# Bent Reel - Can it be fixed?



## Cherokee_Bermuda (May 10, 2019)

A big thank you to the builder for the continuous construction debris I find buried in my yard. This is my first season scalping with my McLane 7 blade reel. I was cutting at 7/16 when I heard the ping and the reel stopped. What did I find? A piece of rebar barely poking straight up through the turf. Question for the experts...can this bent reel be fixed. I filed off the burs and the bed knife is good, just the bent reel blade. I can't adjust the alignment and get good contact now.

Thoughts?


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## HarryZoysia (Aug 27, 2019)

Just tap it back in place with a hammer. You may have to take a file and keep it from hitting the bedknife at that spot. You likely will not notice where it is bent unless it's on a greens mower and you're cutting at 3/16"


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## Cherokee_Bermuda (May 10, 2019)

Even the right side of the blade? It looks like it is tilted out of place.


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## HarryZoysia (Aug 27, 2019)

Yep. Give it a shot. You've got nothing to lose at this point. Just take it slow and work your way out the blade, checking for clearance as you go. Absolute worse case is you have to buy a new reel. I think you're a long way from that


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## LawnDaddy (Oct 1, 2019)

I see you're in Woodstock. Take it to Reel Works in Braselton to see what they think...


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## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

Cherokee_Bermuda said:


> A big thank you to the builder for the continuous construction debris I find buried in my yard. This is my first season scalping with my McLane 7 blade reel. I was cutting at 7/16 when I heard the ping and the reel stopped. What did I find? A piece of rebar barely poking straight up through the turf. Question for the experts...can this bent reel be fixed. I filed off the burs and the bed knife is good, just the bent reel blade. I can't adjust the alignment and get good contact now.
> 
> Thoughts?


Sorry this happened to you. However, it is a great cautionary tale. I can't stress enough how important it is to walk your lawn and look for these kinds of objects. Every time it rains, it loosens rocks in my lawn.

I am so scared of this happening to me that I bought a used McLane just to do my scalp this season. Replacing a Baroness reel is not something I want to do. :?


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## MasterMech (Sep 24, 2017)

Cherokee_Bermuda said:


> What did I find? A piece of rebar barely poking straight up through the turf


Survey pin?

I'd go for tapping back straight with a hammer. Get a wood block to use as a dolly behind it. You will likely have a high spot where the bend is so file just that spot down just enough clear the bedknife. If you ar mowing at 3/4"+, you probably won't notice any missed cut.


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## Cherokee_Bermuda (May 10, 2019)

Thanks for the encouragement to beat it with a hammer. I took the advice and was able to get it corrected, at least close to where it should be. There was a slight catch when I adjusted the reel to get good contact but the file took care of it mostly. Now that scalping is complete, I am going to backlap and hopefully be cutting paper again.


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## smurg (May 30, 2018)

TulsaFan said:


> Cherokee_Bermuda said:
> 
> 
> > A big thank you to the builder for the continuous construction debris I find buried in my yard. This is my first season scalping with my McLane 7 blade reel. I was cutting at 7/16 when I heard the ping and the reel stopped. What did I find? A piece of rebar barely poking straight up through the turf. Question for the experts...can this bent reel be fixed. I filed off the burs and the bed knife is good, just the bent reel blade. I can't adjust the alignment and get good contact now.
> ...


I bought a metal detector after I ran over about 20 sod staples. Found maybe 40 more, xacto knife, roofing nails, house wrap nails, etc.

Was a pain in the *** last year, but now it's paying dividends now where I'm not as worried. Now I just have to pick out the mulch that washed out of beds and someones lunch money a kid dropped on his way to the bus stop. I found a few quarters and a nickel one day but should have looked closer. Ended up almost cutting a penny in half during a scalp the next week.


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