when to sharpen?

[tim cooper]

average time before u guys sharpen blades? just curious... 20/25 hours? longer?

[awm]

every day.

[65hoss]

I switch out blades on a very regular basis. I keep several sharp sets on the trailer at all times.

[LawnSmith]

on an 8+ hour a day mowing sched, change/sharpen everyday, absolute bare minimum every other day.

under 8 hours every other day to every 3 depending on conditions and time of season.

[Dennis E.]

Every single day! During the "intense" part of the growing season I'll change them in the middle of the day. Then again when I get home,for the next day.
I sharpen and balance myself.:cry:

[Mark]

When i get in after a days work, ill take off that set and scrape the decks clean and install newly sharpend blades, this is everyday.I have around 12 sets i run nothing but double blades on all my mowers,except for a 21" Proline. Marks Mowing Service ........(.keep em sharpe and the lawns look great,and the grass stays healthier)

[KirbysLawn]

Around every 8 hours or so. With the slower growth from the Primo apps I may get more time out of my blades also since growth has slowed!

[yardman1]

Everyday, depending on the season.......

[proline32]

I some times change blades two times a day, it just depends on how many yards I do, Currently I have a dozen blades for my 21 lawnboy, 3 sets of blades each for my proline 32 and john deere 42 sst freedom mulcher deck and a set of blades for my 30" ariens hi lift bagger Rider.

[GreenQuest Lawn]

Usually once per day, but depending on which lawns I do sometimes twice.

[Esby33]

Everyday.....regardless of amount of mowing completed. They can always use a sharpening even if they were only used a little bit.

[Soupy]

I change blades every night. I don't know how many sets I have but I have 2 milk crates full. I use doubles too. I have a question for you Double Balde users. Do you use good blades on the top? I was going through my blades tonight and decided that I was going to put my bent blades to use. I hope it isn't a bad Idea. I still make sure they are balanced. Any input on this would be great.

Soupy

[petemoss]

It looks like most people responding say they sharpen and/or change to presharpened blades pretty much every day. I was wondering what do ya'll use to sharpen with, hand file, bench grinder, etc. Also, to those that swap blades on a daily basis, do you see any problems with your spindle shafts or blade bolts wearing out from constant loosening/tightening? Thanks.

[swn]

I TRY to change, like everyone else, after about 8 hrs. 20 - 25 hrs. would be way too long to go before changing for me. Maybe I don't do a good enough job of sharpening the blades. There should be no problem with the spindles or bolts from loosening and tightening.
I don't think I would put a bent blade on regardless of if its balanced or not. Maybe someone else can answer better

[UGA]

I have found that if I go past that I can really tell on the cut quality. Now I'm trying to find the best and most affordable compressor, impact drill and sharpener.

[yardmonkey]

petemoss -

Tons of info here on sharpening - just do a search. I use a bench grinder. Mine has 6" wheels. I think the ones with larger wheels would be better. Theoretically, the cut edge will be a bit rounded, like the surface of the wheel. This is one reason why an angle grinder would probably be better. I got the bench grinder since it was cheaper. I only have one mower, a 21" commercial Honda. For the angle grinder, you also need a heavy vise. I have heard of people using dremel tools. A few have mentioned using belt sanders. Some people do use hand files. I think quite a few of the super-pros here with big rigs and stacks of blades use the dedicated mower blade sharpeners. Much faster and very accurate. Also I think they spin slower so as not to heat up the metal so much. I think they start at around $300-400.

I sharpen every day or every 8hrs or so.

[scott's turf]

Don't they have a laser that could do the cutting. Sure it may cause small fires in the dry months but you wouldn't have to sharpen everyday. Or make a titanium blade with diamond edge that would last for a couple of seasons. How much would you pay for a blade that did not need shapening for at least 1 year?

[TLS]

That would be nice, but I think they would still nick up with stones. Would be a real bear to sharpen when it comes time to! You WOULD need that LASER sharpener. A pocket lightsaber for those field sharpenings!

[pbenven]

There is a lazer mower available - check out this link. (http://zzz.com.ru/86.html)

And it can do 140Km/h!!

[scott's turf]

Awesome. No more sharpening and you good drive with it from job to job. No need for a truck. Just put a trimmer rack on the back. It is gonna cost 30k though. With the bigger and bigger engine sizes on the Z's maybe soon they will be street legal too.

[yardboyltd]

I'm still getting use to the tungsten carbide blades on my mower...

[P&J Lawncare]

Soupy I would not use the bent blades because of the vibrations it will cause, over time it could do some damage to the spindles and belts.

[Brickman]

I wonder what the guy that started this post was thinking? 20+ hours. I have seen home owners that maybe sharpen every year. Or how about the ones that are so dull they look like a table knife handle. :rolleyes: Sad huh??

On my Walker since it is the main mower I sharpen every day. With the JD WBs since they might only get used on 6 or so yards a week I will sharpen them as needed. I keep a close eye on them too.