I went old school today

[dinkjs]

I broke down and bought one of these.....

http://www.lowes.com/pd_317736-1078-6201_0__?productId=3168445&Ntt=reel+mower&pl=1&currentURL=&facetInfo=

It works like a champ and nothing like the real old school Reel mowers

No more gas or oil to be purchased other then the car now....just doing my part

 

[semenza]

Yeah, some of the new reel mowers look pretty good.    [cool]  Not for me though, by my rough calculations it would take me  about twelve hours  [blink]    Guess I need a smaller lawn. 

Seth

 

[RONWEN]

While growing up Dad always had 2 or 3 used reel mowers (that he rebuilt) that I would use to mow about a dozen neighborhood lawns in the summer.  As I recall they each had 2-1/2 hp. motors with powered wheels. 
The price for mowing ranged from $.75 to $5.00 depending on the size & how much trimming was involved.
I was probably only 9 or 10 when I started mowing but my Dad's thinking was the reel mowers were far safer than rotary mowers so he didn't worry -- he wouldn't have even considered letting me use a rotary mower.

 

[Steve R]

Yeah, some of the new reel mowers look pretty good.    [cool]  Not for me though, by my rough calculations it would take me  about twelve hours   [blink]    Guess I need a smaller lawn.   
Seth

Or faster legs  [poke] [doh]

I use one now on a 1500 sq ft lot...easy.

I remember mowing my grandmothers yard. Before I could drive Dad would drop me off with the mowers on his way to work and pick me up on his way home.  With the 48" John Deer it took 7 hours and then 2 more hours with 21 inch mower to trim out other things. Edging was not in the cards....had to leave something for Grandmother to do.... [big grin]

Cheers,
Steve

 

[semenza]

Yeah, some of the new reel mowers look pretty good.    [cool]  Not for me though, by my rough calculations it would take me  about twelve hours   [blink]    Guess I need a smaller lawn.   
Seth

Or faster legs  [poke] [doh]

I use one now on a 1500 sq ft lot...easy.

I remember mowing my grandmothers yard. Before I could drive Dad would drop me off with the mowers on his way to work and pick me up on his way home.  With the 48" John Deer it took 7 hours and then 2 more hours with 21 inch mower to trim out other things. Edging was not in the cards....had to leave something for Grandmother to do.... [big grin]

Cheers,
Steve

Yeah  [laughing]    I figured pushing at about 2.5 miles per hour.

Seth

 

[PaulMarcel]

Yeah  [laughing]     I figured pushing at about 2.5 miles per hour.

Seth

Now if Festool came out with a reel mower in a Systainer, you'd be torn!  [embarassed]  Mowex?

 

[Steve R]

Yeah  [laughing]     I figured pushing at about 2.5 miles per hour.

Seth

Now if Festool came out with a reel mower in a Systainer, you'd be torn!  [embarassed]  Mowex?

Would they also sell a MFY (Multi Function Yard)  so you could keep the cuts square?  [drooling]

Cheers,
Steve

 

[Dan C]

Yeah  [laughing]     I figured pushing at about 2.5 miles per hour.

Seth

Now if Festool came out with a reel mower in a Systainer, you'd be torn!  [embarassed]  Mowex?

Would they also sell a MFY (Multi Function Yard)  so you could keep the cuts square?  [drooling]

Cheers,
Steve

A little GPS steering to ensure everything is nice and straight!

 

[Tinker]

How 'bout a Weedino to get rid of weeds? [dead horse]
Tinker

 

[Harvey]

I broke down and bought one of these.....

http://www.lowes.com/pd_317736-1078-6201_0__?productId=3168445&Ntt=reel+mower&pl=1&currentURL=&facetInfo=

It works like a champ and nothing like the real old school Reel mowers

No more gas or oil to be purchased other then the car now....just doing my part

I bought the same one about a month ago, after we re-sodded the lawn.
Isn't it great to actually hear something besides the mower?

I'd pay big money for a set of festool mower parallel  guides  

 

[butzla]

I recently went the opposite way and went new school.

[attachimg=#1]

 

[RONWEN]

Nice outfit Jim!  Backhoe & everything.  [thumbs up]

(What motor does it have?)

