Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help!

   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #1  

Billc

Gold Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2000
Messages
357
Location
Northwest Georgia
Tractor
Kubota 5400 4x4 with ROPS, canopy, 1001 loader, heavy duty quick release bucket with tooth bar, 280 Bush Hog brush cutter, 6' Bush Hog box blade, 6' Bush Hog plug aerator, 3 point hay spear, 6' Lands
I am cutting a pasture...errr...what use to be a pasture some years ago, for a customer. Lots of heavy growth: Briars, brush, 12 to 17 foot pines (lots and lots and lots of pines), and high grass. His field hasn't been touched in years. Oh, and can you believe that it is rock and stump free?

I have a Kubota M5400 with a heavy duty Bush Hog 286 6' brush cutter. I've done lots of jobs similar to this one with out a problem. Today, when I was within 3 hours of being done (am cutting 19 acres) the blade on my Bush Hog brakes. Lots of racket..."Huston, we have a problem." The blade brakes where the bolt goes through the hole into the blade. I find the blade. The circle where the bolt goes through is no longer a circle, its half a circle. The other part of the blade is still attached to the Bush Hog.

I go home and get a spare set of blades. The spare set happens to be the original blades that came with the Bush Hog. I had always taken them off, sharpened and ballanced them, and then reinstalled them. Finally decided to get a spare set. The spare set is what broke.

I go home, get my tools and original blades, and put one of the original blades on. I know this was wrong, but it was the end of the day and I wanted to get done. I brush cut for another hour and then it happens again. The other blade, that I bought as a spare, brakes.

I have never had this happen with my original blades. This is the first heavy stuff I've cut with the spare set.

Finally, here is my question: I thought I bought "Bush Hog" blades. I'm betting I got a knock off instead. Does Bush Hog put a stamp or identifing mark on their blades? I guessing this is sort of like buying logging chain. Not all chain is the same.

Any help would be geatly appreciated.

Bill Cook
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #2  
Bill,
Did I understand you right? The small piece with the half circle stayed under the large bolt head after the blade broke. If this is right, you may have the wrong bolts or the blades are to thick for the bolts. The blades need to free spin. The bolts shouldn’t tighten down on the blades; they should be free to spin on the bolt.


18-32460-1250sig.gif
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #3  
Hi ya Bill
funny ya say that, about blades seem's the blades,knifes,chainsaw chain,tiller tines,cutting eages etc etc ya get on new stuff seem's a hell of a lot better than the spear parts ya buy 2nd time around don't ask me why it happens but set of blades that comes with mowers hold a better eage ,bounce off bigger rocks ,cut 6 inch trees down in one hit .snapping the way ya have told us sounds like they are too hard ,or maybe to much play on the bolt .
catch ya
JD Kid
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help!
  • Thread Starter
#4  
Jerry, usually at the start of a days work, and again when I stop for lunch, I will raise the Bush Hog, crawl under and make sure both blades spin free. I had checked them at luch and they both spun...though both were a little tight. I know manual says when replacing the blades to tighten the nut to something like 450 ft lbs of torque.

jd, I think if anything the blades were a little tight. Some junk usually builds up between the blade and the stump jumper.

I slept on this last night. I really think the replacement blades are of a cheaper grade of steel, but I can't be sure. Why else would only those two blades (the replacements I bought two months ago) brake? Yes I was cutting 15 ft pines that were 4 to 6 inches thick, but I've done this dozens of times with no problems...but with the original blades.

The question still stands, are Bush Hog brand blades stamped?

Oh, one other thing, if anyone is considering getting a Bush Hog brush cutter and you are trying to decide between 280 series and the Squeeler, get the 280 series. Yes it's double the price but you can't believe what it will eat up.

I have a continuous round dent in the top from hitting large rocks. Now I have a small hole in the side skirt when one of the blades broke. But it keeps on ticking!

Bill Cook
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #5  
Bill,
Bush Hog blades are stamped with the blade number just below the bolt hole. Can't remember the # off the top of my head but I will check for you when I get into work. I believe there are two different blades available for the 286, regular and high lift. Hope this helps.
Matt
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #6  
Hi ya Bill
ya i have been thinking on it too i have had 2 claas hay mowers and a topper and the norm is to brake blades where they are twisted or bent not at the bolt holes ,have ya still got the bits??? if so use a hand file (not a grinder )and try and file near where they broke and also on the cutting eage .i'm thinking they may be over tempored (?) and are brittle in stead of taking a pounding they snap like carots ,maybe someone left them in the fire too long and could be a bad batch .the file test may show up something i would have though that only the cutting tip should be hardened and with the kind of work ya doing softer is better (yea it sound funny i know )is there any diff between the sets of blades ,.keep sharper longer,seemed to chip,etc etc??
catch ya
JD Kid
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #7  
Bill,
The standard blade for the 286 is actually an uplift blade - part #7556. There is also a double edge blade for the 286, part #6740. The blade part number is stamped above the bolt hole along with a bush hog stamp - (not below as I stated earlier)... see what happens when I go from memory... Although blades are a non-warranty item, Bush Hog is great to work with and if they were factory blades, your dealer should be able to get them replaced for you. As the jdkid said, there may have been a bad batch (or incorrectly tempered metal) that went through. Let me know if I can help any further.
Matt
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #8  
Yes I was cutting 15 ft pines that were 4 to 6 inches thick, but I've done this dozens of times with no problems...but with the original blades.

Bill,
I don't think that I would cut anything with a bush hog or any other rotary mower that was 4-5" thick! I've got the heaviest duty Woods 8' mower made and I wouldn't even attempt that. I just think that is way too much to expect from any rotary mower. There is no doubt that your blades may have been inferior to the original ones or maybe just coincidence but man that is a punch for a rotary mower to take.

18-35034-TRACTO~1.GIF
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #9  
Hi ya matt
when ya say uplift blade is it twisted?or steped ? if they were those kind of blades i would have though they would snap at the bends as the steel is streched at those points .a file test will show up (maybe )how hard the steel is of realy hard it will become file-proof and that maybe the prob ,also as another post said it may have been over kill cutting that size pines but should not of snaped blades ,maybe gearbox or main bolt
catch ya
JD Kid
 
   / Broke 2 Bush Hog blades today, need help! #10  
Yow! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

How in the heck can you run over a 6" tree!?!?!?!? /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif I would have to see this with my own eyes before I would believe it! I've run over some gnarly coyote brush with mine, but nothing remotely close to that size.

The GlueGuy
 
 
 
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