Mower Blades (sharpen or not sharpen)

[pfrederi 17,147]

Lift area in circle

[Busman 14]

I was out mowing the lawn this evening and notice an odd sound coming out of the mower deck. I stopped and shut off the tractor and upon inspection found that the center blade of my 42 inch deck is spring freely of the other blades. I noticed in this thread it was mentioned that the blade itself can wear out. The nut that holds the blade in place is frozen solid so I doubt it has backed up at all, am I looking at a blade replacement to fix this or do you think there's something else behind the issue. 

[cleat 4,984]

The blade nuts need to be able to freely turn so that the blade spinning actually tightens them.

 

Get that nut off (you will need a 1-1/8" open end wrench on the spindle under the blade (may need to grind it thin enough to fit) and ideally an impact with a 6 point 1-1/8" socket.

 

Clean up the threads real well on both the nut and spindle until the nut easily spins on by hand.

 

Put never seize on the threads.

 

Install a thin washer on the spindle first then the blade then a thick washer followed by the nut.

 

Tighten securely and at this point the nut will actually tighten on the blade with use.

 

I would recommend doing this on all the blades.

 

While they are off you can check them and sharpen / balance as required.

[Busman 14]

Thanks for the reply.  I am going to pick up the right sized wrench and sockets tonight to break it free, I have been soaking it with penetrating oil and tapping on the nut with a hammer.  I am concerned, however, that the nut itself on the center blade is tight and doesn't want to tighten or loosen, however, the blade is spinning free of the others.  I was hoping to hold off on replacing the blades until the end of the season as I am mowing a new yard and still discovering a lot of obstacles like roots.  Could this have been what loosened the blade to begin with?

[cleat 4,984]

One more thing. Is the blade spinning while the nut stays still ?

If so then the nut is actually loose on the blade but the threads are locked up so you need to do as my previous post.

 

However, if the spindle itself is spinning free then the problem is in the belt drive area.

 

[porschpow 7]

A wealth of great information! I will inspect the lift area!

[porschpow 7]

So after taking a look at the blades, I realized a few things:

1) The center blade nut can only break loose, the other ones won't ( I sprayed it with PB blaster and will let it sit overnight, if it won't break, ill use heat!)

2) The blades are a little chipped and def need sharpening (will send pics)

3) The underside of the deck is in great shape

[Red520 9]

Can anyone tell me what the length of the belt is on a 1995 520H 48" mower deck. I cannot read the model number of the deck on my mower because it is torn off. 

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 10,496]

4 hours ago, Red520 said:

Can anyone tell me what the length of the belt is on a 1995 520H 48" mower deck. I cannot read the model number of the deck on my mower because it is torn off. 

Not necessarily the exact deck you have but the belts will be the same. They are listed on the first page that comes up.

Garry

[Red520 9]

Thank you sir I appreciate the manual. that is exactly what I needed. 

[porschpow 7]

I have pictures just don't know

[porschpow 7]

I can't upload pictures, it's weird  is there a better way to upload it.  I would like to show the blades before and after I sharpened them.

I have a few nicks in my blade, how big a nick does it have to get to in order for the blade to be bad?

[porschpow 7]

[EricF 589]

Some of those blades' cutting edges are looking kind of far gone. Either worn back fairly far and/or rounded way back on some of the ends, or nicked pretty deeply into the cutting edge. You'll have to remove a lot of material to get them cleaned up and balanced. For myself, I'd consider replacing them if they're all like that. I prefer mine to have a nice, straight profile along the edge without the end rounded off or too deep of a cut back into the thick part of the blade. Little nicks in the edge don't matter, but if they're halfway up into the sharpened edge, you'll get more defects in the cut. Same with rounded-off ends; the rounded part won't cut as effectively. As the sharpened edge gets cut back into the blade, it gets a little weaker and harder to balance.

 

If you have a problem lawn (sandy, or lots of rocks) I can understand using the blades as for long as you can. But still keep them balanced even if you can't get a great cut -- balancing them is important for keeping your spindle bearings in good condition.

[1940willys 96]

So being a newbie,  where is the best deal for buying blades? Is there a look up and a link on here for deck size and proper blades? I'm located in western N.Y.

[porschpow 7]

Yeah I know they are on the way out.  

 

What ibwas going to do is sharpen them up as best as I can and buy a new set asap. I figure I have a use or two left in them after I sharpen them.  I think amazon has some toro blades I think mine are 16 inch for 40 bucks 

[porschpow 7]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008TSV9T6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2XKRTE7GPAKJH

 

I found these blades

[porschpow 7]

The cutting deck is a model number 78360 fro my 520H. I am sorry I didn't include it earlier