Customer Reviews

Scotts 2000-20 20-Inch Classic Push Reel Lawn Mower

5 star:		(305)
4 star:		(203)
3 star:		(81)
2 star:		(67)
1 star:		(67)

 

 

This summer, sick of my dirty, smelly, loud gas-powered mower, I decided to purchase a reel mower. As someone who considers himself to be environmentally friendly, I no longer felt comfortable using a polluting machine on my lawn. At the same time, I didn't want to turn lawn mowing into a huge, difficult task. After researching every model on the market, I decided I would give the Scotts 2000-20 reel mower a try. My idea of lawn mowing has completely changed. What used to be a tedious, annoying task is now pleasant and relaxing, due to the ease of use and functionality of this mower. Out of the box, it is very clear how to put this mower together, and it should take no more than about 30 minutes to get the assembly done. Just remember to put some dishwashing detergent inside the rubber handle cover before you slide it on. Then you're ready to go. The height adjustment, which is located near one of the rear wheels, is very easy to access: you simply push a lever in and slide it to the correct height level. The height levels are clearly marked right on a dial (a lot easier than having to get out your wrench and screwdriver for most gas-powered mowers). In actual cutting, this mower is very smooth. With minimal energy, the blades spin with good speed and torque, easily cutting the grass down to size. I have a somewhat weedy lawn, and I was concerned that this mower might bog down, but it cuts everything with the same smoothness. My lawn also has several uneven spots, but this mower handled that nicely as well. The rear wheels keep the mower balanced as you push it. If you push faster, of course, the blades will run faster. However, at a casual pace, the blades definitely spin fast enough to take care of a typical lawn. I have even "let my lawn go" a couple of times this summer (it grew to about 6" in height at one point), but the mower handles it just fine. As you're mowing, you'll notice that there is a lot less dust flying around, no smell of fumes, and you can listen to birds and natural sounds the entire time you're outside. This reel mower cuts the grass more cleanly for sure -- you can see that the grass is greener when you're done, without brown tips. When I cut my lawn, I leave the cuttings there and allow them to mulch into the soil. The mower is light enough to lift and carry into a storage area. You don't have to keep oil and gas around, so this mower takes up the minimal amount of space. Here are the only disadvantages to this mower: (1) You can only get about 6" to an edge; (2) If a stick gets into the blade, you have to stop and pull it out; (3) You will not be visiting the local lawnmower repair shop every season for a tune up, spark plugs, air filter, and any number of other unpredictable problems. Since I started using this mower, several people have asked me if it's more difficult to use, if it's slower, or cuts worse. I assume potential buyers are asking the same questions. I will venture to say that it is actually JUST AS EASY TO USE A REEL MOWER AS IT IS TO USE A GAS-POWERED MODEL. There is NOTHING about a gas-powered mower than makes it easier to use, and gas-powered mowers do not save any time, espcially when you consider all the peripheral needs of owning one. Overall, this is an example of a simple, low-tech solution to a common need.

I just eagerly put my reel mower together, having spent much time researching whether I should get one or not. The reviews on here were especially helpful. In short, I'm glad I bought it.

Pluses:
1. Safer: no flying rocks or other projectiles, your kids won't sneak up on you and get extremities caught in the blade the way they do with gas mowers. As an ED physician, this is an especially important observation that I don't think had been pointed out before.
2. Quieter: my neighbors are thankful, as are my ears
3. No smoke, no gas fumes
4. Easier handling than gas mower, lighter, can get in crevices more easily and safely
5. Better for environment, save on gas, oil.
6. Easier to start-up; I'm more likely to cut the grass with this mower
7. Doesn't take any longer to mow then lawn vs. a gas mower (and if you gas mower is finicky, will probalby be faster).

Negatives:
1. Requires a bit more elbow grease with thick grass, especially on hills. Not a lot more, but a bit more (good exercise though).
2. Tall grass/weeds will not be easily cut with this; anything taller than 6-8 inches probably won't spring back up in time for the blades to cut them
3. 20" cutting swath a bit more narrow than your average gas mower, so you may need a few more passes. On flat land, it's no problem whatsoever.

