[Movingshrub]

How do you all handle debris in your yard?

For leaves, I am happy to use the bagging feature on my rotary mower. However, I have two pecan trees. I would love to use a reel mowe AND keep the trees. Is that at all an option?

 

[J_nick]

How low are you wanting to go? If ~ 1/2" I think it would be fine, the grass will be so dense the pecans will stay on top and you could use a leaf blower to blow them in a bed for later collection.

Pecans are a relatively soft nut as far as nuts go, I don't see them causing too much damage to a reel/bedknife.

 

[SwardmanGuy]

How do you all handle debris in your yard?

For leaves, I am happy to use the bagging feature on my rotary mower. However, I have two pecan trees. I would love to use a reel mowe AND keep the trees. Is that at all an option?

How about this?

On youtube are a lot different possibilities...
Maybe even Swardman scarifier removable cartridge could handle this... @Ware could try it

..but Im not sure about it. Leaves are ok. But nuts...not sure...

 

[MasterMech]

How do you all handle debris in your yard?

For leaves, I am happy to use the bagging feature on my rotary mower. However, I have two pecan trees. I would love to use a reel mowe AND keep the trees. Is that at all an option?

How about this?

On youtube are a lot different possibilities...
Maybe even Swardman scarifier removable cartridge could handle this... @Ware could try it

..but Im not sure about it. Leaves are ok. But nuts...not sure...

We used to get thousands of acorns on the tee boxes and while running them through a reel unit isn't ideal, most survived. Of course you run the risk of catching one just right and bending a reel blade. Don't pecans have a very hard/brittle shell?

I like swardmanguy's idea of the scarifier or perhaps the verticut cartridge to pick up the nuts. But @swardmanguy, what about the rotary brush cartridge?

 

[Movingshrub]

How low are you wanting to go? If ~ 1/2" I think it would be fine, the grass will be so dense the pecans will stay on top and you could use a leaf blower to blow them in a bed for later collection.

Pecans are a relatively soft nut as far as nuts go, I don't see them causing too much damage to a reel/bedknife.

I don't think my yard is going to be smooth enough for below 0.5". I'd be happy to try cutting anywhere from 0.5"-1.25".

Also - how do you guys handle - uhh, dog landmines? Remove manually prior to cutting?

 

[SGrabs33]

How low are you wanting to go? If ~ 1/2" I think it would be fine, the grass will be so dense the pecans will stay on top and you could use a leaf blower to blow them in a bed for later collection.

Pecans are a relatively soft nut as far as nuts go, I don't see them causing too much damage to a reel/bedknife.

I don't think my yard is going to be smooth enough for below 0.5". I'd be happy to try cutting anywhere from 0.5"-1.25".

Also - how do you guys handle - uhh, dog landmines? Remove manually prior to cutting?

I'd remove it if I really had the time. I usually just steamroll it then chop it up, as you can see from my roller.

 

[J_nick]

My dog rarely leaves me presents on the reel cut grass but if he does I will remove it prior to mowing. He normally leaves them in the rotary territory.

 

[Movingshrub]

My dog rarely leaves me presents on the reel cut grass but if he does I will remove it prior to mowing. He normally leaves them in the rotary territory.

I'm really trying to evaluate whether a reel mower is a viable option for me.

Back yard - 7000 sqft - This area is used by the dog. Mostly level. All Tiftuf hybrid bermuda. Two mature pecan trees and one oak tree.

Side yard - 1500 sqft - This is mostly level/smooth. It's all Tiftuf. This area is impacted by the oak tree and whatever junk trees my neighbor has hanging over our property line.

Front yard - 5000 sqft - This area has not been renovated. It involves two large patched areas with tiftuf, some kind of zoysia cultivar, and what looks like some other unknown bermuda cultivar. This area currently has a maple and oak tree. The long term plan is to remove the maple (which is dying) and the oak tree (which just looks really busted), glyphosate everything, smooth out the undulations, and then sprig with Tiftuf (potentially harvested from the back and side).

I am using a Honda HRX 217 for now.

 

[Ware]

I think it mostly depends on your expectations. There is nothing wrong with rotary cut bermuda - it just doesn't yield the same results as bermuda cut with a reel. I live next to a county road and mow my earthen ditch (right corner of this photo) with an HRX217. It looks fine most of the time.

 

[tigertailbell]

My front roller usually pushes acorns and such debris down and out of the way of the reel. I have sweetgum balls in my back and they never get into the reel. I will catch a piece of mulch from time to time but it doesn't seem to hurt anything.
I mow 14,000 of Zoysia with a 26" reel. Takes about 45min- 1 hour .

