Stupid question but...How often do you replace blade bolts on rotary cutter..??

[treedawg]

Tomorrow I'm pulling and sharpening the blades on my old Deere 503 rotary mower.

Not sure how old it is since I purchased it used years ago but I'd say it 30ish years old and I'm going to assume the blade bolts are original.

I searched the net and couldn't find any recommendations on how often to replace the bolts. Maybe there isn't a useful lifespan and they are to be reused until failure.

What says the experts..???

 

[japody]

If the bolts are not damaged or the blade holes are not wrung out, I see no need to replace them.

 

[Tractor Seabee]

Agree on not replacing bolts unless damaged. However, always replace those self locking bolts a lot of them have or put a castellated nut on instead, You then need to drill the bolt for a cotter pin. Once used self lockers that feature is defeated. Biggest problem is getting the **** things off to begin with. I have had to cut them off.

Ron

 

[hosspuller]

At failure, the blade is traveling x feet per second. You want to catch a 10-20 pound chunk of steel ? I replaced the blade & bolts of my 22 year old Bush hog. I did destroy one of the bolts getting it off. So I was glad I already had replacements, instead of making a second 60 mile trip.:2cents:

 

[mcfarmall]

Short answer...never. Those giant shoulder bolts would have to be nearly worn 25% or more to be a failure risk. The bolts on my King Kutter still look nearly new after 30 years of hard use. Remember, they don't pivot continuously while in use, they only pivot at startup, shutdown, or if you strike something really hard.

 

[Stimw]

This is a pic of the old and new blades for/from my 5' Woods Cutter.
My guess is they are original, I bought it (very) used.
My unit has large pins with special locks for the blades that were still good.
An old tractor Dude told me that you never sharpen them to a point, if you do then they chip.
My old blades have eaten numerous pieces of concrete rubble and were still cutting good.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

Glad people ask questions like this.

 

[treedawg]

I pulled and sharpened my blades this evening after work. The bolts and blades looked fine. The blades were easy to remove with the assistance of an air hammer. I used my DeWalt 20 volt angle grinder to sharpen the blades. I mowed a road leading to a food plot and its cutting great.

 

[japody]

This has been discussed before, but you really shouldn't sharpen your blades to razor sharp if you are cutting fields.

 

[treedawg]

This has been discussed before, but you really shouldn't sharpen your blades to razor sharp if you are cutting fields.

What is the logic behind running dull blades..??

I didn't get them anywhere near razor sharp but I put a decent edge on them.