Petrol Lawnmower, any recommendations?
Discussion
boxster9 said:
I've had enough of cutting our back garden with a flymo, now looking to buy a petrol Lawnmower, one with a roller to give a striped effect. A friend recommended a Hayter, but there have been some mixed reviews about this brand. Any recommendations?
Not sure which model you would need for the striped effect - but i have a cheapo basic Mountfield, and it's been fab in the 5-6 years we have owned it. Starts first time - never been serviced or even had to top the oil up 
CaptainSlow said:
Mountfield SP474 self propelled...c £160 from B&Q.
B&Q is where i bought mine from. And if your over 60, Wednesday is 10% off day 
ETA,
for the record.. *i* am not over 60. Not that there is anything wrong with being over 60 mindEdited by Phooey on Sunday 20th June 20:10
Yes, Hayter or Honda Rotary Mower with a roller on the back is the best for most home gardens if you want a stripe.
This is mine:
I did not want to spend what one of these cost new, so I bought a second had one from ebay about 5 years ago. Never caused me any problems, and much better than something new, but cheap from B&Q etc.
Buy the wider one if it suits your garden. Stripes look better wider, and it cuts quicker too.
This is mine:
I did not want to spend what one of these cost new, so I bought a second had one from ebay about 5 years ago. Never caused me any problems, and much better than something new, but cheap from B&Q etc.
Buy the wider one if it suits your garden. Stripes look better wider, and it cuts quicker too.
Edited by kentmotorcompany on Sunday 20th June 20:58
Edited by kentmotorcompany on Sunday 20th June 20:59
A mentioned, keep an eye on ebay, you can get nearly new stuff pretty cheap as people often sell them for whatever reason, often around 1/4 the new price. Try and get one that is known to run and check it - I just got one that was listed as "needs attn" and the carb is all gummed up and needs stripping down, luckily it's not too much effort and the parts are cheap.
Edited by Gareth79 on Sunday 20th June 22:15
+1 for second hand Hayter off ebay.
You may read negative comments on more recent models but this is mainly from the pros who use theirs 5-6hrs per day 5 days a week. The main complaint seems to be that they are less easy to repair in the field as opposed to the older models.
Briggs and Stratton is a great engine to work on yourself, a big plus for me who is not terribly technical is that I don't need it as transport the following day!
There are loads of "how to fix your mower" videos on YouTube, mainly from Canada for some reason which are very helpful.
You may read negative comments on more recent models but this is mainly from the pros who use theirs 5-6hrs per day 5 days a week. The main complaint seems to be that they are less easy to repair in the field as opposed to the older models.
Briggs and Stratton is a great engine to work on yourself, a big plus for me who is not terribly technical is that I don't need it as transport the following day!
There are loads of "how to fix your mower" videos on YouTube, mainly from Canada for some reason which are very helpful.
kentmotorcompany said:
Yes, Hayter or Honda Rotary Mower with a roller on the back is the best for most home gardens if you want a stripe.
This is mine:
I did not want to spend what one of these cost new, so I bought a second had one from ebay about 5 years ago. Never caused me any problems, and much better than something new, but cheap from B&Q etc.
Buy the wider one if it suits your garden. Stripes look better wider, and it cuts quicker too.
Thanks for all the advice. Did you use a Hayter or Honda to cut that lawn?This is mine:
I did not want to spend what one of these cost new, so I bought a second had one from ebay about 5 years ago. Never caused me any problems, and much better than something new, but cheap from B&Q etc.
Buy the wider one if it suits your garden. Stripes look better wider, and it cuts quicker too.
Edited by kentmotorcompany on Sunday 20th June 20:58
Edited by kentmotorcompany on Sunday 20th June 20:59
Hayter, but no reason you would not get the same result from a decent Honda.
My top tip is to cut your grass as long as possible, once every week.
Cutting too short makes it dry out quicker, the grass also suffers and thins out if you let it grow long and then cut it short.
All I do with mine is cut every week on almost the highest setting the mower goes to, and occasionally water it with a sprinkler when it has not rained for more than 7-10 days.
If you look at it up close, its actually got plenty of weeds in it too, but the grass is thick and healthy enough that it does not really matter.
My top tip is to cut your grass as long as possible, once every week.
Cutting too short makes it dry out quicker, the grass also suffers and thins out if you let it grow long and then cut it short.
All I do with mine is cut every week on almost the highest setting the mower goes to, and occasionally water it with a sprinkler when it has not rained for more than 7-10 days.
If you look at it up close, its actually got plenty of weeds in it too, but the grass is thick and healthy enough that it does not really matter.
Loads of research into this a couple of years back when our Mountfield, which did a tremendous job, dies. The answer came back Hayter and so we bought a 48ES which did an equally superb job. They are very expensive, superbly built and also very heavy to manoeuvre. It got stolen twice so when the latest replacement arrived from the insurance company I stashed it in the house and bought a £50 Mountfield off eBay. This isn't as good as the first Mountfield (or the Hayter) at stripes, I think because the first used the front wheels for propulsion and dragged the roller whereas this one is roller-propelled.
The advice I had from the dealers where that Mountfield were bought by an Italian rival (can't remember who) and they switched from top quality cast alloy bodies etc to cheap pressed steel etc, which were far less desirable and really re-badged jobs trading on the "50 years of making mowers" reputation.
I never got around to getting CCTV, etc to secure the storage so I'm using a 25yo Westwood ride-on (which they don't seem to want to nick) and the Mountfield. Kind of mower bangernomics. So if you want an unused, still boxed, Hayter Harrier 48ES fresh from the factory for a knock down price, PM me.
The advice I had from the dealers where that Mountfield were bought by an Italian rival (can't remember who) and they switched from top quality cast alloy bodies etc to cheap pressed steel etc, which were far less desirable and really re-badged jobs trading on the "50 years of making mowers" reputation.
I never got around to getting CCTV, etc to secure the storage so I'm using a 25yo Westwood ride-on (which they don't seem to want to nick) and the Mountfield. Kind of mower bangernomics. So if you want an unused, still boxed, Hayter Harrier 48ES fresh from the factory for a knock down price, PM me.
Edited by FamilyGuy on Wednesday 23 June 21:05
Quit f
king about guys. This is where the white hot metal of grass cutting is at.
http://www.atco.co.uk/products/royale.html
Buying one is like purchasing a african grey or even a tortoise, your going to have to put it in your bloody will!
king about guys. This is where the white hot metal of grass cutting is at.http://www.atco.co.uk/products/royale.html
Buying one is like purchasing a african grey or even a tortoise, your going to have to put it in your bloody will!
GingerWizard said:
Quit fking about guys. This is where the white hot metal of grass cutting is at.
http://www.atco.co.uk/products/royale.html
Buying one is like purchasing a african grey or even a tortoise, your going to have to put it in your bloody will!
Agreed, you get what you pay for, I just love mine king about guys. This is where the white hot metal of grass cutting is at.http://www.atco.co.uk/products/royale.html
Buying one is like purchasing a african grey or even a tortoise, your going to have to put it in your bloody will!
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