I'm happy with this mower, how well it holds up remains to be seen. Construction quality is decent, the price and free shipping can't be beat. Haven't tried the $200+ models of reel mowers, so I can't comment.

If you have a smaller (< 0.5 acre), relatively flat yard, what are you waiting for?! If you like to think of mowing the lawn as exercise and have a bit larger yard, this may also be for you. Lastly, if you have kids and safety is a concern, (yes, you Volvo all-wheel-drive owners out there), a reel mower is also the way to go.

I own a John Deere 4.5 hp 22" gas-powered (4-stroke) self-propelled mulching mower. I think it retailed for about $600-700 ten years ago. It's performed very well, but it needs annual service; it needs to be cleaned, and it clogs if the grass is damp or too tall.

I'm not sure what made me look at reel mowers on Amazon. Maybe it was wondering how I was going to transport my gas-powered mower to John Deere for service this year. Maybe it was my surprise when I saw I'd have to buy gas twice in one season this year. Having to tune the carburetor almost every week this season? Breathing in unfiltered exhaust?

Whatever the reason, I found this mower on Amazon and was intrigued by the idea of a clean, quiet mower. The fact that its cutting method might be better for my lawn was just a bonus. No gas or tune-ups? Even better.

The reviews on Amazon were encouraging, but I did a lot more research than that. I looked at the Brill Luxus, but it has a maximum cutting height of 1.8". I don't know about you, but my lawn is definitely not a golf course. This Scotts mower is the only one with a maximum 3" cutting height, and I use it at about 2.5".

Price: Amazon also has the best deal I found, especially with free shipping. Other sites are charging $180 and up, plus shipping.

Research: Amazon asks people not to enter URLs, but a quick Google for "scotts classic reel" will display all of the sites I used in my research.

Assembly: It sounds crazy, but you should definitely pour about a teaspoon of dishwashing liquid inside the foam pad to help it slide onto the handle. Try to spread it around the inside of the foam as much as possible. You can wipe off any excess after installation. Other than that, assembly is a snap. (A 30-minute snap.)

First impressions: My 8-year-old son mowed the lawn the first time. The grass was probably 5" tall and slightly damp, but this mower went right through it. There were some spots that needed another pass, but that's because the grass was too long.

Leaves: The second weekend, the leaves had started to fall. I experimented and found that this reel mower can handle white birch leaves, which are small enough that the mower just tosses them out of the way. However, my 5-year-old son and I had to rake up the larger leaves (such as maple).

Now that the leaves have started to fall in earnest, I'm just going to pull out the gas mower to mulch them, rather than rake. However, I'm looking forward to doing a final pass with the reel, and of course, I can't wait until spring.

Simple. Quiet. Inexpensive. It just works.

I probably should have known better after reading several of the reviews here... There's nothing wrong with this mower, it's just that I'm the wrong guy to own it.

Reel mowers work best when they only remove a small portion of the grass blade at a time. If you go on vacation, get hit with a lot of rain, or have some other reason why you can't mow and your lawn gets too long, this mower will do a poor job of cutting it. It also has difficulty with some (particularly tall) weeds.

In general, a power rotary mower with sharp blades will more easily give you that near-perfect "carpet" look to your lawn. A power rotary mower also cuts closer to the edges of the mowing area (this mower can only get 2-3 inches from the outside edge of the wheels).

