What Lawnmower should I buy?

What non motorbike related things are you doing, making, building, planning or designing
User avatar
Rockburner
Posts: 6043
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 11:06 am
Location: Hiding in your blind spot
Has thanked: 10971 times
Been thanked: 4004 times

What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Rockburner »

We have a few sections of very lumpy ground that needs regular mowing, but a normal mower that runs on wheels is a nightmare to use, so l'm looking at Flymos (or equivalent).

A half decent original Flymo Contraactor which will actually float properly "can" be found on ebay for a reasonable price (ie under about a ton), but they're generally somewhere more than £100 worth of fuel to get to... :roll:

So - is there a decent modern equivalent that anyone knows of? The ultra-cheap modern "Flymo" equivalents all have built in grass collectors and look like they're so under-powered they'll collapse on the floor as soon as they pick anything up. That was the beauty of the old Flymos - they didn't collect so they didn't lose the ability to float.
non quod, sed quomodo
User avatar
Count Steer
Posts: 15914
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2021 4:59 pm
Has thanked: 8048 times
Been thanked: 5698 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Count Steer »

Rockburner wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 8:49 am We have a few sections of very lumpy ground that needs regular mowing, but a normal mower that runs on wheels is a nightmare to use, so l'm looking at Flymos (or equivalent).

A half decent original Flymo Contraactor which will actually float properly "can" be found on ebay for a reasonable price (ie under about a ton), but they're generally somewhere more than £100 worth of fuel to get to... :roll:

So - is there a decent modern equivalent that anyone knows of? The ultra-cheap modern "Flymo" equivalents all have built in grass collectors and look like they're so under-powered they'll collapse on the floor as soon as they pick anything up. That was the beauty of the old Flymos - they didn't collect so they didn't lose the ability to float.
Flymos do collect something. A thick ring of grass paste on the underside of the hood. :(

I inherited a petrol one at the previous house. I knew he didn't need one in the place he moved to but I found out why he'd left it and not sold it when I tried to start it. It went in a skip.

My rotary Bosch jobs deal with our lumpy ground and you don't have to use the collector box but, currently, I'm just whisking over the grassy bits with a strimmer (Stihl, battery) so they haven't been used at all this year.
The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data'.
User avatar
Rockburner
Posts: 6043
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 11:06 am
Location: Hiding in your blind spot
Has thanked: 10971 times
Been thanked: 4004 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Rockburner »

Count Steer wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 9:06 am
Rockburner wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 8:49 am We have a few sections of very lumpy ground that needs regular mowing, but a normal mower that runs on wheels is a nightmare to use, so l'm looking at Flymos (or equivalent).

A half decent original Flymo Contraactor which will actually float properly "can" be found on ebay for a reasonable price (ie under about a ton), but they're generally somewhere more than £100 worth of fuel to get to... :roll:

So - is there a decent modern equivalent that anyone knows of? The ultra-cheap modern "Flymo" equivalents all have built in grass collectors and look like they're so under-powered they'll collapse on the floor as soon as they pick anything up. That was the beauty of the old Flymos - they didn't collect so they didn't lose the ability to float.
Flymos do collect something. A thick ring of grass paste on the underside of the hood. :(

I inherited a petrol one at the previous house. I knew he didn't need one in the place he moved to but I found out why he'd left it and not sold it when I tried to start it. It went in a skip.

My rotary Bosch jobs deal with our lumpy ground and you don't have to use the collector box but, currently, I'm just whisking over the grassy bits with a strimmer (Stihl, battery) so they haven't been used at all this year.
I'm currently using a strimmer (Ryobi/battery) and it takes fecking ages and exhausts every battery I have to do just one area (there's 3 that need doing). using a flymo with a much larger operative area would speed things up immensely. Additionally these area are very lumpy - pulling a mower over them is fecking awkward, and one area is half very steep banking (steep enough it's hard to climb up): using a wheeled mower (even lowering it by rope) is not an option.

