Try a better mulching blade maybe?

 

If you don't like visible clippings, i doubt you'd be any happier with side discharge. I'd try maybe a better blade or just keep bagging if it bothers you that much.
Edit to add, just looked up that mower and its bigger than i was thinking, it may be able to side discharge without leaving piles.

 

Hmm, what grass you you cutting? I cut at 3 inches on my KBG/Legacy fine fescue, and as long as I cut every 3 days I dont have any clumping at all. honestly you wouldnt be sure where was anything being discharged out the side but it is clear from the lines that it is taking off half to a full inch. only when I was on vacation for a week and missed a mow did it clump at all.

I recently took my bagger off my mower (JD z345 r ) and put on the mulch kit.
Reason was I was tired of disposing of clippings and wanted to add nutrients back to the lawn. I’ve been cutting every 3 -4 days now and still get clumps and dead grass on top and down in the roots. The cut doesn’t look as good either.
John Deere made it a PITA to change out the bagger and mulch kit or I would just swap them out occasionally.
Im going to try side discharging next.
Just wondering what everyone else is doing.

 

I have a 30 yr old craftsman 38” rider which is not even a “mulcher”
I made my own side discharge shut off and put mulching blades on it.
As long as I cut when its not much more than 1” it mulches pretty well.
If I have to mow higher grass I actually pull the side chute up which allows the cut grass to disperse better.
Its messy but allowing it to discharge into the bagger , with out the bags does a decent job of spreading cut grass.

 

Some deck designs just don't make good mulchers. Side discharge generally works well if you're not cutting off 2+ inches, otherwise you'll have to double cut it.

 

“it depends”.
Leaving clipping are best but only if you are cutting a little off the top leaving small pieces. I have some 1-1.5” cuts that land on the side walk and on a sunny day, within hours they are dried and thin - maybe even hard to see. These sized clipping would easily mulch and disappear into the lawn. I would classify this the same as side discharge.
Any clipping left that are too large or can be seen is no good (slow breakdown, moisture/fungus, blocks light and oxygen and water). Bag and remove. Increase fertilization rates slight to offset the loss of nutrients from recycling clippings.

 

I've tried all three with various mowers (cheap tractor,good tractor, various zero turns, cheap 21" push, 21" Toro Super Recyclers, 30" Toro timemasters ). I think side discharge is the best.

1. Bagging is a lot of work, need a place to dispose of it, removes organic matter and nutrients. So that's out. Not to mention the bagging apparatus on a riding mower is quite large. Makes maneuvering more difficult. Expensive. Takes up a lot of storage space.

2. Mulching works okay maybe during dry weather. Some mowers definitely mulch better than others.

3. Side discharge has all the benefits of mulching but the clippings are bigger - so what. Not a problem for anyone on this forum. You probably mow often enough to not have it be an issue. The clippings go down to nothing when they dry out like was said above. It spreads them out better than mulching. Less gas useage than mulching. Better airflow than mulching = better cut. More lift. Less deck clogging if wet.

I think mulching is a marketing gimmick aimed at people that don't mow their lawn enough.