Fiskars Reel Mower Review, The Good and The Bad 

For those of you who thought 💭 I didn’t do this mower any justice, check out this video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-eu0dTia9WmA.html

I've had mine for about 5 years now but have just been using it regularly for the past couple of summers. Now that the price of gas and oil are so ridiculously high, and my electric mower failed, I'm glad I still have it. The good news is that it works. And it gives you a full cardio workout in the process. Trust me! However, here are a few important tips: Invest in a grabbing tool and a wheelbarrow or garden cart to pick up all sticks, pine cones, rocks, etc. BEFORE cutting. The cutting reel gets caught on these very easily, and you'll usually have to manually dislodge the obstruction before continuing. If you live in an area where the grass grows quickly, save yourself a headache and CUT ONCE A WEEK. If you wait 2 weeks or more, you will have a much harder time, and you will likely have tall shoots or weeds that are too tall for this mower to handle. I keep it set on 1 1/2 inches. Still, it does not cut the tall grass shoots with the "Y" formation at the tip nor does it handle tall weeds. I've had to go behind it with grass shears to snip the taller stuff. Give yourself time, because it takes much longer to cut with this manual mower than with an electric or gas powered machine. Happy cutting and God bless!

I used one when I was a kid and it worked great. It was easy to push, always ready since it didn’t need gas and I didn’t have to breath in exhaust.

Set the mower higher first and cut, then do a second mow on a lower setting. These mowers are not made to cut long grass, they are made to maintain grass at a desired height

Great review! Really appreciate your taking the time and offering your observations and opinions.

I got a Fiskars 18 when they first came out and I used it for a few years until I got a gas powered reel mower. The mower works "reel" great and is easy to push.

I got mine in 2011. I used it a lot on my new bermuda lawn. Now I just use it to help with mulching. Like you stated, you can not be lazy and use this mower. It takes time and effort.

I have used this on St Augustine for about 3 years. I cut my grass every 3 weeks.. I do have to make two passes over the same spot, I pretty much have to mow the lawn twice but I still love it! No gas which means no gas engine related problems and it takes up very little space in my cramped garage.

This review is a very fair assessment of the Fiskars mower. I own a Fiskars mower and have been using it for 3 years. Originally I purchased the mower to replace an electric mower however, as was mentioned in the review, the Fiskars is not super great as a main mower particularly for the first cut of the spring season. If I were choosing a new mower, I would probably not choose to purchase the Fiskars again as it does not do well with long grass or grass that is not stiff.

I love the Fiskars mower but then again, I mow my yard every 4-5 days and I don't have many weeds. My yard isn't level so the lowest i can cut is on the 2nd notch. I believe its 1.25 cutting height. Good review!

I've used mine for the last couple of years. I like it a lot.

This was actually very helpful. I do plan on getting one of these but now I know a few things I need to do like keeping up with cutting so that I don't get long left overs and probably need to start on the higher settings for my first go through. For sure, hoping to get some exercise with this thing lol.

Really appreciate your attention to detail. Thanks for the video.

Thank you for this video. I was thinking about buying this mower. You have giving me several points to think about. This Fiskars is the most expensive manual mower out there.

I love mines had it for three years...cut my yard every Friday....great exercise 😁😁😁

Good review. The big plus is, I guess, no need for gas and oil. Cheers

4:57 ever reel mower has a basket (the spinning thing) and a bed knife (the cutting bar you're talking about) if you look behind your hand between the blade that black thing is the bed knife the thing that's cutting the grass that's why you here that sound it's the reel coming really close to the bed knife it's ez to push bc it's using a chain and gear combo

Nice video and descriptions. My Daddy had a reel mower; he probably bought it in '49 when he got married. It was heavy. The yard was level and the lawn was manicured Fescue. He actually crawled around on his hands and knees with his pocket knife and dug up any weed that dared to grow in his yard! With his great lawn, it still had to be cut every week, like you say; if it was high it did not cut well. Also, if you stopped you had to back up a bit or a strip would be missed. On the really tall grass, it might help to cut it on a high setting and go back with a lower one. That was maybe what you meant with change the settings? The reel mower, I think, is for a lawn enthusiast. ANYWAY...I really enjoyed your video. Thank you. Oh, I grew up in Cobb County, Smyrna.

