I built a remote controlled rotary mower. I like mowing my lawn about 4-6 inches. I'm heavily considering reel mowing by lawn by getting a reel mower (Scotts Classic or Fiskars) and using my remote controlled mower (with the engine, and the electric motors on) to tow it. I'm hoping to get a reel mower that allows me to still somewhat mow my grass high.
I followed this video to get myself started with my 1st reel mower. I wanted to make sure I was committed. Needless to say a year later and here I am investing in my first 25” motorized reel mower. Thanks for all your videos!!
Happy that the review was helpful for you Shawn. The 20 inch is actually a really good reel mower. It cuts really smooth because of the little extra weight. Let me know how yours works out for you! :-)
Nice lawn...I have a 20" Scotts also. The reason I got it is I don't like and don't want to be bothered with a gas mower and from what I read 30 years ago the reel mower is kinder to the grass in how it gets cut, straight like scissors, not torn/shredded. Next on my list is to learn how to dethatch the grass. This will be it's first time ever ! It's simple and effective and reasonably priced. Nothing fancy, just let me get it done.
That's awesome Kathleen. Reel mowers are healthier for the grass and the manual ones are a great workout too. They cut great. I still have mine. Appreciate you watching the content.
I decided to get a manual reel mower after watching your most recent videos (2020) I cant afford the motorized ones . My husband thought I was crazy buying it but he came to home depot and helped me load it up and he put it together, but i'm on my own as far as cutting the lawn with it. He won't use it!! He has made that very clear😀. Says he will stick with the regular lawn mower Lol. Brought the 16 inch and I love it. I'm getting some exercise in and getting a great cut on the grass. My 10 year old daughter has joined me on my bermuda grass lawn care journey, she likes using it as well. I like the way the lawn looked after my daughter and I cut it. So I will def be using it often. Having a real difficult time getting rid of Nutsedge. Used some Ortho product that suppose to get rid of it but didn't really seem to work, trying specticide this week and hope to see better results. Thanks for this video even though it's from 2017, it's still useful in 2020. Stay safe and healthy😷
Thanks so much for letting me know about you getting a reel mower D B. It's definitely more work than a powered reel mower but it produces a really good cut. How the lawn looks is what made me switch over to a reel mower. You never know about your hubby. He might come around eventually after seeing how sharp the lawn is coming along. The thing with a reel mower is the more often you cut with it, the better the lawn will look. Let me know if I can help answer anything. I really appreciate you reaching out. It's great to know that some of the older videos are still useful. 😎👍
Thanks for this helpful video. I just got the 16" Scotts Elite Reel Mower. I used it today and love it. Good to know about the benefits of the 20". I probably don't need it at the moment though, as my yard is pretty small.
You’re very welcome David. Makes my day to know you found the video useful. You’re going to love using the 20”. I loved mine. It does take a bit of getting used to, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll really like how the turf looks. A small yard can be a good thing. You’re able to provide better care for it since there’s not as much to deal with. That’s totally an advantage. The 20” is a bit heavier so you’ll get a better result even on a smaller lawn. Let me know if I can help with anything. Enjoy the mow. 😎👊
Looks great! I used a Fiskar reel last year, but finally sprung for a TruCut powered reel for this year. The powered reel leaves a VERY nice cut at 1 inch or less. I am cutting mine at .50" right now. You have a huge backyard, so kudos to you for committing to the exercise that you get with the non-powered reel.
Ooooh a TruCut. I'm jealous man. :-) That would result in an amazing cut I bet. The yard isn't too bad to mow. Takes about an hour to do front and back.
I had been eyeing them for a while and finally made the purchase. So far zero buyers remorse. I also watch Allyn on RU-vid. But to get really great pointers on warm season and Bermuda turf. Check out thelawnforum.com
Do you have a video showing how to adjust the height by taking off the wheel plate? I purchased a Scotts 20 inch and I'll be using it for the first time in a couple weeks but I want to cut as low as possible.
