I have read that if sharpening blades to "shave" with is bad for the blades only due to the fact that they chip easier and dull faster. Their suggestion is to sharpen to 1\8". Whats the correct method?
I have always sharpened them so you could shave with them. If you sharpen them to within 1/8, they are not sharp, so why even bother. I even sharpen and balance new blades. Just because they are new, doesn't mean they are balanced either. The best balancer I've used is posted on a thread called USA and Canada team up. Just do a search on balance and go to that discussion. Just don't get blades hot while shapening them and they stay sharp for 4 hours normally. A professional blade grinder turns at a slower RPM to help prevent overheating of a blade, but you still can get them to hot if you don't move the blade while grinding or move it to slowly. Cutting grass with a dull blade is like cutting up a turkey at the Thanksgiving Dinner with a butter knife. You can get the job done, but it will just shread it. It is easy to spot a lawn that is cut with dull blades. There is one lawn company in our area we call The Lawn Killers, because their lawns always look brown, even when we are getting lots of rain. If you examine the blades of grass, they are shreaded and some don't even get cut off. It just knocks the grass over and you see an almost cut off spot in the blade of grass. Several times a new customer will tell us, our lawn looks so much greener and nicer since you started cutting our lawn. Sharp Blades are best, in my opinion.
I agree with Eric. Sharp blades are the ticket. They might say that you should not have them that sharp, but they probably are not out there everyday like us cutting!! I sharpen mine so you could split a hair on it!!
I have always sharpened the blades "for shaving". As Eric said, dull blades make the lawn look shoddy. I've also heard that this can lead to diseases in the lawn.
The only reason people preech that myth about why you shouldn't have razer sharp blades is because they say when you hit a rock or hard debris they knick easier. I agree with you guys, and say that the rock would knick the blade anyway!! Do what works for you!!
I have a friend that has been helping me get started. He told me to keep sharp blades on my mowers, but not to do what he did.... He had changed blades on monday evening, and on tuesday evening he had a call from a lady mad that he had scalped her yard. He thought she was nuts because he didn't change mower heights. The next morning he realized that he put his gator blade upside down in the center position on his 48". (DOH!) He had about 25 yards with shredded streaks in the yard but, only one complaint. I would not have been that lucky. I guess all you can do is laugh about it and let it grow back. Have a great day.
Just kiddin! Don't wanna bust any chops, but I hope I'd notice that $hit after the first yard, if not, obviously I can't see, or hear, or feel, or taste the dust and dirt going into my mouth.......which means I probobly shouldn't be operating machinery!! Sorry, but I had to!!!
That was a funny story!LOL. I sharpen my blades razor sharp too, and also noticed they get about four hours use before they need to be touched up.
I put the blade spacers under one of the blades once. The mower (a 36) cut an inch lower on one side than the other. Lucky for me it was near the front of the lawn by a ditch. I evened it out with the string trimmer. Didn't think it was funny at the time, but now...
Hey man my worker did the same thing to my 36 scag and and it was only 2 lawns that were cut like that, but that was also the day i demo the wright stander stand on machine and i did not let him try IT that day.
