Plant Tissue Culture PPT

Sharpening a blade on either a human-powered or self-propelled lawn mower is an essential step in seasonal maintenance. If the blade on the lawn mower gets too dull, the machine isn't able to cut the grass as intended, which might well leave the grass ripped or ragged and more susceptible to damage from sunlight and disease. Here are six steps to sharpen a mower blade.

Step 1 - Make sure the mower is safe to work on. Before you start to work on the underside of the mower make certain that the engine is unable to start, which is achieved by unplugging the spark plug wire. This is an effective method to stop the mower from starting-up unintentionally.

Step 2 - Now remove the actual blade. When attempting to loosen the blade nut, it might help to use a c-clamp to hold the blade or position a suitable sized piece of wood between mower blade and deck. Using either of these methods will ensure the blade is kept stationary while you're working on removing it. If the nut doesn't wish to turn, try using a penetrating fluid to help loosen it and also use a decent sized wrench to help with turning the bolt.

Step 3 - Once free, secure the blade in a vise or clamp to make certain it is held safe and steady while you are working on it. With a file, start to sharpen the edge of each of the blades by working in an upward direction, and also making sure to file along the angle of the mower blade, and not against it. Aim to give each of the blades the same number of filing strokes at the same angle; this will help to keep the blades balanced. Avoid using a quick sawing up and down motion. Also, it can benefit to remove any 'burrs' or jagged edges which have formed on the flat-side of a blade.

Step 4 - After a lawn mower blade is sharpened look for signs of nicks or chips. One or two nicks along the blade edge shouldn't be a problem as the combined blades should still be able to cut properly. However, if after sharpening, a number of nicks become noticeable, it might be time to consider replacing the mower blade for new.

Step 5 - Before re-attaching the blade it might be worthwhile testing the balance. A blade which is noticeably out of balance might cause a self-propelled mower to vibrate, which over time will result in damage to the machine and fatigue to the operator. Blade balancers are quite cheap to pick up at a local hardware store.

Step 6 - Finally, take a moment to scrape off any debris or built up grass on the bottom of the actual machine. Also, as the blade should now be sharp, it is often suggested to wear a pair of leather gardening gloves or similar whilst working on re-mounting the blade. Once the blade is attached, remember to plug the spark plug wire back into its previous position.

ReelMowerReviews.org, a leading resource for honest and impartial reviews on the latest American Lawn Mower, Fiskars, Great States, GreenWorks and Scotts human-powered mowers. For more information on walk-behind mowers, click here.

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