# Question on Mower Deck for GT



## olwildcory723 (Apr 18, 2011)

Hi everyone. I recently bought a used Craftsman II GT18hp Twin Magnum (I've read that they might also call it a GT6000?). It's model # 917.257720.

Anyway, I'm trying to get it into good shape and I had some questions about the mower deck. I'm hoping someone here will have some knowledge about this. The deck it came with is very bent along the front right lip. It still runs and cuts grass fine, but I'm trying to restore it to look great, not beat up, so I'm looking at replacing it.

The problem is I haven't been able to find a replacement deck anywhere. On sears.com I can buy a replacement shell (but they no longer sell the complete deck), and on Amazon they have a rebuild kit. But that's all pretty expensive.

So, I guess I'm wondering if anyone has had experience re-building mower decks, or knows of where you can get replacement decks, or if you can swap out the existing deck with a similar deck (like a 42" deck or a 46" deck).

Any input would be appreciated. Thanks! Bye


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## rsmith335 (Jun 2, 2010)

I haven't had experence with rebuilding a mower deck, but I have with a tillers drive train. The tiller I have, the MGF has been bought and sold so many times the parts aren't avaiable. I went to a machine shop and they made the parts, me suppling the sproctets and chain'I have $ 185.00 in the rebuild, total. If I could have found the parts, I'll bet they would have cost more. Try a welding/machine shop and see if they can help you out. Let us know what you find out.Bye


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## dangeroustoys56 (Jul 26, 2010)

I have a couple GT's - you should be able to pound or rebend out the dent in the deck . Im actually lucky i bot 2 GT's from the same guy - ones a GT II and the other is a GT6000 - the 6000 is a 'luxury model' - the II is a base model - both had the same 44" deck.

Neither ran at first- the GTII does run- the GT6000 doesnt ( no spark) - the GTII's deck was in really bad shape, needing rust repair and all new mandrels ( $100 for each of the 3 mandrels) - the GT6000 had a nearly brand new deck - so i just cleaned it up and swapped it . Both have the 'quick connect deck' - basically 4 pins, remove the belt and out it comes.


Id say the best bet is to look for a donor GT in good shape and swap the decks, then sell the donor. They should be able to handle a larger deck as well.


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## olwildcory723 (Apr 18, 2011)

Well I removed the deck and borrowed a sledge and a pipe wrench and a big crescent wrench. The lip of the mower is pretty bent under, but I'm going to attempt to bend it back into shape with some brute force. We'll see how it goes and I'll post some before and after pictures.


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## wjjones (May 28, 2010)

olwildcory723 said:


> Well I removed the deck and borrowed a sledge and a pipe wrench and a big crescent wrench. The lip of the mower is pretty bent under, but I'm going to attempt to bend it back into shape with some brute force. We'll see how it goes and I'll post some before and after pictures.



Good luck it can only go 1 of 2 ways, and thats good or bad.. but atleast you will have tried...


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## olwildcory723 (Apr 18, 2011)

Took some banging, but I got it back into shape (mostly). It's all pretty rusty so I'm going to sand it all down and coat it and paint it, so I blocked up the blades underneath and took the pulleys off. Then I went to take the bolts off that attached the mandrel to the deck weldment, and guess what? All the bolt heads snapped off! Except the ones that were stuck so tight that the head stripped. So, now I guess I need to drill out the bolts that wouldn't come off and buy new mandrel housings. Yay. Also the blades are pretty shot, so I'm going to have to order new blades as well.


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## dangeroustoys56 (Jul 26, 2010)

On my GT's the mandrels are 'one piece' - meaning sears in their intellect welded the pulleys to the mandrel shafts - i wouldve been able to swap the berings if they were bolt on - only alternative wouldve been to buy the whole $100 mandrel . Ive drilled out mandrel housings and used new bolts to hold em down.

I looked into adapting a set of extra MTD mandrels i had lying around - the mandrels will fit the deck ( same hieght/ nearly same bolt pattern), the pulley would need 'flipping' is all. Heck even the stock craftsman blades fit.


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