Scotts 18-Inch 7-Blade Push Manual Reel Lawn Mower

Context:I am mowing a Bermuda grass lawn, about 3,200 sq ft.Is this mower easy to assemble?Yes, I did it entirely without tools. However, this gives one the 2-3" cutting range which is the default. To go lower, you will need/want a crescent wrench and a socket wrench to change the large 10" drive wheels' starting position.Is it hard to adjust the drive wheels on the Scotts Pro to the lower cut level?Not at all - but you will need some wrenches. The wheel and axle are shifted to another setting by physically detaching the main axle, shifting it around the reel's drive axle axis and reinserting the drive wheel and axle into the new height range. There are three axle positions possible, you need to see it to understand fully, but however arcane this sounds now, it is not hard. Took five minutes, right the first time.Are 7 blades worth it?Yes - it will cut much better on fewer passes. the famous "rifling" of the lawn that the 4-5 blade versions create is greatly reduced. That said, the key to reel mowing is hitting the lawn often. One is trimming and grooming, not cutting the grass.Speed?This is actually faster than my gas powered walk behind. I get done quicker and the lightness of the machine makes up for the fact that it is 100% human power. Not difficult to use at all.Can it maneuver? What if the ground is bumpy?I have an area that inclines rather noticeably and this machine is unfazed by this. It rolls along an incline and tracks true, either parallel to the incline or moving up or down it. I understand from other reviews that this is not always true of mowers from other makers. I also have my share of bumps where the lawn needs leveling, and given its width, that is not a problem. This thing even blasts small twigs without a care (although I prefer to miss them for the sake of continued sharpness of the grass knife), whereas most reel mowers reportedly seize up on the smallest obstacle.Results?Awesome - after three uses, my Bermuda already looks more like an emerald carpet. The reel mower does not stun the blades with a crush-cut like a string trimmer or rotating horizontal steel blade does. As mentioned, this is a trim and groom mower. The grass never misses a growth beat and there are no "hairy edges" left behind to add a tan sheen to the lawn as the crushed bits die and new blades must form. Keep your gas monster for scalping or those times when vacation forces you to let it grow too high and you want to recover back to height quickly in a couple of mows. The gas monster also will suck up light debris in fall as leaves are dropping all over. I see some on YouTube using their gas machine as a yard vacuum of sorts, setting it higher than the reel mower and sucking up loose thatch and leaves.General notes below:Why buy a reel mower?Your lawn is a hobby and you seek golf course quality. You know more than a little about how to care for it holistically. A reel mower clips the grass with a neat scissor action that does not stun the blades. The grass recovers immediately and learns to spread out wide and thick. Great for Bermuda. Turns your grass into carpet as your reel mower trims and grooms it, which you are happy to do every 2-4 days. You love the exercise and the meticulous care of the lawn.Why would I not want to buy one?The above description sounds more like chores from hell than fun.

First time using a reel mower. I just moved to a home with a much smaller yard than I've had for the last 10 years. Went from riding a zero turn mowing about 5 acres to a quarter acre lot, so I didn't want to have to store my big mower with all the gas containers at my new home. I almost bought an electric mower, but I looked up the top rated mowers on Amazon and reel mowers popped up.Since I live in FL and the grass grows quickly and very thick here, I opted for the 7 blade reel mower. Most products I found were out of stock for 7 blade, but I was able to find this one. It was pretty easy to assemble except for the last step which requires you to put the handle on the posts for the mower itself. That part took a bit of strength on my part and I'm 6'2 and 225lbs. Might have been easier with a second person, but it's not impossible with one.My yard had got pretty thick as I have just moved in about two weeks ago and no one had mowed it in about a month. It had also just started raining for a few minutes before I got started.This little thing got the job done and I was pretty surprised. Like I said, the grass had got pretty thick, so some spots took more effort than others and I took the time to cross cut the yard like I had seen mentioned in previous reviews. The yard looked great and the areas that weren't as thick were very easy to push through. I'm confident that now that I have this and can mow on a regular basis before the yard is so thick, that this mower is exactly what I needed. It makes some noise as you turn the reel, but it's much more quite than anything with a motor.I'm also looking forward to the added exercise as I get out there and push this thing across the yard each week. I still need to invest in a weed trimmer.

Up to adding the handle to mower and the E screws, this was easy to assemble out of box. Other instructions besides basic height adjustment and pushing to cut grass, all went over my head.I got this model bc it has 7 blades. I live in S. Florida and have mixed grass ( mostly St Augustine and Bermuda). The handle is not adjustable, so if you are over 5 ft or so, it will be uncomfortable to use. I used it on small, uneven grounds where there were scattered tall grass and it did skip some tall grass. The blades are sharp, easily cut the grass and it was easy to push around.OTHER information- for installation I wore gloves to avoid getting cut; putting on the handle to base is a bit challenging - still lost the E screw. It’s a bit on the heavier side.This is a small reel manual mower. Be realistic about expectations. It produces no pollution, easy to store, decent price and cuts grass.

This mower cuts great and easy to adjust on grass height. Assembly was easy just put the handle together as the mower is adjusted to cut from the factory. Safe to use just be careful around the blades with fingers. This is two inches smaller then my old Scotts reel mower but really cannot tell much difference in mowing as far as speed of mowing the yard.