Use a flap sanding disc. It has heavy duty sand paper flaps overlapping in a circular pattern. It will keep the steel cooler and it will hold the edge better. Once you overheat the steel it won't hold the edge.

Smart

Going to start doing just that. Thanks.

I disagree with removing from the back or end of the blade. What if you have a lawn tractor or ZRT with 2 or three blades? If you grind the 'end' then when you mow with that set of blades it will leave a 'tuff' of grass where the blades have become too short. I do not know exactly what you mean when you refer to 'back of the blade". Do you mean where it turns up or the back (underside) of the blade. You 'cutting edge' is the only place that material is suppose to be removed from. If you're tearing up blades that badly maybe you are cutting your grass too short. I see people all the time cutting so damn short the grass is only and inch or so left after mowing. Never cut grass less the 2 1/2 to 3 inches. I also do not mow weekly. I like mowing every 10 days. The grass is much more drought proof and the lawn is less like to allow the infiltration of weeds.

@@CuriousKL definitely agree with the sharpening statement!! Plus he’s removing material whether he likes it or not sharpening them. Unless he’s getting giant chunks knocked out of blade he shouldn’t have to remove much material to get them balanced anyways. As far as grass statement just depends on the type of grass, where I live a lot of people like Bermuda 🤢 and mow super low. Personally love a good fescue about 3.5” tall. Harder to grow where I live but it’s possible.

​@Keith Dunbar I don't think he is saying that he actually shortens the blade (at least not shortening the cutting edge, which would cause what you're saying). There are plenty of places other than the cutting surface where small amounts of material could be taken off with no impact on performance. It would not take much material at all to balance and it really seems like a good idea to focus on getting the cutting edge perfect and then leave that edge alone. You might have said this, in which case I'd agree that I don't think I'd touch the top of the raised parts of the backside either since that's more likely to impact the flow of grass inside the deck. Very slightly rounding part of the bottom edge of the end instead of taking more from the front... That just sounds like a good way to make the cutting edge last longer.

Have never sharpened mine in 3 years. Zero nicks and the cut quality is still flawless.

Mine gets sharpened every time i slip off the curb

Yeah you don't need it too sharp in my opinion .just good edge on it .

Nah you’ll be okay if all you do is mow your own backyard I’ve not sharpened mine for 19 years! My mower is 19 years old and still is holding up.

Just use file as grinder ruin's the balance

when they hear that metal grinding, they tremble in fear!

🤣🤘🏼

Mb cuz 76 6😚😚😚68 677 hiu gymtc

You wasted your time greasing the spindles. The grease nipple just allows you to fill the void between the top and bottom bearings which are both SEALED bearings. Don’t want to burst your bubble but you should know that your wasting time and material. Ask any mechanic that works on mowers and you’ll get your verification if you don’t believe me.

Yep

I just came to say this! They work much faster than standard grinding discs. And don’t leave heavy burrs.

What grit flap disk??

@@BMETFerg 80 I think either 60 or 80. Both will work.

@@BMETFerg 80

That's a good idea! I think I will try that next go round.

Cheap man's Dykem Blue. (almost as good)

Good tip.

Some people don't want to spend 200 bucks for a jig.....though not replacing blades and sharpening them will pay for itself over time

Once’s you get an American sharpener it’s all over. Great tool

Merica!!

get er' done!

Try mowing 1.5 acres with that 60 v mower.

Hanging blade off a nail?

Me too!!! It is such a big help.

👍👍👍

Same here too

I usually buy a three pack if it's available so I have four total, then sharpen them all each spring. I also have eight spools for my string trimmer which will last me through one year and into the next.

I just sharpen and re-install, kinda pointless to have more than 1 for home use.

Not suppose to cut the driveway, only the lawn. If you're hitting rocks in the lawn, my guess is you're cutting too short.

🤘👊

curious, how much of the fan blade lift wing are you taking off per balancing would you hazard guessing, and have you noticed a difference in the cut due to decreased lift force. aerodynamically that would be worse of unbalancing as having a heavy side as more fan blade will cause the bearings to wear unevenly top to bottom from one side to the other. also curious, using your method, do you notice any extension in the life of your blades before they wear down or reach the end of their lives?

@@aprilgeneric8027 The amount taken off the back is very small if you do a good job sharpening the cutting edges on the front. If you have to take more than a small notch off the back then you have royally screwed up sharpening the edge and should get new blades. With such a small amount taken off the back the effect on airflow is really non-existent and it moves air just as good as before. The less you grind off the front to sharpen the blades will make them last longer. And keeping them balanced is critical to keeping the bearings on the mower deck, or engine in the case of a single blade mower, from being worn out quickly. Another useful piece of information. If your mower deck has grease zerks on the shaft going through the deck do not bother greasing them. They use sealed bearings and the grease you put in there will never get into the bearings. If you do want to add grease to those bearings you will have to remove the shaft and bearing from the deck and physically remove the seal from the inside side of the bearing first. But you will have to be sparing on the grease you put in because you do not want to pop the seal on the outside side of the bearing off because that will allow dirt to get into the bearing. What I do is remove the shaft and bearing and get a needle zerk and lift the inner seal enough to get the needle under it and then pump some more grease into the bearing so it has more than the minimum grease they put in at the factory. I think that works perfectly fine and you do not risk blowing the seal off the bearing. I have had my mower for ten years now and have never had problems with the bearings. The last mower I had the engine wore out first and I mow several acres each time. We live on a farm and have a big yard and mow along the fence line in the pasture to keep the electric wire clear.

🔥🔥🔥

@j s The Hondas from those years seem pretty awesome too. Cast aluminum decks like Toro. My plastic deck '08 Honda HRX 217 can not touch my '91 Toro in terms of mulching ability.

I try to preserve as much of the cutting edge as possible when balancing, so I take the excess weight off the back edge and the end,a little at a time. I try to spread the removal out a little so to not just make a big gouge all in one spot. I use a cone type balancer to get a three dimensional balance , rather than a two dimensional balance using a nail in the wall. Good luck.

I'd rather have the blade as sharp as possible and just sharpen it more if I had to.