Typical issue with clippings building up

Chugbug

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I cut roughly 6 acres, after I'm done cutting I spend about 30 minutes cleaning the grass buildup under neath. I don't cut when the grass is wet. Blades are pretty beat up and will replace them this week so I'm not sure if this is causing the clippings to build up heavily. Is this normal. I've got family who have ferris and they have no grass build up. Mine is the 3200 32.hp Vanguard with 61 inch deck
 

bertsmobile1

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All depends upon the grass you cut & when you cut it.
Grass is about 80% by weight water and what you cut off will bleed and get sticky ( not too much different to your own finger ).
The air path then blows them hard onto the deck and they build up.
Cut it before lunch and it is wetter still.
 

Chugbug

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Thanks I figured that was it. I keep fertilizer on it ao I figured that was causing the grass buildup
 

bertsmobile1

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Use an air duster with a very long nozel 3' to 4' is good so you can get under the deck wihthout becoming a cow and blow it off after each cut
 

7394

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Make sure the mow deck has a slight forward pitch, (Check your manual for spec) most call for 1/16" to 5/16", I set mine in the middle when I am on the mower & tires are inflated to spec, my slope to front is 3/16"
I never have any build up in the rear of deck & front stays relatively clean as well.
 

Chugbug

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I went thru the whole manual and it says 4" front to back. There was no recommendation to do any different.
 

7394

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IDK ? Most I have delt with recommend a slight pitch forward on the deck.
 

Chugbug

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Manual set up even states that if off more than 1/8 level it to 4. Go figure
 

bertsmobile1

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Does the manual say blade height or deck height.
A lot of decks have the blade spindles at an angle to the bottom of the deck, Murrays are a prime example
So if the deck is parallel the blades have the correct attack angle ( foreward pitch )
Where as in other mowers the blade spindles are true to the bottom of the deck so the whole deck needs to be pitched foreward to attain the correct attack angle.
So put your blades front back and measure the height from the ground at each cutting tip front / back you should see the front a little lower, up to 1/2" .
The exception to this is the fine cut finish mowers like the Husqvarna Bio-Clip deck which has blades parallel to the ground to produce a cut compariable to a drum mower.
The downside is it wont cut long grass.

Std practice is to level the BLADES left right then adjust the front link to get your attack angle.
If you mostly cut high ( top 2 notches ) you can increase the attack angle for a better throw.
Too much and your grass ends up with a scolloped surface t=because the front is a lot lower than the sides & the back does no cutting at all just controls air flow under the deck.

IF you are a mulcher then you set the deck up the opposite way round with the front higher so you double cut front to back.
That takes a lot of load of the blades trying to hold the clippings up in the air to re-cut them several times for them to mulch.
Downisde of Healing is that it does tend to favour big buildups under the deck but it does mulch so much better.
 

Chugbug

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Manual says blade height. I measure the blade cutting edge front to back. The manual says set the deck height at the 4" hole, then this...measure the front tip of the cutting edge to the ground...do the same for the back tip, if the measurements are greater than 1/8 of what they should be, adjust the deck leveling. I was a little surprised because front to back are normally off set, but the owners manual and dealers setup manual say the exact same thing......set the pin to the 4" hole measure the blades front to back raise or lower to 4". If more than 1/8" adjust.
 
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