Someone gave me an old 61" deck to scrap out. I tore it apart this morning and it had four bolt, cast iron spindles. My 9861 deck from 2003 or 2004 has 6 bolt spindles that are much larger. I am now anxious to talk to my friend and see if his machine has four bolt spindles. If it does, that will explain a lot.
I was looking forward to getting a spare gearbox from the scrap deck, but it was different too.