# 8 vs 11 Blade Reel



## BrainBailey (Nov 20, 2019)

I have a JD 180B and have been mowing at 5/8 all season. I'm happy I made the leap and absolutely love reel mowing. Now that I've made the plunge, I'm wondering how much difference switching to an 8 blade reel will make. I notice the 11 Blade leaves the lawn looking a bit shaggy and needs to be gone over multiple times. Anybody have some insight how much difference an 8 blade setup will make? I appreciate this will require me to buy a new mower.


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## FrankS (Jun 19, 2021)

I'd sure like to have someone check me on this, but I think that using the number of blades is the wrong way to think about this. I think that is better to look at the number of cuts per unit traveled. For example: Take an 8 blade reel and spin it twice as fast. Didn't you just end up with the equivalent of a 16 blade reel?


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## jochoada (May 26, 2021)

Agreed with the above but unless you have a variable setting for clip rate an 8 blade will allow for a better cut at higher lengths. I have a 5 blade (manual)and a 14 blade (Toro flex)and cutting at 0.6 both cut well but the 5 blade catches Bermuda seed heads that the 14 just can't... even with multiple.passes.

I think the reel can be replaced in the JD mowers just like Toro etc..


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## Stuofsci02 (Sep 9, 2018)

I changed my Toro from an 11 to an 8 last year.. Night and day difference at the 5/8 - 1" HOC... I can now get amazing cut quality with a single pass... I still do two, but that is for different reasons


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## BrainBailey (Nov 20, 2019)

Stuofsci02 said:


> I changed my Toro from an 11 to an 8 last year.. Night and day difference at the 5/8 - 1" HOC... I can now get amazing cut quality with a single pass... I still do two, but that is for different reasons


I essentially have to do 3-4 to get a really crisp looking final product. Thinking about switching to a GM 1000 series with the high HOC clip kit for this very reason. Love mowing, but sometimes 4 passes just isn't in the cards.


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## Guest (Jul 15, 2021)

Try the GM1000 with the 8 blade reel big difference in the 5/8- 1" HOC


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## Cdub5_ (Jun 12, 2019)

8 blade should be what most people use. If you are mowing very, very low this is when the higher number of blades shine.


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## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

According to Toro...

"An 8-blade reel is typically recommended for a height of cut equal to or greater than .500 inches (12.7 mm), and an 11-blade reel is typically recommended for a height of cut between .250 and .750 inches (6.3 mm to 19 mm). For heights of cut that fall where these two recommendations overlap, use the mow speed as a guide. For optimal clip at slower-than-average mow speeds, an 8-blade reel is recommended, whereas an 11-blade reel is recommended for faster-than-average mow speeds."

For me, an 11 blade reel works just fine on my zoysia at 0.5". However, my Baroness allows me to change from a high/low clip rate with the repositioning of a lever.

If it takes four cuts to have your lawn look good, I would suggest that you smooth your lawn with sand. A lower blade reel isn't going to fix extreme undulations.


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## BrainBailey (Nov 20, 2019)

TulsaFan said:


> According to Toro...
> 
> "An 8-blade reel is typically recommended for a height of cut equal to or greater than .500 inches (12.7 mm), and an 11-blade reel is typically recommended for a height of cut between .250 and .750 inches (6.3 mm to 19 mm). For heights of cut that fall where these two recommendations overlap, use the mow speed as a guide. For optimal clip at slower-than-average mow speeds, an 8-blade reel is recommended, whereas an 11-blade reel is recommended for faster-than-average mow speeds."
> 
> ...


Thanks for the good reference. My lawn is very smooth - leveled extensively last fall. The 4 cuts was in reference to 2 passes at 2 different approaches. This is what I've found is needed to get all the stragglers that the mower just doesn't seem to grab each time.

I think the note about mowing speed is the most valuable portion of that reference, and I'm very likely cutting at the lower end of the speed spectrum.


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## TheCutShop (Jun 24, 2021)

TulsaFan said:


> According to Toro...
> 
> "An 8-blade reel is typically recommended for a height of cut equal to or greater than .500 inches (12.7 mm), and an 11-blade reel is typically recommended for a height of cut between .250 and .750 inches (6.3 mm to 19 mm). For heights of cut that fall where these two recommendations overlap, use the mow speed as a guide. For optimal clip at slower-than-average mow speeds, an 8-blade reel is recommended, whereas an 11-blade reel is recommended for faster-than-average mow speeds."
> 
> ...


Where did you read that 11 blade is .25-.75 for a greensmaster? I think you might have read that about a triplex where the clip rate is variable by adjusting the speed of the reels via hydraulics.

For a Greensmaster where the clip rate is only changed by number of blades or a clip kit. Rpm will only increase the frequency of cuts(faster walking pace.)

An 11 bade is always going to have an ideal clip rate for shorter grass than an 8 blade on a Greensmaster.


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## Boy_meets_lawn (Sep 27, 2020)

The less blades on the reel, the more grass that can fit and get cut in one pass. Ideally foc=hoc but thats not always achievable depending on your mower. I'd always choose a lower blade count reel regardless of clip rate for residential turf.


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## BrainBailey (Nov 20, 2019)

As an update, I mowed again yesterday but made sure to keep the speed up on the mower. It was quite a bit more rushed than my normal pace, but it did make a noticeable difference. The lawn looked a lot more crisp after 2 passes, so thinking this will be my approach until I move into a different mower. Now I just need to buy some running shoes to chase the mower. :lol:


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