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Types of Lawnmowers

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The two basic kinds of lawn mowers are reel mowers and rotary mowers.

Reel lawnmowers cut grass with blades on a revolving cylinder, which is called the reel. When it is pushed forward, whether by muscle or by motor, the reel moves. As the mower moves forward, the rotating blades come in sliding contact with a stationary bar that is parallel to the ground. The stationary bar is called a bed knife. The grass is held up by the bed knife and is cut by the shearing action of the reel blades against the bed knife. The mower can be adjusted to various cutting heights.

Reel mowers cut lawns shorter and cleaner than a rotary mower but blade adjustment is critical. The bed knife must be adjusted correctly for the grass to cut properly. If the bed knife is too close to the rotating blades, they will hang up on the bed knife, too far away and the grass will not be sheared properly. Depending on the model, it typically takes only a few turns of a screw or bolt to keep the reel properly adjusted.

Rotary lawnmowers use a flat, horizontal blade that turns at the speed of the engine and the engine sits on a housing called the deck. The engine shaft projects through the deck and the blade is bolted to the underside of the engine shaft. The underside of the deck provides safety from the blade and also acts as a vacuum chamber that lifts up the grass, which makes a better cut.

Rotary mowers are easier to use on long grass, but do not mow as cleanly and evenly as reel mowers. The spinning horizontal blade, even with a deck vacuum chamber, tends to bend the grass as it cuts. Rotary mower blades must be kept sharp in order to do a respectable job of cutting the grass. However, maintenance is easier since horizontal blades are easy to remove and sharpen or replace.

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