The Old Lawnmower Club
Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers
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Better price for 18" Hayter blade?

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bugbear Mon, 30/05/2022

I keep 2 blades for my Hunter 46 mower (one in use, one being sharpened).

One of them is near to worn out, so I went on line for a replacement. I was surprised to discover that a 41cm/16" blade is £25 (Amazon price) and a 48cm/19" is £24 (Amazon price), but the 46cm/18" I need is (cheapest price I can find) £35, and can go as high as £68.

I think this is because the Hunter 46 is a long dead model, and the modern Hayter 46 (Osprey) is a mulching mower, using a different blade.

Whilst this is unpleasantly expensive for the moment (£35 for a fairly simple metal bar is a bit much) it implies that in the longer term the blade won't be available at all, leaving me with a useless mower. This is a shame, since due to massive stupidity 3 years ago, I ran it out of oil, seizing the engine, and had the local engine fit a new short block, and do a full overhaul while he was about it.

All suggestions welcomed.

Forums

bugbear Mon, 30/05/2022

I have tried and failed to edit my post; here's my addition as a comment:

EDIT; a quick search show other makers (Qualcast, Mountfield, Stiga) do 18" blades at around £15!
 

wristpin Mon, 30/05/2022

320019 ?  List price of the genuine is £31.12 + vat. Central Spares don’t list one and Garden Hire Spares site not responding. Looks like your theory may well be correct - not enough demand for a pattern manufacturer to justify.

Edit GHS showing one for £28.38 + vat

bugbear Fri, 03/06/2022

Further to this, I also need a new blade bolt - the head of mine is getting a bit rounded.

A "proper" Hayter #09121 part (3/8 UNF x 2" grade 5) is about 4-5 quid.

Or I can get grade 8 (high tensile) from an engineering fastener supplier for 61p. Grade 5 is 51p.

Any reason not to get the superior grade 8, which is clearly affordable?

I'll get a 5 pack while I'm ordering.

wristpin Sat, 04/06/2022

Any reason not to get the superior grade 8, which is clearly affordable?

The decision not to use a manufacturer’s safely critical part HAS to be yours.

bugbear Sun, 05/06/2022

"The decision not to use a manufacturer’s safely critical part HAS to be yours."

Indeed. But I know that the original bolt is grade 5, and my thinking is that this is a minimum spec, and that upgrading (because I can) could only make things better.

But I wasn't sure, so I asked for advice from those more knowledgeable. It may be my decision, but gathering information before making a decision seems the path of wisdom.

villiers98 Sun, 05/06/2022

This is the way blades will go. Buy a couple whilst available. 2 local mower dealers have packed up in the lst month