Hi again, folks!I've recently moved into a new house, with a fair-sized back lawn (still to be turfed, although promised in a day or two...!)Does anyone have a recommendation for a good, reliable lawnmower brand / type, for a new, level (I hope!) lawn? My last house had no lawns, so I didn't have a mower, and the mower provided in my intermediate rented house was a smallish £50 or so thing with a horizontal blade - a "rotary" I think, which worked quite well - however, that lawn was the size of a large postage stamp.I'm not a spring chicken, so I think an electrical job would be best, but obviously in the summer it'll be at least once a week - so I need reliability and good build quality.I want to spend less than £100 if possible.Experience and recommendations would be appreciated.Thnx, Barb

Although I have hover mower, I wouldn't recommend one as the down blast of air tends to push the grass away from the blade. Also - if you swing a rotary from side to side it plays hell with your back. I tend to push mine in a straight line - so it may as well have wheels! I bought my daughter a Bosch Rotary (with wheels) last year. A good deal at B&Q with a strimmer included. About £85 I recall.

Lawnmower recommendations?

Feb 17, 2010 23 Replies

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Andrew Gabriel 16 years ago

For electric, make sure you buy an Induction motor mower. A while since I bought one now, but that ruled out all the cheap ones in the sheds, and you probably have to find a proper lawn mower stockist.

Induction motors are much better suited to grass cutting than the universal motors which things like flymos always used to have. You may find induction motor mowers are lower power rating for same cutting width, but you'll still get more cutting power, as they're matched to the task, whereas universal motors are exactly wrong for the task (but dirt cheap, and short lived, as rather more of the power goes into heating up the motor than cutting the lawn).

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The Natural Philosopher 16 years ago

IIRC you have it exactly the wrong way round. Induction motors are NOT what you want. You want a brushed universal motor with decent starting torque.

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Andrew Gabriel 16 years ago

No, I had it exactly the right way around. Starting torque isn't important, but being able to maintain speed under load is, so it doesn't slow or stall when you get to tough/thick grass, and continues cutting properly. Universal motors, by definition, can't maintain speed as torque (load) increases, because they can't draw more power without slowing down proportionally, which is why they're unsuitable for grass cutting.

You will only find Induction motors in better quality electric mowers.

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Mark 16 years ago

I find the newer Bosch lawnmowers feel cheap and flimsy. They cut well but I am skeptical they will last a good time.

AFAIK The 'wolf-garten' mowers are better, but more expensive.

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