Cub 22

[Glen]

Hi,
Click on your name at the upper right of the page to get to where Don said.
No, it's not about the bolster.

[Jim in SC]

I don't see the PM button, either. I did delete cookies first. Under "User Control Panel", "Board Preferences", "Edit Global Settings", do you have the ability to receive PMs turned on?

Got it, Don. Thanks! Duh.

[Jim in SC]

Looks like you have the optional grass rods instead of the wooden board. Not sure if they did away with the wood board and went with the metal rods with the later versions but it was an option for the eirler ones.IMGP0817.jpgIMGP0818[1].jpg

Does anyone have any idea what the purpose of the large cotter pin that is in the upper hole of the outer shoe grass rod clamp on the C22? It looks like it was factory installed, but it doesn't appear to hold anything or attach anything. I've removed it in order to strip and paint the grass rod and now am reassembling it.

[Jim Becker]

Are you asking about the cotter pin in a bolt that has a spring on it or some other cotter pin? Cotter pins are used to keep the nut from rattling off. The grass board and grass rod assembly were held with a 1/2 inch bolt with a spring, flat washer, and castle nut. The castle nut was held by a cotter pin. They may have changed to a lock nut on later machines. Some of the later grass rods may have also used a smaller bolt/spring/nut/cotter to hold an individual rod.

If that isn't what you are asking about, I don't know of such a cotter pin.

[LeeC]

There are several different versions of the grass rod, so it would be helpful if you would post a photo of the clamp. I seem to remember there was a cotter pin on a late version that cannot be installed with an early outer shoe. I think all it does is help position the rod in the clamp. You have a very nice example of an original late mower. I hope you documented all the decals and their locations before you painted it. Any pictures might help someone later.

[Jim in SC]

Okay, sorry guys - I should have attached pictures to start with. Here are two pictures of the grass rod, front and back (after stripping and painting. The cotter pin in the picture is obviously the new one). I indicated with red arrows where the cotter pin was before disassembly. Oh, Lee - yes, I always take bunches of pictures of my projects, before and after, as I find it helps my poor memory in putting the parts back in the same places! On this mower there were only three decals - an old style IH (with the "I" in white), a black "INTERNATIONAL" decal next to the IH, and an oval "CUB 22" decal on the inner shoe hinge.

I have another question for everyone also: I removed the pitman box connection for stripping and painting and noticed that it has a maybe 5-10 degree bend in the metal. I tried to circle in red the area with the bend on the below pictures. It is very slight and but is obvious. Is there supposed to be a bend there? I am holding off painting it (except for primer) until I find out if I need to flatten it or not. It shouldn't be hard to do, but I want to make sure it should be flat before I do that.

What does everyone think?

[Jim in SC]

Are you asking about the cotter pin in a bolt that has a spring on it or some other cotter pin? Cotter pins are used to keep the nut from rattling off. The grass board and grass rod assembly were held with a 1/2 inch bolt with a spring, flat washer, and castle nut. The castle nut was held by a cotter pin. They may have changed to a lock nut on later machines. Some of the later grass rods may have also used a smaller bolt/spring/nut/cotter to hold an individual rod.

If that isn't what you are asking about, I don't know of such a cotter pin.

Jim, no, it's not the cotter pin that holds the large spring on the bolt you mentioned. This cotter pin was in the smaller hole "above" the one that the spring and bolt go in. See my pictures on the post above this one. Dangdest thing - the cotter pin held nothing in place. Unless someone can tell me what it's for, I doubt I'll replace it.

[Jim Becker]

That cotter pin has me baffled. I don't have any experience with that style grass rod. My L-22 is probably from 1959 and your style started in 1960. The parts catalogs all call out a 1/4 x 3/4 cotter pin with that clamp, but don't make it clear where it belongs.

You pitman box connection should be flat. It probably got bent when the drag bar came loose or while the mower was being handled off the tractor.

[Jim in SC]

That cotter pin has me baffled. I don't have any experience with that style grass rod. My L-22 is probably from 1959 and your style started in 1960. The parts catalogs all call out a 1/4 x 3/4 cotter pin with that clamp, but don't make it clear where it belongs.

You pitman box connection should be flat. It probably got bent when the drag bar came loose or while the mower was being handled off the tractor.

Thanks, Jim, for the info on the pitman box connection. I suspected the same, just wanted someone smart (you) to confirm. Speaking of "smart" - lol - I was removing the nut from the flywheel wrist pin (I think that's right) and couldn't get it to budge - then I remembered reading another thread on the Forum that said that this nut was a left handed one - I tried that and it came right off. The "duh" factor came when I noticed that the nut had a groove on each of it's six sides. Click! The light went off - so THAT'S how you know its a lefty! Dang! I learn something new every day.

