Reel Mowers.....

[ZenG]

Do you use a reel mower? How do you like it compared to a gas or electric mower?

Was thinking of buying one...until I thought about mulching. It would seem on the face of it that you can't mulch with a reel mower.....correct?

 

[two fingers]

I think "mulching" is simply chopping up grass finer than the initial cut would do by itself. If you don't let the grass get really tall, that part shouldn't matter.

By all accounts, reel mowers work well as long as you keep the blades sharp.

That being said, yikes! I have four acres of grass. Just the thought of one makes me cringe.

 

[Schlyder]

Yes, I use a reel mower on my backyard putting green. A Toro Greensmaster.

You don't want a manual reel mower for regular Kentucky bluegrass lawn. You will use it once/twice, and then you will be trying to sell it. LOL

 

[bluesblaster]

when I was a kid before we had a gas mower I had to push one of those around. They say its better for the grass but when your 8 you could care less, it sucked. A sharp blade(s) made all the difference.

 

[ZenG]

Yes, I use a reel mower on my backyard putting green. A Toro Greensmaster.

You don't want a manual reel mower for regular Kentucky bluegrass lawn. You will use it once/twice, and then you will be trying to sell it. LOL

Nice putting green !

So are you saying that a reel mower will not work very well on the ordinary-looking lawn that surrounds the circular gnarly area?

 

[Schlyder]

Yes, it will not work very well if you aren't cutting it very low... it will be a pain in the butt. By low, I mean 1" or less. if you plan on a 2" cut.. you want to use a rotary. Believe me.

 

[hbarcat]

I used a reel mower for about 3 years, but realistically, it's only useable under very specific conditions.

1) The grass is thin.

2) The yard is small.

3) You are in good physical condition.

 

[Schlyder]

I used a reel mower for about 3 years, but realistically, it's only useable under very specific conditions.

1) The grass is thin.

2) The yard is small.

3) You are in good physical condition.

and is kept very sharp, and reel to bedknife is properly adjusted. ... and don't skip a couple days when it needs cutting.

 

[hbarcat]

The yard I had to cut had several huge oak trees that shaded the entire lawn. This kept the grass from becoming too thick or from growing too fast.

Unfortuantely, the trees were constantly dropping lots of sticks in the yard. These would all have to be raked up before cutting with the mower. A gas mower would have just run right over most of them without even noticing, but the reel mower would jam up on even the smallest sticks and very quickly dulled the blade.

 

[mbelue]

I used a reel mower for about 3 years, but realistically, it's only useable under very specific conditions.

1) The grass is thin.

2) The yard is small.

3) You are in good physical condition.

Been using a reel mower for about a year.
I like it.
I will add to this: the flatter your yard the better.

Hills aren't a problem is small scale divots and inconsistences that will annoy you to no end.

You have to be really good about keeping sticks and stones picked up. If you've got small kids you know they move things in to the worst possible place. I generally spend half my time in the yard preparing to mow.

 

[Downunderwonder]

There are petrol powered walk behind reel mowers too, but all the other advisories apply.

 

[FF Petro]

I used a Mclane gas powered reel mower for several years. I thought it was alright but small issues kept popping up; the chain would pop off the self propel or the muffler rattled and fell off. When it showed signs that the carb needed to be cleaned and rebuilt I made a change.

I got a Scotts brand push reel mower. It's awesome! I can cut down to 1/2 inch or up to 3 inches. I haven't had to sharpen the blades yet. It came perfectly setup. The spacing of all the blades to the bedknife is where they don't actually touch but it still cuts paper.

I cannot speak for fescue grasses. I have Burmuda in the front and Zoyia in my back yard. They are healthier, fuller and greener with regular reel mowing.

I do know that reel mowing is only advantageous when keeping the grass shorter. The cut is much cleaner too.

My favorite thing about reel mowing is that mowing patterns look awesome.

 

[Schlyder]

If you want golf course quality cut, and low heights.. reel mowers are the best. ...... but
...... there is added labour and maintenance and usually you need the types of grasses that can take the lower cut.
As said, you have to clear debris off the area before cutting....
you should lightly topdress the turf several times per year, with washed/screened sand to smooth, and promote healthy turf...
have a good fertilizer program... lower cutting requires more feed
have good watering program. lower cutting requires more water.
have a good weed control program.
good fungicide program. lower cutting has tendency to have more disease/fungus issues.
you need to aerate the turf.
you need to overseed occasionally as well.

If you have any specific questions.. fire away.

 

[Schlyder]

The only thing in this photo cut with a reel is the putting surface. It is cut at 3/16 of an inch. The collar is about 1/2" and the rough is 2-3" The collar, and the rough is done with a regular rotary push mower.

 

[D M C]

The yard I had to cut had several huge oak trees that shaded the entire lawn. This kept the grass from becoming too thick or from growing too fast.

Unfortuantely, the trees were constantly dropping lots of sticks in the yard. These would all have to be raked up before cutting with the mower. A gas mower would have just run right over most of them without even noticing, but the reel mower would jam up on even the smallest sticks and very quickly dulled the blade.

This.

 

[RED J]

I had a couple of greens keepers in my family and know they are the "gourmet" mower. But if you aren't a live for you lawn type, with ideal conditions, pass.

 

[GIBrat51]

I used a reel mower for about 3 years, but realistically, it's only useable under very specific conditions.

1) The grass is thin.

2) The yard is small.

3) You are in good physical condition.

THIS. In my case, it was in England, in the late 1980's. Yes, I was in shape (Combat Engineer); the yard was very small (100 sq. feet, +/-), and it was pretty thin grass, too. And, the reel mower I got from the local DIY was ridiculously tiny; maybe 14" wide. But, it was a good little mower. Small as it was, I could cut the lawn in about 6 minutes - if I wasn't in a hurry...

 

[bolophonic]

I picked one up at a yard sale when I had a tiny lawn. I remember that it cost a lot more to have it sharpened than I expected, but it was the middle of the city, so my options were probably limited. As I recall, a twig the size of a toothpick would leave it hopelessly jammed up.

Now I have over 50 acres, so I am getting a 6' bush hog ready for spring.

 

[Gaolee]

Yep. We have one. I used it for years. Dull blades were just a fact of life, as was the balky height adjustment. The advantage was quiet and exercise. There's a guy who comes in twice a month and cuts the grass these days. He does it when I'm not home. My wife sees him for 10 minutes, maybe, and then he's gone again. The reel mower is hanging in the garage now. That half hour of mowing and edging gets used for other things like weeding the beds and vegetable garden. Being old and having the kid out of the house has advantages.

 

[placedesjardins]

I bought one for my first home. I had a small lawn.
It was okay, but you can't let your lawn grow thick. If you do, you have to double or triple push and pull for every step you take. Once year, I let it go and it was easier and faster to use an electric trimmer to cut the lawn.