Customer Reviews

American Lawn Mower 1204-14 14-Inch Deluxe Hand Reel Mower

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(40)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

Keep in mind that this mower is 14" wide. Which is not much more than one foot wide. So if you have a "real" lawn just imagine how many trips back and forth you will have to do across your lawn. If you live in anything larger than a townhouse this is too small. If you really do not want to purchase a gas or electric mower, look at the larger push mowers (18 or 20in) but not this one.

If you have a small area to mow, this is a great option. I bought this for my 110lb girlfriend who has no trouble pushing this around her tiny fenced in yard which is probably 15ft by 15ft. It is easy to manuever around and only takes a few minutes to mow the grass. She has an electric trimmer which she uses along the fence.

As others have mentioned, it doesn't cut through twigs and branches very well unless you get some momentum going. And it does tend to leave random blades of grass sticking up that it doesn't like to cut. These blades are usually longer than the rest of the grass or are a different type of grass. But once you have the lawn a fairly uniform length it does a good job of maintaining it.

So if you have tiny yard, this is a very good choice for you. If you have a medium or large yard, this is not a good choice.

This was one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. It was easy to put together, just make sure that if you have small hands like me you get someone to really tighten the bolts good though. It's light, cuts grass like a dream, however it doesn't edge. Also it's a nice little workout, and it's easy to store. I'm diabetic and since using this. I've had to lower my insulin intake. So I highly reccomend this to anyone who wants a little cardio workout.

We've gone through one season of lawn mowing and our "reel mower" has been great. The mower cuts the grass, easily corners, and works exactly as the writeup said it would. My 10 and 13 year old sons can push it, they've had NO PROBLEMS with it flipping or sliding on the grass - even when we came back from vacation to find VERY tall grass to cut. Next spring I will buy a grass catcher to go with our mower.

I'm not sure what prompted one reviewer to speak so poorly of this mower because I can find nothing bad to say.
It took me about 15 minutes to assemble. It's sturdy - but I'm sure if you man handle it and try to force it through knee high grass or try to force it to cut or break a stick that might have jammed in it that you could break off the handle ;o)
You do need to rake your yard before use - while this is a fine mower and it will cut your grass well - it is not a power mower and won't chop up and spit out sticks, pinecones, etc.
I am 5'2", middle aged, at 140 pounds a bit out of shape and I had no difficulty using this mower. On the flat, up a hill, down a hill, around the bushes - it works fine. I can carry it with one hand.
Yes, you do need to actually put a little bit of effort into it - it is not self propelled. But it is also NOT a gas guzzling, pollution spewing, noise making monstrosity either. You can hear life going on around you with this one, you can breathe in the fresh air - it makes mowing a pleasure instead of a chore.

Great item! The mower doesn't cut high grass too well but it can withstand much abuse as I have cut a path through an overgrown field reasonably well. Don't worry about the low price. It's just as good as most reel mowers over $$$$.

This mower was easy to put together and it works like a dream come true. My grass was very long since it hadn't been mowed since my last mower stopped functioning and the GSM cut it with no problem. There were some tall plants that the mower just road over with out cutting; however, if you stop the mower right on top of these weeds and let the blades spin, the super-tall weeds will be cut. So this mower will easily cut tall grass and even super-tall weeds with the proper techniques and if you use it for normal mowing, it can't be beat. The mower is very easy to push, even through the tall grass and the grass goes flying out the back to make a perfectly thin mulch; as opposed to a fan mower which leaves the grass in a linear clump on the side.
This mower is much quieter than a fan mower, much quicker to use, much cheaper, much better for the environment, much easier to use, much safer, does a better job and is more fun. I don't know why people started using combustion-engine mowers or fannies as I like to call them, in the first place. I think it's a sign of the monIXgon so be careful and if you're out shopping for a mower, there is really no choice: you've got to get reel. For pharmin' out loud, just don't wind up driving around with one of those fossil fannies!

I almost didn't buy a reel mower after reading reviews here, but my lawn is so small that I thought a power mower (besides a waste of $$), would rip up the ground.

It was easy to assemble, but I am still confused as to the purpose of the screws to adjust the blades closeness to the back plate. I just left them alone and the mower seems to cut fine. My first try was in new sod, layed 2 weeks ago. The grass was about 4 inches and it was a struggle to get started. I readjusted the mower to its highest setting. Once I got momentum, the mower really sung through the grass. Unlike a power mower, you kind of need a running start, so small patches in awkward areas will have to be cut with a weed eater. If I wasn't going fast enough, small sticks would stop the mower. But when I saw the sticks ahead of time, I could give the mower an extra push and it would snap them in pieces. Luckily, my grass is not under a tree, otherwise that might be a royal pain.

I think I will have to mow once a week to keep it manageable. I can easily see how tall grass would be impossible with a push mower, but I think I could get it through grass under 5 inches ok. It was a workout, but it is very light and stores well. I think it was worth the purchase.

Home Depot sells this mower for $73 if you want to try it, knowing you can return it easily if it doesn't suit you.

I wanted to like this product. I really did. However, it appears I was sent a mower different than the one in the photo. Amazon was contacted.

The mower I received was easy to assemble but the bolts were impossible to turn on my own with my own hand, thus I had to go out and buy the necessary tools to tighten them. Mowing my back yard was pretty much a breeze, and I was surprised how light-weight and easy to push the mower was. It was a good aerobic workout..broke in to a good sweat and got my heart rate up, all with no blaring loud motor. The reel mower brought back fond memories, I was glad I was helping myself, my lawn and the environment.........but...when I got to the front lawn that was a different story because the previous owners had two different types of grass in the yard. While the mower cut one type fine, the otehr type would NOT budge! I tried raising the blade and still nothing. I ended up having to use an electric trimmer on half our front lawn as a result! I believe this should be mentioned in the product description..that the mower will not cut certain dense grasses. What I h ave appears to be from sod, and is dense and tough. What was also difficult in the front lawn was as we have lots of trees in our yard, we have lots of tiny broken twigs. The mower will NOT go over these, so I had to keep stopping to pick them up. The mower itself seems to be of good quality, and does the job, and is enjoyable and easy enough for a senior or child..as long as you know your lawn...and know that there are not a ton of twigs..or dense grass like mine. Otherwise, this is a good and recommended mower.

I've always been a fan of reel mowers, and this one is a terrific one for the price. As other reviewers pointed out the handle is a bit cheesy, but it hasn't broken for me. I wouldn't advise this for a large yard as it is only about a foot wide. Luckily I have a small yard in the city.

Any reel mower is hard to use on long (over 6 inches) grass. It will still get the job done, but I advise mowing regularly and buying a line trimmer. I also recommend buying a sharpening kit if you don't already have one.

Anyway. Awesome.

As one of the other reviewers said, the weak spot is the handle. It's tube aluminum, I bent both handles forward when I was mowing and it's no longer usable. I got it second hand from a friend for free, so the price was right, but I'd never spend my own money on one. The next model up from the same company looks like a better design: the handle looks less bendy, anyway.