Operator's Manual

InspectingandSharpeningthe
Blade(s)
ServiceInterval:Beforeeachuseordaily
Every50hours
DANGER
Awornordamagedbladecanbreak,andapiece
ofthebladecouldbethrownintotheoperator's
orbystander'sarea,resultinginseriouspersonal
injuryordeath.
•Inspectthebladeperiodicallyforwearor
damage.
•Donottrytostraightenabladethatisbent.
•Neverweldabrokenorcrackedblade.
•Replaceawornordamagedbladewitha
newTorobladetoensurecontinuedsafety
certicationoftheproduct.
Twoareasmustbeconsideredwhencheckingand
servicingthecuttingblade:thesailandthecuttingedge.
Bothcuttingedgesandthesail,whichistheturnedup
portionoppositethecuttingedge,contributetoagood
quality-of-cut.Thesailisimportantbecauseitpullsgrass
upstraight,therebyproducinganevencut.However,
thesailwillgraduallyweardownduringoperation,and
thisconditionisnormal.Asthesailwearsdown,the
quality-of-cutwilldegradesomewhat,althoughthe
cuttingedgesaresharp.Thecuttingedgeoftheblade
mustbesharpsothatthegrassiscutratherthantorn.
Adullcuttingedgeisevidentwhenthetipsofthegrass
appearbrownandshredded.Sharpenthecuttingedges
tocorrectthiscondition.
1.Positionthemachineonalevelsurface.Raisethe
cuttingunit,engagetheparkingbrake,putthe
tractionpedalinneutral,putthePTOleverin
theOffposition,stoptheengine,andremovethe
ignitionkey.
2.Examinethecuttingendsofthebladecarefully,
especiallywheretheatandcurvedpartsofthe
blademeet(
Figure31).Sincesandandabrasive
materialcanwearawaythemetalthatconnects
theatandcurvedpartsoftheblade,checkthe
bladebeforeusingthemachine.Ifwearisnoticed
(Figure31),replacetheblade;refertoRemovingthe
CuttingBlade.
Figure31
1.Cuttingedge3.Wear/slotforming
2.Curvedarea/sail4.Crack
WARNING
Ifthebladeisallowedtowear,aslotwillform
betweenthesailandatpartoftheblade
(
Figure31).Eventually,apieceoftheblademay
breakoffandbethrownfromunderthehousing,
possiblyresultinginseriousinjurytoyourself
orbystanders.
•Inspectthebladeperiodicallyforwearor
damage.
•Replaceawornordamagedbladewitha
newTorobladetoensurecontinuedsafety
certicationoftheproduct.
3.Examinethecuttingedgesofallblades.Sharpenthe
cuttingedgesiftheyaredullornicked.Sharpenonly
thetopsideofthecuttingedgeandmaintainthe
originalcuttingangletoensuresharpness(Figure32).
Thebladewillremainbalancedifthesameamount
ofmetalisremovedfrombothcuttingedges.
Figure32
1.Sharpenatoriginalangle
Note:Removethebladesandsharpenthemona
grinder;refertoRemovingtheCuttingBlades.After
sharpeningthecuttingedges,installthebladewith
theanti-scalpcupandbladebolt.Thebladesails
mustbeontopoftheblade.Tightenthebladebolt
to85-110ft-lb(115-149N-m).
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