Re: (ET) Large Frame Mower Deck

[Andrew Poush <agp vt edu>]

I am just about convinced to remove the baffles.  I had two motors cut 
out on me yesterday (which has never happened before).  I believe that 
it was because I was cutting 10" grass and I have to reverse back over 
the cut again to finish the job.  One of the overloaded motors reset 
and works fine now.  The other has a melted wire next to the circuit 
breaker.  I'm replacing the breaker and the wire.  But without the 
baffles, this would never have happened.

Another disadvantage of all this reverse mowing is that it can't be 
done after dusk, since the lights shine forward.

The blade arcs do overlap when the mower travels straight forward or 
reverse.  But I can see how during turning the arcs might not overlap 
anymore between the two motors on the inside of the turn.  Randy 
mentioned that each blade should cut at a 90 degree angle to the arc.  
Mine definitely are slanted at the ends in a way that would push the 
grass off the end of the blade.  I already had the blades sharpened 
once this year.

The blades have tips that run closer to the ground than the shaft.
Side view:
__/-----------------------\__
tip           shaft            tip

In the bottom view, the width of the blades at the ends is between 1/4 
to 1/2 less than the shafts.  Do these blades have the potential to 
last for a few more years if I have them sharpened again to the 90 
degree angle?  Does it matter if only the tips are sharpened or also 
the part of the shaft that bends down just before the tip?  At what 
point would these blades be considered worn out?  I'm guessing mine are 
pretty close (if not already there).

Thanks again.  You guys have been a great help so far.

Sincerely,
Andy
Roanoke VA