Scotts 415-16S 16-Inch Elite Push Reel Lawn Mower

Part I

I have been intrigued by reel mowers ever since I noticed Wally and Beaver using one on Leave It to Beaver re-runs. It was my job to mow the lawn growing up and the Cleavers always made lawn care look a lot more fun than it was for me pushing around a heavy gasoline-powered mower.

When we bought our first home, one thing that really didn't occur to me was that once again it would fall to me to keep the grass cut. Kids come by the house asking if they can do it, but at their going rate of $30 to $40 dollars, I usually ask them if I can mow their lawn instead.

In the process of renovating our home and yard, which had been left in not exactly the greatest shape by the previous owners, I quickly went through four separate gasoline-powered mowers, either simply wearing them out or by hitting upon (literally) hidden treasures like the remnants of a grown-over outhouse, or the mostly buried boiler in the yard that broke the engine of one of the...Read more

I bought this mower, and have been using it for a year, and I love it. I chose a reel mower for one reason: SIMPLICITY. No gas. No spark plugs to replace. No cord to pull. No exhaust. No dust blowing everywhere. No noisy motor.

The good:
1) Quiet, inexpensive, light weight, and easy to push.
2) Small storage footprint (about 12"x20").
3) Easy to maintain. WD40 before and after each use. Adjust stationary blade 1-2 times per year (or as needed). Sharpen reel blades every 1-2 years. If you think your blades need sharpening and you've never adjusted the stationary blade, the blade just needs to be adjusted. Ditto if you took the mower out of the box and it doesn't cut properly. Adjust it!
4) Promotes good lawn-care habits (see below)

The bad:
1) This mower is designed to cut grass. It WILL get stuck on every single twig you roll over. I typically spend 1-2 minutes picking up twigs/sticks before I mow, and it still gets stuck on 5-10...Read more

If your yard isn't big enough to justify an electric mower, and you want to have the lowest possible carbon footprint possible, an old school reel mower is the answer you're looking for. Just be prepared for a good workout as you'll have to cover the same ground at least 3-5 times in each direction, cross-hatch, for anything resembling a clean cut, though you'll definitely need an edger/trimmer to complete the job. Also, if you have a lot of weeds, buy a good weed cutter because they laugh in the face of this particular reel mower. I bought the 16" thinking it would be good enough for my smallish yard, and while it mostly gets the job done, I wish I'd gone for the Scotts 20-Inch Classic Push Reel Lawn Mower #2000-20 instead.