One of the most critical components of effective mowing is keeping your mower blades sharp. But have you ever thought about balancing the mower blades? If not, you will surely need to consider this parameter for the better performance of this grass cutting machine.
Balancing your blades simply means ensuring that the weight is spread evenly from one side to the other. When you grind more metal off one side of a blade than the other, it becomes unbalanced during the sharpening process.
To correct this, just test your balance with a balancer and then shave off the heavier side of the blade with your grinder until it is balanced. Doesn’t it sound great? Of course, yes! The necessity of balancing your blades is more about wear and tear on your mower than it is about the quality of your cut.
An uneven blade spinning at that speed will produce much vibration, putting strain on the blade shaft, spindle, and engine. That’s why you have to balance the blades efficiently.
Table of Contents
Benefits Of Balancing The Mower Blades
Many people may be unaware of how an uneven lawnmower blade can cause harm to their mowers simply because they are unaware of the need for a balanced mower blade.
Balancing your lawnmower blades entails ensuring that the blade’s weight is transferred equally from one side to the other. A mower blade is usually inclined in the middle, resulting in equal weight and size on both sides.
Your mower blades are most likely imbalanced if you experience an odd sensation when mowing. The blades of your lawn are most likely imbalanced if it is not mowed uniformly. The blades are most likely imbalanced if mowing takes longer than usual.
As a result, an unbalanced lawnmower blade can create various issues, such as internal structural bolts snapping or loosening, leaving you with extra work to do and producing severe vibration. These reasons will put stress on the blade shaft, spindle, and also usually on the engine.
Steps To Balance The Lawnmower Blades
If you sharpen your lawnmower blades on your own, there’s a good chance you won’t do it evenly. Uneven sharpening can make a blade heavier on one side than the other, causing significant vibration and faster engine wear and tear.
The good news is that checking your blade’s balance and making any required adjustments before reinstalling it is easier than you think. So, let’s get started:
1) Fasten The Blades Using Hammer
You can easily fasten the nails that get loosen during the sharpening process of the blades using a hammer. All you need to do is balancing the nail on the blade base over the nail head.
2) Check The Blade Rotation
Turn the blade to the right approximately a quarter turn and keep an eye on it. If it stays placed, it’s balanced, and there’s no need to be concerned. However, it’s a terrible sign if it spins back to where it began. Turn the blade to the right halfway again.
The blade is balanced if it stays in place; but if it returns to its original position. Moreover, the part of the blade that keeps returning to the bottom is cumbersome. That’s why you have to fix the rotation of the blade as soon as possible.
3) Keep The Track Of Heavy Blade
Remove the blade from the nail and secure it to a workbench or a sturdy surface after establishing which blade piece is heavy. Make sure you keep track of the significant part of the blade. File the edges of the heavier section of the blade with a smooth file. As you file, try to keep the blade edge at a regular angle.
4) Turn Again The Blade For Checking The Balance
Remove the blade from the clamp and use a brush or your hand to clean it gently. Return it to the joist and secure it to the nail head. Check to see if the same piece of the blade continues returning to the bottom. If the blade is again turning from its actual position, you must fix it again using the clamps and hammer.
5) Reinstall The Blades
Reinstall your blade after ensuring that both portions are balanced. If not, alternate filing and balancing the blade on the nail until the blade stays in place on both parts.
Now, you are all set to reinstall the blade on your lawnmower and enjoy it once you’re confident it’s balanced. You can look forward to seasons of perfectly cut lawns if you know how to sharpen and balance your lawnmower blades.
Use your indication to remind you of the proper blade installation orientation. It’ll be like cutting your grass with your hand if you use a mower with an upside-down blade. While hand-tightening the bolt in the center, use the blade holder to grip the blade.
Start your mower by reconnecting the battery and spark plug. Before you start cutting your grass with your newly sharpened and correctly balanced lawnmower blades, make sure to check for any undesired vibrations, noises, or other difficulties.
Final Verdict
No doubt, sharpening and balancing the mower’s blades is a time taking process. But it will surely be worth investing your time and effort. The reason is that a high-end and completely balanced grass cutting machine will help you to cut the grass effortlessly and time-friendly.
Hopefully, the mentioned above points are more than enough to understand the balancing parameter of lawnmowers. Now, it’s up to you either you hire the professional for this purpose or do it yourself.
