What is the easiest way to sharpen an old reel (push - no electricity/no gas) lawnmower?
harmonyfleur asked:
The Craftsman mower was passed on to me - it’s old but it great shape. It does cut the lawn right now, but I am curious as to whether I can sharpen it myself or having it does is better.
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The Craftsman mower was passed on to me - it’s old but it great shape. It does cut the lawn right now, but I am curious as to whether I can sharpen it myself or having it does is better.
March 10th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
i would use a grinder or a straight file
March 10th, 2009 at 7:17 pm
file if you know how if not take it to a mower shop & get them to do it(stay & watch so you can do it yourself next time)
March 14th, 2009 at 5:37 am
These are real tricky to sharpen shops use special; machines for this.I recommend that you take this to a shop that still has someone who knows how to do it. Reels can be removed and re-installed in reverse with the reel adjusted very close to the bed knife with valve grinding compound on it , then rolling the mower several times will hone the blade but if it is dull this won’t do. If you look this up on google you are sure to find more on this.
March 16th, 2009 at 3:30 am
buy a kit to go on the reels and a good file you can get it at most hardware stores
March 18th, 2009 at 9:20 am
I have sharpen them before on a certain machine that locks in on each side the blade shaft and then you set it and sharpen each blade seperately with a grinder wheel.
Each blade has to be done perfectly sharpened or the blades will not cut evenly so once I set it I cut them all at the same pitch.
Then the reel base is set both right and left sides to give you the greatest cutting performance.
I would reccomend that you take it to a small engine shop who has this machine to do it on otherwise you may goof trying to do it in the field.
March 19th, 2009 at 3:33 am
Look in the phone book under sharpening, or saw blade sharpening. It’s a pretty cheap job $20 or less in most places and they have the proper tools and sharpening angles for the job.
March 19th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
it is difficult to actually sharpen it without specialized equipment but you could back lap it. you do that by removing the wheels and moving the right pinion gear to the left side and the left to the right, replace the wheels and then adjust the bed knife so it is evenly contacting the reel all the way across, an abrasive compound is then placed on the reel blades and the unit is pushed backwards so that the reel turns backwards, the compound then puts an edge on the reel and mates it to the bed knife. afterwards you must clean all the compound off and readjust the reel to bedknfe so that it cuts paper and then reverse the gears again. it is a time consuming and dirty job so you might just consider having it professional sharpened.
March 22nd, 2009 at 7:38 pm
DO NOT touch the cutting surfaces of your reel mower with a file or abrasive of any kind!
Stop by your local golf course and talk to the Greens Superintendent. They either maintain their own, or know who is best at this specialized work in your area. A golf course uses reel mowers daily that operate at much higher speeds, on more miles of grass, than yours does.
The “do it yourself” care you should do, is: pick up all sticks and debris before you mow, and keep it well lubricated.
I would take the mower to a qualified sharpening technician and ask them to show you how to adjust the bed knife to reel clearance.
March 24th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
You did not say what your repair abilities are - that will determine what you should do. If you can repair things, then by all means buy a sharpener and sharpen it yourself. If not, get it professionally done!
ps - another suggestion would be to get a friend to help you out too!