Custom Lawn Mower Blades?

strategy9

strategy9

Joined
Apr 27, 2015
Messages
4,151
So.....

The wifee and I are considering buying a new riding mower next year.

We currently have 3, a pair of old Bolens; one doesn't have a cutting deck but rather has all the forward attachments for a snow blower and plow, the other cuts great, but is a jerky and uncomfortable ride.
The 3rd is a newer (but still "old") hydrostatic MTD with a 46" two blade deck... it rides like a champ, but the blades are funked up and cuts like crap
(Blades have been resharpened again and again to the point that now they leave an uncut trail between them).

Which brings me to this post, we've talked about selling the MTD this fall and getting a brand new riding mower to replace it, but I'm curious, would it be worth getting new Custom lawnmower blades, and extend the life of the MTD rather then buying a new mower?
And if so, what steel should I look for; 3v, s1, other? (I want to take chunks out of roots, rather then roots taking chunks out of my old blades)

I'm thinking if I can get new (sick) blades for my MTD, cheaper then an all new mower, it will still ride like a champ, but will also cut like a champ too, and much better/longer then standard lawnmower replacement blades.

In essence, extending the overall life of the MTD, still having the old Bolens as a backup, for when we tackle the yard in tandem, and then down the road we can sell the pair of Bolens with all the attachments, for more $ then we would get for just the single MTD, and look to buy a new mower with all the additional attachments, and a larger deck, and still have the larger deck MTD as a backup?

What are your thoughts?
 
Personally, I'd hate to spend the money on a custom lawnmower blade only to have the mower catch a rock and chip the blade. It wouldn't matter how good the steel is, rocks will happen:D

And who the heck is making custom mower blades?:confused:
 
I think mower blades are ran soft for safety. It is much better for the blade to bend than break. I don't think that a high end steel ran that soft is going to give you the benefits of said steel.
 
That's why I asked, and technically, I would think many smiths "would" forge a lawnmower blade for the right price, no?
Set a date now, Wait til fall when the mowing is done (plus I have a backup just in case), and send in the old ones as templates for proper dimensions. Have a few months, no rush to the work, before mowing season is back in action. (Not to mention no handles, no fancy inlays, no rivets or multiple holes to drill).

Sure rocks are always an issue, but so are nails and staples and what have you when your using your rockstead on a construction site The Aflac Duck The Aflac Duck

I'm just thinking, even though (maybe) a bit overkill, how awesome if at all practical would it be, to mow my grass at least once a week for 5 mos. every year, with custom 3V lawnmower blades?
 
A lawnmower cuts on speed, not sharpness. None are sharp when compared to a knife. Also, how will high end steel extend the life of a lawnmower? That's not a factor in the life of a mower. Something else goes bad, the mower is shot. If all it took was new blades, then why did I just buy a new mower, when the engine gave out on my old one?
 
Fwiw, I know my yard pretty well, bumps, stumps, and roots, and don't go plowing into many rough spots as it is, (plus all the worst spots are already decorated with a flat spot scar where I nailed 'am the 1st summer in the house), so occassional rocks and the occasional stick that I may have missed or just fell, woukd be the only real concerns at all...
 
jill jackson said:
A lawnmower cuts on speed, not sharpness. None are sharp when compared to a knife. Also, how will high end steel extend the life of a lawnmower? That's not a factor in the life of a mower. Something else goes bad, the mower is shot. If all it took was new blades, then why did I just buy a new mower, when the engine gave out on my old one?
Click to expand...

Right. They're chisel ground, but that's not to say they can't be pretty darn sharp. Lord knows whenever I do resharpen a lawnmower blade, they cut GREAT for a good while. Under regular "hard use".
 
An MTD in my experience of mowing 6 acres for years, is not worth the trouble because it's a low end mower in the first place. The manufacturer useful life is stated at 270 hours. Not to say they can't last more, but that's what they give for expected life. I had one burn the valves out at 155 and it was taken care of better than average. There's many things that will wear out , that are much more expensive, other than blades which are an easy cheap replacement.
 
