Sharpening Cylinder Blades

As for the cleaning, then a cutting cylinder is no different from any other steel component, so you can use anything you would use on steel, wire brush, abrasives etc

However 'sharpening' a cylinder is quite a technical thing, you need to grind the cylinder straight and true, that is, it must be cylindrical around the shaft and not taper to either end. To ensure this, you need to use a machine designed to do this and they are not cheap, you will also need to be trained to use it. Finally, it will be useless to just grind the cylinder, you must also true the bottom blade and you need a specialist machine to do this.

I agree, for the best cutting result it is best to have your cylinder and bottom blade ground perfect, if this is for garden machinery in regular use or for business I can see that the investment is worthwhile. However, the mowers I collect are for my personal collection and most  will probably never be used in the long term. So before any strip down (on working machines) I check how they cut first, adjusting cutting cylinder, and height of cut during testing. If it cuts the grass across all the cylinder without binding or jamming with grass, then for me that is good enough. If the cut is poor or if the mower doesn't work, it's then down to wether the mower is worth the investment for the collection, or if it needs to find a better home. 

If it works well, and is due a refurb, a strip will proceed, the cutting cylinder (if financially viable) will be given to a local company to shotblast, £20. If I'm feeling tight I will use a wire brush, wire wheel in a cordless drill and sand paper to clean, 

Once back or cleaned then it's painted, then I will either run the blade across a bench grinder(risky) or run an angle grinder with a fine flap disc over the cutting edge.as well as the bottom blade. (I have been given a very suspect honing tool that fits into a cordless which I haven't used yet, if I do I will let y'all know if it's rubbish).

It's obviously not the best way to achieve the perfect cut, but I have always been happy with the result.  

If money were no object obviously every cylinder and bottom blade would be reground professionally, but for most of us collecting these machines for visual, or historical purposes then this is not always a viable expense. 

I'm sure there will be members sucking their teeth and tutting at my methods, and to them I apologise, but for me it's a method that works , anyway, it's a lawnmower, not a £1m supercar.

I agree that to grind every cylinder and blade could become an expensive hobby, however if you are not intending to use a machine for mowing then it could be an option to paint the cylinder and blades completely and set the blades with a no contact clearance when reassembled. 

Your methods of cleaning are fine, but depending on the numbers involved and your workshop situation you could investigate chemical cleaners as an option.

Getting just a cylinder sand blasted for £20 sounds a bit expensive, add £10 to that and you "can" get a 17-18 cylinder & bottom blade sharpened and painted..

Inevitably, it comes down to personal choice and the degree of personal effort you wish to put into cleaning and getting your hands dirty.  I have found that I quite enjoy cleaning the blades, but it can be fiddly so the right tools are required.  I will admit that I have no desire, personally, to scrub with wire wool every inch, but overtime developed practices which can give a good professional look, with minimal effort and little monetary outlay.

1.  Quick wash of the cylinder blades in soapy water, oven degreaser and rinse in hot water.

2.  Paint stripper applied, and re-agitated with a brush after about 1 hour to really work it in.  Then wrap in tin foil and leave overnight.  The tin foil retains the fumes which softens the paint and prevents the chemicals in the paint stripper from evaporating. Repeat for any stubborn paint 

3.  Scrub with a small wire brush (pack of 3 costs £1) about the size of a toothbrush available from Wilko (steel, brass and nylon brush set).  30-40 mins work for 12" blades

4.  Soak in white vinegar (not distilled) in a small garden planter for 2 days - bulk vinegar available from Amazon - not expensive and it is reusable even when dirty brown, so don't throw away the cannister.  5-6 litres should be sufficient dependant on the size of the garden planter which must not have holes drilled in the bottom for drainage - they are available but check for this! - Cost £3 and reusable multiple times.

5.  Wash and scrub with a wire brush, remove any rust with emery paper - time about 15-20 mins. Wash in hot water and dry with a cloth immediately.  You will see surface rust forming before your eyes so spray with paint quickly as below

6.  Spray with red oxide paint, taping any threads first - leave paint to dry overnight.  Then spray with grey primer and top coat.  Avoid drips - which looks awful!

I found it works well as a process, removes rust, and gives and even finish to the blades.

Sharpening is done after painting locally by a lawnmower engineer - cost £2-3 per inch.  Bottom blades are honed true, but only if I am going to use the mower.

regards,

Tony

Yes that's pretty much the same steps I take apart from the white vinegar, I'll certainly be grabbing some as many new threads on here have mentioned it,  it's amazing how quickly rust can appear on new bare metal. The place I take the cylinders to be blasted, put a coating on it (apparently used on construction steel) as that's what they specialise in to stop the rust, some sort of galvanising coat with a sparkly grey finish, but it's nice to prime and top coat on.