Toro Sidwinder frame flex Cancel The title field is required!

1. James Smith

   

   112 posts
   
   8/2/2011 4:08 PM

   Does anyone else have a lot of flex in the frame of their sidewinder. If you press the pedal you can see the front of the unit move up and down. It use to be a small amount of flex but now it seems to move 1"-3". I know the unit is 10 years old and should have a little bit or wear and tear. I do not see any cracks in the frame but maybe I am missing something.

   
   
   
   
2. Heath Puckett

   

   0 posts
   
   8/2/2011 5:08 PM

   We had a similar issue on the left side of the machine a few years ago. I believe it was a first year model (2000?). I contacted the distributor about it, and he said he'd talk to Toro, but nothing ever came of it since it was out of warranty.....IMO the structural integrity of the frame of a commercial mower should not be an issue.... Fortunately, our mechanic at the time was handy with a welder.
   However, another break occurred the next season where the slide mechanism attached to the frame if I remember correctly. I remember the front deck dragging and the whole machine looked like it was arching.
   
   Here's a few pics of the first repair.....
   
   [img">http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff496/hpuckett/Cypress%20Lakes/GM3500-D%20Sidewinder%20Repairs%20June%202006/Break3-ScissorAssyMount2.jpg[/img">
   [img">http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff496/hpuckett/Cypress%20Lakes/GM3500-D%20Sidewinder%20Repairs%20June%202006/Break2-FrameGusset1.jpg[/img">
   [img">http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff496/hpuckett/Cypress%20Lakes/GM3500-D%20Sidewinder%20Repairs%20June%202006/BREAK1-FrameEndcap1.jpg[/img">
   
   We never had any other issues, but I'm glad we sold that mower last year! Good luck!

   
   
   
   
3. James Smith

   

   112 posts
   
   8/3/2011 6:08 AM

   Thanks for the info. We will be looking at repairing it pretty fast. Wish I could think about a new mower but it may be 2-3 years down the road before we can get one. I believe mine is a 2000-2001 model also.

   
   
   
   
4. Gordon Seliga

   

   4 posts
   
   8/3/2011 4:08 PM

   We had the exact same problem with ours! Poor engineering in my opinion. We too had to reinforce and weld. No problems since. Hopefully Toro as addressed this on their newer models.
   
   Gordon Seliga (Erie, PA)

   
   
   
   
5. Michael Posey

   

   0 posts
   
   9/2/2011 6:09 PM

   Heath... I was there working for Danny when they delivered that Sidewinder. I probably broke it, sorry.