Premium Bedknives and Reels

Reels and bedknives

Premium Bedknives Specifications

Hardness Rockwell C Scale 47

Note: Hardness is not a critical concern. Granted, if too soft the wear rate would be too fast and if too hard or brittle, cracking and breaking could occur. Most manufacturers have a Rockwell hardness of between 40 and 50 on bedknives. The feature we achieve with the type of material used is abrasive resistance. One must keep in mind that a bedknife will be operated against a reel having up to 14 blades. The bedknife must be capable of resisting excessive wear against such abuse. But at the same time if a destructive object is encountered, it should be the bedknife that is damaged and not the reel. Replacing a bedknife is obviously much easier than replacing a reel with a replacement cost of 10 to 20 percent less than replacing a reel.
Material High carbon content, spring type steel with chrome/nickel alloys. Polished finish.
Thickness Raw material 3mm
Effective Cutting Height Locke thin bedknife: 0.082
Locke super thin bedknife: 0.072
Locke tournament bedkife: 0.045
Straightness The ASI standard allowance for camber is 8 in a 40 ft. length of steel. The material used in the Locke premium knives is guaranteed to be no more than one-eight inch. Keep in mind we use only a 19 inch to 22inch piece of the full-length material. Any bend or bow along the cutting edge would be practically undetectable.
Thickness In order to ensure consistence cutting heights when mowing to .100 inch or below, it is crucial that the bedknife is perfect in thickness. The material used may be checked at any point and found not to be more than .001 from 3mm thick.
Hardness As mentioned earlier hardness is not the real feature. However, consistency of hardness is critical in order to maintain an even and straight wear pattern. Checked any place along the bedknife, front to rear, end to end, the hardness will not vary over 1 point Rockwell. Compare this feature to manufacturers that only heat-treat the cutting edge, which could result in varying hardness along the edge, and may cause uneven wear. This again is critical when mowing at tournament heights.

Premium Reels Specifications

Hardness Rockwell C Scale 40
Material Regarded as some of the "purest" steel in the world. Produced in Sheffield, England. Similar to car springs material, specially formed and rolled to Locke's unique specifications and exacting standards.
Manufacturing Process All forming, bending, and helixing is performed at the Locke facility. Several steps incorporating heat treatment, quenching, forging and tempering produce the world's strongest reels.
Strength Independent tests rate the Locke reels at attaining tensile strengths in excess of 120 tons PSI. This compares to other reel manufacturers at 60-70 tons PSI.
  An example of the quality is the "ring" throughout the reel. Stand the reel up resting it on the shaft. Balance it by holding it lightly at the other end of the reel shaft at the top. Tap the reel gently with the hammer, like ringing a bell, and listen to the "ring" of quality. As you tap all along the reel assembly, you will notice the ring always sounds the same with no "dead" spots or "thuds". This exercise simply demonstrates the "through" hardness of the reel.