 

[butzla]

Thanks Ron.  I went all out.  47" snowblower and 48" box blade to boot.  I figure it might save me some more time to spend in the wood shop  [big grin]

It has a 3 cylinder 26hp Yanmar diesel engine  [thumbs up]

 

[Tinker]

Thanks Ron.  I went all out.  47" snowblower and 48" box blade to boot.  I figure it might save me some more time to spend in the wood shop  [big grin]

It has a 3 cylinder 26hp Yanmar diesel engine  [thumbs up]

Jim, i don't know if you are experienced with diesels or not.  Just in case this is your first one, when it gets cold (I lived in the Berkshires for a few years and i understand it sometimes does drop a little below freezing even where you are) keep an eye on that water separator for moisture. In the cold, that little bit of moisture does have a tendency to get real hard. It can be a bit of a pain when you go out in the wee hours to use you snow blower and all you hear is the starter grinding away. Change the filter as directed.  I change mine every fall whether I think it needs it or not.  Make sure you use diesel fuel conditioner when temp starts to drop. You don't need much; but it does eliminate a lot of problem. 

Aside from all that, i am with you on having more time to play with my Festoys.  I like the sound of almost 30 hp when I am mowing.  Doesn't bother me a bit.  :
Tinker 

 

[RONWEN]

We live in about the same climate so winter temperatures are similar.  As long as you give a few seconds wait for the glow plug indicator light your tractor should start right up.  I keep mine in an unheated barn and have never had any starting problem even when below zero Fahrenheit.  The refineries blend winter additives into the "road" diesel fuels but I much prefer using off-road fuel not only because of the lack of road tax ($$) but the refinery near me produces Penn grade diesel fuel which they tell me has more paraffin & burns cleaner.  I've made comparison tests between the road fuel and Penn grade off-road and I achieve ~18% better economy with the Penn grade fuel.

I do mix in an additive in the winter months so the fuel doesn't gel.
http://www.lucasoil.com/products/display_products.sd?iid=33&catid=8&loc=show&headTitle=%20-%20Lucas%20Extreme%20Cold%20Temperature%20Fuel%20Treatment%20with%20New%20Lucas%20Anti-Gel

 

[butzla]

Thanks for the tips guys.  In the winter, "Bessey" will sleep in my garage that never drops below 40 degrees.  But I will get some of that fuel additive and change the fuel filter.  I'm kind of anal when our comes to my tools. 
My tractor is amazing.  All the implements  (including the mower deck), go on and off in minutes and without any tools either. 
Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack this thread.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[Tinker]

i looked up your toy on the internet.  That mower hookup is fantastic.  The mower on my orange tractor takes me anywhere from 15 min to an hour of knuckle scraping and very colorful linguistic exercises to get everything lined up and pins attached.  Takes almost as long to hook it up as to do some of the jobs. I only use it a couple of times a year.  A good reminder of how easy it s to just hop on my riders and feel the breeze n my face immediately.

For those with the reel mowers, how do you sharpen them?  I remember when i was a kid and used a push mower, I was not allwed to try sharpening as it was "too technikal"  When i retired from construction and got into landscaping, the reel mowers were becoming history. Almost no shops equipped for sharpening reels any more.  It now takes only a few minutes to change/sharpen blades on even my large 61" rotary mower. 
Tinker

 

[joraft]

My tractor is amazing.  

It sure is, Jim, I'm drooling. Just looking at it makes me want to buy enough land to justify getting one with all the goodies and attachments.

Of course living where land is often sold by the square inch makes that highly unlikely.  [smile]

 

[joraft]

As a longtime "lawn fanatic" I would say that the choice between a reel and a rotary mower is more about the type of grass you're mowing.

At one time I had Bermuda grass, and with its very fine and short blades, there was almost no choice but to use a reel mower with its scissor-like cutting action.

Now I have Tall Fescue, and a rotary mower is best for slicing through the long thick blades. Reel mowers often choke on this type of grass. 

A slow turning, well sharpened reel mower probably gives the cleanest cut, but a very sharp rotary blade can come close (thank you Tormek  [smile]).

 

[Tinker]

If the blades are kept sharp, a rotary mower can rival the reel mowers for fineness of cut.  If the reel blades become dull, even the dullest rotary blades can do a neater job.

with my 61" rotary with 29hp engine, i cut my finest lawns with ease and from there can mow field grass that is higher than my mower.  Form there, i can mow brush up to 1/2", and in some cases even 3/4" in diameter.  I like that.

I do wait until a blade change is eminent before trying to mow brush.  I do sometimes find bent blades after trying that.

That style of new mower shown by OP is interesting.  It looks as if it might be easier than old style of push mower where the drive wheels were the only wheels and the trailing roller was a stabiliser.  I would think the new style might be easier to handle on rolling ground and even on hillsides.

Tinker