10 Best Mechanical Lawn Mowers

In the age of total automation, mechanical lawn mowers have not lost their relevance. For work on a small, flat and well-groomed area, it is advisable to use a manual unit. Its main element is the drum cutting mechanism, which is driven by the rotation of the wheels. Such mowers are inexpensive, they do not need to be connected to a power source, they are silent, compact and safe. If you purchase a grass catcher for them, mechanical models can compete with motor ones in terms of ease of use. All this is true if the lawn is not overgrown, and also provided that enough attention has been paid to the choice. Which manual lawn mowers have won the appreciation of users - our rating will tell you about this.

Types of lawn mowers

According to the type and technical characteristics, lawn mowers are classified as spindle and manual.

A spindle lawn mower is suitable for small and flat lawns and is ideal for a regular garden plot. The definition comes from the spindle knife in the design. The knife starts working inertly. Specifically, after the wheels move.

For a cleaner result, use a spindle lawn mower to process the area both lengthwise and crosswise.

This type of mower is divided into two types:

1. Contact. During the mowing process, the cutting blades interact with each other, cutting off the overgrown lawn.
2. Contactless. The distance between the cutting blades is calculated; during the cutting process it is more correct to set a certain speed of movement. Simply put, you need to “get used” to this type.

The manual version of a mechanical mower is necessarily equipped with a cylinder with working knives.
It is much easier to control the speed of operation of this cutting device - any model has an element for adjustment. First, the lawn mower is set to the desired, comfortable speed, so as not to go through the area twice. The optimal speed is 4 km/h.

General safety precautions

A mechanical device is easier to maintain and repair, unlike a rotary one. If there is no current source, then no short circuits will follow, but it is better to follow safety precautions:

1. Before work, read the instructions.
2. Make sure that your limbs do not accidentally come into contact with the drum or blade.
3. Do not give the device to children to play with, even under personal supervision.
4. During haircutting, the designated area should be free of interference, resting people, animals and foreign objects.
5. For convenience, it is better to use working garden shoes. Gloves and country clothes will not be superfluous.

Large areas are difficult to handle with a mechanical lawn mower. In this case, preference should be given to an electric or gasoline lawn mower. there will be an opportunity to save energy and time.

Features of choice

To ensure that the device mows the grass in your dacha as efficiently as possible and is easy to use, let us dwell on the features of choosing a lawn mower. Which lawn mower cuts and performs better?

1. If you have a small area with lawn grass, it is advisable to opt for small equipment with high cross-country ability and average engine power;
2. To simultaneously mow the grass, collect it in a container and mulch, buy a powerful lawn mower;
3. Pay attention to the popularity of the model manufacturer: high-quality models may cost more;
4. Check the controls and performance of the model before purchasing: the presence of extraneous sounds during operation, when mowing, excessive engine noise, body defects and inappropriate functionality - all this should alert you;
5. If the area at your dacha is small and uneven and there is little grass, it makes sense to purchase a battery-powered model for carrying.

Also remember that gas emissions from mowing and heavy weight are sometimes better than an underpowered mower model. Therefore, initially, do not spare money and buy a suitable device.

How to choose a gas, electric or battery-powered lawn mower is now clear. All that remains is to decide what will work and mow better, and buy the device.

Pros and cons of mechanical lawn mowers

About the advantages of this device:

1. The quality of the haircut depends on the user. An experienced gardener goes over the lawn very evenly, leaving stripes that are pleasing to the eye.
2. Economical. There is no need for fuel and electricity.
3. Environmental friendliness. Fuel elements do not settle on the grass. Because of this, the treated surface remains fresh longer. The grass grows even thicker, covering the ground in an even layer.
4. Mulching. The cut shoots remain on the ground as fertilizer.
5. Collection of small grass. A grass catcher is installed on branded models. It saves time on cleaning, and the fine grass from it is suitable as an organic fertilizer.
6. Quiet operation.

When cultivating the area with your own hands, a good mechanical lawn mower will keep the user healthy and provide comfortable and easy lawn care.

