Pulling the spark plug, are you kidding me?! Accidental starting! It never starts for me anyways! 😂😂😂

Not only do I know how to sharpen my lawnmower blade, I have a weird desire to watch Good Will Hunting.

Another helpful tip ... I keep 3 blades for my mower and sharpen them all at one time over winter. Then, as the growing season progresses, I just swap out the blade with one that's already sharpened and save the re-sharpening for the off season.

bro, that blade is wicked shaaaahp.

Thank you, i've been sharpening my blades for 48 years and i learned a couple things from your video.Learning is forever,never too old to learn.Thank you very much!

Lightweight is good and what did I use it for it’s a lawnmower kzfaq.infoUgkxTPN04aT-Qdjr_KS3ql7ng8wnU3wwsCqk also recommend Yes it is lightweight so hence not as robust as our old one. But if you take care it does the job really well.

First one showed missing parts. Second one was complete. It's a working bench grinder kzfaq.infoUgkxxC8HPnl24fu0XhMU_nbmWNEUoK1RMHXk . One thing I like alot is that it's surprisingly quiet. I don't feel like I'm sacrificing any rpms or power for the quietness either. All in all it's a very nice machine. No vibration whatsoever.

Installed these on a riding mower kzfaq.infoUgkxetgfkJxfdT_B2vGYP-uNTLaBbim9OKTD . They were sharp out of the box, although I've never liked blade edges that were coated...not quite as sharp as I personally want. Using my belt sander, I removed the coating from the cutting edges and refined the edge enough to shave with them. So far, after three runs, these blades are holding up as expected. Even after hitting a few fallen 1/2 inch or so branches, the edges are still sharp as heck. No edge dings, no warping, etc. As far as installing them, the cutouts were of the proper size and shape to fit my aging Craftsman mower. Very satisfied.

I prefer shoppening my blades with a bench grindah.

Tip mower on its side with carburetor and air filter up AFTER first slowly pulling the starter rope to find the piston's compression position (i.e. where it becomes much harder to pull). This greatly minimizes oil leaks and subsequent hard starting while providing total access to the underside.

Amazing video. Underrated.

SHAWOUPEN the blade 😅...this guy is great....very helpful video. Ok thank you

Never knew about the drill attachment or leveling. Learned something new today.

This was the perfect video for me. I was worried I would have to go out and find a bench grinder and either borrow it from my friend or rent something from a local shop. Turns out I can either use the file I already have or buy a simple piece of kit for $12. Perfect! Edit: bought a kit and it seems to have worked! Blade is definitely sharper

Thanks for this video! No oil or gas spilled by tipping my mower 90° vertically as you showed. Blade is like new!

good tip on the nail balancer trick!

'If you hit a rock, you gotta sharpen it right away.' Where I live, that means every two seconds...

Love it..I've had a mower for 5 yrs and never sharpened. I know what I'm doing this weekend!

Nobody has better how-to videos than This Old House.

Thanks for the blade sharpening tip .

A couple of tips... 1. When starting your bench grinder, do not stand in front of the grinding wheel, stand to the side. If your grinding wheel is cracked for some reason (someone's been abusing your bench grinder), the wheel will often fail (fly apart) at startup. If you stand to the side, you're less likely to be hit by flying chunks of grinding wheel. 2. It is very important not to overheat the lawnmower blade while sharpening. Overheating will cause the steel to soften, and your blade will not retain a sharp edge for very long. I always have a bucket of water I use to cool (quench) the blade so it doesn't overheat. 3. If you are going to the trouble to balance your blade, take a wire brush and clean off all the old grass stuck to it first. The nail method doesn't really work, as the nail might not be at the exact top of the bolt-hole. 4. Do not remove material from the bottom side of the blade. Always grind from the top, then deburr with a file. 5. Maintain the existing cutting angle, don't just touch-up the front edge and make a steeper cutting angle at the front of the blade. This will require you to remove quite a bit of material behind the front edge (sorry filers). 6. If you can "see" the front edge, or nicks in the front edge, your blade isn't sharp. On really chewed up blades, it might be easier to just grind the front edge down until you get to the bottom of all the nicks, then reform the proper cutting angle at the edge. This will require several minutes on a bench grinder. Several hours with a file.

Take the spark plug wire off so there's no way the mower can spontaneously start. Something that has never happened in the history of pull-start lawnmowers

I saw this on tv a few years back. I always remembered the nail in the post trick. I plan on doing this in the morning. Thanks This Old House!

Roger is awesome. I always enjoy learning from him all the things he knows.

This was super helpful, thanks TOH! I've been mowing lawns since I was 10 or 12 (I'm 37 now) and don't think I've ever sharpened a mower blade! 😂

Thanks for the tutorial on shyahpening! That's a really cool looking little shop. I didn't use gloves and cut my hand on the blade on a downstroke using a metal file. I knew at that point that I was making progress. I want to cut my grass, not mince it and fling it into the shroud.

John has been a great mower

Thanks guys! Very helpful.

Wouldnt have even thought about the balancing lol. Thank you again

LOL! "Easy access to the two nuts that are holding it up." My first thought was that he was talking about the two guys holding it up. I couldn't help but laugh.

LOVED! Not drawn out and also love the tricks. Excellent. I’m doing this tomorrow.

Brilliantly put. Which way to tip the mower is very important . Balancing with a nail another great idea. Several options of sharpening just nailed it all . Thanks

How cool is Roger Cook?!? I draw more solid info from this guy than any other source that comes to mind.

