Reel Mowers: How to Use and Maintain a Manual Mower

A reel mower is a manual push mower that allows you to mow a lawn without a gas-powered engine or an electric motor. You may see reel mowers referred to as rotary mowers, though the term rotary mower typically refers to a gas or electric mower. These motorless mowers use a reel of rotating blades or knives to cut grass. As the operator pushes the mower, the wheels turn gears that transfer increased torque to the reel, spinning it faster than the wheels. As the reel passes over the grass, it cuts the blades of grass against a fixed blade known as a cutter bar, cutting with an action similar to a pair of scissors. While a powered push mower blade can tear or chop the grass and leave a ragged cut, a reel mower gives you a cleaner cut that makes the grass less susceptible to disease.

A reel lawn mower is a good option for many home landscapes and has significant benefits:

• It’s more economical than a gas or electric mower.
• It doesn’t produce emissions as you operate it.
• It doesn’t require a battery or power cord.
• It operates relatively quietly.
• You don’t need to buy fuel, change and dispose of oil, or replace spark plugs, air filters, etc.
• There’s no need to keep batteries charged or have an extension cord on hand for mowing.

However, there are some factors you need to keep in mind.

• It’s best for small to medium lawns (1/3 acre or smaller).
• It works best on level terrain without obstacles such as trees, planting beds or play structures.
• Your lawn may require more frequent mowing to keep the grass short enough for a reel mower to be effective.
• Despite being lighter than power mowers, you’re the sole means of moving the mower and keeping the blades spinning. Operating a manual lawn mower takes some effort, and you may be operating it more often, so make sure you’re up for the exercise.
• While they don’t require as much maintenance as a gas-powered model, these mowers do require maintenance to provide a good cut.

A reel mower doesn’t require a lot of periodic maintenance, but there are a few things you need to do to keep it working well.

You need to keep the mower blades sharp for them to be effective. Repairing burrs and nicks that cause the reel to contact the cutter blade will take care of many issues, but at some point, the blades may need sharpening. You should check your manual and follow the proper procedure for your specific mower, but here are general steps to help you sharpen a reel mower. Sharpening reel mower blades takes some time and effort, but it’s relatively simple.