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craftsman mtd blades adapter or conversion

#1

C

coach71

I bought a new craftsman lt 1500 (made by Mtd) last fall, I'm getting about 3 mowings from the blades then they're shot, have to be replaced, I said something about this to the folks at the local sears(where I bought it) they said I needed gator blades (I mow about 5 acres of yard, some of it is sandy, a gravel driveway, usually pick up and throw a few rocks while I'm mowing, my lane to the driveway is 1/4 mile long) any way, I put on gator blades they made 1 (ONE) mowing and those blades were shot, bent up dulled up in bad shape, my Question is this....in looking for some new blades I saw that the blades were kinda thin as compared to some blades I saw for a snapper mower that were (looked to be approx. 1/4 inch thick!!) does any one know of any thicker heavy duty blades that I might be able to adapt to this mower/deck??? I looked on ebay and found some for sand....they were flat blades with 4 sharpened edged, basically just flip the blade over and continue on when they got dull, and I think they were thicker material than the OEM blades or any others I found...BUT I wasn't able to find the sized I need for the craftsman mower...any ideas??? $50 for blades every 2 or 3 mowings is kinda hard to do??!! I've got a 19 year old John Deere F 525 48 inch cut, 3 blades, the blades are thicker and last 2 years of mowing before I need to replace them!! I really expected better from the craftsman, I've had MTD machines before and I was very pleased with them, I'm kinda disappointed with this one, I like the tractor part but the blade part is unsat.


#2

Fish

Fish

All mower shops should have accounts with Oregon or Stens, and they offer the heavier duty blades. If you can put up your deck
size, one of us should be able to provide part numbers.


#3

P

possum

Unless you can find blades that do not suck up gravel and rock or at least raise the cutting height enough to prevent it no blades are going to last like the ones on a 20 year old John Deere or a 20 year old MTD. The newer decks just have a great deal of suction. They do a great job of mowing but the debris they pull into the blades and the noise they make cutting is terrible. A real flat blade is worth a try.


#4

C

coach71

Fish said:
All mower shops should have accounts with Oregon or Stens, and they offer the heavier duty blades. If you can put up your deck
size, one of us should be able to provide part numbers.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I thought I had put the deck size it's the 42 inch deck, 2 blades.....OEM blade number is 94204308 the mower model # is 247.288812.

Thanks, Vic


#5

Carscw

Carscw

First off don't blame the blades for your abuse of the mower.
Second I am thinking you did not have real gator blades and bend them without doing other damage to the mower. I bet you got the Arnold fake gator blades that are thin

(( cowboy up and get over it ))


#6

C

coach71

Carscw said:
First off don't blame the blades for your abuse of the mower.
Second I am thinking you did not have real gator blades and bend them without doing other damage to the mower. I bet you got the Arnold fake gator blades that are thin

(( cowboy up and get over it ))
Click to expand...

you may be right!! When I went to sears and talked to them about the blades wearing out so fast, they said put gator blades on it, but they didn't have any for my mower??!! they told me to go to Lowe's... so I did??! I bought what they had that was labeled gator blades that had the 6 point star center??! But as far as abuse goes, it is LESS abused than the old John Deere (19 years old) and those blades last about 2 years of mowing, My other mower was(is) a 1999 Craftsman (poulan made) I never liked that mower but the blades lasted for a mowing season, and I DON'T mow with the New craftsman where I mowed ALL THE TIME with the old craftsman and john deere both! Mostly I just mow the front yard and the back and side of the yard... not by the drive... not down the lane... not by the gravel road. I guess it's abused, I'm not mowing a golf course, I'm not mowing a manicured lawn, it's just grass, some of it crab, some of it fescue, some of it Bermuda, I don't really consider that as abuse, but maybe I'm wrong?!


#7

Fish

Fish

coach71 said:
I bought a new craftsman lt 1500 (made by Mtd) last fall, I'm getting about 3 mowings from the blades then they're shot, have to be replaced, I said something about this to the folks at the local sears(where I bought it) they said I needed gator blades (I mow about 5 acres of yard, some of it is sandy, a gravel driveway, usually pick up and throw a few rocks while I'm mowing, my lane to the driveway is 1/4 mile long) any way, I put on gator blades they made 1 (ONE) mowing and those blades were shot, bent up dulled up in bad shape, my Question is this....in looking for some new blades I saw that the blades were kinda thin as compared to some blades I saw for a snapper mower that were (looked to be approx. 1/4 inch thick!!) does any one know of any thicker heavy duty blades that I might be able to adapt to this mower/deck??? I looked on ebay and found some for sand....they were flat blades with 4 sharpened edged, basically just flip the blade over and continue on when they got dull, and I think they were thicker material than the OEM blades or any others I found...BUT I wasn't able to find the sized I need for the craftsman mower...any ideas??? $50 for blades every 2 or 3 mowings is kinda hard to do??!! I've got a 19 year old John Deere F 525 48 inch cut, 3 blades, the blades are thicker and last 2 years of mowing before I need to replace them!! I really expected better from the craftsman, I've had MTD machines before and I was very pleased with them, I'm kinda disappointed with this one, I like the tractor part but the blade part is unsat.
Click to expand...

Since this mower is made by MTD as well, why don't you put the blades on it you put on your older mowers? They will fit unless
they were over 20 years old.


#8

C

coach71

Fish said:
Since this mower is made by MTD as well, why don't you put the blades on it you put on your older mowers? They will fit unless
they were over 20 years old.
Click to expand...

I don't have the old MTD any longer, my son ran it into a tree.... wide open.... 7th gear many, many years ago bent the deck, and only had 5 speeds after that, shortly after that I bought the first Craftsman mower(1999) made by poulan, I never did like it(that first craftsman) but it won't quit running??!


#9

C

coach71

Fish said:
All mower shops should have accounts with Oregon or Stens, and they offer the heavier duty blades. If you can put up your deck
size, one of us should be able to provide part numbers.
Click to expand...

In my search for an answer I found this forum, I read some of the posts and I saw some info on the MEG-MO blade system, some of the posts were 5 or 6 years old...any new info or reviews/thoughts on the MEG-MO system blades....has anyone used them recently?? any thoughts or insights??


#10

Fish

Fish

Sorry, Meg or Mo I don't know....

If your old MTD mowers did fine, just buy those blades.....


#11

M

motoman

Only ever had one rider , the craftsman DYT 4000 Intek 48" deck. It came with lift blades that measure .200" thick. The machine is 2004 with over 500 hours of only my grass and weeds so not used as hard or with surprise impacts. But...as I have said before if you are so perfectionist that you must have perfect blades you will probably run through them. I do not get nicks, but would sharpen around them if sufficient blade is available. Still using my original blades now with about 1/2" ground off for sharpening. I realize many only use machine grinds on flat beds. This technique wastes blades, IMO. Try designer sharpening...by hand on an 8" 60 grit wheel.


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