That said, using this mower is good exercise and it gets the job done in many cases. Here are the attributes which represent a good candidate for this mower:

1. Owns a small (less than 1/4 acre) lawn.

2. Maintains lawn in good condition (healthy, few weeds, etc.)

3. Is committed to regular (~2x per week) mowing.

4. Has a reason to not use a rotary mower:

- Noise

- Exhaust emissions

- Use of fossil fuels

- Other

5. Is not allergic to exercise ;)

If you meet these requirements you'll probably be happy with it. In my case, my lawn is too large and I'm too picky about how it looks after I mow it :(

Everyone I know advised me against getting a reel mower. I was cautioned that they don't cut well and they're hard to push. But I didn't consider a gas mower an option (too expensive, noisy, hard to maintain, and dangerous), a corded electric would be too cumbersome, and a rechargeable would be impractical because there is not a convenient place for me to charge it. So I took the plunge and bought this one.

I'm completely intimidated by all things mechanical, so I was worried about assembling this mower, but it really is easy. The only thing you have to do is screw the five sections of the handle together, then clip it onto the mower body. The instructions were adequate (3.5 stars there), even for an assembly-phobe like me. The current configuration does not require any tools for assembly, but there was an add-on bag of washers and nuts included with my mower that are recommended for a more securely assembled handle. If you opt to use the new nuts instead of the original wingnuts, you'll need a wrench.

After just fifteen minutes or so, I was up and running. To my delight, the mower pushes easily, even through long grass. And it's very entertaining to watch the grass being rapidly snipped off. I felt like Edward Scissorhands. Who would have thought mowing grass would be so fun? I was a little tired and winded when I finished (in a good way), but I had been practically running with this thing because I enjoyed it so much. I kept looking for stray patches to go over again, but, alas, the mower did such a good job, when I was finished, my yard looked like a golf course.

A few facts about me and my lawn to see if my wholehearted recommendation will apply to you: I'm female, plus-sized, totally out of shape, and usually quite sedentary (one reason I thought this would be a good idea). I had never mowed grass before in my life (didn't have a yard before last summer, and then I accepted the fine services of a neighborhood girl with a ride-on mower who worked cheap). My yard is about 6500 square feet, level, fairly flat, and covered with long pine needles all over the place (the mower didn't even notice them).

Some older reviews address a couple of problems that are no longer an issue: Scotts now (late April 2007) packages the mower with the cushioned handgrip already on, and the apparently easily loosened wingnuts (as already mentioned) can now be replaced with regular nuts (not mentioned in the current manual, but included in the box with a note). Scotts should have included shorter bolts with the new nuts (since you now don't need the extra length the wingnuts required), but this is a trivial point. Put your wingnuts on after the new nuts for a more "finished" appearance.

A reel mower might not be suitable for everyone and every yard, but for me, it's fantastic. It's quiet, easy to maneuver, non-intimidating, good exercise, fun, environmentally sound, and inexpensive. I couldn't be happier with this mower.

I bought this mower a little over a year ago, and after just one year of use I must give this mower the thumbs DOWN. Before it broke it worked fairly well. Yes, it is much more pleasant to use than a gas powered mower -- when it's working. Yes, it cuts the grass more cleanly than conventional mowers, when the blades are sharp. In everyway it is superior to gas mowers for mowing small yards, but this particular mower is poorly designed and cheaply made.

This mower uses a plastic gear to connect the wheels to the blades and make the blades spin. In a relatively short time (for me it was season of normal mowing) the interior of the plastic gear will be stripped by the metal parts that connect to the blades. If your lawn is perfectly flat and you mow religiously it may last longer than one season. With a little tinkering the connection can be fixed temporarily. Although, you will probably be tinkering with it everytime you mow.

The handle looks like it's made from aluminum -- not a good idea for something that is under the constant stress of pushing, pulling, and turning while you are mowing. The handle on my mower broke. The metal simply fatigued from the stress of mowing and broke off at the thinnest point.

Finally once the blades dull, mowing becomes significantly more difficult. My blades dulled in less than one season. From what I have read about reel mowers they should only need to be sharpened every few seasons.

I can't stress enough, this is all after one season of normal use. I have a small lawn in the suburbs -- nice grass (not weeds), very flat w/ few inclines... I must be a sucker because I'm looking for a new reel mower (but it will be a different brand).

