Scag blades

[Scooby1]

I have a Scag Turf Runner and have just discovered that I may have mulching blades fitted. In the U.K. we are having a very wet summer and because the grass is usually wet I'm not collecting as well as I would like.

My blades have a notch cut out of each end of each blade on the "lift" part. Is this a mulching blade and should I have a different blade ? My parts book tells me that there is only one type (part No. 481554 L.H. & 481555 R.H.)

Can anyone help please ?

p.s. the blades in U.K. are priced at £39.83 each !!

[fixer67]

Is the notch on the side of the blade near the end or is it in the end. If is IN the end then the blade is just warn out. The notch will be right at the point the blade turns up. Sand will do this quicker than any thing. Can you post a picture of the blade?

[Scooby1]

Good morning fixer. Thanks for your reply. I'm pretty sure that the notches are in the "lifting" art of the blade but I will check and get back to you via PM with a piccy if possible. Please bear with me. New to this site and still learning !!

Toodleoo from the Scoobydoo

[Scooby1]

I hope this includes a piccy of one of my blades (still attached to mower).

The notches are all identical and are in the "lift" part of the blades. The mower has only done 304 hours and I never "scalp" with it.

TIA - Scooby

[fixer67]

From the picture you posted it does look like a mulching blade from the wave the blade has in it. Below are two types of mulching blade. The first one with the big cut outs is ment for leaves mostly (I thank). The second one which looks like your picture is for grass. The first part (downward pointing) part cuts the grass and throws it up. The second part (upward pointing) part recuts it and throws it down. This keeps up until it is cut it bits. The notch it the END of the blade like in your picture is from hitting something or from sand cutting the blade. The problem is sand blasted blades the notch is in the fold where blade meets lift but yours seem to be higher up. I thank the notch is from you hitting something maybe part of the deck being bent in or it could be a trade mark I have not seen before this being in the UK. Go look at a set of new blades to know for sure. But from what I can tell from the picture it does seem to be a mulching blade.

[fixer67]

I just though to say this. Slowly turn the blades by hand and make sure the blades are not hitting each other. Seeing as yours blade are LH and RH this means the blade are TIMED to keep from hitting each other and if the timing is off they will hit and leave marks like that in the end of the blade.

[fixer67]

I did a Google search with the blade numbers you posted and a deck IPL came back. If this is what your deck looks like the I would by all means checking the blade timing. This deck is made just like a Walker deck and when the shear bolt shear the blade will hit. The blades on this type of deck must be torqued to a set level or the shear bolts do not do there job which it to fail when you do hit something to help prevent the deck gear boxes from failing.

[Scooby1]

Good Morning Fixer,

Many thanks for your reply. Your are correct in that the STR blades are timed but because they are gearbox driven and not belt driven everything is O.K. in that area. They have never become "untimed". Because of the various pictures that you sent me I am beginning to think that they are just worn out. Is this natural after 300 hours ?

I never "mow" sand but like everybody I occasionally hit stones.

Was interested in the .pdf The blades in that piccy are different again with the cut-out at the back of the blade.

I am aware that there are lots of negative comments about the STR but it is my first ride-on and because I am a working farmer and contractor I don't want to spend hours cutting grass. I just want to sit on it and go. Having said that it does get serviced properly. I am dead chuffed with the machine, really manoeverable, and easy to drive.

Most "city" types round here buy Countax machines and they are absolute Mickey Mouse stuff. Built down to a price and 'orrible.

Only problem with Scag is petrol engine. (mine is lovely 20hp Kohler). Petrol in UK is £0.78p/litre. Reckon thats about $1.37c

We have Walker mowers over here just like STR but Kubota diesel twin but they dont have the spreading option like the STR, only put the grass in the box.

Haven't discovered yet how to PM you with piccies but will if I can

Thank you - Scooby

[fixer67]

The PM on the site does not allow pictures. I work for a Walker dealer and work on Walkers every day. IF the shear bolts fail the blade will hit. Have your Scag shear bolts ever failed? The Blade with the big cut outs in the back is what I call a leaf blade myself. Now as far as Walkers go if you do not wish to bag(box) you can just leave the door up. Walker even makes a thing to put on the door that deflects the grass back down if you wish. Walker also makes a side discharge deck machine. On the SD machine the box is replaced by a maunal dump bed. 300 hour hours is a lot of hours on a set of blades if you ask me. As for ware it has to do with what and where you are mowing. If there is a lot of sand a set of blades got ware out in 30 hours.

[Scooby1]

Hi Fixer,

Thanks for last post. No, I've never sheared the small bolts that hold the blades on the carrier. They have come loose a couple of times but I always check them after finishing mowing.

I take your point about 300 hrs being a lot for a set of blades but the cutting edge is not worn and I've had them off about four times to sharpen them. Reckon I might build them up where they are worn but I am aware that they should probably be balanced.

I like the Walker idea of being able to pick the bed up so you can get at it to clean it properly. The STR is not good in this regard.

Anyway other more pressing problems loom now. Was combining yesterday and one of the bearings collapsed that holds the main beater together in the guts of the harvester. At least a days work to fix it.

