which combination????

[bullet bob]

Got a 2017 gravely hd zt 60. Switched out the OEM blades for some Oregon gator blades, believe G5? Wasn't impressed with the look & switched back. Year or 2 later, I bought a complete mulching kit because I was throwing leaves 20' but not cutting them up with the OEM set-up. Worked great, highly recommend it. Now with the mowing season approaching, I'm getting ready to remove the whole kit & revert back to just the OEM blades. But I like the idea of mulching the grass. Thought I'd try a combination of Gator blades along with the mulching kit, minus the mulching kit blades. Anybody see anything wrong with this set-up?

 

[bkeller500]

My guess is the Gator blades will have a higher lift than mulching blades. With the plug in, you may end up with too much lift and too many clipping suspended under the deck and chocking the flow. Lifting all the cut grass is great, but where is it going to go? With the additional lift you probably will have some clumping and will need to scrape the deck more often. I too want to mulch but usually become disappointed with the results.. And...........as I look at my lawn I'm not sure the clippings from normal cutting are hanging around much longer than mulched clippings. I tend to cut more often and I try to follow the 1/3 or less rule. And I wonder if the engineers came up with mulching blades they must think the results will be better with less lift.

 

[bertsmobile1]

The gators will not work with the mulch plate in place.
They will tend to overwhelm the deck because they do not have a circular air flow built into the blade
A mulching blade lifts air at their edge runs in inward across the deck then pushes down near the spindle to dump the clippings back into the lawn .

 

[MParr]

If you are running a mulching Kit, stick with OE or equivalent mulching blades.
You can run the Gator Blades as side dischard. They do a fair job. You will get more dust blowout in the front. Mowing grass that may be a little damp will pack the deck with clippings.

 

[bullet bob]

Thanks guys, that's what I needed to know......