lawn mower recommendation

[trackcar]

I bought a bosch mower for my mum recently and it's absolutely rubbish at collecting grass cuttings .. the grass box is vented to allow the air passage to go out but the grille is so coarse that after mowing half the lawn we only had 2 handfulls of clippings actually in the grass box, all the rest was all over her path and blowing over to next door's garden. Not impressed with that then!

So we're off to go and buy an alternative .. she doesn't have a big garden but it's on a slight slope with shrubs bordering it so the buying criteria is:

lightweight
grass box on REAR of mower so not pushing it into the shrubs all the time
price 100pounds or less is possible
reliable
cuts grass well and collects it properly! (unlike the bosch!)
and finally NOT a Flymo!

thanks for any hints gardening experts

[Darkslider]

Why no flymo? they're pretty good?

[trackcar]

because they're not easy to push around, ive used flymos before and they just drag along teh ground rather than hovering, mum can't push them about .. though they do have flymos with wheels on these days dont they, presume theyre better? was also put off by people saying how many problems theyd had with them, the bosch ones are supposed to be very reliable so im told, just cant collect grass at all!

[Moreymach]

Not an overly helpfull comment but I have a newish Bosch that sounds like yours ( a Rotak I think ) and its excellent at picking up the cuttings. Sure you have it assembled correctly and the grass box is seated ok on teh back ? There are loads of positive reviews on Amazon.

I do agree on Flymo though. I had one previous to the Bosch and on anything other than a bowling green flat lawn they catch and snag like a bastid.

[james S]

I've got a few mowers in various states of disrepair and the best compromise was the small push along 12 inch cut petrol mower from Homebase or similar. Its way too small for what I need now, but more expensive ones have come and gone, but thsis one just keeps on going. They are about £100 new.

[trackcar]

Moreymach said:

Not an overly helpfull comment but I have a newish Bosch that sounds like yours ( a Rotak I think ) and its excellent at picking up the cuttings. Sure you have it assembled correctly and the grass box is seated ok on teh back ? There are loads of positive reviews on Amazon.

I do agree on Flymo though. I had one previous to the Bosch and on anything other than a bowling green flat lawn they catch and snag like a bastid.

yes it's assembled properly it's the holes in the grilles in the sides of the grass box which are big enough to let the cuttings through, it collects maybe a tenth of the grass that's been cut, the rest is all over the paths. You can see it coming through the grilles, the rest of the box seems well sealed.

[JVaughan]

used to have a McCollough Mower. Was excellent even after 10 years of heavy use.
New house though needed a petrol mower as there is now 10 toimes the grass to cut !

[Witchfinder]

We bought a mechanical cylinder mower recently. It gives a really good, even cut, doesn't have any cables to tangle/sever, saves electricity, is virtually silent, and is remarkably lightweight and manoeuvrable. I don't understand why more people don't have them. I think we only paid £50 for it.

Edited by Witchfinder on Monday 6th October 13:21

[telecat]

If you want under £100 you won't find much beyond the crap ones. I have a Castelgarten Mower that almost does too good a job. It cost about £170 when I got it about 7 years ago. That's still five years more than any previuos mower we've had.

[7 Sevens]

Pick up a second hand Hayter on eBay and arrange for a local lawn person to service it.

[HundredthIdiot]

I switched to a mulching petrol mower this year.

Much less hassle - more compact, no grass to collect, less chemicals needed.

[trackcar]

hmm heavy petrol mower might be a bit much for a 70 year old lady to handle.

[pies]

Until you said no flymos i was going to say get an electric flymo i got the 360, no probs yet

[Gruppe1875]

just mod the bosch

cover the holes with a breathable fabric like thin foam, secure with duck tape, jobs a goodun' and probably cost a fiver!

[RicksAlfas]

Couldn't you stick tank tape over some of the holes?

[retrorider]

this little baby picks everything up.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-DRAPER-1000w-12-300mm-RO...

[RedexR]

Any serious PHeader should be using one of these...



In the words of Clarkson - POWER !

[tr7v8]

Love the above but would seriously recommend a Qualcast, my Quadtrak 30 is now 10 years old gets cleaned occasionally & the blade gets sharpened once a year on the bench grinder & replaced twice in that time. Mums is the 32model & that takes a hell of a hammering. Both were about 50-70 quid or so. I used to sell mowers many moons ago & the Flymos were always a pain.

[trackcar]

pies said:

Until you said no flymos i was going to say get an electric flymo i got the 360, no probs yet

does it collect the grass well Pies?

[pies]

trackcar said:

pies said:

Until you said no flymos i was going to say get an electric flymo i got the 360, no probs yet

does it collect the grass well Pies?

Yep,been using it all summer,for a small lawn no probs,remember to keep the underneath free from clogged grass if the grass is too wet

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Flymo-Hover-Compact-350-Mowe...

Edited by pies on Monday 6th October 18:22