Earlier this year, I was able to pick up a hardly used (less than 10 hours) John Deere D100 Lawn Tractor. The previous owner hadn't used it as a "mulching mower," which I prefer, so I went to my local Lowe's and picked up a mulch cover for the mower deck. As you can see from the picture below, the rear clip is attached in such a way that it will scratch the side of the mower deck. Metal-to-metal contact like that with the vibration inherent with a mower deck will soon lead to rusting. As you can also see, my solution was to slip a small wooden shim in between the deck and the clip.
After trying the local JD dealers, one solution suggested was to snip off the end of the clip so it wouldn't reach the side of the deck. Well, after 20 minutes of sawing away with a hacksaw, I hardly put a dent in it. It might be a lousy design, but it is extremely hard. The other solution was what I had done with the shim. However, the most often repeated response was "Well, no one's ever complained about it."
Here's how the shim fixed the metal-to-metal problem.
That's a sad commentary on what we Americans have come to expect from our "Made in the USA" manufacturers. After playing with it some more, I was able to force the clip through the slot from the inside out so that the pointy end was not coming in contact with the side of the deck. However, there is still metal-to-metal contact, which, with the inherent vibration, will abrade the paint on the deck and therefore will still require the shim.
I just find it hard to believe that a competent engineer couldn't figure out a better way to design that clip so it would accomplish the task of keeping the mulch cover in place without damaging the mower deck.
I sent a letter to the CEO of John Deere, including the attached picture, describing the issue and asking for their input. As of today, I'm still waiting for a reply. I guess the "monkeys" can't write... or design.
This entry was submitted by Ken Brindle and edited by Rob Spiegel.
Tell us your experiences with Monkey-designed products. Send stories to Rob Spiegel for Made by Monkeys.
Ken, I have a similar mower (the auto trans version) and the same mulching cover, which we use. I will have to check (I'm not home now), but I have not noticed any rusting or other problem. If I do, I will comment later.
Have you noticed rusting in the hole through whcih the clip goes? This would be another area of contact?
Many of these products really seem to be designed so they will fail. And then you won't be able to get some part because they design was changed. They see it as a way to generate sales!
I have a couple of small machine tools at home and ther have been a number of time where I have made some simple part because the manufactirers part is either unavailable or way too expensive. If I can make it in 15 minutes why does it have to cost half te cost of the whole machine new? But then, most folks haven't the basic skills to open something up and repair it. Perhaps that is what we ought to be teaching in school nowadays. Then we might get better engineers and factory workers making better products.
Sorry to rip on the engineers, but they are involved in many of these "Made by Monkeys" complaints. How many of the engineers would be lost if handed a mechanics toolbox or a set of micrometers?
Even simpler, Ken, those engineers should be required to go to online forums on their products. Every time I have a problem with a product, I go to the forums and sure enough, tons of others are having the same problem.
I worked at a plastics company as a process engineer that required its design engineers to spend an entire shift running the assembly portion of all of their designs. This forced them to design with ease of assembly in mind. This procedure helped with the end quality of our product as it was easier for the operator to assemble.
As the author noted many Americans have come to accept sub-standard quality from American Corporations. This really is a shame that so many people accept this sub-standard quality and do the right thing and buy better products that may not be made in America. Myself I won't buy corporate crap anymore too many executives can not understand the "better" part of the "Faster", "cheaper", "Better" manufacturing mantra.
Personally I won't tolerate sub poor quality products and will only buy better quality products that meet my personal standards for quality. I don't buy American just for the sake of buying American. This is especially true with the fact that so many corporations have lowered their quality to the point of products being disposable today so that when the product fails it is more cost effective to buy a new one than to repair it.
Ok I will step down off my soap box now and let others get on it.
"... sent a letter to the CEO of John Deere, including the attached picture, describing the issue and asking for their input. As of today, I'm still waiting for a reply. I guess the "monkeys" can't write... or design."
That's almost a joke in today's corporate culture! CEOs of modern mega-production companies are too busy making deals to buy lesser companies in the global market to read a user's letter of complaint. You just wasted a 44 cent stamp! And, with this modern digital age, thinking that sending an e-mail is more efficient OR will elicit a quicker response, that's another joke! That's why modern PCs have DELETE keys!!!
I can't tell you how many times I've written (e-mailed) complaints to "Customer Service" departments for action, not from a personal-user point of view, but from a company point of view, only to get ZERO response! It IS sickening to see the arrogance displayed by so many large corporations. And, pathetically, there's just about nothing that one can do. Because of their extensive legal departments, most of these large corporations have insulated themselves from any form of litigation, that it makes one totally powerless. It's no wonder that the consumer is seeking alternate avenues of product to fill their wants.
The John Deere instruction manual seems to show the rubber connector twisted 90degrees to the outboard from the mount point to the clip install. The provided picture sppears to show the rubber connector stretched straight and flat against the cover or twisted only about 45degrees to the inboard side.
See instructions under: Using Mulch Cover (107 cm (42 in.) and 122 cm (48 in.) Mower Decks (If Equipped) page 21
Possible link for manual: www.homedepot.com%2Fcatalog%2FpdfImages%2Ffd%2Ffd904936-46bd-471e-9536-7c3ca3698e81.pdf&ei=yyYtUISdBIesywHcrYH4Bg&usg=AFQjCNFlM-BnvKLa5EnYSpU9ZJBjR9n3RA&sig2=tllrFLeyxI2YFUMbuCdjOg
It also looks like the pictured connector is longer than the instruction manual version- possibly incorrect assembly of the connector to the plastic cover during manufacture or using the same length rubber connector for both front and side clips when the side is supposed to be shorter?
Also note that some consumers who reviewed the cover said that the rubber connector(s) were difficult to stretch onto the mount points:
That said I commiserate with you about the issue of the design allowing the clip to vibrate against the deck. But the safety requirement for the design probably requires a complete and positive attachment of the cover to the deck - which used to be accomplished by bolting a cover like this onto the deck- but now seems to be accomplished by the hardened steel clips running through the deck.
The consumers probably requested the ability to install and take off the cover without tools- in fact, one reviewer on the Lowe's website mentions this function. Most consumers today do not have tools available or want the convenience of removing the cover without tools.
The majority of consumers using this type of product probably do not have as much as a discriminating eye for rust issues, would discard the mower prior to the clip and rust perforating the cover steel, or just don't care about it as they would chalk the clip creating rust up to "in use wear" (much the same as the wear on the face of a hammer head).
Some other possible solutions if installation is verified as correct and the clip still rubs:
Wood shim (as you have done)
Rubber shim
Rubber cover wrapped around clip and zip tied to it/ into it
Dip the clip in rubber tool handle coating
Spray the in contact portion of metal cover with truck bed liner material
The comment about safety is right on. It is far more important to make a product safe than to have it be servicable or usable or durable. For this very sad fact we can thank the greedy lawyers and the incredibly stupid juries who handed out awards to people acting like idiots bent on self destruction.
Doesn't anybody accept that some products and processes are intrinsicly hazardous? One of the better examples is the engine powered rotary mower. Not content with adding a whole lot of guarding, now these mowers have not only a dead-man type kill switch, but also a brake that puts a great deal of stress on all of the blade driving system. And a stupid arrangement that puts the rope starter in a difficult to use position.
A large improvement would be to revise the laws and have a waiver for all buyers to sign, stating that they alone are responsible for their safety. After all, "Onjly YOU can prevent stupidity". (Sorry, Smokey the Bear).
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
6 
