Switched from gas lawn mower to a reel mower... actually kind of love it

I had a little 2-stroke push mower that was loud and always smelled like gas. Finally just got one of those manual reel mowers from a yard sale for 15 bucks. Took me about 3 mows to figure out the right grass height so it doesn't just lay the blades down. It's way quieter and I don't feel bad about the fumes. Has anyone else made the switch and found their lawn looks better with the reel cut?

2 comments

2 Comments

wells.brooke2d ago

Oh man that's awesome! I did the same thing last summer and it's wild how much cleaner the cut looks. @ward.piper nailed it about the height though. I learned that the hard way when I let my lawn get too tall after some rain and the reel just mashed everything down. Now I just keep it at about 2 inches and mow every 5 days or so. The quiet is the biggest thing for me, I can actually hear birds while I'm mowing instead of that two stroke racket.

ward.piper2d ago

Yeah the key is you can't let it get too tall or the reel just folds it over instead of cutting clean. I've been running one for about 4 years now and the difference in the lawn is night and day. The cut is way more even and the grass actually looks healthier because it's not getting shredded by a dull blade spinning at 3000 rpm. Just keep the blades adjusted right and sharpen them once a year. Also don't bother cutting wet grass with it just wait until it's dry or you'll be fighting it the whole time.