Mower blades are also designed with aerodynamic qualities and down or up draft depending on blade type, balance included. That would be difficult to balance and duplicate
 
All good points.

At 270 hours, I estimate I run the MTD about 80-90 hrs a year from April through Sept. Keeping up with my yard, that's about 3 years, and she's on her 3rd year for me, (and was well used when I got her), and my Bolens pair are an '87 st120 (mowing deck) and a '90 st140 (front end attachments).

I admittedly don't know a thing about lawn tractors brand by brand: I know basic small engine maintenance and repair, and I know the blades come off and are rather easy to touch up, and I know they cut my grass.

But that's why I asked, thanks as you have all successfully talked me out of the idea. I guess a new riding mower it is for '18, I'll just get some cheap replacement blades to get through this year.

(The Bolens do have that older retro appeal so, I guess it's kinda cool keeping them around.)
 
I had a friend who asked if I could sharpen his mower blade once as it seen a season of work in some rugged and bare mountains and was truly whooped out. I went a little overboard and actually got it to shave by the time I was done with it, all with the same factory angles just tuned up and taken to apex. He says it has never ran that good in its life and is still kicking after a season. Says it just blasts through tall grass and weeds now with ease/minimal engine bog. Might just want to sharpen the stock one and let'er rip!
 
jill jackson said:
Just run it until it quits and costs more than it's worth to fix. There's no sense buying a new one until you absolutely have to.
Click to expand...
True... new replacement blades will run me under $100, (cpuld stand to use new tires too), if she holds up and cuts dreamy, if it ain't broke don't fix it right?
 
LCKT707 said:
I had a friend who asked if I could sharpen his mower blade once as it seen a season of work in some rugged and bare mountains and was truly whooped out. I went a little overboard and actually got it to shave by the time I was done with it, all with the same factory angles just tuned up and taken to apex. He says it has never ran that good in its life and is still kicking after a season. Says it just blasts through tall grass and weeds now with ease/minimal engine bog. Might just want to sharpen the stock one and let'er rip!
Click to expand...

Unfortunately the blades are in need of replacing.
The mower was a gift from my father in law, who acquired it from his neighbor when they upgraded. It's a '96 with original blades (new spindles when i first got it), who've seen the grinding wheel 1 too many times over the past 21 years.
 
I actually didn't know what year it was, I just looked up the model # in light of this thread.
I do know I am the 2nd owner though, and who/where it came from.
 
Mower blades are ran soft so if you blast a stump, concrete, too big of a stone, et al, you will bend the blade and not toast the motor, shaft, or other integral motor parts. As soon as you get a tougher blade steel so it that will take a shot and not deform out of the way of said object, the shock will be sent back up the drive train.
If it doesn't break the shaft that the blade is mounted to or the bolt that mounts it, you will likely toss the timing off or blow the crank or risk the valves and potentially the piston shafts and seals...

That isn't a way to treat a gift. Get it running best it can, toss in some NOS Blades if possible, if not find what fits it and buy them.
 
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strategy9 said:
That's why I asked, and technically, I would think many smiths "would" forge a lawnmower blade for the right price, no?
Set a date now, Wait til fall when the mowing is done (plus I have a backup just in case), and send in the old ones as templates for proper dimensions. Have a few months, no rush to the work, before mowing season is back in action. (Not to mention no handles, no fancy inlays, no rivets or multiple holes to drill).

Sure rocks are always an issue, but so are nails and staples and what have you when your using your rockstead on a construction site The Aflac Duck The Aflac Duck

I'm just thinking, even though (maybe) a bit overkill, how awesome if at all practical would it be, to mow my grass at least once a week for 5 mos. every year, with custom 3V lawnmower blades?
Click to expand...
You might want to go with a nice Damascus steel but you will have to factor in the price of a clear plexiglass cover so you can see the cool blade. ;)
 
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