(ET) Grass Cutting Season

["Eric and Tracie Miller" <ewmiller erols com>]

I wanted to share this with the list as well as Dennis,
>   I experimented with a set of the "Gator" blades on my New Ideal  
> EGT120,
> same as the GE E12m. The blades are 3/16" thick, much thicker and heavier
> than the stock GE blades. I had an amp meter mounted to the dash to
monitor
> only the amps that the mower deck pulls. The Gator blade wings are about 
> 2
> 1/2" in length, curl up about an 1/2" in height and are serrated so they
not
> only lift but also recut grass clippings. This blade originally fits a 
> 42"
> Dixie Chopper I believe.
>   The positive side to using these blades is they lift up each and every
> blade of grass and then cuts it off clean. This is really important on 
> the
> belly mounted mower tractors were the front wheels flatten down the grass
> before it gets cut. With these blades they just suck the bent over grass
> right back up and then cut them off. There was no streaks in the yard
where
> the grass was mashed down and was cut while in this bent over position. I
> must say my yard never looked this good with the stock blades!
>   Now the down side to these blades. They pulled almost 50 amps just
sitting
> still, not  mowing. When mowing they pulled 60 amps. I kept a eye on the
amp
> meter and would back off the throttle to keep the amps at least under 60.
It
> seems with the extra weight of the blades they had enough momentum to cut
> right through and only pull 10 additional amps while mowing at a
reasonable
> rate. Another noticeable thing is any time you increase lifting ability 
> of
> the blades them become louder like a giant vacuum cleaner! Also to allow
> clearance for the taller wing height you need to trim down the blade
guards
> under the deck so the blades can pass under them. With the increased 
> blade
> lift they  will "shoot" the grass clippings out the back out the deck no
> problem! So if you aim it right, you can blow all your grass clippings
into
> your neighbor"s yard and have that perfect lawn.
>    I would only recommend using this blades during the cool fall months 
> to
> mulch leaves. With the cooler fall temperatures the mower motors will run
> longer before over heating due to the higher amp pull. I actually would
mow
> my front yard and stop. Then get out the cordless pushmower and trim
up.When
> done trimming I went back and mowed the back yard. Using this method
allowed
> the tractor's mower motors to cool down between mowing the front yard and
> the back yard. I don't recommend trying to mow with these blades during
the
> hot summer month because the mower motors will heat up too fast and shut
> off.
>    I also tried a set of blades that were not as thick as the "Gator"
blades
> and did not mulch. These blades originally fit an older Snapper lawn
tractor
> that had a 42" deck also. The center mounting bolt hole in these blades
was
> too large at 5/8".  I stacked two  1/4" flat washers in the 5/8" center
hole
> and drilled them out to 5/16" so my bolt would fit through them.
>   These blades behaved the same as the Gator blades, except that them
don't
> mulch. They pulled about the same amps. The wings on these blades was 3"
in
> length, curl up about 1/2" and had provided plenty of lift. They were 
> loud
> but  did a nice job. Spring and fall is the only time I can get away with
> using either type of these blades.
>   For the hot and drier summer months when the grass is thinner, I would
use
> the stock GE blades either the 15 degree or the 30 degree lift blades. Mr
> Gunn sells both of them still. I guess I should point out that pulling
> higher amps will also shorten your mowing time.
>    Have Fun,
>    Eric Miller
>
>
>
> > Since grass cutting season is about to begin here in the Midwest, I
would
> > like to resurrect some old discussion.
> >
> > Does anyone have any up to date info. or experimented with different
style
> > blades on the mower deck ?
> > Specifically mulching type blades, or any others ? ? ?
> >
> > My grass is really starting to green up !
> > Dennis