I've been learning from these guys since ?the '80s. Well, a very long time. I watch their tv shows, receive their magazine, and find their online info. They do things right, so short cuts, no skimping, with integrity. I really appreciate these guys. I am sad that they are leaving 1 at a time due to old age. Guess I'm old too.😉

I've been watching you guys since I was a kid, I never looked at from this point of view. Learn something new every day.

Excellent simple advice covering all the options!

Gloves and grinders are a no no. Had a co-worker lose 2 fingers when glove got gobbled in.

At 2:02 he says "deez nuts"

I've sharpened blades before but never thought about balance until this video!

I like how when Roger put on the safety glasses he brought the lawnmower blade right by his eye 😂

I like the old "John" mower.

"Well my grass hasn't said anything yet." LOL

Shoppin your blades!

I like that Shapaning tool

I love the accent. Gotta keep ya blades SHOP!

Sharpen 2-3 times per season 😂 I’ve owned 10 lawnmowers and never sharpened one of them, and my lawn is a beautiful light shade of brown

Perfectly balanced lawn mower blades, as all things should be.

This video gets me excited about doing handywork !

I love how they uploaded this near the end of the mowing season

Sweet. Now I know how to Shahpen my blade. Thanks TOH.

Really well done. If this wasn't produced/directed by a pro, I'm amazed.

Excellent job 👍🏿 guys. Short and detailed.

I've had my mower 5 years now and never looked under it.

NEVER WAIT FOR YOUR GRASS TO TALK TO YOU.

Roger is a national treasure

There isn't anything new tome in this video, but it covers all of the necessary info quickly and concisely. Nice job!

I wonder if this guy mows Hawvard Yawd.

The metal file is the way to go. It's old school and less expensive.

Thanks guys. I learned something new and got the job completed in 5 min

Thank you for the tip on which direction to tip the lawnmower I had no idea.

is anyone else reading the comments with his accent ?

Use a 6-point socket (not a 12-point) to remove the blade. No chance of rounding the nut.

You sharpen an already sharp blade like a champ

Just came across this, funny dad had us boys do the lawn work and we cut grass for money around the hood and we never sharpend the blade . LAWNS ALWAYS looked great 👍

This video shows how important it is to have a really shahup blade.

that is 1 gnarly looking old mower. Looks like what the creeper from jeepers creepers would use to mow

Thank you. I gained alot. I will definitely put it into practice.

As I’m watching this video I realize I’m officially getting older lol.

I have a small riding tractor, I haven't serviced it in 10+ years. These guys are sharpening blades twice a season.

Very useful, good tip about making sure the blade is balanced. The only thing I wish they covered was, how many times can you sharpen the blade before you have taking off so much metal that you really need to replace it? What if you've sharpened it a hundred times and it's only 3/4 as wide as it originally was?

Mark Wahlberg's uncle is packing some serious heat in those jeans.

Some serious boston accents! SHAAAAPEN YA LAAAAAAN MOOOOWAAA BLADE!!!

2:01 DEEEEZ NUTTSSS

He said these nuts 2:00

Great vid, very quick and informative

That is so cool the nail in the wall to balance the Blade Thanks very much Lawnmower shaking like hell

I’m going to need a translator for that video. I don’t think I hear a single “R” the whole time. And they say we talk funny in the South.

Spahk plug?

Immensely helpful video. Many thanks!

Thank you Roger

Adding to their list of tools to sharpen the blade with: A dremel tool with a grinding drum.

To "tighten the blade properly", the OEM's torque specification is required, which can be found inside the owners manual or by contacting the manufacturer. After setting the torque wrench to the specified foot pound (ft-lb) setting and using the tool to torque the blade bolt(s), don't forget to zero-it-out the torque wrench before stowing the tool so it will remain accurate for future uses.

Good video here, thanks for the tips. I like anything that teaches me something that I didn't already know.

Hmmm,wow never thought about the balance,thanks for the info!

If you have a grinder with a normal belt you should use that instead of a bench grinder. The bench grinder gives it a hollow grind, which still works but is making the edge less supported. Sharpening it with a flat platen on a belt sander will give it a flat grind, which makes the edge more supported. You’ll probably notice the difference if you hit a rock and see the hollow grind take more damage than the flat grind

First we remove the spock plug.

Thank you for the hints, I learned a lot.

Very useful information. Thank you.

Also, use a breaker bar for the initial loosening(and final tightening) of a nut/bolt. It's what it's meant for. You loosen it, and switch back to the ratchet. You won't break your ratchet( mechanism) that way. Plus you've got both more power, and control with breaking it loose( which is why it's called a breaker bar).

Having a battery-operated mower means that I no longer have to worry about the spark plug. Or tipping the mower a special way. Or spilling oil or gas everywhere. I just sharpen the blade and clean it all up and I'm good.

I definitely need to sharpen my blade, this will sure help.

Very well explained Video thank you for sharing

Whats a "spahk plug"? Are those like spark plugs?

What happens to the hammer hanging on the beam behind him???? 3:56 top right corner

I liked the video. Can't believe how many videos are on KZfaq about this. I've been using a file, balance it on a nail method. It works well. Doesn't add to the electric bill, no power tools needed.

Thanks for the video. I plan on doing the same for my lawn mower.

I like to use an impact driver, it doesn't try to turn the blade much at all.

I only use a "Flap Sander", Less heat to the blade which preserves the temper and you don't take more off the blade then necessary. Good video though.

This is one wicked smaaat house

Perfect video! Thank u!