rear bracket to remove the motor/alternator. 2) I noticed the connections are behind the controller and not easy to get to them. Therefore for now, I'm just working on the floor. 3) I used an impact drill to remove the nut holding the pulley. I tried with just a wrench and it was impossible. 4) The pulley is mounted on a tapered shaft, so removing it is not easy. Ideally you should use a pulley puller, but I did not have one at hand. I used the nut mounted on the shaft and the socket. I was holding the motor by the pulley (gravity) and gently hit the socket with a hammer. It worked, but not the ideal way.

I can see that a portion of the seal bearing rubber is twisted (the likely problem). I took the bolt from the back to get to the housing to remove the bearing. But the back is attached with a silicone caulking. The back is machined so perfectly that there is not place to get any leverage to get it off. I started to file the housing to create a point to pry the back off, but I was too tired after all the other yard work for the day. I will likely continue tomorrow and hopefully find my Dremel.

Current pictures:


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## g-man

An update from yesterday's work.

Taking the back cover was a challenge. I ended up using a very fine screwdriver and a hammer to open a small gap. I then inserted a drywall 2in blade to get to the center and break the gasket away. I did this around 4 different places until it finally open.

As I suspected, the motor has 2 bearings. The diagram from JD is just wrong. The back bearing is the 6003, but the front one (by the pulley) is 6203 LU. Of course I dont have it. The back bearing looked fine. There was a lot of dust and dirt. There is a small hole with an oring plastic plug. I still dont know why this is there. The back plate has a PCB. On the other side of the back bearing there is a metal ring. I think the metal ring is used to detect the magnetic field via the board sensor. This can be used to detect speed of rotation and or position feedback. I'm just guessing.

The next phase was removing the inner squire cage. This was a big challenge. The shaft was very tight against the front bearing. I dont think it should be this close of a fit. I ended up using 2 wood pieces to hold the housing and hitting the nut mounted in the center shaft. It took a while to get it out.

But that only managed to get the shaft out from the bearing. The magnet from the center wants to attach to anything. 2 of the carbon looking spacer came loose and was preventing from getting the center out. I ended up getting 2 screwdrivers and lifting the unit out while keeping it in the center (away from any of the walls).

As I suspected, that front bearing was bad. I used a 24mm socket to push it out of the housing. This morning I went to grainger to pick up a replacement one. I will assemble it all tonight.

BUT, there is a big issue. In my attempts to get all of this out, one of the wood support I was using slipped. It hit the metal magnet and damage it (see the images below). I fear the damage might be enough to 1) change the magnetic field or 2) make the field too weak for one of the sensor to pick it up. If that's the case, this motor might not work. It could be possible that all those sensor are not used when the motor is used for alternator since they use the same assembly as the reel motor.

Since the back bearing is so close to the magnet ring, I would even attempt to remove it. I think it is doable with a small bearing puller. It is possible that this back bearing might be slipping in the housing. It looks to be like it is meant to float with the back spring washer keeping things forward. I need to inspect this area more.

If the motor doesnt work, I will order a new one from Revels. I found a company that sells rebuilt ones (https://ozarkfairways.com/motors) but I think with shipping it might be a not much saving. At least I hope this helps someone in the future in what do to (and not to do), when taking one of these apart.

Pictures of what I have so far:


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## g-man

I managed to watch the kid until 7pm, before telling the wife, I have to see if this motor will work.

I cleaned up the rear bearing dirt and the housing. It looked good and I dont think it is spinning. The bearing feels good, so I took a risk and did not replace it. I replaced the spring washer ($1 at my local JD).

I then tested the new bearing in the shaft and it barely goes in. I tested the old one and it also barely goes in. I measured and it was around the same distance to the interference. To me it was like the shaft was oval instead of round. With the fear on how hard it might be to insert the shaft, I grabbed a sandpaper to do some light sanding of the shaft. I cleaned all I could while being careful of the magnet.

I inserted the 6203 bearing into the housing. It was pretty easy to do. I then applied a thin coat of oil to the shaft and the inner surface of the bearing. I was hoping for a smooth insertion. Nope. It took 35 minutes to get it inserted to the point that the snap ring slot was visible. It is an interference fit and it doesnt make sense to me. I was hitting that shaft with a hammer just to get it to slide in.

After all of that, the rest of the assembly was pretty straight forward. I installed everything back in the machine and managed to get all the zip ties in place again. I did not realized the belt was a bit too loose with more than 0.5in of deflection until I was installing the covers. Since I wanted to test the system I did not adjusted it.

I turned on the engine and ...

The check engine light went on. And then it turned off like it normally does. I setup the reel to backlap and it worked. I then set it up to mow and did two strips in backyard at 9:30pm (sorry neighbors). It all works except when I engage the reel and the electrical load hits the alternator, there is a short squealing noise. I'm pretty sure the belt is slipping. I will mow tomorrow as it is and then adjust the tension of the belt.


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## csmitty

Interesting. I'm sure like you said that squeal is probably the belt.

It looks like there would be enough room there for a bearing separator. That and an arbor press would likely make things alot easier. But you gotta do what you gotta do sometimes.


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## g-man

The noise was gone after I adjusted the belt.

I doubt I want to get a bearing separator in there. Possible, but risky. Yes a press might be better, but I still think there is no need for this interference fit.


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## TheCutShop

g-man said:


> The noise was gone after I adjusted the belt.
> 
> I doubt I want to get a bearing separator in there. Possible, but risky. Yes a press might be better, but I still think there is no need for this interference fit.


The interference fit is what keeps the shaft from fretting against the bearing. Talk to an electric motor guy about life span and bearing fits. An arbor press is always better, impacts are hard on bearings especially an axial impact. A micrometer and lathe are key tools for this job.

Will it matter for occasional homeowner use, probably not.


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## g-man

@TheCutShop in hindsight, i should measure that shaft. I think it was a H7/s6. It doesn't need that much for this application.


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## g-man

Last week the 220E gave me an alarm when I was mowing. I counted the blinks and checked. Overheat. I touched the alternator with gloves and it was very hot. I grabbed ice cubes and place them on the outside and they quickly melted/steam. I used some water from the hose to finish getting it cool and finish mowing.

I went ahead and order a new one from revels. I received it on Friday and swap it out on Sunday night. The tie wrap arounds the connectors and getting to the connectors is hard. I removed 6 tie wraps and installed 5 back. I dont remember the location of the last one.

The motor is a newer revision. They changed the front mounting section. Otherwise it was easy to swap and get mowing again.



















Last night I took the old one apart since the curiosity of what caused the heating was peaking my interest. It was exactly what I was thinking. One of the magnets is loose and sticking out further so it was wearing. If I could find all of the magnets and ensure the rotor mass is balanced, then this could be fixed. But I doubt I would find those magnets.


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