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I have an apparently custom built mower that uses blades I cannot find anywhere. It is an 8' cut, very heavy duty mower with three belt-driven spindles. My 40 Hp tractor struggles to power it. But the blades are completely worn out and rounded off to the point that sharpening is no longer an option. The blades are made of 5/16" metal, 3" wide and about 16" long. All the brush hog blades I find are too long and usually have a bend to them. The blades I need are just straight. I can make new ones, but need to be sure I use the right material.

My question is: are mower blades made out of any special metal? Are they tempered in any way?

Thanks for any thoughts, suggestions or ideas.

apparently

post a manufacturer, model, and serial number so folks here have a better chance to answer your questions.

I wish I had that information. Since it appears to be a custom built unit, there is no manufacturer information. It almost looks like a homemade item, but pretty well made nonetheless. Very heavy duty. And belt driven verses shaft driven, as most large mowers of this size are. I don't have a current picture, but have attached a photo from when I first got it. All the spindles were bad (probably run without being greased). I have since installed new spindles and painted it. I think the original builder just made his own his own blades out of material he/she had. So I think I could use most any type of steel to make new ones. But that might be a stretch. Just looking for any thoughts whether mower blades are made from a particular type of steel.

Post blade diagangle length and center hole size. Probably either 31-3/8" or 33" blade. If not round center hole post picture of the hole.

The blade length is 16" long with a 3/4" diameter hole approximately 1" from the end. There are 6 blades total for the three spindles (two on each spindle). There is also a 1/2" diameter hole in each blade that is about 3" away from the 3/4" hole. The 1/2" diameter hole is for a bolt that keeps the blade pointing straight out. But that bolt almost always shears off. I just use the single 3/4" hole with loose fitting Grade 8 bolt (like a brush hog blade). Being 8' wide, it is hard to keep from hitting things on uneven ground - which inevitably shears off the 1/2" bolt.

are you the original builder? Have you ever used it, and if so how long?

No, I am not the original builder. I have been using it for about ten years.

I still just need thoughts on the type of steel that mower blades are made from.

OK
So you have a FARM PADDOCK SLASHER that has blade bars with swing back blades
Yo will need to go to a tractor supply shop, not a mower shop because it is a tractor part
With slashers the blades are usually made from a work hardening grade of martensitic steel
Some are forged some are cut from bar stock then heat treated
All are hardened around the bolt holes regardless of weather there is a bush in there or not .
For the layman the easiest way to fabricated some new ones is to buy some tool steel but in those sizes you are talking big dollars and you need carbide drills to make the mounting holes.
There is a cut off between mowers & agricultural equipment and there were thousands of small agricultural equipment makers most of which have been taken over by the big names , Case , JD , Fiat
When it was built they would have been a standard over the counter part .
A lot of big tractor companies did not make the impliments that were towed behind them .
You would do better chasing them up on a real tractor or farming forum .

Hey hey hey, someone finally answered the question!

This may not be of too much help because ASP is in Australia
But got to ASP home page then click on the "Agricultural Parts" and then "Vegetation Management"
This will download the 2 catelogues that have the slasher blades .
Find some that look like what you are looking for then search using that machine brand name .
Note a lot of these blades are sold by weight but all of them have their dimensions.
Down side for you is they are metric so you will need to measure your blade in mm
Blade length is from the middle of the hole along the axis of the blade to the edge, not diagonal as is done for mower bar blades
I usually measure to each side of the hole, add the 2 numbers & divide by 2 .
Note that most use a bush so a bigger hole is not a problem
Also note they can be left or right hand cut
Things are a lot different when you start playing with real big boys toys
$0Hp tractors were the back bone of agriculture world wide post WWII and almost every workshop that made military hardwear went into agriculture.
Thus there is a lot of stuff that is factory made that looks very home made
Please come back , just out of interest and let us know who you went
IF you are not sure what the original length would have been measure the distance from the bolt hole on one bar to the bolt hole of the adjacent hole & divide by 2 then take off 1/4"
Again a bit too long & you can grind a bit off
Finally a word of warning
If they need to be modified they must go on in pairs that are balanced to within 20 grams or you will be dancing the char char char across your paddock.

Sounds like you are looking for swing back blades like these.

And personally I would use them in swing mode and forget keeping the rigid position. My 4 foot rotary has work very well over years.

As Bert said these are probably agriculture blades. And you may need to use bushings as even the ones in the image above have 0.83 holes based on them being 2-1/2 wide / 3.

Thanks for the guidance, bertsmobile. I went to the site, but could not find "Agricultural Parts" and then "Vegetation Management". I did find "Catalogues" and then "Slasher Blades" which seems to have quite a selection. I'm still going through the list to see if I can find one that is close to the size I need. I really appreciate the link because I have not found anything like these blades on any site in the US. I'll let you know what I find and end up doing. I hope your winter is not too cold down under. We are dealing with a really hot and dry summer here in MIssouri. My fields look ok, but the front lawn (about four acres) is as brown as dry hay. Been saving on gas, not having to mow. But I do prefer the lush green and fear for wildfires. So far nothing like Canada has been dealing with. Stay warm!

StarTech, you are right. Those blades are very close to what I need. But I need straight blades with no "dip" in them. That's where I run into problems. Most swing blades drop down and I have no room for that lower height. But I am getting close with all of your suggestions and help. I really appreciate it.

keg99 said:

Thanks for the guidance, bertsmobile. I went to the site, but could not find "Agricultural Parts" and then "Vegetation Management". I did find "Catalogues" and then "Slasher Blades" which seems to have quite a selection. I'm still going through the list to see if I can find one that is close to the size I need. I really appreciate the link because I have not found anything like these blades on any site in the US. I'll let you know what I find and end up doing. I hope your winter is not too cold down under. We are dealing with a really hot and dry summer here in MIssouri. My fields look ok, but the front lawn (about four acres) is as brown as dry hay. Been saving on gas, not having to mow. But I do prefer the lush green and fear for wildfires. So far nothing like Canada has been dealing with. Stay warm!

Click to expand...

It is just a matter of knowing where to look
You probably will do better measuring the length between the blade holders to get the original length then taking them to a non brand franchise tractor shop like "Tractor Supply" which from what I see here seems to be everywhere , passing them over the counter and saying "got something like this that is at least X inches long ?"
We are going directly into drought again so it will be hot, dry & uneconomic .
Where I am it does not get very cold during the day time till the spring snow melt drops the air temperature to sub zero ( C ) in the snow fields and the westerlies blow this sub zero air with zero humidity right through you and because they have no moisture they go hundreds of miles without picking up much in the way of heat .
This fire season will be bad but next year will be another 2019 because we are too stupid to listen to the black fellas and do what they had been doing for 60,000 years before we shot / poisioned or just drove them off the land

keg99 said:

My question is: are mower blades made out of any special metal? Are they tempered in any way?

Thanks for any thoughts, suggestions or ideas.

Click to expand...

A common mill bastard file will tell us a lot about a mower blade metal .