The ring of grass around the edge is just something that needs cleaning out (the strimmers do the same thing)
non quod, sed quomodo
User avatar
Count Steer
Posts: 15914
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2021 4:59 pm
Has thanked: 8048 times
Been thanked: 5698 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Count Steer »

Rockburner wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 9:18 am
Count Steer wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 9:06 am
Rockburner wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 8:49 am We have a few sections of very lumpy ground that needs regular mowing, but a normal mower that runs on wheels is a nightmare to use, so l'm looking at Flymos (or equivalent).

A half decent original Flymo Contraactor which will actually float properly "can" be found on ebay for a reasonable price (ie under about a ton), but they're generally somewhere more than £100 worth of fuel to get to... :roll:

So - is there a decent modern equivalent that anyone knows of? The ultra-cheap modern "Flymo" equivalents all have built in grass collectors and look like they're so under-powered they'll collapse on the floor as soon as they pick anything up. That was the beauty of the old Flymos - they didn't collect so they didn't lose the ability to float.
Flymos do collect something. A thick ring of grass paste on the underside of the hood. :(

I inherited a petrol one at the previous house. I knew he didn't need one in the place he moved to but I found out why he'd left it and not sold it when I tried to start it. It went in a skip.

My rotary Bosch jobs deal with our lumpy ground and you don't have to use the collector box but, currently, I'm just whisking over the grassy bits with a strimmer (Stihl, battery) so they haven't been used at all this year.
I'm currently using a strimmer (Ryobi/battery) and it takes fecking ages and exhausts every battery I have to do just one area (there's 3 that need doing). using a flymo with a much larger operative area would speed things up immensely. Additionally these area are very lumpy - pulling a mower over them is fecking awkward, and one area is half very steep banking (steep enough it's hard to climb up): using a wheeled mower (even lowering it by rope) is not an option.

The ring of grass around the edge is just something that needs cleaning out (the strimmers do the same thing)
Sounds like a petrol Flymo is the answer then. :thumbup:

I worked on a 'Roads and Verges' team on a large estate (actually Esholt sewage works :D ) one year and we did the banks by one stretch of road with the 'Flymo-on-rope' trick.

(It was a bit more than roads and verges - we mowed the meadows around the filter beds with a big ride-on jobby, used a hooge International Harvester with side flail, did scything and all sorts. Marv job for the whole of one summer. Learned a lot - inc how to sharpen a scythe and a chainsaw. :thumbup: ).
The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data'.
User avatar
MrLongbeard
Posts: 6360
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 2:06 pm
Has thanked: 780 times
Been thanked: 3224 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by MrLongbeard »

Would one be terribly out of bounds to suggest that you think of levelling the ground rather than tying to find a way to accommodate it?
v8-powered
Posts: 3058
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2020 7:37 pm
Location: Colchester
Has thanked: 2852 times
Been thanked: 1611 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by v8-powered »

Buy some goats
User avatar
Rockburner
Posts: 6043
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 11:06 am
Location: Hiding in your blind spot
Has thanked: 10971 times
Been thanked: 4004 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Rockburner »

MrLongbeard wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 10:27 am Would one be terribly out of bounds to suggest that you think of levelling the ground rather than tying to find a way to accommodate it?
One part that we cut is actually the field next door that is left fallow permanently (well, the part that borders our land is left fallow). We cut it (with permission) so that we don't have 4 foot high grass atop a 3 foot high bank right next to the house!

