@ TRIPLEPLAY. I have the same Tru-Cut as you I believe. There is no way you should have had to have your reel ground already. I'm going to give you a tip that goes against everything you've probably read about reel-bedkife clearance. I have been using reel mowers for many years, but did not learn how to "really" use them until I started cutting fairways at a golf course. We grind our own reels here when needed and reel grindings are very few and far between. When you adjust your reel to your bedknife on your Tru-Cut, forget everything you've ever heard about 100th of an inch clearance, 2 strips of paper or anything else. Adjust the blade so it is MAKING CONTACT with the bed knife. Not alot, just enough so that it requires firm pressure from ONE finger to turn the reel. You will achieve a very uniform metal to metal sound. The constant contact between the reel and bedknife keeps a sharp edge on both surfaces and keeps them mated together properly. If there is any kind of clearance between the two, the edges of both will become "rolled over" or worse, nicked by debris. Re-adjust your reel when the noise is no longer present. Should be almost an entire season before you need to adjust. Just remember No Noise....Bad Loud Noise...Bad Slight Noise....Good. This also eliminates backlapping. The only reason you should ever have to grind a reel is if it is streaking, or you hit something. Trust me on this. I've been cutting Fairways eight hours a day for the last three years. That's alot of mowing. This method works.

We actually do get above 100* for a few weeks out of the year. I plan on stopping by a couple of the properties that are currently using the reel mowers and asking a few questions. I do know that they have a hybrid kentucky blue grass just like mine. I believe from the same sod farm. And they are seeing great success. Although I don't plan on keeping mine quite so short. I'll go for at least 1 1/2" to better tolerate the summer heat.

Roger, You don't need to remove the reel to backlap your machine. Backlapping involves using a grit paste to remove the last couple of .001's high spots to get the reel closer to the bedknife. I wrote these directions on a previous post: "If you are starting with a new machine, with properly sharpened and set up reel and bed knife, you should be good for two seasons before you need a back lapping. If you have sandy soil, you might need to back lap annually. You should then be able to get at least two or three back lappings before you need a full blown sharpening. Sharpening has to be down by a professional, preferably using a relief grind, not the less expensive spin grind. After such a sharpening, the shop will then back lap reel to bedknife to dial in the last couple of thousands, and then adjust reel to bedknife for final set. As a homeowner you can adjust the reel to the bednkife and you can also backlap the machine your self. All mowers have some kind of adjustment to move the reel relative to the bedknife. Professional machines like Trimmer and Tru-Cut have the reel bearings in eccentric holders, which you rotate to cam the reel closer or further. Less expensive machines either move the reel or the bedknife relative to one another, with a simpler mechanism. The goal is a scissor type action, while not actually having metal-to-metal contact. It takes a fair amount of time, and the reel is set by using a number of strips of paper to see that the ree-bedknife is cutting cleanly on each blade, and at several points across the blade. With a seven-blade reel, you will be testing with strips of paper thirty five or more times. Back lapping is done using a grit paste (like Clover Compound) to gently grind or burnish the high spots between reel and bed knife. The reel is rotated in reverse direction, and continually adjusted to get a pencil line of contact across the full width of every blade. When you are done, you have to carefully clean all compound, and then set the reel to bedknife as described above. There are power back-lapping machines or sprocket arrangements, but I don't recommend. They can easily gall the reel and bedknife, if you don't know what you're doing, and at very least tend to remove more metal than necessary. I suggest you get a bell crank, or at least use a large pair of vise-grips to manually rotate the reel. If you damage the reel and beknife with power back lapping, you could be looking at a new $400 reel and $200 bedknife." A professional can do a backlapping and reset the reel in 60 to 90 minutes. Figure 2 to 3 hours yourself as a shade tree mechanic.

Well 3-4 applications of round up was the best I could do...since I was planning on continuing with Bermuda anyways it wasn't a huge deal. I figured I would have some come back but obviously wasn't concerned with that. On the other hand, I may be in the market for a more efficient way if I go the fescue route....