Lawn Mowers

Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Sharpening lawn mower blades

Oct 2006

My husband and I just got a very dull reel mower and want to sharpen its blades. We'd like to have someone else do it as I am due in 5 weeks and he's busy prepping for baby as well. Can anyone recommend a place/person to sharpen push-mower blades? Thanks so much!

Try Single Cylinder Repair in El Cerrito-(510-558-1112) Ruth

2001

I would like to have my push lawn mower's blades sharpened. Also I've got some pruning tools that would benefit greatly from sharpening. Can anyone recommend a sharpening service in North Oakland/Berkeley area? -Peter

Golden Gate Lawnmower on the frontage road (Jacuzzi st) between Central and Solano in Albany is a great place. It's a tad tricky to find the exact driveway to go in. They're not right out on the street. Call for directions. The fellow that works there (and I think is the owner) is really nice. Prices are reasonable and he does a great job. He does push mowers and all sorts of power tools. Also has used, reconditioned tools for sale. June

Looking for Electric or Manual Mower

May 2005

I'm in the market for a new lawnmower - either electric or manual - and would like to hear your thoughts on what's out there. We have a very small lawn (15x11 feet). Need something with adjustable cutting height, easy to push and maneuver. What are your suggestions? Anything in particular I should look for or avoid? Thanks!
ditching the gas guzzler

I did a lot of research before buying a Craftsman reel mower two years ago, and I've been very happy with it. It is the larger model with adjustable height, and cost me about a hundred bucks on sale at Sears. It seems to me to be identical to the Scotts model described here: http://www.reelmowerguide.com/scotts_classic_push_reel_mower.html except that it is 18'' wide rather than 20''.

Despite what is typically said about push reel mowers, I do NOT need to mow every week, and mine does a decent job even on weeds, as long as they aren't TOO tall. And mowing my small lawn with one is actually faster than dealing with a powered one, since there's no setup or fussy starter to worry about. I just haul it out of the garage and go. Plus it's quiet and a heck of a lot safer, which is important when the kids are in the yard with me.

My Craftsman was easy to set up, is easy to use, and just a great value for the price. I recommend it. Actually Likes to Mow

We love the Brill reel (pus) mower that we've had for 5 years or so. It's very light, quiet, easy to push, and does a great job. I'm not aware of any local stores that carry it but many online merchants offer it (including Amazon). Push Mower Family

I traded my gas mower in for an electric one during the BAAQMD's program in May (http://www.baaqmd.gov/pio/lawnmower/lawnmower_05.htm) and am quite pleased with my Black & Decker MM875 corded mower. My old mower was heavier, I had to deal with gas & oil, and it was a pain to adjust the height. This one is light, starts in a jiffy, and adjusting the height is simple. I just have to watch out for the cord! It seems just as powerful, too. Without the rebate, it would have been about $229. Jennie

Good non-gas lawnmower?

July 2004

We just bought a house with a small lawn (10x20). We want to keep it so our toddler can have a place to play in our yard. However, we don't want to use a full gas-powered lawn mower to maintain it. Can anyone recommend a good non-gas mower to do the job? Thank you.

If you don't care about having a *perfectly* manicured lawn, and prefer to minimize your negative impact on the environment, use a human powered mower! With a small lawn it's actually faster and easier to mow using a push reel mower than with gas, because you just pull it out and go -- no fuss, no muss. It's quieter than electric and a LOT quieter than gas; you can listen to music or have a conversation while mowing. The mower itself is considerably cheaper. It's much safer to use, especially important when you've got kids in the yard. And, although pushing the mower doesn't require serious exertion for the average person, you get a little exercise in the bargain.

In my small Albany backyard, I use and have been very satisfied with this Craftsman 18'' model: http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes=LAWN=07137619000

It is essentially the same as the Scott mower featured on this site, which also has lots of useful information about mowers in general: http://www.cleanairgardening.com/

(It's much like the one I grew up using, too, on a considerably larger lawn at my suburban childhood home. Incidentally, I don't mow every week and I do have a few tall weeds and the occasional stick on my lawn. Despite the usual cautions about push reel mowers, mine handles this with no problem.) Holly