Opinions on Mowers

I'm debating on what kind of mower to get for my new house. The lot is tiny ~.15 acres. In my opinion either an electric or gas push mower would be just fine. What kind of mower would you go with?

• Corded Electric
• Battery
• Gas

A gas craftsman push mower, there great for the price.

Definately corded electric.
Zero maintainance.
No gas to store or forget to fill.
No worries about battery charge.

I need to buy a new one as well. The one my old man gave me is just about dead.

I'm also thinking about an OLD SCHOOL push mower. The only thing holding me back is I won't be able to use it to mulch leaves in the fall. But, my lawn's about the same size as yours, and a little bit of exercise won't kill me. Plus, be nice to not have to worry about gas (and since I burn so little, I think it's going bad on me), or lugging around an electric cord.

I used a battery-powered electric at an old apartment (I mowed the lawn for free laundry); PITA. Wicked heavy. If I go electric, it'll be with a cord.

the_bird said:

I need to buy a new one as well. The one my old man gave me is just about dead.

I'm also thinking about an OLD SCHOOL push mower. The only thing holding me back is I won't be able to use it to mulch leaves in the fall. But, my lawn's about the same size as yours, and a little bit of exercise won't kill me. Plus, be nice to not have to worry about gas (and since I burn so little, I think it's going bad on me), or lugging around an electric cord.

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Are you talking about the real old ones, the ones that have the three blades like a combine and turn when you push it?

Yup. Need to do some research into what's available these days, I've seen one kicking around at The Depot but I think there are some newer permutations that are a bit easier to push around.

My thing is I want something that's pretty lightweight, since I have one section of lawn that's basically a 45 degree angle and a real PITA to mow. I have to put on my old football cleats just to keep my footing.

I'm in pretty good shape and young to boot so I would not mind getting a little bit of a workout.

Whenever I say corded electric, people start the "You'll cut the cord" mantra akin to "You'll shoot your eye out kid."

But, I have dealt with corded electric when I was 13-15. It was a little bit of a pain, but I never ran over the cord.

For a lot that small, corded electric is the way to go.

I'd go corded electric with a lot of that size. Anything bigger and I would go self propelled gas.

I've got a very small lot also, but I'm glad I went with a self-propelled mower. I bought a "Yard Man" from Costco 4-5 years ago, and it cost me about $250. It come with a 6.5HP Kawasaki engine, a mulching deck, and a decent size bag. The self-propelled feature really helps this time of year when the grass is growning fast...I can rip through my whole lawn in about 35 minutes and barely break a sweat! It's been very reliable too, and starts on the first or second pull, even when it's been put away for a week. I was leery of the brand, but it has turned out to be a great purchase...for about the half the price of the nice Honda I was looking at before.

EDIT: This is the same brand, but now they have a Briggs and Stratton Engine: YardMan at Walmart

.15 acre? Sounds like you are a perfect candidate for a push mower. The new ones are much better made and really efficient.


An electric corded or battery power would probably also work really well for a space that small.


I have to confess that on more than one occasion I have considered trading in my Craftsman gas mower for one of those Roomba-like robotic mowers but I can never convince myself that $1500 is a good enough deal.

Corded electric. I had a Black & Decker for 20 years, zero problems. Sounds like a battery one would be too heavy. There used to be a floating electric mower that you could tie a rope to and walk it along steep slopes, but I haven't seen one for years.

Manual push mowers are just about impossible to use on steep slopes.

Heck for a lot that small I'd get a coorded goat.

It'll trim and fertilize at the same time.

I'm planning on getting one of the B&D 19" electric corded ones, that sell for around $150, pretty soon myself.

I've got a gas powered Bolens (I think that's it, from Lowes) that still runs fine, but it's total overkill for my lot as well. When I first moved to NC 5 years ago I rented a place on a .5 acre lot that I needed the gas one for, w/powered wheels. I now own my place on .19 acres, and the wheels on my gas mower don't have the traction they used to. My backyard is sloped. My back now feels like crap after mowing with that heavy gas mower, it's noisy, and I'm tired of feeding it gas. One of my retired female neighbors has the el cheapo B&D and she loves it. It weighs nothing compared to my mower and does a great job.

Just for reference, those human powered push mowers are called Reel Mowers.

I got me a 20HP John Deere tractor with a sweeper...and it still takes me 4.5 hours to do my 2+ acres...