 

[Movingshrub]

Is there any kind of starter reel for dummies? I don't really know what features I am looking for in terms of where to start.

 

[MasterMech]

Is there any kind of starter reel for dummies? I don't really know what features I am looking for in terms of where to start.

A McClane, Tru-Cut, or especially something like the Swardman would be easiest to handle as they all control their drive speed independently of the reel. So you can slow down for turns without having to disengage the reel. I can control the drive and slow down a greensmower as well, but it's not nearly the same level of control. Keep in mind your average greensmower weighs in around 250-300lbs. Also, a mower with a larger diameter reel will deal with taller grass better than a 5" typically found on a GM. But if you are good about mowing when you should, that shouldn't be too much of a consideration.

If you want to jump into a GM, I think Toro's controls are probably the easiest to master, and their DPA bedknife adjustment on the more recent units is a snap to work with compared to other systems. Ware has more than one video that shows how easy a GreensMaster walkmower is to operate.

 

[Movingshrub]

@MasterMech thanks for the info. To provide a bit of perspective, Every vehicle I've owned has been a manual transmission so I am comfortable learning something that requires a bit more coordination. I just don't want to pull the trigger on a mclane, have a bad experience, and learn later that it would have been a very different experience with a toro, as an example.

 

[MasterMech]

@MasterMech thanks for the info. To provide a bit of perspective, Every vehicle I've owned has been a manual transmission so I am comfortable learning something that requires a bit more coordination. I just don't want to pull the trigger on a mclane, have a bad experience, and learn later that it would have been a very different experience with a toro, as an example.

My Jake has a nice control setup where there is no separate drive lever. It's all subtle inputs to the operator presence bail and maybe setting the engine speed with the paddle toggle lever. I hardly moved my hands once we got acquainted.

 

[MasterMech]

Also - how do you guys handle - uhh, dog landmines? Remove manually prior to cutting?

We have one of those long handled scoops with a small rake. Works great and it's quick and easy to remove Fido's handiwork. The lower the cut, the easier the removal is.

 

[SCGrassMan]

I think it mostly depends on your expectations. There is nothing wrong with rotary cut bermuda - it just doesn't yield the same results as bermuda cut with a reel. I live next to a county road and mow my earthen ditch (right corner of this photo) with an HRX217. It looks fine most of the time.

WOW!

 

[Movingshrub]

Has anyone seen/done a good "How to select a reel mower" write up or youtube video?

Questions off the top of my head:
When to use manual vs gasoline powered
What size width
How many blades
How to handle transportation across hard surfaces
Challenges to expect
Features to seek out and why (this could get unwieldy) in terms of controls, engine size, accessories, etc.
Features to avoid/overpriced
Pros/Cons of brands/models
HOC range for popular models

It's challenging to determine the right choice since you can't exactly take these things for a test drive at your local lawn mower shop.

 

[Bunnysarefat]

Has anyone seen/done a good "How to select a reel mower" write up or youtube video?

Questions off the top of my head:
When to use manual vs gasoline powered
What size width
How many blades
How to handle transportation across hard surfaces
Challenges to expect
Features to seek out and why (this could get unwieldy) in terms of controls, engine size, accessories, etc.
Features to avoid/overpriced
Pros/Cons of brands/models
HOC range for popular models

It's challenging to determine the right choice since you can't exactly take these things for a test drive at your local lawn mower shop.

I have a 5 blade reel. As you have likely figured out, the more blades, then the lower the HOC can go. I got mine used in good shape for 75 smackers and couldn't really afford more after having bought the grass and everything else that year, so I took what I could get. My feeling is that a 7 blade would be much more desirable than a 5. I would pass on a 5 blade unless it's super cheap and want to give it a shot.

 

[Movingshrub]

Did any of you reel mower guys bother with a manual reel mower before diving in on a gasoline one? I'm essentially trying to determine how viable one is for my yard before making a significant purchase on something like a flex 21.

 

[gijoe4500]

Did any of you reel mower guys bother with a manual reel mower before diving in on a gasoline one? I'm essentially trying to determine how viable one is for my yard before making a significant purchase on something like a flex 21.

I used a manual reel for a couple years on a 1200 sq ft common Bermuda lawn. Worked fine until I started mowing at 0.5", the lawn thickened, and the mower work skip. Wasn't heavy enough for the thick grass.