chrisrogers9035
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If it clogs every time i mow with it do i need to sharpen the blade
Push mower
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bt3
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Hi there!
Are you side discharging? Mulching? What's clogging? A Bagging Chute? The side discharge? Is it stalling out or are grass clippings just bogging the mower down and plugging a chute or discharge opening?
Regardless, a good sharp blade is a good thing to have on a mower. Let us know what you mean by clogging and what you are doing with the clippings - mulching, side discharging or bagging.
chrisrogers9035
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Yea the discharge gets clogged
bt3
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Make sure your mower cutting chamber (under the mower where the grass is cut) is clean. Use a putty knife and scrape away the dead grass and other crud. When you change the oil, clean your cutting chamber area of your mower again, get an old paint brush and paint the cutting area and everything in the blade area with the old oil. This will help stop rust and stop grass and clumps from sticking to the dome of your cutting chamber. Make sure the discharge chute is clean. If there is a discharge deflector make sure it is not stacked up with dead grass clumps sticking to it. Paint this with used oil too.
Take the blade off and sharpen it very well. It does not have to be razor sharp but should be sharp enough to cut paper. If you have a grinding wheel, great. Mind the angle of your cut. Do a nice job. Take your time. If you don't have a grinder you can do it with a hand file putting the blade in a vice. When done sharpening, make sure the blade is balanced. You can jut put a nail in the vice horizontally, and put the sharpened blade on the nail through the center hole of the blade. If one side of the blade goes to the bottom, that side is too heavy and you have to grind some off that side. If it does not move, it's balanced. You can also do this with a balance cone, but I have given you the poor man's balancing method here. An unbalanced blade will cause a lot of vibration and is annoying if not dangerous if it is way out of balance over the years of sharpening and use.
Make sure the mower is running well. Proper RPM for side discharging is important. I had a neighbor complaining of grass clogging and his throttle and governor were only allowing the motor to run at 1/2 capacity and not at full proper RPM. There has to be enough RPM speed to cut and throw the grass out handily. Don't mow wet grass if you can help it, and don't let the grass get too high between cuts.
That's about it.
Good luck.
Take the blade off and sharpen it very well. It does not have to be razor sharp but should be sharp enough to cut paper. If you have a grinding wheel, great. Mind the angle of your cut. Do a nice job. Take your time. If you don't have a grinder you can do it with a hand file putting the blade in a vice. When done sharpening, make sure the blade is balanced. You can jut put a nail in the vice horizontally, and put the sharpened blade on the nail through the center hole of the blade. If one side of the blade goes to the bottom, that side is too heavy and you have to grind some off that side. If it does not move, it's balanced. You can also do this with a balance cone, but I have given you the poor man's balancing method here. An unbalanced blade will cause a lot of vibration and is annoying if not dangerous if it is way out of balance over the years of sharpening and use.
Make sure the mower is running well. Proper RPM for side discharging is important. I had a neighbor complaining of grass clogging and his throttle and governor were only allowing the motor to run at 1/2 capacity and not at full proper RPM. There has to be enough RPM speed to cut and throw the grass out handily. Don't mow wet grass if you can help it, and don't let the grass get too high between cuts.
That's about it.
Good luck.