I should go shopping tonight, actually. The lawn's getting pretty high, and the old one is just about done. Latest issue is pretty small in the grand scheme of things (throttle cable snapped), but until I get that fixed I have to adjust the throttle with a pair of pliers. Replaced the cable last year, total PITA to get it adjusted so that it wasn't getting stuck on "full choke." Doesn't help that I'm a mechanical ****tard. I hate dropping even another $10 into it - even when it runs, it ain't running good!

I got one of these 6 years ago and it still starts with the turn of the key every time.

Toro Personal Pace 6.5HP with mulching attachments. Personal pace means it is self propelled, but only as fast as you are walking.

Got it at home depot.

I love it. wouldn't mind an electric, but the yard is too big and way too many obstacles to wrap a cord around.

njnear76 said:

I'm debating on what kind of mower to get for my new house. The lot is tiny ~.15 acres. In my opinion either an electric or gas push mower would be just fine. What kind of mower would you go with?

• Corded Electric
• Battery
• Gas

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My corded electric was OK... but it didn't cut well when the grass was tall, like after we got home from a summer vacation.

BierMuncher said:

I got one of these 6 years ago and it still starts with the turn of the key every time.

Toro Personal Pace 6.5HP with mulching attachments. Personal pace means it is self propelled, but only as fast as you are walking.

Got it at home depot.

I love it. wouldn't mind an electric, but the yard is too big and way too many obstacles to wrap a cord around.


View attachment 5942

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We bought one of those last year... it rocks...

From what I'm reading, it sounds like the reel mowers tend to have problems with sticks, which would be an issue for me. Looks like I'm in the market for a lightweight, corded electric mower.

So it sounds like the Torro is the way to go for gas and Black and Decker is the way to go for electric.

I'm leaning towards electric. I'm planning on having a small vegetable garden next summer and it probably would be good not to have all that exhaust. Not to mention, I'm not a fan of breathing it either. Plus a quieter mower would be easy on the ears.

The obstacles are pretty minimal. There is only one tree and a soon to be defunct flag pole to maneuver around.

Corded Electric. That's what I have and what was used in the my house growing up. We had a old school push mower in a town house that worked great as well.

Flag pole? You mean "hops pole"?

Am I the only one that has considered other amenities in a mower that an avid homebrewer needs? Go with the one with the best cupholder!

I guess I am part of the minority here...get a gas powered Troy Built. Grab one with a Briggs motor on it. Never had a single problem out of it and I use it for my lawn plus a chuck of the field behind my house. On a 3/4 acre lot, and cutting a patch as wide as my double driveway about 30 feet back in the field uses one tank of gas. A 2 gallon can keeps my going for over a month cutting weekly.

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=250539-270-12AE449D011&lpage=none

CAMRM
Campaign for Reel Mowers, lol.

I just remember having a gas mower in a place (WI) where it sat idle for 9 months and it mostly sucked during that 1st start of the year.

the_bird said:

Flag pole? You mean "hops pole"?

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Heh. I can't wait to try my hand at growing some hops. Having a house is going to be good for my family.

Sure it will be a bit more work, but the benefit of not having to shove things under beds, couches to make room, plus having space to brew beer, and grow my own vegetables will be awesome.

My dog will be happy to have a fenced in yard to lord over and my wife can store all her baking crap.

I'm really lucky.

Reel mowers are where it's at...

I used to work at a John Deere sales shop as a mechanic and the worst mower to work on is the older craftsman mowers...

Briggs and Stratton are cheap motors, built with cheap parts and don't last as long as they used to... I remember when Briggs was the brand to buy... now... i'd avoid any briggs motor.

Kawasaki makes a great motor, as well as Kohler and Honda... they are solid engines that really take a good beating and still run at top shape...

I'd look into a Honda mower, or one with a Kawasaki or Kohler engine... look for less plastic and more metal.

Good Luck!

BraeHaus said:

Reel mowers are where it's at...

I used to work at a John Deere sales shop as a mechanic and the worst mower to work on is the older craftsman mowers...

Briggs and Stratton are cheap motors, built with cheap parts and don't last as long as they used to... I remember when Briggs was the brand to buy... now... i'd avoid any briggs motor.

Kawasaki makes a great motor, as well as Kohler and Honda... they are solid engines that really take a good beating and still run at top shape...

