Sharpen Brush Hog

[Offy]

Wow , wearing out a pair of bush hog blades in a season is unbelievable to me. My King Kutter is at least 20 years old and I have abused the dickens out of it clearing and maintaining land here in the land of sand and sun. I can wear out a set of blades on a belly mower in a season but them blunt 1/2" x 4" blades on mine are still usable while the rest of it nearly isn't.

 

[John_Mc]

Wow , wearing out a pair of bush hog blades in a season is unbelievable to me. My King Kutter is at least 20 years old and I have abused the dickens out of it clearing and maintaining land here in the land of sand and sun. I can wear out a set of blades on a belly mower in a season but them blunt 1/2" x 4" blades on mine are still usable while the rest of it nearly isn't.

The sand would dull them, but as you noted, that's not really much of an issue with a brush mower. Up here in the land of rocks, hitting rocks and stumps is what does them in for me. The repeated hammering tends to bend the blades upward. Enough of that, and the next time you hit a stump or rock, the blade bounces up against the underside of your deck (don't ask how I know that). I did have one develop a crack about 1/4 of the way aross its width a couple of inches out from the bolt hole... glad I noticed that before it let go and I sent a chunk flying.

I went through one set of blades in a year when mowing some new trails in my woods. Generally I can get two years out of them before they're too bent to use. I've still got most of my old ones... I keep hoping I'll figure out how to bend them back. A hammer and a vise does nothing to them. Blocking them up and driving over them with my tractor's loaded rear tires does nothing. I don't have a hydraulic press, maybe one of these days I'll take them to a shop somewhere and have them try in their press. Heating them is out of the question, since enough heat to make a difference in bending would destroy the temper of the blades.

John Mc

 

[Offy]

That sounds like you should be getting hazardous duty pay. I've been pummeled many times with debris while bush hoggin' but taking shots of rock and stone is more than I want to experience. Another reason for me to like Florida and to stay put!

 

[Soundguy]

Front guards on mowers help deflect the front chucked items..

Soundguy

 

[John_Mc]

So far, the only pummeling I've taken is from the tree branches I'm trying to drive under. The bits of red cedar that always seem to drop off and fall down the back of my shirt are no fun either. The chain guards I added to the brush mower (after discovering the cracked blade) seem to do a good job of containing things.

Still, I don't think I could take Florida year round. I'd really miss the new crop of rocks we grow each year, the ice storms, the snow storms, the... hey, wait a minute...

John Mc