I need some assistance in blades, I am looking for a very durable medium to high lift blade. Right now we have gator mulcher blades on our Simplicity ZT which is a 23hp gasser, and I believe is 48". Sorry if this is a common question, I searched a bit but didn't find much, maybe I am using the wrong terms.
Now for the details. I have taken over the grounds for our HOA subdivision as our previous guy is unable to do so anymore. we have 40 acres, and mow 4, another 15-20 is brush hogged, the rest is wooded. I am trying not to re-invent the wheel and take this guys 8 years of experience as far as I can. He has the Gators loaded for a couple of reasons, one, you never know how long its going to rain and thus how thick/tall the grass will be, some grass you can't get to easily when there has been a recent rain so it gets taller and thicker. The gators don't require as much power, and they do a phenomenal job grinding up the tall and thick grass with ease. Nothing is discharged more than 1 1/2 inches. The guy also says he's never had a Gator break, only bend. The high vac blades hes had several break, which poses a danger in our neighborhood as well a just a general inconvenience in mowing time or mower damage. My problem with the Gators is they don't lift enough to discharge very far, and you have to mow a lot slower as the wheels lay the grass down and there isn't enough lift to pull it back up in a reasonable amount of time. So, I would like to find a more durable medium to high lift blade for starters, and if the grass gets tall ill just swap to the gators for a bit. The high lifts that tend to break or dull quickly are the Simplicity blades. In my searches for durable, it seems to be the manufacturers making the claims, I would like to hear from people who have practical application, like you.
