Hello Shannon,
That's a great question for many reasons ...
It appears to me that the dramatic decline in reel mower sales has resulted
in a concomitant decline in the knowledge base about the maintenance of them.
Backlapping is an excellent (and cheap) procedure whereby the reel is
spun backward (usually manually with a crank handle) in combination with a
grinding paste, to refresh the cutting edge of the reel and the bottom blade.
After a complete flush of the paste, paper is used as a 'sharpness test' to
determine the condition of the cutting surfaces. Here, paper is not used as
a 'thickness gauge', as though it had similar properties to grass.
The procedure is greatly underutilised and certainly misunderstood nowadays.
Recommendations:
This is another great question. It appears to me to be insufficient just
to refer-on reel maintenance to an 'engineer' - a mower sharpening service.
I hope an ODK member or visitor can recommend a service in your area.
Falling short of that, you must take control in asserting consumer awareness.
Here is my check list:
- Is the service an agency, or do they sharpen reel and bottom blade themselves?
- Do they have 'the knowledge'? Example: do they understand required relief angles?
- Do they have purpose-built equipment?
- Do they grind both the reel and bottom blade?
- What is the price differential between delivering a complete machine, or just components?
I hope this helps.
-----------------------------------
JACK.
