Blade bolts to tight

Hammermechanicman

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Blade bolts do not self tighten. If you have difficulty you are tightening them too tight to begin with and fail to clean and lubricate the threads. A simple box end or 8" ratchet will tighten them sufficiently. Small couplers do not lower the Pressure, they lower the Volume.
Well....... actually if you have blades with a single center bolt with nothing to hold it like a star or a couple bolts in the adapter the blades tend to self tighten and if the customer hits a root or something solid it can tighten the bolt to SOB levels. Just engaging the blades at full throttle can tighten blades. Had a commercial customer who changed blades every day and he could put the blade bolts in just past finger tight and after he engaged the blades at full throttle a couple times he needs a wrench to get them off.
 

JjEjFjF

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Well....... actually if you have blades with a single center bolt with nothing to hold it like a star or a couple bolts in the adapter the blades tend to self tighten and if the customer hits a root or something solid it can tighten the bolt to SOB levels. Just engaging the blades at full throttle can tighten blades. Had a commercial customer who changed blades every day and he could put the blade bolts in just past finger tight and after he engaged the blades at full throttle a couple times he needs a wrench to get them off.
Yeah most people tighten their blades crazy tight for no good reason. I know a guy who broke 2 bolts just tightening his blades. People with common sense understand that the bolts are always tightening themselves when you run the mower. I use a small compact dewalt impact to get them off an on. Never have any trouble. Anti seize on the threads of course.
 

bertsmobile1

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Blade bolts do not self tighten. If you have difficulty you are tightening them too tight to begin with and fail to clean and lubricate the threads. A simple box end or 8" ratchet will tighten them sufficiently. Small couplers do not lower the Pressure, they lower the Volume.
Rubbish
If the blade has a round hole then it will self tighten
So the star shapes found on domestics naturally can not tighten and neither can the ones that sit in a cradle held down with 2 small bolts like some of the older Murray & JD mowers
However all of the current crop of of commercials do self tighten .
I have 6 Toro Z masters in my repair run
3 of them are used commercially & 3 are residentials
The residentials are no problem because I see them every 2 years os so for a service when I sharpen the blades
Two of the commercial customers get me to swap their blades every week & they are no problem
THe final owner cuts street verges on country roads & runs his blades till they are worn to stumps
His bolts have to be cut off
I always use a tension wrench to do the final tension on blades so none of them are over or under tightened
 

RayMcD

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I am old, slow and try not to overthing things. Every blade i put back on i put a dab of grease on the threads and zip them down with a few whacks of the impact. I know the world is gasping for air and clutching their chests at that statement. I do a couple hundred blades a year. Never had one come loose or snap a bolt or spindle or strip one. I know customers are risking certain death after i sharpen their blades.
You might try KROIL, best penetrating oil you will find, it loosens stuff I thought never would come apart. Remember, use sparingly, the part that runs on the floor does not work...r
 

sgkent

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buy a new mower if you can't get the blade off. You can sell me your old one cheap, and I'll take care of it. :)
 

SeniorCitizen

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Apparently you never had blades to come off or strip star mounts. I tighten all these screws and nuts to factory spec'd torque using a torque wrench and not the impact as 950 ft-lb will snap off most screws. Impacts are for removing these and not for installation.
That's right , never had a blade come off .
 

Hammermechanicman

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You might try KROIL, best penetrating oil you will find, it loosens stuff I thought never would come apart. Remember, use sparingly, the part that runs on the floor does not work...r
I have PB blaster, Kroil, seafoam deep creep, liquid wrench, and a couple others. Have never really seen a big difference in any them. My go-to for rusty bolts is the oxy/propane torch. If it is just a nut and bolt i snap them off with the impact and replace them. Life is short. Tractor supply sells nuts and bolts by the pound.
 

StarTech

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I have PB blaster, Kroil, seafoam deep creep, liquid wrench, and a couple others. Have never really seen a big difference in any them. My go-to for rusty bolts is the oxy/propane torch. If it is just a nut and bolt i snap them off with the impact and replace them. Life is short. Tractor supply sells nuts and bolts by the pound.
They might but at least Sunday they didn't have any 5/8-11 x 2.25 Grade 8 ones. Not even a grade 2 in that size. So I ordered 10 from McMasters Monday and they were here the next business day. I even got them in amour coat for a few pennies more.

And of course no one around seems to even know what metrics are.

Besides by the time I drive 50 miles round trip it is just a cheap if not cheaper to order the hardware.

As for rusty screws and nuts I got something here to try the next I run into one as none of the perpetrators mention has worked for me either. Just can't snap off screws (bolts) in things. It is a pain to remove the remains and most I have to resize or use helicoils.
 

Hammermechanicman

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A couple years ago i bought about 20 pounds of assorted bolts nuts and washers in different bolt lengths and grades. I don't snap off bolts in equipment. Just when it is bolts in nuts that are easily replaced.
 

StarTech

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Now that makes better sense.;) I was hoping that was the route you was referring to but you know there some here that will assume you meant all of them.:p
 
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