The other area is the road verge!
non quod, sed quomodo
Silly Car
Posts: 1293
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2020 7:53 pm
Has thanked: 316 times
Been thanked: 1078 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Silly Car »

Get a petrol rotary, set the blade as low as you can, it’ll scalp the high spots off for you with the debris hopefully settling in the divots! :thumbup: :D
User avatar
Count Steer
Posts: 15914
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2021 4:59 pm
Has thanked: 8048 times
Been thanked: 5698 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Count Steer »

Might be worth attracting the attention of our resident guru on these matters @wull :thumbup:
The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data'.
User avatar
Rockburner
Posts: 6043
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 11:06 am
Location: Hiding in your blind spot
Has thanked: 10971 times
Been thanked: 4004 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Rockburner »

Silly Car wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 1:33 pm Get a petrol rotary, set the blade as low as you can, it’ll scalp the high spots off for you with the debris hopefully settling in the divots! :thumbup: :D
I did try that a couple of years ago .... Neither the Mountfield nor myself appreciated it! :D
non quod, sed quomodo
User avatar
Skub
Posts: 14892
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2020 5:32 pm
Location: Norn Iron
Has thanked: 13109 times
Been thanked: 14171 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Skub »

Count Steer wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 1:49 pm Might be worth attracting the attention of our resident guru on these matters @wull :thumbup:
FFS the man is overloaded fixing lawn machinery,then indulging in recreational pregnancies. :silent:
"Be kind to past versions of yourself that didn't know what you know now."
Walt Whitman
https://soundcloud.com/skub1955
User avatar
Ian
Posts: 729
Joined: Tue Jul 18, 2023 9:25 am
Has thanked: 1361 times
Been thanked: 581 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Ian »

Rockburner wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 1:50 pm
Silly Car wrote: Thu Jun 12, 2025 1:33 pm Get a petrol rotary, set the blade as low as you can, it’ll scalp the high spots off for you with the debris hopefully settling in the divots! :thumbup: :D
I did try that a couple of years ago .... Neither the Mountfield nor myself appreciated it! :D
Works for me, and the cheap Chinese Briggs and Stratton is still going strong despite the abuse ;)
User avatar
wull
Posts: 3299
Joined: Sun Aug 15, 2021 6:09 pm
Location: Alloa
Has thanked: 979 times
Been thanked: 1858 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by wull »

Just seen this, nothing I can really add to it other than it purely depends on how wide the uneven parts of the ground are. Mower width and blade size help towards uneven ground, that’s generally what we look at with multi deck mowers but with regards to domestic sized lawns and undulations it wouldn’t be applicable.

Best bet would be to either level the ground the best you can or cut what you can with a regular mower and strim the uneven areas that the mower doesn’t seem to cut well.
User avatar
ZRX61
Posts: 9062
Joined: Tue Mar 17, 2020 4:05 pm
Location: Solar Blight Valley
Has thanked: 2296 times
Been thanked: 2684 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by ZRX61 »

There's no excuse for a lumpy lawn....

User avatar
Rockburner
Posts: 6043
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 11:06 am
Location: Hiding in your blind spot
Has thanked: 10971 times
Been thanked: 4004 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Rockburner »

Well .... err - ... this happened :

Image

Not quite the model I was looking for, but when it turns up 5 minutes away for £20.... :D

If nothing else it's an object for tinkering with.

Image

first thing was to take the handles off to make it easier to get on the bench
Image

It's obviously been reated roughly by someone....
Image

Tecum-who?
Image

Plug doesn't look too bad.
Image

Seen worse...
Image

carb is a simple one.
Image

pull-spinner is in good knick.
Image

Image

it's structurally ok
Image

Carb is only about 5 bits....
Image

Light at the end of the tunnel??
Image

Simple cut-out switch - no dead-man's-handle on this thing.... :D
Image

The jet looks a lot better after some BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT
Image

Cleaning the air-filter in petrol.... (shaky photo due to the fumes..)
Image

worth it.
Image

And reassembled for first retry attempt.
Image


It DOES run. :D

Reluctantly.... :(

It'll fire up on full choke, then you can take the choke off and it'll run a bit, then slow down and struggle.
Possible issues:
Fuel : I used some pre-mix I had sitting around for the Puch (same ratio, 25:1): but it's been sitting in the can for a couple of years now, so may well be very much past it's best. I'll empty it out and try again with fresh stuff as the next step. (need to go get some more E5).

Resistance: it's possible that the blade/fans are dragging on something, so I'll be looking into that. Or maybe a bearing.

