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I have a Toro walk behind and it is not picking up the cut grass. It's cutting it fine but leaves clumps of grass all over the place. It does this with the bag empty or full. The bag also seems to be sealed against the mower.

Just offhand, I have some comments:

1. You say you have a Toro mower, but you also don't have a mower? :confused2:

2. It is not picking up the cut grass, but it does this with the bag empty or full? :confused2:

3. The bag seems to be sealed against the mower? Obviously that would make it pretty hard to empty when it is full, so no wonder it's not picking up the clippings. :confused2:

I have several rear bagging mowers, even on short, dry grass, they almost never pick up all the clippings, even with the bag just emptied. Are you expecting yours to work like a KIRBY? :confused2:

Hello rusty and WELCOME to this great Forum....

First place to check... look under the deck and check for build up...
Check the blade especially the lift wing is it worn bad and not giving enough air flow...

Check the bag, if it is very plugged up, the blade won't move enough air through it to carry the clippings... turn it inside out and power wash it clean... if the blade looks suspect, replace it... Happy mowing, post back with your findings... :smile:KennyV

KennyV said:

Hello rusty and WELCOME to this great Forum....

First place to check... look under the deck and check for build up...
Check the blade especially the lift wing is it worn bad and not giving enough air flow...

Check the bag, if it is very plugged up, the blade won't move enough air through it to carry the clippings... turn it inside out and power wash it clean... if the blade looks suspect, replace it... Happy mowing, post back with your findings... :smile:KennyV

Click to expand...

No build up, I made sure everything was clean. Bag is clear also. I checked everything and it all seems to be working normal. I bought a new blade and will try that.

Hello Rusty,

As to regard to, your lawnmower collection problem, this could be one of two things or possibly both:

1) Often the lifters on the lawnmower blades can become worn after much use, check that your lifters are not worn. The blades lifters are like a fan, that creates air and throws grass into the back of the grass box, if lifters become worn obviously your blade will not throw the grass into the back of the box.

2) Make sure that your collection box is clean, after continuous use the grass box can often get clogged up with grass. Ideally use an airline to clean the grass box or power washer jet to clean the box, if the box is blocked, the air will not flow through the box, making it impossible a lawn mower to collect properly.

I hope this helps your collection issue.

Roybretton said:

Hello Rusty,

As to regard to, your lawnmower collection problem, this could be one of two things or possibly both:

1) Often the lifters on the lawnmower blades can become worn after much use, check that your lifters are not worn. The blades lifters are like a fan, that creates air and throws grass into the back of the grass box, if lifters become worn obviously your blade will not throw the grass into the back of the box.

2) Make sure that your collection box is clean, after continuous use the grass box can often get clogged up with grass. Ideally use an airline to clean the grass box or power washer jet to clean the box, if the box is blocked, the air will not flow through the box, making it impossible a lawn mower to collect properly.

I hope this helps your collection issue.

Click to expand...

I have never seen the term "lifters" as applied to a mower blade before...:confused2: but it's as good a term as any. I have a pair of rear bagging push mowers, and even with dry grass, the opening in the deck gradually builds up grass, I make a point to remove the clippings after every mowing job. It's a PIB, but required.

It's not even happening after every mowing job. It seems like it happens all the time. I make a few passes and the hole to the bag gets clogged and then the clippings just fall to the ground in clumps.

rusty95 said:

It's not even happening after every mowing job. It seems like it happens all the time. I make a few passes and the hole to the bag gets clogged and then the clippings just fall to the ground in clumps.

Click to expand...

HI RUSTY, try just cutting a 2" or 3" path just to see how much time it takes to "clog the opening" of the collector bag.maybe there is too much grass being thrown at the bag "on a full pass"than what the bag will accept. my jd tractor will have this problem in the fall when i bag "too many leaves and grass" the collector tube is then overwhelmed

make sure the blades not upside down...just fixed that on my neighbors bagger..it wouldnt work worth a damn

rusty95 said:

I have a Toro walk behind and it is not picking up the cut grass. It's cutting it fine but leaves clumps of grass all over the place. It does this with the bag empty or full. The bag also seems to be sealed against the mower.

Click to expand...

Hi, there can b 5 issues:-
1: bag is dirty/air does not pass through d bag. If so, clean d bag.
2: blade is broken or bent. If so, get a new blade.
3: the frame of the mower/the place where d blade rotates is bent or sum thing is stuck there. If so clean/fix it.
4: the front end of the mower should b lower than the rear end. If the setting on the front wheels is 2 clicks high, the rear wheels should b at 1 click and so on.
MOST IMPORTANT :---
5: after usage the RPM of the motor goes down/the motor slows down with usage. When the motor runs slow it does not make enough air pressure inside the chamber to throw the grass in d bag. If this is the case, take the mower to a mechanic/dealer they will check the RPM of the motor n increase it. At most places they don't charge anything to do this. Sooo it's worth giving it a try.
I m Preety sure Ur mower will cut n fill grass like new. ??

There are different blades for bagging and mulching. Some mulching blade actually push the clippings back to the lawn while the high lift blade generate a turbulence to shoot the clippings to the bag. Some Toro blades have two fins that push the clippings down. Older Lawnboys have a four blade mulching fan. Those are not suitable for bagging.

New to this forum. I have a similar problem, as the original thread. I have read ALL the posts and am going to hope that it is something that simple.
Thank you all. I will post my findings, if your suggestions fix my problem.

What do you do if your mower opening clogs wehn the bag is not full?

Rusty, my advice is to do what all the other posts said. Then take a look at how deep the grass is your trying to bag. If it is too deep and you try to cut it all at once it will clog your mower because of the long clippings and too much at once. If the grass is deep try making two passes over it. One with the deck a few notches higher and one at the hight you want. Afterwards you may want to mow more often if possible.

Lawnmow'n King said:

What do you do if your mower opening clogs wehn the bag is not full?

Click to expand...

Mow slower or cut less grass by raising the height.
There is only so much volume of grass that the mower can push through that small opening.
This assumes your blades are in good condition, sharp & the flutes are in good condition.

dfbroxy said:

Rusty, my advice is to do what all the other posts said. Then take a look at how deep the grass is your trying to bag. If it is too deep and you try to cut it all at once it will clog your mower because of the long clippings and too much at once. If the grass is deep try making two passes over it. One with the deck a few notches higher and one at the hight you want. Afterwards you may want to mow more often if possible.

Click to expand...

Good advice. I just wanted to add that another option is to mow while discharging (if the mower allows), let the clippings dry out a bit - it doesn't take long - and then go back and pick them up while bagging.