Changing Blades

Mr. Mower

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I'm just going to throw this out there.

How often do y'all change the blades on your mower?

Once a year?......every two years?.....every three years?......etc.....or do you just change them whenever you feel the time has come to have them changed?
 

jekjr

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I'm just going to throw this out there.

How often do y'all change the blades on your mower?

Once a year?......every two years?.....every three years?......etc.....or do you just change them whenever you feel the time has come to have them changed?

We run commercial, but we change blades on all of our mowers daily right now. Mid Summer when the Bahia Grass gets tough we will change them twice a day and some times on long days three times a day.
 

Mr. Mower

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We run commercial, but we change blades on all of our mowers daily right now. Mid Summer when the Bahia Grass gets tough we will change them twice a day and some times on long days three times a day.


Damn! :confused2:
 

cpurvis

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Annually, whether needed or not.
 

Darryl G

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I change my blades when they're worn out and either the tips are no longer square or the sails on the back edge start degrading. I sharpen them whenever they start getting dull, about 15 or 20 hours of use. It really depends on conditions and the blades. Sandy soil and lawns with bare areas will dull them a lot more quickly. Basically the nicer the lawn the less it wears/dulls the blades.
 

BlazNT

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I run commercial mowing and change blades daily. I run 3 to 5 sets a year. I sharpen blades when removed from the mower or when I get home for the day. It is nice to have fresh blades every day. I normally change the sets every season because it would cost me a fortune to have a blade come apart while on the job.
 

jekjr

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We have a guy that sharpens blades and balances them for us. We run high lift blades and seem to get the best cut from them. They do a lot of damage to the underside of the decks by sandblasting them. We throw them away when they start to cup on the ends. Depending on the conditions we get more runs than others on them as far as to how many times they can be sharpened. Some times we get three sharpenings out of a set and other times we get as many as 5 or 6 sharpenings out of a set. When we pull them out we tie them together with a string so that we run them as a set from the time we pull them out of the box till we throw them away after the last cutting.
 

cruzenmike

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For some dumb reason I would replace the double-blade setup on my Honda HRX every single year. Seven years and $175 later I had 6 leftovers sitting on the shelf that every single one looked quite fine. Since I moved onto a ZTR with OEM blades costing up to $70 a set, I started sharpening them. I am now on my third season with sharpened blades and they work wonderfully. Believe it or not, Arnold makes a sharpening stone and balancer that can be had for under $15 that a wise and cordless drill is all you need to keep the blades sharp.
 

Mr. Mower

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Annually, whether needed or not.


Think I'm leaning toward this than anything, on replacing the blades on my mower.

It's now going on two years since I've replaced the blades on my mower and well it appears as though the time has come to do so.

Every Spring time I give my mower it's annual tune up, oil & oil filter, spark plugs, engine & fuel filters replaced, checks, etc. so it looks like now I'll be replacing the blades at this time as well.

Thank you to all that have posted here!
 
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Cruzenmike,

It is my professional opinion that regularly switching blades is not only wasteful, but very expensive in the long run. Sharpening blades yourself may save money short term, but if in the wrong hands, a grinding stone can spell disaster for the quality of your cuts. If you are like me, then you probably treat every cut like it may be your last! Take your blades to a reputable swordsmith. I personally have the blade for my Kgro custom forged to my personal preferences. Stock parts are not an option for me. If you want your yard to look like all of your neighbor’s yards, then by all means use OEM parts. This is especially true for blades as they are a single point of failure for a perfect cut! A master swordsmith will turn your mower into a finely tuned grass blade slicing machine. Start by doing your homework and find someone that’s not just going to build you a blade, but an artist who will create the masterpiece that will give you the greatest cutting experience of your life. Yes, it is that important! Once you find the right person, only allow them to touch that blade. I drive over 6 hours to SOFA (my trusted blacksmith) in Ohio to have my blade inspected and treated prior to the first cut of every season. Remember, without the right blade, a mower is just a go-kart! Godspeed!
 
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