Hi Paisley. I don't have a video on that, but can see about creating one. It's not too too bad to do if I'm remembering correctly. The orange plate need to come off, both wheels come off and then there's a bolt that holds this green plate with holes in it that you can rotate and re-tighten to lower or raise the height of cut. It's been a few years since ai changed it. :-)
@@RonHenry Great, now I have to be a handyman LOL! I'm going to try it... hopefully I don't mess anything up. I'm still trying to figure out at what point I became obsessed with my grass. Watching RU-vid lawn videos all day... now I have a manual reel mower LOL!
Great to hear! I'm glad that it was helpful for you. If I can answer anything else, don't hesitate to reach let me know. Which one are you thinking you'll end up going with?
Ron Henry I think I may go with the 16” variant. The point you brought to my attention about the shiftiness of the ground causing difficulties for the 20” model (where you were talking about having to go strictly down hill on your one side yard) really helped. My yard is smaller than yours, and has MANY dips and slants, and after seeing your results, I think that the smaller model would be able to contour to those dips better than the 20” one. Do you think that’s a good idea?
I think the smaller one will work well in your situation man. The reasons you listed is exactly when you want to use the 16” unit. Let me n ow how it works out for you.
I have the 16 in reel Mower, I have a question on the adjusting the height. do you have to adjust the wheel off and do the level on the back of the mower or just adjust the level on the back
What do you recommend to level out/debumpify a lawn in Toledo Ohio Midwest area without going shorter. got a roller but not working as well as I thought. Want to be able to have a little chipping range in backyard and don't like the ball bouncing 5 different directions when it hits the ground. Also not trying to spend a ton of money or destroy lawn since it already looks good rich green no weeds just bumpy if you were to mow it or hit a golf ball in it
On the 16 - if the rear bar is set at the lowest setting but the assembly is set to "B" what is the height of the cut? The instructions do not specify the height if you change both.
Ron I have never used a reel mower and presently have a self propelled mower. Am I wasting my time buying a reel mower for touch ups only, where the grass is not growing even and I just need a pass through in spots.
I wouldn't say it's a waste of time. You'd just see more benefit from consistently cutting the entire lawn with a reel mower. It's healthier for the grass than a rotary which yields a better looking lawn.
I have the 16 inch...bought it used. It looks and mows great. I do have to go over some areas heavier and fast...to cut the grass. Is it the way ...I'm cutting.
Thanks for a very helpful vid. I was about to buy the Scott 16-inch, so now I'm thinking about the 20" based on your comments. I don't mind having to push a little harder on the 20" but my wife has health issues and wants to start mowing for exercise, so I'm not sure which I'll get. We have a small lawn, smaller than yours, so the 16" might get the job done. A couple of questions if you don't mind: How long have you had the Scott? How long will the blades cut before you have to sharpen them? How is the 20" for getting close to the edge? You said the 16" was easier with that. Sorry for the questions, but I really appreciate your putting this vid up.
Hi Rezillo. I had the Scotts for a little over a year before moving to a power reel mower. Having used both the 16" and the 20", I can tell you the 20" produces a better cut because it's a touch heavier than the 16". I would plan on sharpening the blades once per season. That assumes that you're only cutting grass with it. If you get into pinestraw, small sticks and dirt, the blades will loose their edge faster. The 16" gets a bit closer because the track is narrower and the distance of the reel to the wheels is a bit narrower on the 16". Not a night and day difference, but it's something to consider. Even with a smaller lawn, I'd probably go 20" over 16" because the quality of cut really is that much better. Can get the 20" here: amzn.to/2Gr3eMo I don't mind answering your questions at all. Let me know if I can help with anything else.
@@RonHenry Thanks again, Ron. I'm so sick of the rotary gas-powered Honda almost taking my fingers off when the cord snaps back. We had a much bigger yard before we moved, so a reel mower makes more sense. I see you've got a good sized lawn to mow so the motor driven reel mower is a better choice for you, but we'll do fine with the plain old mechanical one like my dad used when I was a kid. Good luck with your lawn.