Great view! Best one I've seen in this one so far. Thanks!

Thank you so much for the review!! This was very helpful!!

Thanks for this post! Very helpful.

A great honest review. I don't think my customers would pay me to cut every 3 days 🙄

Purchased a Fiskers Reel mower from LOWES today Pretty amazing product so far

@6:00 What you're talking about is a characteristic of almost all reel mowers, in general. Most reel mowers won't cut more than about 2" off the grass blades. In other words, if your grass is over grown and up to 6" tall in some areas, then you have to set the height of the cut at 4" in order for it to cut the 6" tall grass. If you set it any lower, it likely won't cut it. If you mow often, then you won't be cutting much off the blades, and you won't have the problem with missed blades. I have one of these Fiskars reel mowers for my Bermuda grass. Right now in the summer months, I'm mowing at least twice a week, sometimes three times. I never cut more than about 1/2" to 3/4" off in one cutting.

I bought one of these last year. It's perfect for starting new seeds to keep the weight of a mower off the baby grass with turning and all that. I keep my Kentucky blue at 4 inches and it cuts nicely. But I agree with you on trying to take 2 + inches off, its not worth it at all. I only have a 1,000 sq ft lawn front yard that I use this on so it's perfect, anything bigger I break out the gas mower in a heartbeat..

Hello all. I just purchased one of these today. I’ll let everyone know how it goes. Great review btw!

I don't know how I stumbled across your video, but excellent review!

A.) "super thick grass" can seize up a small rotary mower too. Lets be honest with ourselves. B.) You need to walk at a faster pace so that the reel mower has sufficient RPM C.) The measurement is from the bed knife to the ground. It does not guarantee the actual height of the grass will be the same and if you have uneven ground the grass will be shorter where there is a bump and longer where there is a divot.

Thank you, your video was very helpful!!!

I thoroughly enjoy my Fiskars. My gas powered rotary mower is not self-propelled, so the Fiskars is no harder to push. It's easy to use, quiet, and I can cut my front & back yard (5600 sq/ft. in 30 minutes- which is essentially the same as my rotary mower. The thing I like most about the Fiskars, though, is that it is just so satisfying to use! Plus, I can use it on wet grass- which is a bonus. It doesn't make a "perfect" cut, but it still does a great job when used correctly.

HAHAHA, I totally took a picture of this when I first got mine and posted it on Facebook saying it looked like the Tumbler Batmobile. great minds think alike...

Thank you for the video. You gave an honest review!

Fescue, and Bluegrass, lots of clover and dandelion, yard onions. Here it is, December, almost Christmas, and those yard onions are jumping. They are really thriving in this coldish/ cooler weather.

These mowers are made for maintaining well maintained grass. I cut every 3-4 days. Good for me. If it goes to long I will just use my rotary. But I hate the look of "torn" grass blades after I work so hard to keep my yard extremely green

Good review bro. I think I'll try one as long as the return policy is good.

Tall, thick grass will always get stuck. Also, the walking pace has to be faster for better results.

Just picked up one today at Lowe's. They had it on sale from $209.00 down to $99.00. So given that I've been debating a reel mower for my St Augustine, I was more than happy to save that $110.00. Got it home and assembled and made a few passes. Super easy to push and seems to cut better than my rotary mowers.

Thank you, nice review

thanks for the review. I could kind of think of not cutting weeds as a positive- you cut your grass and then you can see weeds and pull them.

Love the working man comment. I treat Turfgrass for a living, keep up the good work.

Tall grass gets pushed over with a reel mower, not sliced off like with a rotary mower, which is why you use a rotary mower for taller grass.

I just bought one is these today at a Dirt cheap store. Price was $219.00 at 90% off, the total was $22.00 brand new in the box! I got the last one in the store.