I am a great fan of manual mowers for small yards, although that wasn't always the case. When I was a small lad one fo my shores was to mow a double lot with an old, heavy manual mower, something that soured me on manual mowers for decades. But a few years ago I discovered the new generation of manual mowers, and now I mow my lawn in about the time it took with my gas mower, but without the noise, the vibrations or the fumes. I can mow at 7 in the morning, or 9 at night without bothering the neighbors, too.

The Scott has a number of good things going for it: It's light, easy to push, fairly easy to adjust, and you can sharpen it yourself with a simple kit. That alone will save a bit of money. It's my favorite unit in its price class. (My favorite mower is the Brill, from Germany, which is even lighter and easier to push than the Scott and doesn't require sharpening for 8 years, but which Amazon doesn't carry... yet.)

If you do buy the Scott, get the sharpening kit, as when you do need it you'll want to have it on hand. And get a can of Boeshield protectant spray (also available from Amazon). A quick once over with the Boeshield from time to time will greatly extend the life of your mower and keep it easy to push.

I bought this mower with memories of struggling to push my grandfather's 50-year-old reel mower around the yard in Norway. I figured I could use the exercise. I'm not sure whether to be dissappointed that I will have to look elsewhere for my exercise, because this mower is much easier to push around than my big old gasoline mower. The first time I used this mower, my 18-month-old baby girl (who loves to watch things that go "awound") insisted on being carried along so she could watch and provide commentary. So I picked her up, put her on my hip, and effortlessly mowed my quarter-acre lawn, pushing the mower with my left-hand only. My daughter loved it. It used to be that mowing the lawn involved hiding the kids inside until I was done with the dirty deed. Now I mow right on past them as they play, knowing that they are safe from flying debris and blades that rotate with potentially lethal force. In fact, I actually prefer that they play outside near me while I mow, since this way I can see (and hear) that they are OK and not getting into any sort of trouble.

The only dissappointment might be that I feel the precision of the build of this mower isn't quite up to the standard of the German Brill mowers (which don't cut typical American lawns well because they don't cut tall enough). Not that the overall build-quality is poor, mind you, but the last inch or two on either side of the reel isn't very effective at cutting, even after I fine-tuned the cutter bar position. In fact, the paint isn't even rubbed off the reel knives in a couple of places.

While some people have complained that the mower can't handle "weeds", this hasn't been my experience. I don't know what sort of brush-cutting other people are attempting with this unit, but I have found that it cuts through most non-grass growth less than about 8" tall very nicely. It also doesn't have the reported issue getting of stopped in its tracks by every little twig, either. I find it takes a stick almost as thick as a pencil to stop the reel once it really gets going.

Overall, the mower does a fine job of cutting, and I can mow my lawn in less time with this mower than with my gasoline one if you factor in the time I would have spent fueling up, getting it started and letting the engine warm up before cranking it up to "cruising speed", the way you're supposed to. The stategy I would recommend for most people is to use the Scott's reel mower as your regular mower, but also to keep your gas-powered mulching mower for mulching the leaves in the fall and for those times when you get back from vacation to find that the dandelions and crab-grass seed stalks are sticking up as high as your knees. That way you have a clean, safe, quiet mower to do the bulk of your mowing in a pleasant, child-friendly, environment-friendly and neighbor-friendly manner while also having the big, dirty, belching noisemaker on hand for those times when its power and its clearcutting and mulching capability is truly needed.

I grew up on a lawn mower like other kids grow up on go-carts. I drove a Massey-Ferguson tractor with gang mowers on the back for a half-dozen years before I ever drove a car. The sight of a Gravely makes me wistful. The roar of a lawnmower engine and smell of cut grass and gas on my hands is the smell of summer, in my book. So when it comes to a rinky-dink unpowered lawn mower, I was a tough sell.

