Lawnmower purchase advice

[mattDP]

Hi,

I recently moved house from a place with a fairly small square of fla lawn to one with about twice the flat area and - more problematically some very steep grassed banks between the flat spaces, and one muc shallower bank up the side of the garden.

I used to get by with a small flymo (a "mow n vac" model) which ha proved hopelessly inadequate to the task in hand. So I need a new one and have a few questions I'd appreciated being answered.

My initial assumption was that I'd be best off getting top-of-the-range flymo. This leaves me with a choice of two models the "Turbo Lite 400" which is lightweight and has a 1500 watt motor an a 40cm blade, and the "Vision Compact 380" which is much heavier collects grass, and has a 1700 watt motor and a 38cm blade.

• First up, has anyone had an experience of using both these models an impressions as to which is "best"?

• I'm a little concerned about the weight of the heavier mower sinc even good flymos don't tend to "fly" terribly well. Is there any goo reason - besides the cosmetic look of the lawn - why I'd be better of having a mower which collects and removes the cut grass over one whic leaves it behind?

• The advantage of a wider cutting blade is obvious. But for standar lawn cutting, is there any advantage of having a 1700 watt motor over

1500 watt one?

• I have assumed that using a wheeled mower on steep banks is prett dangerous. So, does that mean I'm best off with another flymo or woul the combination of a wheeled mower for the flat and shallow banks and good strimmer for the steep banks be a better idea?

• Are there other manufacturers/models available (in the UK) I ought t consider? I don't mind paying more to get a tool which gets the job don as quickly and as easily as possible!

Cheers, Mat

-- mattDP

[JimR]

My experience with the Flymo is VERY dated, but I don't think it worked very well on slopes, especially if you're working uphill, where you'd benefit from having a wheeled mower to prevent sideways motion. As you've described your situation, I would use a good powered mulching mower, and if your sloped area was too steep, use a high-wheeled string trimmer for the slopes. That's what I use here, where I have to mow the edges of a swale that is too steep for me to comfortably use my riding mower.

I suppose if I had a Flymo I could stand at the top of the swale and let the mower swing back and forth on the slope, but I prefer the string trimmer idea.