bamaboy – posted 16 April 2004 21:17
I’ve got a 5,000 sq. ft. bermuda lawn and I’m currently cutting it with a rotary mower. I’m interested in getting a reel mower but the motorized reels are out of my price range. How difficult/practical/effective would one of the manual reel mowers be on a lawn the size of mine?
cohiba – posted 17 April 2004 12:01
Manual reel mowers get a little unwieldy if you more infrequently. The best trick I saw was a friend of mine built a bentgrass putting green in his back yard. Purchased a Mclain push mower, it has a drum that drives the reels. He didn’t like the drum drive so he attached a heater fan motor to it. The reel speed was so fast the clippings wouldn’t stay in the bucket. We finally put a dimmer switch on the cord to slow the motor down. It worked like a charm. For anyone interested in a reel mower. They hold thier edge better than any rotary mower out there. However, sharpening is tricky. I suggest you leave it to a professional. A Golf Course mechanic would be glad to help (some without $$)and guide/train on its proper adjustment and sharpening procedures.
Just food for thought…..Good Luck…….