# Poor Quality cut- What Should I check?



## Ed_GT5000 (Sep 30, 2003)

Cut the grass Yesterday and noticed on the left side (non discharge side) I was leaving a thin trail of grass that was not cut compleatly. It appears that the trail is happening between the center and left blade. 

The deck is fairly clean underneath although the top (vents) had a lot of grass on it. Also the blades have never been sharpened, But this tractor was new last fall. And I would guess that it has less than 15 cuts on it.

What could be the cause of this??


----------



## johnray13 (Oct 30, 2003)

I have a LT 1000 and recently have had the exact same problem. My blades are sharp. I am thinking it is becase the deck is out of level, but it can't be by that much. To be honest, I have no idea why it starting doing this. 
BTW, the LT1000 is a POS.


----------



## guest2 (Dec 27, 2003)

Maybe a blade is slightly bent? Or check the edge, maybe you hit something and it's a little shorter now? The easiest way would be to take the deck off and stand it up and turn the pulleys while looking at the area the blades cover. I don't think not being level would leave an uncut strip between blades. While it's off, check if anything worked it's way loose, pulleys, spindles, blades, etc.


----------



## jodyand (Sep 16, 2003)

Maybe one of the spindle is bent well not the spindle but the deck where the spindle bolts to might be bent. Did you hit anything:question: Are your blades tight:question:


----------



## tjw in kans (Oct 10, 2003)

ed gt5000, raise the front up high with a car jack or remove the deck, i mowed 1 time with tall lush grass, the unerside had so much clippings stuck to the deck i dug for 15 minutes with a putty knife to get it cleaned out, resulted in a bigger mess on the garage floor than i would have figured, took at least four good scoops with a snow shovel to clear before i could sweep. the left side and center blade has a shroud almost like a seperate deck between the blades, they must be kept clean for a good cut. after my major clog, the grass has dried out and i havent had much problems, but i still check the underside regularly, minor scraping and blowing out the underneath with 175* air pressure after each use until the grass is completely dry in the summer time. another thing i noticed, the blades roar like a jet when it is time for a good deck cleaning. i got my gt5k last year after all the rain and lush grass growth and never had the deck clog.


----------



## aegt5000 (Feb 22, 2004)

You might try switching the left and right blades, leave the
center blade where it is. See if the problem follows the blade
or stays on the same side. If it follows the blade, it’s the blade
if it stays on the same side it’s the spindle mount or the spindle


----------



## Ed_GT5000 (Sep 30, 2003)

Thanx to all, for the advice. After I posted, I went out and cleaned the vents on the deck, inspected the underside and it was not too bad, but I will check out that shroud that tjw in kans is talking about... I went ahead and pulled the blades. They were beat up, So I will take them to work tomorrow and sharpen them.I did not notice any thing bent when I stacked them together and put them in the truck. I will take a closer look at them when I sharpen them. 
I do push this machine when I use it. It is a manual 6speed and I cut in 5th gear through high grass.
I did not ever hit anything with it but will check that out too when I get the blades back on tomorrow.


PS: GO REDS!


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

How tall is the grass you are trying to cut?


----------



## Ed_GT5000 (Sep 30, 2003)

Hi Chief, I would say that The grass is about 6" tall and I cut it to 3" That is about one weeks growth in these parts at this time of year. I know I should cut more often in the spring, just into too many projects at this time.
BTW, I did find a stick hung up in that shroud and that may have been the problem.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I cut for myself and as a business. If you let the grass go too far, the mower will do as you describe. My Deere F525 and the 4410 72 inch MMM do it even when I had brand new blades on. 3 inches might be a bit much to cut and not leave a wind row effect. Most mowers are designed to nip off the top inch or two of grass and much more beyond that will cause a problem sometimes. If the grass is high like that, sometimes you just have to go back over it again or cut the top few inches off and then go back again and cut the rest. Make sure the deck in level and plumb. Try sharpening the blades or have new installed. I like the Gator blades the best. I use a file to sharpen my blades. That way I can just dress up the edge enough back to the original contour and not ruin the temper of the steel as does with a bench grinder. Make sure you balance the blades after you sharpen them. I have to sharpen my blades about 4 times a season. You should be fine with once or twice. Good luck! army


----------



## Neil_nassau (Feb 23, 2004)

Regular mowing at the right time is the key for healthy grass and and a nice looking lawn. Remember grass is a green,plant. Whether side discharge,recycling, or bagging........time to cut is when you'll be cutting no more than 1/3 of the desired height. i.e. if your mowing height is say 3"........mow it when its 4". Other wise (going from 6" to 3" for example...you're taking ALL the desired height ) you're taking off too much of the green growing part and stressing it. Really important on St Augustine grass. 

When you let grass get too tall, it gets "leggy". Then,when you mow it low all at once, you wind up with the brown part left behind open to bugs and disease.
Your lowest h.o.c. is generally in the spring and should be raised
in later months of growing season. Of course our season is much longer down here.
Again..........biggest factor is a good, regular mowing program ....AND good sharp blades !


----------



## tjw in kans (Oct 10, 2003)

ed gt500, make sure you poke something into the grass clippings under the deck, my clippings had a nice moulded appearance and almost looked like the bottom of the deck, after poking and digging it was 2 to 3 inches caked up. i have been checking everytime after mowing lush grass or wet grass. i never had this problem last summer do to lack of rain and the grass blades werent very wide. probably a good sharpening wont hurt either.


----------



## Ed_GT5000 (Sep 30, 2003)

Well I sharpened the blades and put them back on. took a couple of passes around and the cut is good. But the grass is not too high. At this time of year it grows an inch in 2 or 3 days.


----------



## leolav (Sep 16, 2003)

Mine does that if I let the grass grow too long. Most of the time, I just mow the areas again and it eliminates the rows. I also switched to gators a few years ago and the problem wasn't nearly as bad as it used to be.


----------



## Ed_GT5000 (Sep 30, 2003)

Yea those Gators... I know that Andy got a set of them and I was waiting for him to post a review..... before I change to a different type of blade I want to be convinced that they will be a improvment. Not saying that gators are bad, but I did try them on a 46" craftsman deck and they actually made the problem I was trying to correct (clumping & clogging) worst. So I need extra convincing before I make the leap. There again, I am not anti-gator just cautious. I know there are alot of folks who are staunch supporters of gator blades but I would want to see a marked improvment if I went to them.


----------

