I purchased this mower because I have a super tiny yard at my condo. It would make no sense for me to own an gas mower. So, it was between this and an electric model. Because of storage space concern I chose this model. It works great! In order for this to function properly, the grass cant be too over-grown. But it does a consist job of quality cutting.

unclewessy84

USA

Ahhhh, I really, really wanted to be ecological about our lawn mowing. I grew up with an electric mower, which is a pain and a half with a power cord dragging behind you. I think gasoline mowers are terrible and very polluting, so I decided this was the way to go. Most of our yard is wooded and natural, which means the weeds move in with vigor. This mower works fine on soft blades of grass, but anything with a stem just pops back up and does not get cut. You also have to go over your path several times to make a good cut. I can only see this mower working if you have a very small, very well-kept lawn (like in the city) or if you don't mind weedy, pokey stems and a real rough look to your grass. And if you neglect and the grass gets a little high? You are toast. It's a battle. We gave up and went with a rechargeable weed eater and the occasional use of a gasoline lawn mower to get the job down. This push mower just could not cut it, no pun intended. The upkeep on it is very nice though. The blades seemed to stay sharp and it's easy to knock the grass blades off and store it. Weed stems and long grass blades do have a habit of tangling up in the wheels though.

KatyMae

USA

For over ten years I have used my reel mower on a variety of lawns around the country. We have had lAwns of varying sizes and it works very well on all of them. It is a good work out tool as well since it must be done quite regularly. No hanging clothes on this equipment! The most frustrating drawback is how frequently the grass needs cutting. When allowed to grow too long the mower does not cut long grass well at all. Not only does it not cut well but it leaves behind a few strands of grass or more often weeds that refuse to yield to the blades. If your grass is thick I would not recommend this mower. Ease of Use Good exercise, simple to use. Engine Power It all depends upon you...

tbretix

Ransomville, NY

After owning gas mowers that always seem to have problems, I started looking for a mower that needed little maintenance. So far I have found it to be easy to use, while giving my lawn a good cut. You need to set the height properly otherwise you will be hitting the ground and getting stuck. My lawn is relatively flat but slight hills are no problem. If you are looking for an alternative to gas/oil mowers and a chance to put your muscles to work, this may be your mower.

DMiner456

Farmington, CT

When we moved into our house, the previous owners left their Craftsman Wheel Mower. Well, we have been using it for the last 7 years, and it has served us well. We have a pretty small yard, and it works just fine for this. I would say if it were even a little bit bigger, the reel mower wouldn't be the best choice. It kind of makes a mess, as there is no bagger, so the clippings are everywhere. I like how easy it is to push-so easy, I even let my young kids help sometimes. It is very efficient in it's cutting. I am not sure if there is a way to adjust the level. I think the grass could be cut a bit shorter-seems like when we mow, it is neat but not as trimmed as I would like. We learned you HAVE to get the blades sharpened once a year. If you do not, then it simply doesn't work. We had a hard time finding a place to sharpen the blades, but our local hardware store steered us toward someone. My other complaint would be that it does not work well on high grass, so we have a service come for the first cut of the season. After that, we are able to use the reel mower. I would recommend the Craftsman Wheel Mower for those who have a small yard.

Julie2002

Evanston, IL

After several years of not having our own lawn due to apartment living, we moved into our own home with a small backyard this spring and I simply couldn't wait to mow for the first time! As previous owners of a vintage push reel mower, we chose the Craftsman 18" Push Reel mower for our small yard because it was the right size for the job and we wouldn't have to buy smelly gasoline or listen to a loud engine.  The push reel mower is super easy to use and it's even safe enough for our 11 year old son to use. A few drawbacks are that our yard is not very level so the mower doesn't do as great of a job as it would on a flatter surface.  It also doesn't work when the grass is wet or if the grass gets more than a couple of inches high.  I've found that it doesn't like to cut weeds such as dandelions, either and that it takes several passes to get it the job done.  I wish the blades could be moved down a bit further because I think this would really help in our uneven yard.  It doesn't do edges very well so we use an electric string trimmer to tidy those up.  But those negatives are most likely due to our yard and not the mower itself. The positives are that it was inexpensive to buy, takes very little effort to maintain, is very lightweight and much safer for our kids to use than a traditional powered mower.  It smells awesome....just the scent of freshly mowed grass instead of gassy exhaust and it's nearly silent. You also get a great workout when using this product.  It's small, too so it doesn't take up much space at all in our garage. I would recommend this product to anyone with a small yard, someone who doesn't like the smell of gas or the hassle of getting it, someone who is not mechanically inclined to maintain a traditional powered mower, anyone who is environmentally conscious, and people who like getting a workout in addition to their lawn care duties.

girlieque

Redmond, WA

 This product works as expected. I was not into mechanical mowers because of cost, starting problems, pollution, inconvenience of getting oil/gas, bulky. so I settled for a push reel mower. my lawn has grown pretty long in some areas and is full of weeds so it took a couple passes to cut down to a reasonable level.   It was easy to use, easy to change the hight level, very light weight.    Although this product would take a little bit longer to do a large size lawn, if you do not like the smell of gas, having to go out and but fuel or having to charge your mower this product is worth it! The only issue I came upon was this product would become stuck at time, but I will contribute this to the length of my lawn, and not the product.    

cupcakebaker315

Arlington, VA

The Craftsman reel type push mower is a great addition to your entourage of mowing equipment collected throughout the years.  This model gets great gas mileage, has a zero degree turning radius also does spectacular with hills and sharp inclines.  This Craftsman takes up very little space but gets the job done with an 18in mowing deck.  It's also neighbor friendly with it not having a motor its very quiet and lightweight.  With this mover having no motor you can enjoy the aroma of fresh cut grass with out having to choke on exhaust fumes.  Plus it is great if you dont have time to mow and excercise since you will work up a good sweat and take care of your yard at the same time.  Make sure to cut your grass often with this mower since its not a obviously not a bushhog and the taller the grass gets the harder to cut it.  Also to alsways make sure to wear all the correct clothing and safety gear since the blades are exposed. 

jmohrt

Indianapolis, IN

I love my reel mower.  The best part of it all, is that I burn calories while doing most of the work. The only drawback about the reel mower is that it is not suitable for all grasses. I find that I have to sometimes push it three times to cut the crabgrass. Other than that, I appreciate the fact that this mower allows for me to be a little "greener" when I cut my grass.

iamkakylak

Surprise, AZ

Thought it was great to mow without buying gasoline, turns out the mower is nice and light, but I had to go over the same spot 4-5 times to get it to cut.  Even then, I did not get it all.  Some tall strands of grass would bend and lay down rather than get cut.  I waited too long to mow.  This was my first cut of the season and should have got the mower out of the box weeks ago. 

randy4babe

Glen Alpine, NC