I'd look into a Honda mower, or one with a Kawasaki or Kohler engine... look for less plastic and more metal.

Good Luck!

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I dropped $500 on a 8 hp Honda self propelled. The one with the casters out front for easier turning. 2 Days after the 3 year warranty was out the transmission locked up. It will freewheel when pushed forward and lock the back wheels when pulling it back.

It's made with a cheap aluminum x-mission but, it'll still cost $300 to replace.
Not everything Honda is worth the money. Now I have a John Deere and it can't keep the friggin' belt aligned nor can it get a decent prime with the chep bulb system they have on it.

When I have to do it again, I'll go with the commercial Toro with the iron/steel x-mission's. Heavy bastards but little maintenance.

There is nothing worse than a self-propelled mower that doesn;t self-propell.

GilaMinumBeer said:

There is nothing worse than a self-propelled mower that doesn;t self-propell.

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+1. That's where I'm at right now. Plus, the electric start doesn't work, so until recently I was pushing around a useless battery as well.

FWIW, my old man works at a John Deere shop, and he's told me to avoid the low-end Deere models. I don't really want to spend the money for a GOOD gas mower, I'm afraid of buying a POS that will need replacing within a year if I buy a cheap one, so I'm wondering if I'm apt to get something of better quality if I stick to electric.

I've got the Scott's Reel mower. Human powered mowing is the way to go. Also referred to around here as an Amish mower.

It is smaller and lighter than even an electric mower but the Scott's version has the same width. This version also has a higher cutting height than most reel mowers which is better for most grass species. I can mow my small lot in less time than my old gas powered mower because I can make the turns at the end of the row quicker. I also like that it cuts the grass cleaner which is healthier for the lawn. When I'm done I hang it on a wall in my garage taking up very little space.

The down sides are it doesn't produce a vacuum like the rotarys so tall weeds just get pushed over and not cut. For the same reason you have to keep up on the lawn and you can't let it go.

Overall I would chose the same mower again. There are better reel mowers but they cut shorter and are narrower than the Scotts.

Craig

BierMuncher said:

Toro Personal Pace 6.5HP with mulching attachments.

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+1. Ours is nearly identical and works very well. It was a little expensive, but we've never had a problem with it in 4+ years of use.

FWIW, I HATE corded electric mowers, regardless of lot size.

the_bird said:

FWIW, my old man works at a John Deere shop, and he's told me to avoid the low-end Deere models. I don't really want to spend the money for a GOOD gas mower, I'm afraid of buying a POS that will need replacing within a year if I buy a cheap one, so I'm wondering if I'm apt to get something of better quality if I stick to electric.

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I've had my JD w/48" deck for over 4 years now. Never had a problem, but of course, they come pick up/service/deliver it for me (for a price).

I've had my B&D electric corded 19" for over 10 years. The only maintainence to speak of is sharpening the blade every year with the angle grinder because it is fun to throw sparks.

I hate electrics. If you have any trees on your lot, forget about it. Ugh! What a PITA!!!

A simple gas mower is really a simple thing. I don't see why even a crappy one shouldn't last 7 to 10 years. As for people saying that the gas goes bad, just buy less gas. I mean, just because a can holds two gallons doesn't mean you have to fill it all the way up. And, at the end of the season, if you have any gas left, toss it in your car. Problem solved.

the_bird said:

From what I'm reading, it sounds like the reel mowers tend to have problems with sticks, which would be an issue for me. Looks like I'm in the market for a lightweight, corded electric mower.

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A reel mower will stop if a stick gets in the mower. It is easily solved by picking up the sticks before mowing. I mow high enough that 90% of the time I mow over the small sticks and the only ones I have to deal with are the largest ones you wouldn't want to mow over with a powered mower either. My lot is heavily shaded with probably a dozen large trees so it is unlikely you have many more trees and still can grow a yard.

The reel does require more effort to push than a small electric or self propelled gas so it does help to be fairly fit. Its not ideal if you have trouble pushing a regular gas mower. For myself I don't find it difficult at all.

Craig

homebrewer_99 said:

I've had my JD w/48" deck for over 4 years now. Never had a problem, but of course, they come pick up/service/deliver it for me (for a price).

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Got a funny definition of "low end," Bill...

Not saying ALL Deeres are no good, but the cheap ones aren't worth the $$.