While technological advances led to the development of gas-powered lawn mowers in the 20th century, many people continue to use manual reel mowers, which have been around since the s. There are several advantages to using a manual reel mower. Furthermore, traditional reel mowers are easier to maintain, as well as less dangerous to use, than their gas-powered counterparts. Third, by using a manual reel mower, you'll be causing less damage to the environment than if you operate a gas-powered mower.
There's a trade off, however, for all the benefits of switching from your noisy and messy gas-powered mower to a manual reel machine. For one thing, you can expect to put more time and effort into your lawn than you would with a gas-powered mower. How you choose between rotary, reel and electric models has to do with your situation and preferences, said Alec Kowalewski, Oregon State University Extension turfgrass specialist. All three have their pros and cons. Rotary and electric mowers, which have one blade, cut like weed wackers with the blade spinning in a circle.
Reel push mowers, on the other hand, are designed with two blades that slide across each other and cut like scissors. Both do a good job, Kowalewski said. Also, the height settings on the Scotts model are accurate; the 1-inch setting on the Fiskars, in contrast, actually cut much lower, practically scalping the lawn, before we readjusted it to a higher setting. The Scotts has a cutting range of 1 to 3 inches. The vast majority of reel mowers top out around 2 inches, so we appreciated the ability to go taller, either for the health of the grass or for a less manicured look.
A DIY Network article lists the ideal cutting heights for a variety of warm- and cool-weather grasses, and the capabilities of the Scotts land nicely in the strike zone for every grass mentioned. The Scotts is easy to assemble, and doesn't require any tools—the bolts that attach the handle have large plastic wing nuts, so tightening by hand is simple.
If you ever need to take your mower apart—to fit it into a compact space like a car trunk or a small storage area—we found that the Scotts was easy enough to disassemble, too. You might need pliers to remove the small C-clips that attach the handle to the body of the mower, but otherwise it shouldn't be a hassle. Photo editor Rozette Rago had never used a reel mower before picking up the Scotts for her small, flat yard in LA, and found it quick to get used to. The Scotts is covered by a two-year warranty, and user reviews suggest that the manufacturer, American Lawn Mower, issues free replacement parts whenever a problem crops up.
We investigated the plastic-gear complaint by removing the wheel of the Scotts mower and taking a look at the gear. The wheels turn as you push, and those teeth turn the plastic gear, which rotates the blades. And if it becomes one, replacing the gear is a minute repair job. While it would be nice if both the wheel and the gear were made of metal, such a design would likely add money to the price tag and a significant amount of weight to the mower.
One of our long-term testers also noted that when the Scotts arrived, many of the screws holding the handle together were loose and fell out within a month. Once they were replaced, no further problems surfaced. A close reading of the user complaints suggests that owners who were using the Scotts mower on tall or tough Southern grass had the most problems, but such difficulties are likely to be common among all push mowers and not just the Scotts.
Ultimately, though, we preferred the consistency, weight, and lower price of the Scotts. We made this observation using an older version of the StaySharp that was capable of throwing grass out of only the front of the blades; however, the current version, which was released in spring , can throw the grass both forward and backward, so this may be less of a problem. The Fiskars reel mower has a more complicated mechanism than other models do, as it uses a chain drive to connect the turning of the wheels to the blades.
You can change the height with a single lever, and it can adjust between 1 inch and 4 inches, the largest range of any mower we looked at. Through our long-term testing of the Fiskars, we revealed that it might not be the best choice for a particularly small lawn. The blades will still dull eventually from cutting grass or hitting branches and other obstacles. You should also pay attention to the blade adjustment, which can shift over time. With most reel mowers, the spinning blades pass over a stationary bed knife, which is where the actual cutting happens.
The adjustment is easy, and usually involves just a couple of set screws, depending on the model. Even with proper adjustment, however, the blades will need sharpening after a few seasons American Lawn Mower sells a sharpening kit. In , we found a number of new models, but none of them matched the width and overall features of the Scotts or the cutting height of the Fiskars. These included the Great States Corp. The Earthwise 18 in. These limitations argue that, for all but the most industrious or idealistic, reel lawn mowers are well-suited only to those who tend small urban lots.
But if you do, indeed, have just a small lawn to mow, the reel mower could be a godsend for you. Dealing with all the gas, oil, and noise associated with regular mowers seems like overkill for such a small space, right?
There is, however, one regular mower-maintenance chore necessary with reel mowers: sharpening the blades. You can buy kits at Home Depot, for example to help you with this job, but it's still a hassle. In fact, just finding a kit in the first place that's compatible with your unit they're not one-size-fits-all is a hassle. That's why an even better choice than reel mowers for those who have a small lawn to mow is battery-powered mowers.
The idea here is to keep mower maintenance to a bare minimum since it doesn't make sense to trouble yourself too much over such a small patch of grass killing the grass and putting something else there is another possibility.
We have found a good battery-powered mower to be the very best option for small yards mowed by owners who want but a small maintenance burden to bear. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile.
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