Why Sharp and How To Make It Happen
It’s that time of year again when those who are fortunate enough to be in a northern seasonal climate are able to take some R&R, but also have time to service all of our equipment. A big part of Reliable’s winter maintenance program is reel grinding. We send over 220 of our own reels through our Madison shop each winter and many more reels that we service for other courses.
To maintain sharpness throughout the season, you need to start out with a properly sharpened and squared reel. You also need to make sure that the bearings are good and rollers are preforming up to spec. Having a dull cut can do more damage than you may know. Dull reels will rip and tear the turf instead of providing a clean cut. Poorly cut turf will have a brown appearance from the side as you are looking across the torn leaf tips, but look green when viewing straight down. Upon first glance many turf managers may think there is another issue such as drought. Torn leaf blades also leave the plant more susceptible to disease since the wound doesn’t heal as cleanly or quickly as with a sharp cut.
Over the course of the year reels that are not greased regularly may require new bearings and depending on adjustment and maintenance practices reels can develop cone. Reels hit during operation it may have been knocked out of square. Many small issues can lead to major appearance of cut problems in the field. At Reliable, be believe that we have been successful at mitigating many mid-season issues with proper winter reel inspection and grinding practices.
So how is a reel properly ground?
After bearings have been checked and the reel has been greased it needs to be properly set up on the grinder. Measurements of each reel across the width of the reel blades tell us whether or not there is cone. It is important to get the reel back to square each winter or you will just continue to accentuate the amount of cone. It is almost impossible to achieve a clean cut with a severely coned reel because the bedknife can’t bend to match up for an even spacing along the reel blades.
Proper grinding angles for bedknifes and reels are also important to ensure a quality cut. Each manufacturer has their own specifications and it is important to consult their specs. Reels should be ground with the grinding stone hitting the back edge of each blade first and grinding forward to create a point on the leading edge. During the grinding process it’s important not to grind too hard, taking off too much metal at once and heating up a reel or bedknife. When the metal heats up, it will warp and bend and not produce a straight grind. Once a reel and bedknife are ground, there should be little to no contact required to cut paper.
Relief grinding is the act of taking off material at an angle behind the cutting edge. When a cutting edge is wide, especially in the case of fairway and larger diameter reels, the material behind the cutting edge can wear away the bedknife faster which will not hold up for a season without a mid season grind. Blades with proper relief of the backside of the blade will hold their cut better and last longer without work during the season.
Finally each reel is put on a squaring table to make sure each roller is parallel with the bedknife and the reel is ‘square’. Spending time checking over your reels can make a bid difference. A unit that is properly set up and ground can produce a smoother cut and higher green speeds versus a unit that is leaving behind stringers.
Want to have our technicians service your reels? Please consult our webpage for more information at www.reliablegolfservices.com and contact us!