I need to replace a 15 year old 18" Mountfield 4 wheel rotary mower, which will no longer free wheel.
It's for domestic use only and we have three areas of lawn which only amount to approx 120 square metres in total, so thinking of going down in size to a 16" or 17" mower.
As the lawns are small, I have a lot of edges to mow and I seem to manage to scalp the lawn edges on a fairly regular basis, so thinking of getting a roller machine this time.
I am buying on the basis of ease of use and longevity, with cost being a secondary factor and think I have got down to a shortlist of three machines (I think!!):
- Hayter Harrier 41 Autodrive
- Honda HRX 426 QX
- Stihl RM 454 VR
This is only for home use so the grass will never be more than 5cm long (first cut of the year) and usually significantly shorter. I never intend to mow in the rain, but can't rule out having to mow when the grass is damp, so need a machine that won't clog up with damp grass.
I know this is really a professional forum, but does anybody have any experience of the above mowers or care to give me a recommendation of which machine is likely to give the best longevity?
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It's barely worth a petrol machine for 120m2 to be honest. An electric or battery mower would be my suggestion
If it has to be a petrol mower I would go with Honda just from my personal preference. But there are many battery mowers now for much less and no servicing no oil change and very quiet that would do your small amount of grass. And being very light you should not scalp as much.
I'm certainly not going back to a cabled electric mower, as the power cables were forever being in the way or getting caught on things. I'll be honest and say I hadn't even thought of a battery option as I'd assumed they would be too much of a compromise on torque and cut quality. Time to have another look, I guess.
Having had a look at the latest generation cordless mowers, I am impressed. Having thought I would go for a petrol engined rear roller mower, I am now favouring a cordless Ego or Stihl four wheeled mower. The Egos come with an impressive five year unconditional warranty on the mower with three years on the battery, so probably gavouring them over the Stihl.
And the ego battery fits lots of other ego stuff, they also fit honda and kärcher tools with a wee modification.
I've only used one battery mower and it was usless on long grass and got blocked in the wet. If you have't got one already I would go petrol and as you are considering a roller mower as well.