The ramps sliding away is exactly what happened to me when I tried that a while back. It also seemed like the ramps wound up being in the way since they were behind the front wheels. Not to mention getting them down off the hook on the wall and putting them back up. I'm not usually lazy but sharpening blades is so easy to put off until next week.
I know it. But then the time to go back over what could've been a single pass will teach you not to put it off. Since we mow mostly horse pasture some of the stuff is pretty tough. Its not the sharpening and balancing so much as its getting set up and me getting down and up. I like the ramps because they leave the space between the front wheels open. Especially handy so I can reach under and hold the blade in my hand while unbolting the top to drop the blade out. The blade, spacer, and bolt all come out still assembled in my hand. On my 52" I have to take care not to pull up on the left ramp all the way. I leave the front wheel at the rear of the dip which positions the spindle just far enough back to be able to wiggle the bolt clear all fully assembled usually in my hand. Once I've dropped all three blades I leave the spindle nuts on top of the deck and take each of the blade assemblies to a mop sink to clean, scrape, etc. before I head to the vice. I find the flap disk easily sharpened any blade I've tried. When we first started to conquer the wild a neighbor bush hogged a few places but didn't do too much due to all the trash, bottles, and metal scap we discovered. I acquired a small Yanmar and purchased a landscape rake and used it to comb out as much as I could. The briars and berry brambles were the worst and a good bit of the weeds were nearly 6 ft tall and very dense. It obscured many bricks, concrete scrap, glass, from view. After combing it out and carrying much over to a burn area I would ease into it with my TigerCat at transport height. While tedious it did great. Never have needed a bushhog again. When I learned my neighbor was shopping zero turns I lent him my SCAG catalog and wrote the dealers address and number that I used. A week later he returned with a Cheetah 61" and listed the finish mower he'd been pulling around for sale. :biggrin:
