lawn mowers

[joesdaddy]

Hi my petrol lawn mower has just packed in and I am looking at some on eBay. one i am interested in is a mulcher does any one own one of these sorts ,and can recommend them or not . I take it they cut the grass fine and then spread it back on the lawn .Does this not look untidy cheers

[AlBags]

I personally think you are better with a scarifier if anything at all.
Mulchers will always leave stuff all over the place .. obviously if there is long grass being cut.
Why not fix the old mower? Plug? Check carb?

[joesdaddy]

Cheers al the old ones chucking engine oil back up through the breathing pipe in to the air filter compression problems i presume not really worth a new pot and piston

[TonyV]

joe - which particular make / model are you looking at - How much grass do you need to cut?

[joesdaddy]

Hi tony the one i am looking at now is a Honda izy which is not a mulcher the other is a Honda 535 which i think does both the reason I am looking at Honda is Ive had a Honda cement mixer for 20odd years and is still working and its been really hammered just want something reliable the gardens are not that big probably takes 20 mins to do cheers

[TonyV]

do you need roller to make stripes on your grass? If not there are cheaper Honda models available

[joesdaddy]

Never really thought about stripes would look nice but not the be all and end all what sort have you got

[AlBags]

Honda are great engines on a rotary. Easy to pull-start too.
GCV 160 or 190 are great OHV motors.
You can even get Sovereign mowers with these fitted. They are lightweight .. even as self-propelled 19".

[Clanad]

Actually, we have some neighbors here in the U.S. that use mulching mowers and have been quite satisfied with the performance. The key seems to be, as AlBags intimates, to mow the lawn when it's ready, not letting it get too long. It should be cut when it reaches 3 to 4 inches but not shorter than 2 1/2 inches or so. Their lawns look very nice.
I'd suggest looking at one of the new generation rechargeable mowers, if you're not mowing an estate size lawn. Here, the Black & Decker MM875 Electric Mulching Mower sells for about $210 and has very high ratings. It's quiet as well and lasts a long time...
Key to any mulcher is to keep the blade sharp (as it is with any mower actually)...