Rotary Mowers | 21 |
The most common causes for rotary mowers not giving a good quality of cut are due to dull cutting edges and/or bent blades.
Caution: Check cutter blade daily or before mower is used or stored and whenever mower is serviced. If bolt holding blade is loose, tighten it before using mower.
If the blade is bent, the blade should be replaced. A bent blade will cause two problems. The most noticeable problem a increase in horsepower that is required to operate the mower. This is caused by the fact that when the grass is cut the at the outer edge of the blade it is higher then the next area of the blade. The grass is then cut again and again until the height is the same as the lowest cutting edge. The same grass blade could be cut several times. This can take a considerable amount of power to repeatedly cut the same grass blade.
The other problem is that this will adversely affect the quality of cut. In this scenario, a very small amount of grass is cut from the grass blade frequently. This can cause the top of the grass blade to fray and it leaves the grass blade with a unhealthy cut edge. This will usually show up as a brown
In this situation the blade should be replaced. NEVER straighten a Bent Blade as this could weaken the blade and cause the blade to break.
Carefully examine cutting ends of blade, especially where the flat and sail parts of the blade meet. When mowing in dry or sandy areas, sand and abrasive material can wear away the metal that joins the sail and flat part of the blade. For safety, it is important that when any wear is noticed, the blade must be replaced. If the condition is not corrected and wear continues, a slot will form. Eventually a piece of the sail may break off and be thrown from under the housing, possibly resulting in serious injury to yourself or bystander.
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