New Mower Advice

[Ben565]

My old Mower (Black & Decker GR389) is starting to fall apart (brocken handle, damaged mains cable, blunt blade) and yes whilst it could be patched up and repaired... it's probably not really worth it.

• I find that the grass box fills up to quickly, I don't seem to get very far before it starts spitting chunks of clippings out from under the mower.
• It never seems to have enough power, struggles with long grass (which mine frequently is) it seems to struggle to overcome it's own inertia and get going.
• It's at least a decade old, if not two
• And it probably isn't the best designed mower in the world, although it has proven durable.

So time for a new one, initial thoughts were

• Einhell GE-EM 1233 - Seemed to get some good reviews, and it has a mulching blade, which would be useful, I thought was some kind of extra blade that the others didn't have, although I'm not so sure now. I then realised it's less powerful than the one I have, and has a smaller cutting diameter, and a smaller grass box which I already hate having to keep emptying. Also, and although it sounds German I've read it's actually made in China.

I looked at a couple of other options

• Flymo Speedi-Mo 360c - Sounds good, powerful motor, decent size, big grassbox... question marks over quality and reliability
• Bosch Rotak of some sort, maybe Rotak 37. Specs look alright and you don't usually go too far wrong with Bosch. Everything Bosch I've bought has been decent.

I don't really want a roller though which the Bosch has. I do like the idea of mulching, I find it a faff having to stop every two min to empty the grass box, and then find somewhere to tip the clippings when the brown bin's full (which it always is). Also invariably find little presents that the foxes have left hidden in the lawn. So does this Einhall have any sort of special mulching ability that the others don't have?

My lawn is uneven, often with long(ish) grass, it isn't that big, has a grassy mound, maybe small to medium size. Current mower has a 38cm cut and doesn't take long to do the lawn. I don't want to faff about with grass boxes. Something manuverable would be good


Any thoughts on the three I've come up with? and any suggestions for a different mower ?


***EDIT*** just seen on the Bosch R denotes the roller, so Rotak 32R is with roller, Rotak 32 is same but without the roller.

 

[Ben565]

I also thought about a woolly lawnmower, saves me having to do it at all then.. although it does present a variety of other problems

 

[conny]

If you want stripes then you need a rear roller mower. If stripes don't bother you then you have a much wider choice.

Wooly mowers tend to leave a lot of currants and sultanas lying around. Not good if you have children, pets or carpets indoors.

As for recommendations, if you are not averse to spending a few bob get a petrol driven one with electronic push start and self drive.
I have a Hyundai, (can't remember the model), quite expensive at nearly £500 but it allows my disabled wife to help around the garden by being able to cut the grass while I am on my knees tending to the flower beds.

 

[scbk]

I also thought about a woolly lawnmower, saves me having to do it at all then.. although it does present a variety of other problems

You can get "electric sheep" in the form of an automower, ranging in price from a hundred to a few thousand £

 

[Ben565]

Just measured up and lawn is approx 43sq/m so not massive, I think a petrol/ride on mower would be overkill for me. I thought about an automower, it's not a nice square shape, lot's of undulations and a small grassy hump. Would be difficult to program the boundries and not sure how it would cope.

Not at all fussed about stripes, wouldn't look right on my lawn. Just looking at Bosch Universal Rotak 550, 37cm cut so about the same size as the one I have, motor isn't quite as powerful though (1400W plays 1300W) but you can fit a mulching attachment.

 

[conny]

1300 to 1400 watts is neither here nor there to be honest.

As for the robot mower, you can get them where the boundary is determined by a buried loop of cable. You set the base/charging station up and run a loop around the area you want it to cut. To bury it you simple plunge an edging spade in and push the wire down into the slot. When it is all in and you have both ends back at the base staion you simply walk along the line pressing the slot together. You also need to run a single wire from the base out to a point somewhere on the boundary wire to form a return route for the mower. Some people lay the cables on the ground and hold it down with small plastic pegs to prevent the mower cutting them but I buried mine. A bit of a faff but now we just let Dave, (yes, my wife calls it Dave), to gout and cut the grass on his lawn while we do the others. You can programme it to cut at certain times and on certain days. It leaves very small clippings which don't need to be hoovered up as they simply mulch into the lawn. It can tackle gradients up to 30 degrees and works in all weathers though you should store the mower part in a dry area during winter when grass doesn't grow. Depending on the type you can get ones which are quite silent and you don't know they are running until you see it roaming around. They have 'Bump' sensors that will make it stop and turn away if it comes into contact with a stationary object such as a post or your leg.

This is our one.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flymo-1200...o+1200r&qid=1592330527&sr=8-1&tag=googhydr-21

I think you can get smaller ones but the price is still around the same.