
FORM NO. 3322–747
Mulching Kit
for 44” Side Discharge Mowers
MODEL NO. 59226
Loose
Note: Use the chart below to verify all parts have been shipped.
DESCRIPTION QTY. USE
Blades 3
Baffle
Bolt, 5/16”–18 x 3/4”
Locknut, 5/16”–18
Pre–Installation
1. Remove mower unit (see Operator’s Manual for
Parts
instructions).
Replaces side discharge blades.
1
4
4
Mount baf
Removing
1. Remove blades and anti-scalp cups from
spindles.
fles inside mower deck.
Existing Blades
INSTALLATION
INSTRUCTIONS
2. Thoroughly clean mower deck. All debris must
be removed to ensure baffle will fit properly
against mower deck.
3. Repair all bent or damaged areas of mower deck
and replace any missing parts.
4. Remove belt covers from mower deck.
5. Tip mower deck upside down and block up ends
to ease installation of mulcher components.
Printed in USA
Note: Save blades and anti–scalp cups for use
when in side discharging mode.
POTENTIAL HAZARD
• Blade is sharp.
WHAT CAN HAPPEN
• Contact with sharp blade can cause serious
personal injury.
HOW TO AV
OID THE HAZARD
• Wear gloves or wrap sharp edges of the
blade with a rag.

Installation Instructions
Installing
Baffle
Note: There is one hole that is already drilled
for installing the baffle. This hole is
filled by a short bolt and nut. Remove
this nut and bolt and save for future
use (Fig. 1 and 2).
8
7
4
5
3
3
1
3
5
6
2
5
5
4
6
4
Figure
1
1 Baffle..
5
2 Deck
3 Bolt
2
4 Lock
5
6
Nut
Hole to drill
Pre–drilled Hole
1 Baffle
2 Blade
3
4 Deck
(Sail faces deck)
Bolt Location in Baf
pre–drilled hole
5
2
Figure 1
5 Bolt
6
Lock Nut
fle for
7
Pre–drilled hole in deck
8
Hole to drill
1. Place baffle in the cutting chamber (Fig. 2).
Note: When installing bolts, the bolt heads
need to be on the inside of cutting
deck.
2. Install a bolt and nut into the one pre–drilled
hole (Fig. 1 and 2).
Note: When installing bolt into pre–drilled
hole, notice which hole it is installed
through the baffle (Fig. 1).
3. Install new mulching blades after the baffle is in
place and without anti-scalp cups (Fig. 1).
IMPORTANT: The sail part of the blades
(i.e., the turned up section) must face the
inside of the mower (Fig. 1).
2

4. Tighten the blade mounting bolts to 85–110 ft-lb
(115–150 Nm).
Installation Instructions
5. To determine where you need to drill holes,
arrange the baffle in the mower as shown in
Figure 3. Rotate the center blade to ensure that
there is a 1/4” of clearance between the tip of the
center blade and the baffle.
Note: Use the center blade to determine the
location of the baffle.
3
M-4412
Figure 3
1 Center
2 Baffle
Blade
1/4” Clearance
3
6. Mark the location of the 3 remaining baffle
mounting holes (Fig. 2).
Note: There may be a slight gap on the
discharge side where the bracket meets
the deck.
7. Drill (3) 11/32” holes at the marked locations in
the mower.
8. Install and tighten all mounting hardware
securely (Fig. 1 and 2).
POTENTIAL HAZARD
• A blade that is bent or damaged could
break apart and pieces could be thrown at
bystanders or at you as you use the mower.
WHAT CAN HAPPEN
• Pieces of blade that may be thrown could
seriously injure or kill you or bystanders.
HOW TO AV
2
•
Always r
OID THE HAZARD
eplace bent or damaged blade with
a new blade.
• Never file or create sharp notches in the
edges or surfaces of blade.
3
10. If the blades touch the baffle repeat the steps in
Installing Baffle section.
1
11. Make sure all holes in deck are plugged with a
nut and bolt.
POTENTIAL HAZARD
• Open holes in the mower exposes you and
others to thrown debris.
WHAT CAN HAPPEN
• Debris thrown out of holes in the mower
can cause injury.
HOW TO AV
OID THE HAZARD
• Never operate mower without hardware
mounted in all holes in mower.
• Install hardware in mounting holes when
mulching baffle is removed.
9. Rotate all the blades to ensure that there is at
least 1/4” clearance between the blades and
baffles.
Reinstall Deck
1. Turn mower deck over, rightside up.
2. Install belt and belt covers onto mower deck.
3. Install mower unit (see Operator’s Manual for
instructions).
3

Installation Instructions
Mulching Tips
Selecting The Proper Height-Of-Cut Setting To
Suit Conditions – Remove approximately one inch
or no more that 1/3 of the grass blade when cutting.
In exceptionally lush and dense grass you may have
to raise the height-of-cut setting another notch or
convert to side discharge or bagging operations.
Mowing In Extreme Conditions – Air is required to
cut and recut grass clippings in mower housing, so do
not set height–of–cut too low or totally surround
housing by uncut grass. Always try to have one side
of the mower housing free from uncut grass, allowing
air to be drawn into housing. When making an initial
cut thru center of uncut area, operate machine slower
and back up if mower starts to clog.
Mow At Pr
conditions you’ll need to mow every 4–5 days.
However, grass grows at different rates at different
times. Thus, in order to maintain the same
height-of-cut, which is a good practice, you’ll need to
cut more frequently in early spring; as the grass
growth rate slows in mid summer, cut only every
8–10 days. If you are unable to mow for an extended
period due to weather conditions or other reasons,
convert to side discharge or bagging options or mow
first with the height-of-cut at a high level; then mow
again 2–3 days later with a lower height setting.
Always Mow With Sharp Blades – A sharp blade
cuts cleanly and without tearing or shredding the
grass blade like a dull blade. Tearing and shredding
causes the grass to turn brown at the edges which
impairs growth and increases susceptibility to
disease.
After Operating – To ensure optimum performance,
clean underside of mower housing after each use. If
residue is allowed to build up in mower housing
cutting performance will decrease.
oper Intervals
– Under most normal
4