Good wishes from the UK

Scooby

[Deer Dynamics]

might I cut in here? I just bought a TURFRUNNER 48" machine myself [regretting it already] but while the quality of cut on this 200 hr machine is wonderful ....any and i mean any wet grass will slug it down and there i sit or i have to mow at a snails pace.... I have the same blades as scooby but im thinking that the machine is haveing trouble getting grass to the blower rather than the blower haveing trouble clearing it....any help???????

low hour scag for sale 2500 bucks takes it.

[Scooby1]

Hello DD. Have just been informed of your post re: Turf Runner. I have recently moved to another farm (in Wales - UK)where the lawn grass is mostly clover. She doesn't like that one little bit as far as picking it up is concerned.

I have a couple of theories why. 1. The deck can't get enough air into it for the blower to create a really good airstream. I have noticed that when I have the deck lifted up high that it collects better and I think this is because more air can enter under the deck. I am trying to find a scrap deck and I intend to cut air holes in it somewhere to test this theory. Obviously don't want to do it to my one and only deck in case I get it horribly wrong.

2. The mouth of the blower isn't big enough. Can't do much about that.

Incidentally, have you got the aluminium gearboxes on your deck or the steel ones ?

These deck gearboxes were the major problem with the Turf Runner. I still like the manoueverability of the machine and it is nice to drive.

Scooby

[Deer Dynamics]

Scooby,
i have aluminum gear boxes .....when i bought this machine from a guy who handled an estate dispersment he said it was a very maintenece intense machine.... i thought at first that the blower was the issue but at 216 hrs it shouldn't be worn out and at a cost of 725 dollars [american] to replace i think im going to lean towards your theory of air flow.....might even drill a couple 1 - 11/2 holes in the top front of the deck to test this out [if it doesn't do anything then I can just weld a couple small plates over them . . another theory id like to explore is the shute - - i own a 7 foot snowblower for my skid steer and the shute on it is lined with a sheet of poly [plastic] so the snow doesn't stick to the metal and force a build up - - im thinking the same issue might be applying to the scag - - -could it possably be that scag built the machine to well? and it sucks it self to the ground [basically] and chokes itself out? interesting theory - -first one to cut deck must post as soon as posable my friend,lol good luck, Snowboss

[Deer Dynamics]

Scooby - - another quick thought - -when i bought the machine the guy told me to clean clean clean it everytime it was used - -i haven't and ive had touble - - seems that if I power wash the deck and plower it works well for a couple mows then its back to bogging down - - -Snowboss

[JimQ]

Here's a thought

The sad truth of the matter is when machines are shipped to Europe, they are de-tuned. They must conform to the Machinery directive as part of CE certification. Part of that certification limits the noise output of a machine like that anywhere from 105dB to 96dB depending on cut width.

The deck/blades are the "loudest" part of the machine followed by the engine.

Generally speaking the EASY way for manufactures to quite down a mower is as follows:

lower engine RPM which lowers noise from everything
Put larger sheaves on the spindle to slow the blade tip speed down
Install low lift or "quiet" blades

I'm not sure what Scag did but it looks to me like you have "quiet" blades.

If you want to improve your collection performance:

Get some good high lift blades from the US.
Make sure your engine is running at 3600 RPM
Check your blade tip speed. You'll have to tach it or measure your clutch sheave and your spindle sheave and do the math. US spec mowers run the blades up to 19,000 feet per minute.

Good Luck.
Q

[JimQ]

Forget the part about the sheaves. Gearbox! :hammerhead:

Q

[Scooby1]

Firstly Jim Q many thanks for your input, I will certainly give it some thought but to be honest I believe the design of the Turf Runner to be flawed.

Thanks also for your reply DD. I had ally gearboxes on my machine to start with but I am quite close to the importers and managed to get a steel one. I am sure that it is better. I reckon there is too much torque going through that ally box. Would be interesting to contact the gearbox manufacturers (is it somewhere in Michigan ?) to see what they have to say about the boxes because I just know that this is what is going to go on my machine. They have a reputation for doing that.

Problem is that the Turf Runner is now an old machine.

Are you sure that it would be right to drill a couple of holes on the top of the deck ? I have thought that they would need to be at the front so that there is a direct line of wind from front to back of deck. But I was once talking to a Walker mechanic and he told me that they have removed quite a bit of steel from the top of a Walker deck and replaced it with steel mesh. The Walker machine of course is nearly identical to a Turf Runner. I have another friend who is a lawn mowing contractor with a Walker and he also says that his machine doesn't like wet grass or clover.

Interesting thought of yours re: plastic and the grass not sticking to it. I presume that you mean inside the deck. I know that the grass sticks to the chute but when it has got that far it isn't usually a problem. I believe that there is some plastic type of material that you can spray on and it sets. Maybe that would be the way to go.

I still think that it is a shortage of air flow that is the main problem. I usually bag everything except for one small piece of grass and I cut it tonight. I have the 4 deck R clips set 5 holes from the top when I am doing this (it's a bit rough) and I can see the grass surrounding the deck being sucked into it. And I side discharge this area and it throws it a long way and leaves a tidy job on the strip that I have mown.

Best wishes from Wales - David