[Glen]

Hi,
I wrote on page 2 of this post, at my post on Oct. 31, with the pic of the bushing, that the nut and pulley have left hand threads.
If the long shaft has no looseness in the bushings, that you can feel moving it side to side at both ends, and the end play is small, then you probably don't need to remove the rear pulley, or take the long shaft out. Except that the old grease inside the tube could be sort of hard, but to remove it all would be a messy job, unless it was not greased much. Some people grease mowers well, some don't.

[Jim in SC]

Hi,
I wrote on page 2 of this post, at my post on Oct. 31, with the pic of the bushing, that the nut and pulley have left hand threads.
If the long shaft has no looseness in the bushings, that you can feel moving it side to side at both ends, and the end play is small, then you probably don't need to remove the rear pulley, or take the long shaft out. Except that the old grease inside the tube could be sort of hard, but to remove it all would be a messy job, unless it was not greased much. Some people grease mowers well, some don't.

Ah, it was your good advice about the left hand nut, Glen! I read and remembered your post, it just took that "duh" moment to jog my memory. I don't plan on removing the shaft - it seems well lubed. I'll just do a good surface clean job, then paint it and put it to work. As I may have mentioned earlier, my target is to have it rehabbed and on the tractor by Spring. It's going pretty well so far, thanks i part to great info and advice from Forum members!

[LeeC]

Jim, no, it's not the cotter pin that holds the large spring on the bolt you mentioned. This cotter pin was in the smaller hole "above" the one that the spring and bolt go in. See my pictures on the post above this one. Dangdest thing - the cotter pin held nothing in place. Unless someone can tell me what it's for, I doubt I'll replace it.

So, that is the cotter pin I thought you were talking about. I believe it is there to keep the rod from slipping out of the clamp (I guess the bolt holding the clamp to the shoe would prevent the rod from coming completely out). It is inserted from the rod side of the clamp so that the cotter pin head (if that is what it is called) keeps the rod in place when it is bolted to the later version outer shoe. You might think that the sheet metal piece that wraps around the rod would hold the rod in place as it is bolted to the clamp. That is probably true now, but the rod could have slipped within the sheet metal piece when new. At least that is my guess. If that style rod is used with an earlier outer shoe, the cotter pin needs to be removed as the shoe has a raise circular area that the rod wraps around and keeps the rod in place. Using a cotter pin for this purpose is sort of shade tree engineering in my opinion, but it is an easy way to make the part backward compatible.

As for the bend in the pitman box connection, why straighten it? Once everything is mounted, it will work as it should.

[Jim Becker]

. . . I believe it is there to keep the rod from slipping out of the clamp (I guess the bolt holding the clamp to the shoe would prevent the rod from coming completely out). . . .

As for the bend in the pitman box connection, why straighten it? Once everything is mounted, it will work as it should.

I wondered about that possibility for the cotter pin. It seems the other bolt should do the job as you mentioned. Not being familiar with this style, I assumed the clamp is permanently attached to the rod, maybe not.

It may work OK with the bend in the pitman box connection. However, it will put some (probably insignificant) strain on the bearing. Also, those parts have been known to break (usually a vertical break through the bolt holes at the bearing). I would be concerned that the bend may cause some repeated flexing leading to a break. If it can be flattened, I would encourage doing so.

[Jim in SC]

I fixed the PM - it should work now.

Here is a picture showing one of the pins that is locked up - considering the overall shape of the mower, I don't think it was left in the rain, but, boy are these two pins stuck! Probably rusted. I'm soaking them overnight with penetrating oil and will try them in the morning. If no go, then I'll hit them with some heat and whack 'em.

I'll post results tomorrow...

Well, I spent a couple of hours today trying to get these dang pins out. I've soaked them with PB Blaster for a solid week - no go there. Today I began hitting them with heat/quench over and over. Finally got the forward one out, but the rear one - nope. Obviously a previous owner attempted to remove it without result also, as the head of the pin has pipe wrench marks on it. I am just about done trying to get it out. I hate to have machinery beat me, but this one is close to doing just that. It's soaking in PB again tonight. Maybe I'll get my pipe wrench out and see how that goes tomorrow. If that doesn't work - I'm throwing in the towel. I'll just clean it up and paint it as it sits. Fortunately, it does rotate as only one of the hinge sides is frozen, so I can still work the mower. Frustrated!

[Jim Becker]

. . . If that doesn't work - I'm throwing in the towel. I'll just clean it up and paint it as it sits. . . .

That is what I finally did. When I got my L-22, the pins were so stuck that the bar remained upright for my trip home (400 miles) with nothing holding it but the stuck pins. I chucked the mower out in the back yard because I thought it was hopeless, but periodically shot some penetrating oil on it. After 6 months or a year, it finally wiggled a little. More soaking and it eventually loosened to the point I could move it through a full normal range. I never could knock either pin out. I finally cleaned the mower up in an electrolysis tank and repainted it. I've since used it for years but never did get those pins out.