Mower blade width, does it matter?

[heffer86]

I just purchased my first Gravely ZTX 42in (cross reference with Ariens IKON X & XL) and I am having a hard time finding 3rd party blades for my mower.
My blades are 15in x 2.25 with 5/8 center hole. I would like to get some gator style blades. Any suggestions? Can I move up to a 2.5 or 3in as long as my diagonal length is the same?

Oregon has a 15in x 3in with 5/8 center hole will that work on my mower?

Oregon Products

www.oregonpartsstore.com

 

[cruzenmike]

Rotational mass? Not only are the G6 Gators wider, but they are also thicker. One of the things that most people will notice with these blades on smaller, residential mowers is that it takes a lot more engine power to get them turning initially, while also "consuming" more power while mowing. If I may ask, what do you hope to achieve by changing the blades? Most mowers are equipped with high lift blades which are ideal for side discharging. Short of that you have low and medium lift, wavy mulchers used with the deck closed off and "gator-style" blades which are very effective at shredding leaves and reducing clipping size. You will find that some contractors will use only the OEM notched foil or high lift blades that come on their machines, and some that will prefer and swear by Gators.

While I cannot speak for the Gravely/Ariens or the blades that they put on it, but most of these mowers in ideal conditions will perform just fine.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Stop and have a think about what you re doing.
Draw it out on a piece of paper if you need to
If the width of the blade increases and the diagonal length remains the same then the overall length of the blade decreases
Weather you can use a wider blade will also depend on how far the spindles are offset and how much overlap there is.
A wider blade will some times leave a mohawk standing between the blades .

 

[Scrubcadet10]

this is a list of those type gator blades, if you can get the Gravely part number, it shows which part number the aftermarket blade replaces for each Mfg.

Gravely Gator Mulching Blades | Lawnmower Pros

Gravely Gator Mulching Blades available online and ready to ship direct to your door. Free tech support. 365 day returns. Worldwide shipping.

www.lawnmowerpros.com

 

[cruzenmike]

The issue that you run into with your specific mower is that Ariens/Gravely utilize a 3-blade 42" deck. Other than their models, I am not aware of any other manufacturer in 2020 that uses 3 blades, and rather uses two. Most of the blades that Oregon or Rotary make are going to be somewhat universal meaning that they can be used across multiple product lines or even manufacturers. If you had the 52" version of your mower, you would likely have an easier time finding aftermarket blades. I did some searching around, cross referencing the Gravely part number of your blade to some of the aftermarkets and could not find anything other than the standard side discharge blade.

 

[Ken22]

Stop and have a think about what you re doing.
Draw it out on a piece of paper if you need to
If the width of the blade increases and the diagonal length remains the same then the overall length of the blade decreases
Weather you can use a wider blade will also depend on how far the spindles are offset and how much overlap there is.
A wider blade will some times leave a mohawk standing between the blades .

? Also every time you sharpen your blade the diagonal gets ever so slightly shorter.

 

[heffer86]

I was able to find some Length 15" CH 5/8" Width 2-1/2" Thick .250 here. They are made by Sunbelt. They fit the Zt X perfectly even with the mulch kit installed. My problem now is that the deck vibrates significantly more than with the OEM blades. I took the blades off and checked balance the all seem to be just fine. I put the OEM blades back on and the vibration when away. Would there be that much of a difference between a OEM 2.25 vs the 2.5in Gators I put on?

 

[slomo]

I was able to find some Length 15" CH 5/8" Width 2-1/2" Thick .250 here. They are made by Sunbelt. They fit the Zt X perfectly even with the mulch kit installed. My problem now is that the deck vibrates significantly more than with the OEM blades. I took the blades off and checked balance the all seem to be just fine. I put the OEM blades back on and the vibration when away. Would there be that much of a difference between a OEM 2.25 vs the 2.5in Gators I put on?

Were the "new" Sunbelt blades OEM to your machine or another recipe from some other company? I would guess at those Sunbelt blades were not specific to your machine.

If you are stuck to one style of OEM blade, get another mower. If you are unhappy with the cut, get a new mower.

slomo