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snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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Posted by andyb1 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 8, 09 at 15:24
| Hi i was using my 21 in hi vac lawnmower to mulch some leaves ,mower has a new gator on it and mower seams to blow the leaves away from the deck instead of sucking them under and into the deck, tried different height setting ,nothing seams to work,my neighbor has a new sr4 and it seam to suck the grass and leaves rite into the deck ,why ? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Gators do modify the airflow in ways the standard high lifts don't. Maybe that is the culprit. W/ some Hi Vac Snappers, they have an add on lift for the blade which will make hair stand up in China, provided you have the horsepower to run the blade. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Did you have the problem before installing the high lift gator blade? |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Yes i have always had this problem when mulching ,had a ninja, tried a double wave now the gator, cant figure it out ,dealer says these are used mostly for bagging. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| If the bag itself is not clean and breathable, that will also affect the airflow. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| not bagging just mulching ,deck is always clean ,why is the toro so much better ,if the toro was made better maybe i would switch, but it doesn't look like it would last like the snappers. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| mow in a square pattern always turning left. it even says this in the owners manual. i use snappers commercialy for leaves using a gator. there is nothing better |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Your mower deck has the bottom edge curved under the deck, and not flared outward - right? Otherwise, as long as the chute is empty, and the bag has good air flow it should suck the dirt right off the ground. Not to be insulting, but a question that should be asked - is the blade on correctly, and not upside down? That sounds like what is happening since so much air & grass is being blown away from the deck. If you view the blade from above through the opening where the chute goes, the sharp edge should be turning towards you as you slowly pull the cord. Just a thought. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Yes this is the hi vac deck ,the blade is on correct, and i'm mulching not bagging,but the mower is acting like the blade is on wrong,but it's not snapper blades fit on a the hub a certain way.I've many snapper hi vacs and they all have done this,i thought all mowers did this until i tried the toro sr4,i wish the toro was built like the snapper , I would buy it today!Any other thoughts. thanks |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Sorry, I mis-read what you were having trouble with when I 1st replied. I just bought a commercial Honda earlier this year, and while shopping around, I seriously considered the Snapper hi-vac. I've never owned a Snapper, but asked a lot of questions about them. I was told that I wouldn't get as good performance using the hi-vac as a mulcher, even though they sell the Ninja blade for it. Because the mulching blade isn't designed to "vacuum" it won't draw grass or leaves up the way the hi lift blades do, but instead keep them circulating under the deck. That along with the bottom lip being turned inward could be causing the airflow problem you're having. Are you able to still lower the wheels a notch or 2 without scalping the grass? I was told by a Honda rep to do that to improve cutting/mulching with a problem I'm having. Also, if the leaves are thick, it may be more than the deck can handle, and they're just being pushed back out. Does it do well in the bagging/vac mode? Just curious, which engine do you have? Either the Briggs 8.75 or the Kawi should do well for you. Sorry you're having trouble. That's about all I can think of. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Thanks for getting back with me i do have the briggs engine and it works great,i'm just not getting the result i like,i usually cut at 2.5 in but at 2in for leave mulching.I have an older snapper that i sometimes bag the rough stuff with and it has the hi lift blade with the wings and it bags great,tried to put the mulch plug on with that blade ,still blows the grass & leaves away from the deck,is the toro just that much better designed ? |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| I haven't owned a Toro for MANY years, although judging from a lot of the posts here, most of the folks really like them. I have nothing against them, I just haven't looked at them much. From what I've read about the Snappers, it sounds like for many, the bagger version bags better than it mulches. Another possibility is grass that gets too tall, can also cause problems. The deck stays full of grass which prevents the blade from cutting it up as it should, and instead either clumps or blows it back out. When I was looking at the Snappers, I asked whether the mulch deck converted to a better bagger, or the the hi vac deck converted to a better mulcher. Two different dealers told me that each deck is "purpose built", and in spite of the conversion pieces that come with the mowers, you will lose performance when its used in a different mode. That is what kind of steered me away from them, as I needed a mower that could do both well. Mowing with the hi lift blade and the mulch plug in will give you poor results. The hi lift blade - especially with wings installed is like a fan, and creates a lot of turbulence. When the plug is installed, there's no where for the air to go but back out from under the deck, carrying the grass & leaves with it. Definitely use the Ninja, or a blade designed as a mulcher. The Gator blades also have a fair amount of lift, and may be too much for Snapper's deck design in mulch mode. The only other option I can think of is to take it to a Snapper dealer to see if they can come up with a remedy, or at least a suggestion. Good luck and let us know how it goes. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| the prob is the wings are not for mulching. gator blade is the best for leaves -trust me i do this for a living. wings are for bagging only. ninja is foe mulching GRASS not leaves. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Well guys i took the mower to the dealer yesterday and showed them the problem , i was told that snappers in mulch mode do that because the shape of the deck was designed to side discharge and to bag ,mulching was kind of a after thought,they don't have enough air volume under the deck, like a mulch only mower. WOW wish they told me this before i gave them 700.00.I tried out a steel deck toro that was there for service what a difference,and this thing barly ran and and lookd like it was on its last leg,and that machine worked better than the snapper.Very confused. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| Wow - I never heard that. Kinda sounds like it was an after thought for the dealer to mention it to you too. I wonder how well their mulch deck does that has the bottom lip flared outwards. My dealer told me they don't bag well. How long have you had it? Any chance of an exchange, or decent trade? That's a shame. Yes, everybody seems to love the Toros for mulching. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| I tried the mulch deck when i was there,it did the same thing ,also the mulch deck seams to have alot of flexing.In the spring i'm thinking of trading for a toro sr4.Do they stay together like a snapper i also have a snapper thats 20 plus years old and everything still works,wheels arn't falling off the adjusters still adjust transmission still works great. |
RE: snappers blow grass @ leaves away from deck.
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| My '06 Snapper Hi-Vac RER does a beautiful job of mulching with a sharpened Ninja blade! My wife was skeptical when I bought it used, but even delegated me to mulch our neighbors leaves because it does such a great job. |
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