Lawn Mower Blade Spinning But Not Cutting? Find Out!

If you are a gardening person, you would like to take lawn care yourself, and you might trim it on weekends now; if you want to cut down or trim your lawn grass, the lawn mower blade spins, but it does not cut the grass.

There are various reasons for the blade not working and cutting the grass. Are you wondering why the mower blade suddenly stops cutting?

The problem is in the blade, maybe it needs to be fixed or installed correctly the last time you took it out, or there might be a problem with the engine.

The reason can be anything that is why your mower blade is not cutting. Don’t worry; we will discuss all the reasons and solutions for your problem with our mower blade.

Lawn Mower Blade Spinning But Not Cutting- Quick Solution

Your lawn mower blades might be causing the issue of no cutting while blades still spin, and for that, the most common reason includes; blunted blades or the blades aren’t sharp enough for the task, damaged or worn-out tires causing the blades not to cut the grass, and lastly engine might not be fast enough to let blades cut the grass.

It might be because sometimes the engine fails to provide an appropriate amount of energy to the blades so the blades won’t move fast enough. Try considering each problem and go with a fix.

Sharpening or replacing blades can help you solve the issue and consider more fixes. Check out the query-solving guide to know more about each problem with a fix!

Reasons Why The Lawn Mower Blade Spinning But Not Cutting

Before looking for the solution, you must discover why your lawn mower blade is spinning but not cutting.

Here is a list of reasons that might be the cause of your lawn mower blade situation:

1. The blade is not sharp enough

The lawn mower blades will become rusty and dull over time if you use them frequently, and it is a common reason that your mower blade is moving at its usual speed but not cutting grass.

Mowing grass gets complicated if the mower’s blades are not sharp enough, and if you still want to cut grass with the same blade, your lawn will look far worse than before.

Therefore, it would be best to wait to cut your grass until you fix the problem and the blade works sharply again.

2. Tires might be damaged.

If any one or more than one tire is damaged, the whole mower balance will get tilted, and now two things will happen: the blades won’t cut the grass, or they might cut it unevenly.

If you use a push type of mower, it will get extra difficult for you to move the mower with a damaged tire, and if there is an automatic mower with an engine inside it, then it will have to work double to get the mower moved. 

3. The engine could be faster.

If the blades are fine and the tires are not damaged, then what if the engine of your mower is not working? It might be because sometimes the engine fails to provide appropriate energy so the blades won’t move fast enough.

If the blades are not moving at full speed, they won’t cut down the grass consistently.

Your engine is not working because you need to pay attention to the mowing speed while cutting thick, rough, and tall patches of grass.

The engine won’t be able to provide optimum energy to the blades to cut through the tall grass, and therefore, your blade is only spinning and not cutting grass.

A Detailed Guide To Fixing A Lawn Mower Blade Spinning But Not Cutting

We have mentioned a few reasons why your lawn mower blade is spinning but not cutting the grass. Let’s try to fix it now with the solution that we are going to discuss now:

Replace damaged blade

If the blade is damaged, you need to fix it, which means you need to change it; otherwise, there is no other way to fix it.

Once the blade is broken, you can’t fix it by bending it or any other way. Try to replace it with a new one to ensure you cut your grass efficiently and clearly.

Check out a step-by-step guide to replacing the defective/ broken blade:

• If you have an electric mower, turn off the engine take out the keys, and take out the battery.
• As you tilt the mower upside down to change the blade, first check the carburetor to check the oil compartment and the fuel to ensure no spillage has taken place.
• Tilt the mower securely. Once done, remove the blade bolts with a socket wrench.
• Place the bolts at a secure site. Securely remove the damaged blade and replace it with a recently purchased one from the store.
• After replacing the blade and before securing the bolts back, you must double-check whether everything is in its perfect place because otherwise, if you don’t install the blades right, then they won’t cut the grass with perfection.
• Tighten the bolts and check the mower blades to check the cutting efficiency.
• Ne blades work great!

Fix the tire problem.

If the mower blade is spinning but not cutting the grass, you need to top it, park it, and check whether all the tires are on the same level.

If any of them seems on a different level, then you might have found the problem, which is why the blade is not working on the grass.

Take a pressure gauge and inspect the site to ensure the air pressure in the mower tires. Any variation or wrong pressure leads to problems, so fix them accordingly.

If the air pressure is acceptable, then there might be a damaged tire that is not letting the mower blade cut the grass evenly.

It is common for the mower tires to get damaged; therefore, you must remove complex objects like rocks, debris, and stones from the lawn so the tires don’t get damaged.

If the tire is damaged and there is no other way to fix it, you must replace it with a new one. Otherwise, your mower won’t work correctly, and the blade won’t be able to cut the grass.

Sharpen the blade

The blade may not be sharp enough to cut the grass, spinning at its usual speed, but you may not see any results. So here is a step-by-step guide to sharpening your mower blade:

• You must take precautionary measures, wear thick rubber gloves, turn the mower engine, and take out the keys.
• Now unscrew the screws that attach the blades to the mower and remove the blades. If you don’t want to remove the blades, you can sharpen them while they are attached to the mower.
• Now you have two options: use an electric angle machine or sharpening stones to start sharpening the blades.
• While sharpening the blades, keep the angle stones at a 45-degree angle approximately so you can sharpen the edges carefully. Be careful while doing this task, and ensure that both edges of the blade are equally cut to keep it balanced.
• Once the blades are sharpened, opt for the blade using a soap solution.
• Finally, dry the blades securely using a paper towel or dry cloth.

Clean mower deck

After mowing the grass, you must clean the mower deck because keeping the debris inside might clog soon, and the blades will stop moving at the perfect speed.

Before cleaning the mower deck, ensure the engine has been turned off for your safety.

It seems pivotal to take the keys out and clean the deck. If not regularly, you must do the maintenance work after a week or two, depending on how often you cut the grass.

The Final Word

If you want to keep your lawn maintained, then it is necessary to keep a mower with sharp blades that will cut the grass evenly.

If the lawn mower blade is spinning but not cutting the grass, that means the blade has become old and dull, or there is something wrong with the mower.

We have mentioned the reasons that might be the case with your mower blades because sometimes the blades get damaged, or there might be a problem in the pulley system or the mower belt.

Another possibility is that the grass might be wet or the debris has clogged the mower deck. Once you find the problem, you will be able to fix it, so give your mower a thorough check to find the problem, then you will be able to fix it.

While you are fixing the problem, it is necessary to take precautionary measures to save yourself from getting injured.