Lawnmower clogging

I can't mow my lawn because the grass just clogs up around the rotary blade. Does my blade need sharpening, or replacing?

Thanks.

G.

 

A lot of mowers clog with damp grass. Roller types are prone to this as the chute is small and in the industry the very old Hayter rear rollers where amount some of the better ones but they are fast disappearing.
Couple of tips, Clean the collection bag. Fabric bags clog up and that reduces the airflow. The cleaner the bag the better the airflow.
Keep the deck clean, some clean and spray wd40 to help but spraying is short term only.
If the mower has independent height adjustment then one notch up on the rear helps.
service, make sure it’s serviced properly as they check the rpm. Don’t increase it above spec as that can result in a short lived engine as well as dangerous.
Look for high lift blades if they are available for your mower.
Check the blades are not blunt, replace if so or remove and sharpen and test balance.
Some mowers have a better name with wet grass mowing. John Deere’s have a fan type assembly on some of their mowers that help or Etesia which are known to be better than most.

Just remember to not lean the mower on the exhaust side and always remove spark lead for safety when you mess with the blades.

 

I’ve a 48 pro but it’s a devil in the wet and it’s around 8 years old. The old Hayters had a full size chute on the rollers and the commercial lads love them due to the engine mount. Use to see them all over the place but they never changed their design and then sold to Toro so now some are toro models in green.
there was a blog where they went through what they called lean manufacturing which was an interesting read.
Shame but they really need to change the bag design and bring back the old drive units but they don’t interact like Etesia. The 46 I use is a variable drive that’s been replaced 3 times so far.
I also don’t like the plastic case over the deck which on mine was to lower the sound level.

A good rotary lifts the grass and the deck design should be close to the wings of the blade. Hayters are flat and not domed shape.
Saying that Sabo never change and Honda stick to their designs. That was the down side to Hayter, they never really changed anything while others were improving designs and listening to users.

It’s rare for me to clean out a clogged deck on the Etesia, it just keeps on cutting and mines a 2006 model so knocking on but has never let me down touch wood. The only thing is drive is slow unless you fit the pulley kit they supply after requests to speed the drive up and they do a roller kit for some models.

I’m in no doubt for domestic use the Hayters are fine.

 

I wonder if the drive on yours is what Toro call AutoMatic Drive System?

the worst mower for tackling complex bends I have is the John Deere which is Sabo. The handles the opposite to the Hayter and it just wears you out if you lots of bendy edging. The Hayter is far more comfortable.
The JD is battery start too but with a pull start but the Briggs engine was not one of the better ones on my model and it pops along. I use it for a backup now.
One thing with JD is the drive on max was very quick, way to quick as it bounced around and you flew around, almost insane for a mower! You could do a superman and just hang on for dear life. I’ve no idea who thought that one up but they need sacking lol.

Etesia are part of Outils Wolf and was born through trade restrictions. Outils opened up a french company called Etesia so they could import to the U.K. the downside is prices, over 2k for a 51 inch model and the 53 inch is a mind numbing 3k. The 46 model I have is no longer produced but the equivalent are around 1k to 1.3k depending on engine type so a little better.

just to put the icing on the cake we have the E10 fuel becoming standard so now it’s best to use super unleaded on older machines or new or use some of the fuel like Aspen or the motomix from Stihl. The E10 eats carbs and causes issues it you store it either in a can or in the machine.

You kind of wish that you could combine bits from one mower to another to form a Carlsberg mower

 

This was taken about 10 mins ago. Its 6.30 PM it's about 18'C and it hasn't rained for at least 24 hours. I have to mow on a high setting just to make the lawn presentable. I would prefer to mow it properly.

G.

 

If grass is left too long between cuts and is taller only the top half is dryish, the bottom retains the damp and dew longer as it is protected from the sun making it longer to dry.
Try a higher setting to get rid of the top dry bit, then a couple of days later try it on he lower setting when if sunny the grass would be drier.

 

Thats a wetland meadow, not grass lol