I wish I had an easy-to-mow lawn like that. Most of my lawn is a very steep hill; steep enough that it's difficult to climb or even stand on without slipping. I have a long rope attached to my gas mower and I stand at the top of the hill and let the mower roll down the hill and pull it back up with the rope. Also, there are several stumps that I have to mow around. Also, if you consider the lawn in this video to be weedy, you should see mine. I've got all sorts of stuff trying to grow on my lawn: maple saplings, pine saplings, burdocks, ferns, some sort of thorny flower bush that was planted there ages ago, some other type of flowering plant that grows what looks like giant blades of grass (each blade is about 4" wide if allowed to grow), and various other things I can't identify.

I never thought mine was like the Batmobile, but now I will. It’s okay for my little bit of grass. I get exercise and I don’t need a gas-guzzling, noisy mower in my life.

Thanks for the video

I have it and it works good on flat terrain but is almost impossible to push it downhill/uphill specially if you are cutting low and the ground is uneven

One of the best review on the internet.

I like my reel mower; I've not had a power mower for fourteen years, and the Fiskars is much better quality than the first two I tried. Keep it adjusted and sharpened yearly; Fiskars has a sharpening kit.

The handlebar is to push it outside to your Riding Mower. Then you can take it off… that Bar in the front allows you to hook it to your riding mower lol. That would be Where interpretation of an easy mow

Thanks for your thorough review. You answered all the questions that I had been thinking about, in regards to this mower. Great video! :-)

Awesome review

that bar lifts the front wheels the cutting bar is directly underneath the reel and to the back. There is a very small gap, I think about 0.5mm

Nail on the head, im retired... im going with the 7 blade at 1/2 inch.

I brought a brand new one for $60 , i used it for one season ,now it’s parked in a corner. I have herniated discs in my neck and when I was done mowing my neck pain would flare up really bad. I like how the mower cuts. But you had to put a lot of effort into it. Now it’s just sitting in a corner in my garage. Got an ego select cut. If I didn’t have the neck pain I would still be using it.

They aren't made for cutting long grass, they are for maintaining height. There are commercial reel mowers that are powered, just look at any golf course.

Originally, I wasn’t going to purchase one because $200+ is too much for this reel mower. Somebody suggested Craigslist and we checked and found a local guy selling one brand new in the box for $100. GOT-IT... I LIKE-IT...

Get a powered reel mower with interchangeable cartridges such as an Allett mower.

Sounds like the blade needs to be adjusted. Kind of loud so it might be hitting the bar (not visible in the video, it’s actually further back in the mower). I just bought a used one in excellent shape but it needed a tune up. Took it apart, degreased everything, sharpened the blade with the official Fiskars maintenance kit, and applied Teflon spray to the moving metal parts. Purrs like a kitten and pushes so much easier!

Thank you for the video sir.

Thank you for your honesty sir i appreciate very much ..what you are saying is if you use it less your grass will be to high to cut ..and am not going to love the cutting

the grass may or may not going to be cut again if you set it forward but at least for the cut pieces you achieve a better falling to the ground when you drive over it again whereas if you let it spread in the direction of the pusher the pieces of grass are residing much more on top of the lawn covering it. also you even trampling on the layer of pieces whilst pushing the mower. hence directing it forward will be good for the lawn indeed. it will ensure the cut pieces to trickle down on the soil before you trampling on it and set free the nutrients after a while.

Great review thanks👍

Great video. I appreciate the detail you provided.

You have to lower by 1/2 inch cut then lower again by 1/2. You cannot cut from a 2 1/2 to 1 inch as it will not cut properly. What I do is cut to the high I want by my gas mower then use Fiskars for that pro cut.

I’ll take the Fiskars. Only takes a couple more minutes to yank out any weeds it missed.

This has a grass catcher attachment you can get for it. It fits on the front.

How about getting a mulching effect by setting it high at first to cut just the tips off then setting it lower and lower cutting the remaining tips off. More work but shouldn't have to rake after, right?

