Mower blade shootout. OEM vs Gator Blades, which are better?

It's time for new blades on your mower. Are aftermarket blades like the Gator Blades we tested worth it?

[denniseft]

Pretty sure if you drop her down below 75 mph, you will find a better cut.. to fast of ground speed.

[spyder]

I run the gator blades in the fall to better mulch up the leaves from our maple tree and it mulches up the walnut fruit ankle twisters. You have to slow down and give the deck time to handle its business. In the summer months its standard blades. I sharpen each set when swapping so I'm always ready for next season.

[GDyer-clfl]

3” is a good height for lawns. Most people cut too short. 31/4 or 31/2 even better. Grass will withstand dry times better & tends to smother out weeds

[joegeorgia]

Proffesional lawn jockey here. Most OEM blades are designed to lift and cut. For side discharge decks you want the "high" lift blades. They will cut a longer piece but will throw the clippings farther. Rear discharge decks the gator blades do better.

[stephenoffiler]

So many variables! It must be great fun to be a mower deck engineer. I've run Gator on my 48" 25HP Gravely zero-turn, and wasn't impressed. Length of grass, moisture, time of year (for those of us with a variety of grasses and some other stuff growing in our lawns, some parts of the year mow different than others). I keep coming back to OEM, which seems to provide the best consistency as those variables change, so the engineers did their job well.

[mikerossman]

I found that the gator blades work well in a sandy yard where they don’t “lift” the sand and make the dust cloud as bad as the OEM blades with the singular fin.

[arizflash]

I've been running Gator blades on my Gt48DXLS with a mulch plug for 6 years. I mulch my maple leave in the fall and bag. They work as well for bagging as the high lift blades. Mulching the green grass saves from putting down mid-summer fertilizer. I bought the G-5 Gator blades last summer and they are still sharp they have a harder steel than the G-3 which I was using.

[Andrew-fggw]

Running an FDR1660, the landpride high-lift blades give a great cut, but I've found the clippings from the gator blades are finer and "disappear" into the lawn a bit better. When mowing wet/heavy grass you definitely notice a difference in the power the gator blades require.

[johndavis]

Good lord you’re not in a race I’m surprised it cut anything that bouncing around is your entire problem 😮

[KubotaL]

Many variables when comparing blade performance. My preference is Gator Blades all season on my Kubota ZD mowers. They give a good cut, mulch leaves in the fall well, and are very durable. I sharpen them about every 40 hours, and my last set were replaced after 700 hours.

[henrymorgan]

Blade speed is what it is all about. Like a propeller.

[thebradleysoncatbirdhill]

Nice comparison, Neill!!!
I've heard about gator blades from a lot of folks, but this certainly answers the questions I had.
I'm sticking with OEM!

[markgardiner]

I had 1 pair of the Gator blades that would occasionally tick while running. Other than that no problem. I use them on a Kubota 2200 54” which very seldom bogs under any mowing load.

[windzer]

I run gatorblades in the fall for mulching leaves and it does an awesome job but I run oem highlift blades all summer on my deere they seem to shoot the clippings farther and scatters them better less clumping that way

[cujo]

I'm surprised that you stated that engine HP was an issue with the Gator blades, since you stated your mower has a 40HP engine!

[Bentwrench]

What another person has already said. Slow down.
Just because a mower is advertised to run 10 or 12 mph, doesn’t mean you’re going to leave a good cut. You look like a bouncing ball and your deck is doing the same.
I’m also guessing that the suspension on that mower is slightly over loaded. And when you’re in the large open areas raise the chute.

[adamedwards]

Video request: for the L02 series gear driven tractors, there seems to be a few different types of PTO drive systems and clutches in use (according to the spec sheet). I can't find any info about this. I'd love to see a video explaining each of those.

[janking]

Three inches long? I keep mine at four inches and it’s always thick and healthy, even in the current SE PA heat. OEM Blades on BS 23s tractor.

[RobertBrothersJr-dcnr]

Great comparison Neil. As I expected the majority of the time OEM is better. Good learning experience for me . Thanks

[bigsway]

How about a one and a half year review of that mower. What are your thoughts on the noise and the dust in the cab?