'best' replacement mower blades?

[wango tango]

hey all, i have a john deere frontier GM1072E 3 pt finish mower that i'd like to replace the blades on.

can someone recommend a good reasonably priced blade? the ones i see from JD are $38 each...that seems kind of high to me.

i'd like a mulching blade if at all possible. basically, just want the best looking cut. my blades now are beat up something fierce.

 

[aczlan]

Gator blades...

Edit: Looks like you will need to measure them and see what size they are, then go to the Oregon site and check for a replacement. OEM PN is: 5BP0006845 (add a M to the end for Mulching blades) but that doesn't cross to anything

Aaron Z

 

[RoyJackson]

I suggest you determine the OEM of the mower. Deere/Frontier sells them, they don't make them. For example, my "Frontier" RFM is a Woods and OEM blades are about $28-$30 bucks (if you buy the set of three). Since I think I'll be replacing mine very soon (hit a rock yesterday and the mower is vibrating), I just looked up prices.
Now, how to determine the OEM of the mower....with Woods, it's pretty easy. "WOODS" is embossed on the gear box.

It's my understanding (told to me by my sales guy) that RFM's sold by Frontier are manufactured by Woods and BEFCO.

Once you determine the OEM, you can do a web search...

 

[thatguy]

I love my Gator Blades.. Compared to the OEM JD blades the Gators cut the grass into MUCH smaller pieces.. Unless the grass gets too long, you never even really see the cut grass laying on the ground

Brian

 

[aslack99]

I'll second or third the gator blades. They last twice as long as any oem.

 

[chim]

I get all my blades from Agri Supply. That includes Gator blades and regular blades for Caroni and Land Pride. They have good prices and ship fast.

 

[RoyJackson]

Thanks for that info about Gator blades, guys!!!
I learned something new on this thread!!

 

[woodlandfarms]

Sometimes gator over paints the blades. I run mine in the grinder when they arrive to take off the leading edge paint. FYI also gators make a different noise than a normal blade. At least on my machine.

 

[90cummins]

The blades on my 52" walk behind have a 5/8 hole for mounting so there are many after market options available.
I installed high lift blades long ago which helped but not being satisfied with the cut I decided to install a second (old blade) on the bottom of the new blade. There was a huge improvement, with the single blade setup the mower would discharge long strands of grass. With double blades the discharged grass is now chopped up very, very small.

There were a couple benefits in addition to the better cut;
1) The discharge was more powerful spreading the clippings more evenly.
2) The second bottom blade which was older & used protected the sharp new upper blade if an rock was hit.
I was so pleased with the results I installed a second set of blades on the PTO mounted RM-59 which also made a huge improvement.
You mite want to try this if the design of your mower permits.
Do not attempt to weld the blades together, failure will result.

 

[Rdiel]

Jthomos.com has a blade called the Mamba mulching blade they are a very good blade at a very good price. They are a little heavier blade than the gator blades and before you order make sure and measure your blades diagonally from tip to tip and know what your center hole size is for sure. I have a set on my dixie chopper zero turn and love'em. I'm gonna get a set for my caroni finish mower too.