Excellent review, I see people buy reel mowers all the time and two weeks later they are for sale or in the trash.They are definitely a novelty item and not a main mower in my opinion. I even bought one about 10 years ago for trim work on my 2.5 acres. It's been setting under my deck for the last 8 years..lol

I bought a fiskars for my back garden which is sloping and awkward to get into, my opinion is it’s a great machine if your garden is flat and even giving an excellent cut, on the downside the rubber tyres easily slip off if the grass is wet especially on tight turns the handle attachment is flimsy and prone to coming apart and the height adjustment knob came off very quickly . Would I recommend you buy one well as the review states it’s okay if your happy to mow regular and smaller areas I don’t think its value for money though as mine had build quality issues which for its price was a real disappointment.

No surprise there. Every reel mower I've owned you have to "Mow before it needs mowed (with a gas mower)". Mow once a week. I reel mow with weeds: Anything sticking up above the Bermuda after the yard is mowed gets some glyphosate love..

is the mower properly installed ? it seems to the blades are scratching (the should not) , it could be a alignment issue wich keeps the gras from beeing chopped .......higer gras o would cut in to steps ;)

Sharpen the blades using the lapping compound & handle to spin the Reel provided in the Fiskar’s sharpening kit from Amazon. Then adjust the Stationary blade height per Dan Thomas’s How To video on sharpening the blades on this mower. I just did mine......it cuts like a barber’s razor now.

This will be great for who spend too much playing game.

THANKS for this vid I just bought it but it stopped & jammed after rolling it across driveway. I don't see anything stuck in it. How do I get it to move forward again? THANKS

They have a bag that you can add on. I have one and empty it every few passes so it doesn't leak out. I love mine. No gas, oil or pulling.

Which riding lawn mower do you recommend? My yard is too large for me to continue using a push mower.

is a 5000 sq ft yard too big for the Fiskars? I have part St. Augustine and part Zoysia. I have heard you don't need to mow the Zoysia as often. (I am about to sod)

What about the catch bag for the front dumps?

They have a basket that catches the grass when shooting it forward.

Awesome Review. Never had to take care of yard until now. My yard is very small maybe 400 sq ft. Wasn't sure the benefits of gas or push. Thank you for this! Do you have a review on sprinklers or watering lawns?

good honest host man thanks

Reel mowers are designed to be used regularly (2-3 times a week) on short, well groomed lawns. They are not designed for long grass. They cop a bad wrap because people use them for the wrong application.

Can we adjust the height lower than 25mm, if yes, how lower can we go...

Hi. can you help me? I have damaged the screw for adjusting the knife. please tell me what kind of screw is this?

Its a manicure mower. I bought mine for $30. If you mow often, youre good, and it can cut lower than alot of mowers

Do they make a grooved roller for this

Great review, thank you. I had been considering buying it, but I think I'll pass after watching your video.

Does this thing have a catcher? All those grass clippings would drive me nuts. What am I missing?

I will never be able to unsee the batmobile I push around my yard from this day forward.

Consider that it costs half of a new Honda mower. I heard Fiskars is the best, but still...

The cutting bar is in the back bit the front.

Hmmm, wonder what it does to leaves in Fall...

Seems like you should just pull or spray your weeds instead of cutting them anyway :)

Can u please show how it cuts at 3/12 to 4 inch settings? 2 inch to 2 1/2 way to low for some of us. I live in upstate NY and I’m seriously thinking about this unit (I’m becoming “green “ in my 50’s). I grow lawn tall and cut to mowers highest setting. Very curious how it cuts on tall setting. New subscriber and love your channel. Take care.

What if you rotate rotary and reel for when you get lazy and let the grass get higher? Then, you pick up with the reel when you have the time.

A reel mower is meant to MAINTAIN a yard. You need a bushhog to cut the way you are trying to cut.

You confused the height adjustment bar with the cutting bar which is further underneath.

This is an old video so how do you like the mower now? Any changes on your opinion? That bar in the front you were referencing is not the bed blade. The bed blade is the bar the reel blades touch. If you look from the bottom of the mower you can see the bed blade. Still don’t touch it as hard as a Scott’s but much closer than the bar you mentioned. Definitely not a much mower and you mentioned it halfway through... have to use a manual reel mower at the very least weekly. I mow twice a week with mine and love it so far.

Hey BYD , does it come with a bag???

You’re in my backyard, BYD! #DBaileyAndAssociatesRealty