Odd RM59 mower blade

[coachgeo]

. set out to sharpen my RM59 3pt mower blades. lawn cut was turning out uneven, particularly in the middle.
. bought a grinding wheel from my elec. cut off/grinder
. lifted 3pt mower
. propped it up proper for safety
. ran extension cord plugged in grinder and tested.
. climbed underneath
. removed some trash wrapped around things. nothing of any issue
. hmmm... blades seem pretty damn sharp and no chunks or gouges in blades
. Why's the back center blade different
. went back inside... didn't grab a beer though
. searched the net..... appears center blade is suppose to look same as the outside ones according to all the pics and part #'s found ... hmm
. my middle blade is straight blade others are not.
. put it all away and ordered a new blade to replace wrong one.

Fun fun.. soon I get to try to remove a blade on an old rusty 3pt. finish mower

 

[ShaunBlake]

Re: What did you do to or on your Kubota today?

. set out to sharpen my RM59 3pt mower blades. lawn cut was turning out uneven, particularly in the middle.
...
. put it all away and ordered a new blade to replace wrong one.

Fun fun.. soon I get to try to remove a blade on an old rusty 3pt. finish mower

Well, that begs the question: How was the cut the last time you mowed? (I guess somebody has pulled a very clever trick on you... I haven't been anywhere near Springboro since I worked in Columbus about fifteen years ago. )

 

[coachgeo]

Re: What did you do to or on your Kubota today?

Well, that begs the question: How was the cut the last time you mowed? (I guess somebody has pulled a very clever trick on you... I haven't been anywhere near Springboro since I worked in Columbus about fifteen years ago. )

Funny you ask. I bought it used and have only used it three times now.

Cut has not been great but the grass has been thick too. I read in discussions in here that the unit should be tilted forward more for best cut so did that to see if I got a better cut. Instead it really looked more uneven. Have re read the manual since. It suggest mower to be level; belly with a slight height difference in the rear being OK but not optimal. I plan to go back to level but figured a sharpening was in order too.. which is when I found the odd center blade.

The uneven cut....... Thinking back now the center is what cut funny with the tilt... and this is where the wrong blade is ... it is the furthest back so the tilt would have raised it up farther from the ground and caused the uneven cut. Or both issues combined caused it? or my eyes are of kilter orr?

When I was looking under there to prepare for sharpening, what struck me as odd was the flat blade sat; what appeared to be, level in height with the other blades which have a dished bend in the center. The Hub it attaches too protruded into the belly same as the others with the same dirt/rust/aging so it has not been replaced with something else. The belly is shaped flat so it does not sit lower in that area. It really struck me as odd how it sat level with out the dish. Tomorrow I will look to see if some washers or something was added to get the flat blade to sit as low as the dished OEM style ones. Nothing stood out like that when I was under there previously. I also will measure length; it looks shorter? Maybe it is another brand?

After looking at ones for sell and part #'s; each add called for ordering all the same blade for each of the three... thus I assumed I had one creative reworked blade and why the order for a single replacement for it.

Could the High, Low and Medium suction blades have different shape completely? Like one may have no dish in it and others more? Could it be the odd one on this mower is of a different suction design thus why it is flat?

 

[coachgeo]

. looked underneath and put 2x4 across blades..... so how in the hell does a flat piece of steel blade end up at what appears to be pretty much the same cutting edge height than the other two that are dished as in pic above. It's like against laws of physics. With 2x4 there across them it can't be my eyes playing tricks on me I don't think? Maybe it's so damn close I can't tell?

. after re leveling the mower to the ground went out and mowed. The center is still higher cut than the outside hmmm but.. hmmm.

. Don't want to assume last owner was stupid and put on wrong blade. Hell for I know there is a good chance they were smarter than me...

. Yep... that might be it. Think they are smarter than me. Looks like if one mowed every week resulting in no windrows this setup would potentially create that commercial cut look. UPDATE: Pic not my yard. Just a sample to show commercial cut.

. For me.... not sure I care to have such a cut... my reality is I let the grass get a bit thick before cutting so windrows negate any potential nice look if my present set up would create it. Sooowill install new blade when it arrives.

. If it were only my decision (pleasing neighbors, City Code etc ) me....... I'd rather cut once ever couple of months when it is knee height Plus. Harvest it, dry it, press it into Bio-Logs to burn in the wood stove in the winter.

back to questions in previous post though for curiosity sake.

 

[Diydave]

Might have been a spindle replacement from a newer or older woods mower...

 

[ShaunBlake]

... hmmm.

...

. Yep... that might be it. Think they are smarter than me. Looks like if one mowed every week resulting in no windrows this setup would create View attachment 18081 that commercial cut look.

...

Something's hinkey in Hiyo! One of the 'stripes' should be 1/2 the width of the other color. Two outside blades cut low, leaving a low-high-low pattern, turn around and mow the opposite way, should be two lows side-by-side, then a high, and low.

Although I expect the difference in height is very slight -- from the pic, it appears that one of the blades is pushing the grass over (or pulling it back?), so the reflection makes them appear different heights.

In any case, I agree, it looks cool!

 

[coachgeo]

..... -- from the pic, it appears that one of the blades is pushing the grass over (or pulling it back?), so the reflection makes them appear different heights.

In any case, I agree, it looks cool!

Pic is for reference only. NOT MY YARD. Windrows cover so much it looks like more windrows than yard.

 

[ShaunBlake]

Pic is for reference only. NOT MY YARD. Windrows cover so much it looks like more windrows than yard.

Oh. crum!

Well, thanks for the update -- now I can ratchet back my envy; my front yard is about as wide and round as a basketball, with bare sandy patches and I was soaking my shirt drooling over that pic!

You mentioned that the center blade is shorter -- that would make a difference as well. Also, if the blades don't all have the same lift, as you noodled about earlier, it would affect the cut. And if the blades were not designed for your deck, you might not be getting the right lift, which might degrade the finish.

 

[Tooljunkie]

I would do all three at once.

 

[coachgeo]

I would do all three at once.

Thought about that but decided since the other two looked great and didn't even need sharpening figured I'd but just one now and later when they are all more worn I'll get 3 new Mulching Gator Blades or High lift blades