Internals: it HAS compression, but not a huge amount, so I initially thought the rings may be ok - but a full engine strip will reveal more - so that may well be the course of action to take.

So - not perfect, but it's a contender.

I'm also tempted to strip off the plastic casings around the engine, mainly just to take some weight off (every little helps), but not sure how important it is in managing the airflow into the fan. I get the feeling it's just cosmetic.
non quod, sed quomodo
User avatar
ZRX61
Posts: 9062
Joined: Tue Mar 17, 2020 4:05 pm
Location: Solar Blight Valley
Has thanked: 2296 times
Been thanked: 2684 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by ZRX61 »

Bugger pull-starters...
Take the top cover off, use a hole saw to install a hole in the cover above the nut on the starter spinny doodad, use a cordless impact with an impact socket on said nut.. Voila, electric start :)
Silly Car
Posts: 1293
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2020 7:53 pm
Has thanked: 316 times
Been thanked: 1078 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Silly Car »

Very timely bump to this thread as my petrol mower is proving temperamental…

Starting procedure is press priming button 4/5 times, yank 2 or 3 times on rope, chugs away and cuts lawns with ease, only stopping the engine to empty the collection box.

Last time, worked as above but on emptying the box the second time, it wouldn’t start. Re primed it and it ran for a few seconds before stalling. Checked and topped up oil and petrol, primed and it ran for a few seconds and stalled.

It is a POS B&Q rotary which I claimed from my dad’s garage when we were clearing his house. Any pointers on what to look for? Filter is dry and it get the same result without it in. I’m guessing fuel delivery but what / where to look?
User avatar
Rockburner
Posts: 6043
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2020 11:06 am
Location: Hiding in your blind spot
Has thanked: 10971 times
Been thanked: 4004 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by Rockburner »

ZRX61 wrote: Fri Aug 01, 2025 4:26 pm Bugger pull-starters...
Take the top cover off, use a hole saw to install a hole in the cover above the nut on the starter spinny doodad, use a cordless impact with an impact socket on said nut.. Voila, electric start :)
I count it as part of my weekly exercise...
non quod, sed quomodo
roadster
Posts: 263
Joined: Sun Mar 05, 2023 9:05 am
Has thanked: 29 times
Been thanked: 214 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by roadster »

Silly Car wrote: Fri Aug 01, 2025 6:10 pm Very timely bump to this thread as my petrol mower is proving temperamental…

Starting procedure is press priming button 4/5 times, yank 2 or 3 times on rope, chugs away and cuts lawns with ease, only stopping the engine to empty the collection box.

Last time, worked as above but on emptying the box the second time, it wouldn’t start. Re primed it and it ran for a few seconds before stalling. Checked and topped up oil and petrol, primed and it ran for a few seconds and stalled.

It is a POS B&Q rotary which I claimed from my dad’s garage when we were clearing his house. Any pointers on what to look for? Filter is dry and it get the same result without it in. I’m guessing fuel delivery but what / where to look?
Have a look at the spark plug. If its black and horrible - change it. But more likely bad fuel has got the better of the carb and/or fuel pipes. Typical Chinese stuff has a drain screw on the float bowl at 45 degrees and a similar one to remove the float bowl on the base; and you will probably need to pinch off the supply pipe unless you completely drain the tank. Having got that far you may as well remove the carburettor and blow all the jets clear. I use a double ended tyre inflator rather than bothering with a big compressor.
User avatar
XT500
Posts: 14
Joined: Tue Mar 17, 2020 3:51 pm
Has thanked: 46 times
Been thanked: 15 times

Re: What Lawnmower should I buy?

Post by XT500 »

Rockburner wrote: Fri Aug 01, 2025 9:48 am Well .... err - ... this happened :
Those Flymo Pilots are good over rough ground, I have three.

I also leave the top plastic cover off and run them on 40:1.

The carbs do crud up easily but are easy to clean.
Post Reply