@@MrRezillovery cool. Let me know how the Scotts works out for you. I'm sure you're going to like the results you get with it. Let me know if I can help with anything else?
Thanks for the video, Ron. Roughly, how long does it take for you to do this size of a lawn with this 20" reel mower? I believe my backyard is close in size with yours and I am very close to buy a reel mower for the first time in my life (after having many gas powered ones).
Hi After Eight. When I was still cutting it with a manual reel mower, it was taking about an hour and 20 minutes to cut. A manual reel mower is a great way to decide if reel mowing is for you. At some point you'll get the itch for a gas powered unit. It will take your lawn to an entirely different level. Let me know if I can help with anything else. Appreciate you watching. 👍😎
Great video comparing these two Reel-Mowers. Good point about the heavier weight on the 20-inch having little to no bounce for a more even, smooth cut. Curious how long does it take you to cut your entire lawn with these manual push mowers? You have quite a large area to cover there, especially now this time of year when the grass grows so much quicker. You must be out there mowing all the time?! Your grass looks great though, good job!! We just bought a house here in Florida, and yes the gardening work is quite a job here with the yard being quite uneven, the ground is very sandy in many spots, plus lots crab-grass, and many obstacles to move around with fences, sidewalks, plants & trees scattered throughout... Thanks for sharing your thoughts & experience! :-)
Reiki Bee I switched to a tru-cut halfway through the season last year. When I was using a push reel mower it would take me a hour and 20 min. Now I can get it done in 45 min and it looks better.
I don’t recall exactly but when you remove the wheels, it will become very apparent which hole lowers the mower once you rotate the plate. The process isn’t difficult to do.
Mmmm the 20" cuts better in my opinion but either will do a great job Jose. Scotts released this new Pro model that has a 7 blade reel and 18" cut. Looks nice. I'd go with this one if I were in the market for a manual reel mower: amzn.to/3veHtWt
that looks like a big lawn man. whats the square ft? also does it seem to take less time to cut all that with the 20 over the 16? i got a great states 16 inch is why i ask and 8k sq ft lawn if i remember right.
It's a 12,000 square feet. I now use a Try-Cut powered reel mower to take care of it. You can see my most recent lawn update videos here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-XdUA6oQ4zaU.html Thanks for your comment!
Hi xx yy. There are sharpening kits you can use to get your push reel mower cutting well again. Here's a good one on Amazon: amzn.to/304vzix Let me know if I can help with anything else.
Ron, I own a Scott's Classic 20 in push reel mower that I bought on Amazon a few years ago. On your mower, I noticed those orange knobs on the height adjustment levers and was curious if it came like that or did you add those? Also, have you noticed they are selling this mower with an ergonomic handle now?
Mine is absolutely terrible. My lawn is uneven, it does not do well on uneven ground. It doesn't do corners, gets clogged every minute, and refuses to move if clogged. Overall it looks like I didn't mow when I went over the yard 6 times. It's so rickety I probably will end up breaking it. I am overall very, very unhappy with it. The amount of strength it takes to push it is overwhelming for a woman, I had to use my foot on the lower bar to push as well, so I looked like a marching nazi with a lawnmower. It refuses to cut large weeds or dandylions. Basically it's a fancy 'chop off the top bit of the grass' rickety piece of metal.
ronald nelson I didn’t have issues with fungus and dollar spot when my neighbors did so there’s that. Overall a reel mower is better for the grass because it actually cuts the grass vs. tearing it.
Lawn is looking good, Ron. I look forward to your videos of your "Project Golf CourseLawn." My yard is called the Alpha Lawn! Have you put down any fertilizer or iron? If you get a chance, check out the lawn care nut on RU-vid. Some good lawn videos on there too.
It may have been velcroman11. If I remember correctly this one was filmed pretty early in that season. The lawn may have also not full come out of dormancy. Thanks for watching sir.
![[SCOTTS 20 vs 16 REEL MOWER] Detailed REVIEW](/img/logo.svg){kind=logo}
