Rotary Cutter LandPride Rotary Cutter Manual Misprint

[ShenandoahJoe]

Time to take the blades off my LandPride RCR-1548 for sharpening. The manual, though, seems to have a misprint: Steps 3,4, and 5 are identical, and they refer to a figure with completely different labeling.

I'm hoping someone has an older edition than mine and can tell me what it's supposed to say. (Mine's just like the version online.) Or if you can assure me that there's no safety-critical information in the missing steps, that would be just as good.

TIA.

 

[RoyJackson]

I suggest you contact Land Pride. I'm sure they'd appreciate the "proofread" since an incorrect disassembly/reassembly could cause damage or injury.
At the minimum, they could pull that manual offline until it's corrected.

I have a Land Pride cutter. I'll dig out the manual this afternoon and see what it says. I have a scanner so, hopefully I can post the correct disassembly procedure.

BTW, I don't pull those blades for sharpening. I just dress the edges (about a 1/16th-3/32nd bevel) with a grinder while the cutter is propped against a tree.

 

[TripleR]

I suggest you contact Land Pride. I'm sure they'd appreciate the "proofread" since an incorrect disassembly/reassembly could cause damage or injury.
At the minimum, they could pull that manual offline until it's corrected.

I have a Land Pride cutter. I'll dig out the manual this afternoon and see what it says. I have a scanner so, hopefully I can post the correct disassembly procedure.

BTW, I don't pull those blades for sharpening. I just dress the edges (about a 1/16th-3/32nd bevel) with a grinder while the cutter is propped against a tree.

Yep, me too, much easier.

 

[ShenandoahJoe]

I sent them an e-mail a few days ago. Maybe they'll answer when they get back from the beach.

 

[LoneCowboy]

You find the access hole in the top
you put a big impact wrench on the really big socket
and you run it out
then you whack the bolt with mallet/hammer/wood to knock it out of the hole.

All the same (except Woods)

You should NEVER need to sharpen rotary cutter blades. rotary cutters don't cut, they shred. If you want a nice clean lawn like cut, get a finish mower, that's not what rotary cutters do. All the cutting happens at the very end of the tip. When that tip gets worn back an inch or so at a 45 degree angle, it stops cutting real well and you replace the blade.

Happens every month or so for me, won't probably ever happen for a homeowner.

Keep the mower well greased and take the slip clutch apart every spring, that's about all you need to do on a rotary cutter.

 

[ShenandoahJoe]

Perhaps "sharpen" isn't the right word. "Restore the original bevel" would be more precise. These are the blades I learned on, and they look like Godzilla's baby was teething on them. They definitely need some kind of maintenance.

Last night, I got an e-mail from LP. They've re-written the page, re-drawn the figure, and put a new version of the manual on line. I call that good service-after-sale. :thumbsup:

 

[LoneCowboy]

Perhaps "sharpen" isn't the right word. "Restore the original bevel" would be more precise. These are the blades I learned on, and they look like Godzilla's baby was teething on them. They definitely need some kind of maintenance.
:

They all look like that.
The only real cutting point is out at the very edge, it's not cutting, it's literally beating the grass edge into submission. (big thick steel hitting it at a great rate of speed, about 15,000fpm, about 180mph).
The edge of the blade isn't a lawnmower blade.

They wear out, they don't get dull.

 

[TripleR]

I guess mine must be really unusual then because I get a better looking finished product when I "sharpen/return to original profile", but I've only got five cutters and only been doing this fifty years, so I still have a lot to learn.

 

[BlacknTan]

IMHO, these blade do need to be maintained.
It's true that they're not dead sharp like a mower blade, but the profile needs to be touched up from time to time. I believe that the blades call for a 1/16 flat land in the edge.
They operate in a tough environment, so dead sharp is not needed or desirable, but IMO, everything operates better with maintenance..

 

[TripleR]

IMHO, these blade do need to be maintained.
It's true that they're not dead sharp like a mower blade, but the profile needs to be touched up from time to time. I believe that the blades call for a 1/16 flat land in the edge.
They operate in a tough environment, so dead sharp is not needed or desirable, but IMO, everything operates better with maintenance..

The manuals on my Woods and Land Pride indicate the blades need to be "sharpened", Land Pride simply refers to returning to original profile while Woods gives 1/32 edge.

A truly sharp blade is a waste of time and energy, at least in my experience and I have never seen a new cutter with sharp blades when new.