Three things made me buy one to give it a try. (1) Global warming seems like a lousy thing to do to my kids and theirs, and I read that gas lawnmowers produce something like 7 times as much pollution as cars per hour. (2) The online reviews I saw were very encouraging. (3) They're cheap -- I got mine (a Sears Craftsman that's made in the same plant as this Scotts and is identical except two inches narrower and gray) for a hundred bucks, and I could always return it if I wasn't satisfied.

Frankly, despite the good reviews, I suspected I wouldn't be satisfied with it. I was ready to make some sacrifice for the environment, but it couldn't be a major hassle and it couldn't do a lousy job. And judging from the other reviews here, my 2/10ths of an acre of lawn has all the red flags for reel mowers: lots of weeds, lots of fallen twigs and pinecones, lots of uneven spots, and two sloping embankments. For the past few years, I've used a gas push mower and been basically satisfied, although pushing it up the embankments is hard and awkward work for me and pretty much a deal-breaker for my wife.

The verdict on the reel mower: environmental considerations completely aside, I like it better than my gas push mower. Here's how I compare the two:

Cutting performance: about the same. My gas mower does a somewhat better job of getting every blade on the first pass. The reel mower has a short wheelbase so it does much better with the grass at the base of a rise (which any standard mower leaves too long) or the top of a rise (too short). For anyone whose yard has embankments (and that's a lot of people), this is a major advantage; I couldn't disagree more with the reviewers who say a reel mower is only for folks with flat lawns. Once weeds get above maybe 8 inches, the reel mower won't cut them while a gas mower still can.

Total cutting time: slightly faster. What I occasionally lose going back over the same spots twice I gain back by being able to walk faster. I was surprised by that, but it's true; with a gas mower, you have to walk slowly if the grass is at all high or damp or else it will leave grass sticking up; with the reel mower, you could sprint around the yard if you wanted. The twig issue other reviewers mentioned has been a total non-issue for me; maybe if I were cutting my lawn to putting-green length I'd notice them, but on the 3" setting I use I have no problems at all.

Physical exertion: much less. The effort involved is significantly less than with my gas push mower, due to the lower weight. People who talk about their reel mower giving them a workout must not be comparing it to a push mower. Any lawn small enough for a push mower or a walk-behind is small enough for a reel mower.

Convenience: significantly easier. No fresh gas to buy, no oil to check, no tune-ups, no pull cord starts. Less that can go wrong with it. Easier to store, easier to transport. I found assembly to be a snap despite lack of helpful directions; Craftsman uses lock washers instead of wingnuts.

Other factors: I don't mind the sound of mowers like others seem to, but I have to admit that quieter mowing is more pleasant. Being able to hear my cell phone has come in handy. I suppose it's slightly safer, both because you hear people around you and because there isn't a steel blade revolving faster than the eye can see. It's helped me meet more of my neighbors, because everyone who walks by wants to ask about it.

If you drive a Hummer and think President Bush is too much of a tree hugger, is a reel mower for you? Unless your lawn is big enough for a riding mower, I think the answer is yes. A reel mower isn't a compromise for liberals and hippies, it's just a superior product. It's for anyone who wants cutting the grass to be easier, cheaper, and more pleasant. The benefits to the environment are just icing on the cake.

I just opened, assembled and mowed for the first time with this mower and I have to say that I love it. I am trying to be more environmentally conscious, so this seemed like a good idea.

People pooh poohed the idea, telling me it would be really hard to use, but quite the contrary. It is so light that it is easy to get in/around/under trees and shrubs. I literally picked it up in the driveway with one hand and carried it into the garage, where it hardly takes up any room at all.

I initially went outside with it just to cut a row or two - to test it out. It was drizzling and I didn't want to mow....but I enjoyed using it so much I did the entire lawn. I have been paying the neighbor to do it and it would take him over 2.5 hours to mow and rake, took me less than 45 minutes and there is no raking!!

There was a definite need for overlapping rows when cutting, but the whole process went by so quickly that it didn't matter. It never clogged unless I ran over a stick that got caught up in it.

I would recommend this to anyone who is thinking about it, no hesitation!!