# Riding mower wont bag



## farmboy (Jun 3, 2013)

I have a craftsman riding mower 19.5 hp, it has the side discharge and bagger feature, but it wont send the grass up the chute and into the hoppers. it doesn't matter what the grass length is it may send a small amount into the totes but not much.
Anyone have a clue what might be wrong ?


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## Padilen (Jun 18, 2013)

Do you have the Hi-lift blades?


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## JimP (Feb 8, 2002)

Padilen said:


> Do you have the Hi-lift blades?


It's kind of a dumb observation to make, but:

A neighbor bought a cheapo mower from Walmart years ago...wouldn't discharge for shet. It was store assembled, 
The blades were upside down to the motor rotation...cutting with the back of the blade and no vacuum upwards.

Without the bag, and the safety deflector disengaged, grass and debris should fly out the chute a long way.


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## farmboy (Jun 3, 2013)

Thank you for your input, after looking at the blades and looking on e-bay at what the blades should look like, I found they are just standard blades.
Again I thank you


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## Padilen (Jun 18, 2013)

Glad to be of help. Now go mow!


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## Burksee (Jan 15, 2003)

Even with "standard" blades you should still get a decent amount of discharge. I'm inclined to agree with jimp and suggest you check the rotation of the blades against how they are mounted to make sure they're on and going the right way.


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## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

I had a commercial lawn service, with Dixie Choppers for mowers. We had one unit that had a "bagger," for clients who wanted their clippings caught. Ours was called a Trac Vac, and it had a separate engine that ran the fan that sucked the clippings up, and shot them back into the catch barrels on the back of the machine. Our Dixie were bad-to-the-bone machines, and they wouldn't have propelled the clippings to the catch barrels without the Trac Vac. 

Question: What kind of soil do you have, and why do you need to catch your clippings? I found that using mulching blades on a powerful mower is usually a great option, and avoids having to dispose of clippings. *If you have real dense soil, then catching your clippings might make a lot of sense.* If you have fairly loose soil, then get some Gator Blades, keep them sharp, and forget about catching the clippings. If you just mulch them, you will save on fertilizer, too. Clay soil? Fagetaboutit.


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## Sasquatch Lives (May 23, 2011)

The bag should allow air to flow through it allowing the grass to fly in and be contained. Make sure the netting isn't all plugged up with dirt or debris.


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## Sling (Aug 2, 2005)

is there a mulch plug ?


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## WALLEYE MIKE (Jan 7, 2001)

Fishndude said:


> I had a commercial lawn service, with Dixie Choppers for mowers. We had one unit that had a "bagger," for clients who wanted their clippings caught. Ours was called a Trac Vac, and it had a separate engine that ran the fan that sucked the clippings up, and shot them back into the catch barrels on the back of the machine. Our Dixie were bad-to-the-bone machines, and they wouldn't have propelled the clippings to the catch barrels without the Trac Vac.
> 
> Question: What kind of soil do you have, and why do you need to catch your clippings? I found that using mulching blades on a powerful mower is usually a great option, and avoids having to dispose of clippings. *If you have real dense soil, then catching your clippings might make a lot of sense.* If you have fairly loose soil, then get some Gator Blades, keep them sharp, and forget about catching the clippings. If you just mulch them, you will save on fertilizer, too. Clay soil? Fagetaboutit.


Yup, grass clippings contain 1-2% nitrogen. Free fertilizer everytime you mow. Just make sure your not cutting 6" of grass down to 3" in one cutting.


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## caseyj (Apr 8, 2001)

I've never owned your type of mower as I still use my IH Cub Cadet for (40 yrs old) this purpose. But I have observed my neighbors with the type you describe and they all seemed to run their mowers at a very high speed. Almost to the point of throwing a rod. Perhaps they are made for this but it sure puts a damper on my watching the box.

I asked my neighbor about this and he said that it was necessary in order to get the clippings up into the bags. As far as the blades, they should have a flange on them that should be pointing in the up position. This creates a suction of sorts and forces the clippings out the shoot. 

Try running your mower without the bag attachment to see if it throws the clipping off to the side. If it does then the problem is in the bag assembly. If not, then go back to observing the balde movement. Also check to see what RPM's you need to run at in order to accomplish the above. Good luck!


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## WALLEYE MIKE (Jan 7, 2001)

caseyj said:


> I've never owned your type of mower as I still use my IH Cub Cadet for (40 yrs old) this purpose. But I have observed my neighbors with the type you describe and they all seemed to run their mowers at a very high speed. Almost to the point of throwing a rod. Perhaps they are made for this but it sure puts a damper on my watching the box.
> 
> I asked my neighbor about this and he said that it was necessary in order to get the clippings up into the bags. As far as the blades, they should have a flange on them that should be pointing in the up position. This creates a suction of sorts and forces the clippings out the shoot.
> 
> Try running your mower without the bag attachment to see if it throws the clipping off to the side. If it does then the problem is in the bag assembly. If not, then go back to observing the balde movement. Also check to see what RPM's you need to run at in order to accomplish the above. Good luck!


3600 RPM's are what most if not all engines are set for.


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## Madduck98 (Apr 16, 2006)

I have the same mower & nagger set up. The only problem I have is if the grass is too wet it will quickly plug the chute. If the grass it too long it tends to clog up also. Good way to check is to separate the plastic tube and start the blades, should be a good amount of air flow thru the tube. I bag my clippings due to heavy clay soil. 


Posted using Outdoor Hub Campfire


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## FERG 06 (Oct 6, 2006)

All good suggestions.
Lift fins up, Hi lift blades, make sure there're not on upside down and one more I didn't see. Clear out any accumilation of grass under the deck so it can flow freely. It's been a rainy year. Grass is wet. Clogs up easier.


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## sparkville (Apr 20, 2006)

Similar set up. Book says to warm up and also cut at full throttle. 42" with mulch blades and double hard plastic bins. Works like a charm.
Definitely clean out under deck and chute. Use scraper/brush to clean.
Make sure blades are installed correctly.


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## moodman (Feb 23, 2005)

When my mower won't pick up the grass, It's time to replace the blades. There's a fin on the blade that wears out & It won't create a vacuum without that.


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