[Michigan Man]

Hi All,

I ordered Gator G5s for my 318 50" deck. I received the blades yesterday, and I had a question about sharpness. I expected more of a sharp blade edge, but it looked and felt rounded and dull. I see there is a clear-coat on the blades which may be contributing, but you can see that the metal itself has some thickness at the blade edge - it does not come to a sharp edge. I attached a picture with a penny against the blade edge to show thickness. If a penny is 1.5mm thick, then it looks like the blade edge is around 1mm thick at the cutting edge.

Question is: Is this normal? This is the first blade set I've ever bought, so I don't have a reference. I was expecting a sharp edge.

 

[bkotzman]

I had to sharpen mine due to poor cut right out of the box and after looking around it seems most people have to do the same.

 

[TUDOR]

Whipper snippers use line up to 0.110" in diameter and seem to cut grass just fine, and they don't turn anywhere near the 190 mph of a lawn mower blade's tip.

Sharpen and hone your blade to a razor's edge and cut your grass once. You'll find that you're right back to square one. A high lift blade lifts abrasive dirt as well as grass. The outer wings on my Gators get worn off after 2 seasons from the dirt sand blasting them.

Funny thing is, there is not a noticeable increase in vibration when only one of those wings is gone. So much for precisely balancing a mower blade. :dunno:

 

[bkotzman]

Whipper snippers use line up to 0.110" in diameter and seem to cut grass just fine, and they don't turn anywhere near the 190 mph of a lawn mower blade's tip.

Sharpen and hone your blade to a razor's edge and cut your grass once. You'll find that you're right back to square one. A high lift blade lifts abrasive dirt as well as grass. The outer wings on my Gators get worn off after 2 seasons from the dirt sand blasting them.

I agree but I was getting frayed brown tips on the cut blades of grass then after I sharpened the new blades nice clean cuts. Just my experience :dunno:

 

[Rydplrs]

Deere recommends taking the edge off before using. It improves blade life between sharpenings.

 

[Justy37]

I use G6, But over the years I have learned that. A mower blade sharpened like a axe will have a good and long lasting cut. Especially if you hit things like sticks. Razor sharp blades for me, are round and dull after one mowing. They aren't worth a hoot for a second mow. So a sharp blade is good, but not a really good sharp blade. You do not want a knife edge on it, unless you sharpen blades every 3 hours.

 

[Panthers65]

I use G6, But over the years I have learned that. A mower blade sharpened like a axe will have a good and long lasting cut. Especially if you hit things like sticks. Razor sharp blades for me, are round and dull after one mowing. They aren't worth a hoot for a second mow. So a sharp blade is good, but not a really good sharp blade. You do not want a knife edge on it, unless you sharpen blades every 3 hours.

I agree, there is a utility blade and a razor blade. Both can dull, but if the razor blades hit something, they will bend instead of slowly dulling, which will make a far worse cut. Blades should have a semi-sharp feel to them, similar to a standard table knife blade. It shouldn't feel like a filet knife, that's too sharp.

 

[Michigan Man]

Thanks for all the great replies! I actually emailed Oregon to ask the same question. They said their spec is a 0.030 flat edge for the reason many of you have pointed out - a knife edge does not hold up to grass cutting. (Apparently a .030" does.)

I searched and found some older forums noting the same thing - no knife edge on mower blades. So let it be written,so let it be done.

 

[Displaced Hokie]

JD's recommends a 1/64" blunt edge. Otherwise, a sharp edge rolls over and dulls quickly.

 

[farmer69]

I thought it says right in the manual not to put a sharp edge on your blades. I always sharpen with a angle grinder and then take a file and remove the sharp edge. I sharpen them once in the summer and once when I put it away for the winter.

 

[MowJoe]

I just ordered a yellow hornet blade sharpener today, I will let you guys know how it does.