About the cons or small disadvantages:

1. Frequent treatment of the lawn or lawn. It is necessary to trim as soon as the grass grows a few centimeters.
2. You should move with the mower at a certain pace. If you go very slowly, there will be no cut. The cutting knife will begin to “chew” the shoots.
3. It is impossible to cultivate an old area overgrown with weeds.

Mechanical lawn mower with modification on video:

Which petrol lawn mower should you choose?

The roar of a gasoline engine and the smell emitted by a working device, as scientists prove, have a positive effect on the emotional state. This is due to psychosomatic reactions controlled by the hormonal activity of the body. Therefore, if we discard the environmental component of the issue, then we can safely decide which gasoline lawn mower to choose. Combined with outdoor work, this is an excellent solution to psychological problems associated with positive creative energy. Based on the method of movement, gasoline lawn mowers are divided into self-propelled and manually moved. A good example of a handheld device is the STIHL FS 55. The Husqvarna 128R also performs well. Self-propelled ones include Makita ELM 3311 and Intertool DT-2262. Self-propelled models are quite bulky, but despite their high power, they can only be used in large spaces, such as tennis courts and other fields for sports games. Manually moved devices are more often used in personal plots and cope with small volumes of work. However, many of them allow you to vary the final height of the grass after cutting. Such devices are more mobile and allow you to perform work more thoroughly, processing hard-to-reach places, including in the vicinity of bushes and trees with low-hanging branches. Like most gasoline-powered mobile devices, they come with rear- or front-wheel drive. They differ in the degree of convenience. Some of them allow you to process cut grass into fertilizer for the same lawn, without accumulating it in the grass collector, the volume of which often takes up most of the mowing apparatus. Its capacity varies from 50 to 88 liters, depending on the model. Professional self-propelled models have capacities that are an order of magnitude larger - 350 liters and higher.

Which electric lawn mower is best?

It is quite difficult to determine which electric lawn mower is better. Some of them have a rechargeable battery, and some are powered directly from the mains via a wire, which is not always convenient. However, such devices are safer than gasoline models. Since they do not require fuel storage tanks and do not emit harmful substances into the atmosphere. This is much better for the environment in general and human health in particular, and also does not have hidden dangers of spontaneous combustion and other risks associated with fire safety. The Achilles heel of an electric lawn mower is its cord. Therefore, when choosing, you should focus your attention on it. The longer the wire, the larger the area the device can cut. But this poses another danger - the possibility of cutting it with the lawn mower itself. Therefore, it is worth choosing a model with a protected wire or without it at all, but with a battery. Now, following robot vacuum cleaners, robotic lawn mowers are gaining popularity. There are a number of difficulties and advantages to using them. They are battery-powered electric models that can find a charging location on their own, but require special setup or restrictions to mow a given area.

Review of the best models

Mechanical devices have the same design and the same principle of operation, but even among manually driven products there is a rating of the best models and manufacturers.

Gardena

This is a model with a cutting cylinder and a horizontal counter knife. It features a non-contact operating principle. The manual mower is designed for regular processing of areas up to 200 square meters. m. Thanks to the special folding handle, the device is convenient to use and does not require much space for storage. The working parts are made of durable steel, so there is no need to sharpen the cutting edge.

The manual lawn mower is equipped with 5 sharpened blades and a tire with a 38 cm grip. Suitable for use in areas with uneven terrain. A non-contact device is an inexpensive option for treating grass in the garden and summer cottages.

Most products are designed to treat areas up to 250 square meters. m. The cut width reaches 35 cm, and the height is 4-4.5 cm. The weight of the products does not exceed 10 kg. The company produces mechanical devices with grass catchers.

Husqvarna

Modern models are high-quality, reliable and comfortable to use drum mowers. They are equipped with 5 knives and mow vegetation to a height of 1.3-3.8 cm. The cutting width is 4-5.5 cm, depending on the individual characteristics of the device. The weight of the devices is 8.7 kg.

Lightweight and maneuverable devices with a spindle operating mechanism, providing a cutting width of up to 30 cm and a height of about 1.2-4 cm. Suitable for processing areas up to 100-150 square meters. m. They are easy to clean from grass residues and do not require special maintenance.