clv101

My mower's died! Half an hour in, the magic smoke came out. [edit to add, I can buy a replacement motor... only £140.99!! YouTube videos shows replacement straight forward. I'd be tempted at half that price, but way too much.] I used to have an corded Makita mower 1600W induction, 41cm, steel deck, this one: https://lawnmowerwizard.com/electricmowers/makita-elm4110x-electric-lawn-mower-review/. It was great, a little heavy but a tough little thing, did the job. I have around 200m2 of 'nice' lawn around the house from which a usually collect the grass and around 1000m2 of rougher lawn with fruit trees where I never collect the grass and only mow half as often. A battery mower's not going to cut it, and after years of using petrol mowers I'm not keen to go back there. So - what's the best corded mower? No really constrained on budget - looking for reliability and power mainly. Considering: Cobra MX46SPE 1800W (self drive, 34kg! 2 yr warranty) Bosch Lawnmower AdvancedRotak 750 1700W (16kg, 3 yr warranty) Makita ELM4621X 1800W (self drive, 32.2kg! 3yr warranty) Aldi Ferrex 1800W Electric (less than half the price! 16.6kg, 3yr warranty) Anyone used them? (I've also used the tiny Bosch Rotak 32R, 1200, 31cm and it's rubbish!)

If it weren't for the all round glowing reviews and opinions of the 550XP II, I think I'd be happy with the 450 II. It would be a big step up from my 35cc Efco (2.4kW vs 1.65kW) and only 400g heavier. What are the key advantages I'd notice going to the 3kW 550XP though? It's heavier still (+400g over the 450). Does the extra tech (autotune, adjustable oil pump, rev boost etc) translate into more to go wrong and lower reliability over the 450? Or is the whole thing just build to a higher quality with its stiffer magnesium crank case? The £140 difference buys a lot of Aspen, oil and another chain!

Is it fair to say the 450 II is a simpler and therefore more reliable saw than the 550XP II for occasional, smallholder use where a month or two might go by without use? Or is the 550XP more robust as well as being more powerful?

Thanks, I hadn't considered Echo, the 501SX does look good. A little lighter, a little less power than the Huskies. Is the 5 yr warranty worth it? Are there annoying clauses that class most issues as fair wear and tear? Similar price to the 550XP though! Why isn't it more popular?

My old 35cc Efco just isn't up to the job any more - mostly ash and oak, often over 20 inch. I'm going to buy a 50cc Husqvarna but can't decide between the 450, 545 and 550XP. Is the 545 worth an extra ~£90 over the 450? and the 550XP another £40 again? What are the real world, noticeable differences? I'm not a heavy, daily user, probably only put 15-20 litres of fuel through the saw a year. I do value reliability, warranties and long life though.

Thanks for offer arcadian. I have recently picked up a 2nd hand (hardly used but less than half price!) Al-Ko BM5001R Scythe Mower that seems to do the job. Thanks for all advice!

SteveA, being in Pembrokeshire, I presume you're aware of the One Planet Development policy? See One Planet Council | Supporting One Planet Developments

I think it's clear it's not the sellers fault. However, Parcelforce is working on behalf of the seller - so it would be good to have the seller on side as they take it up with them.

Do you mean like the ones I mentioned in the first post or something of higher caliber? I'm now thinking more seriously about 2nd hand equipment, maybe a BCS power scythe.

Any views on the mid-range (?) power scythe: Bertolini 401 Scythe Mower?

Thanks all for your input. Three motivations for managing this grass are (1) remove the tussocky grass, field vole habitat (as they don't play nice with fruit trees), (2) allow easy access without needing to walk through long grass and (3) make it look a bit tidier. Last year I used a combination of Honda GX35 brushcutter and old skool Austrian scythe on around a third of an acre - this was okay, but with a bit over an acre now this approach doesn't scale. A few weeks ago I hired the power scythe which I thought did a reasonable job but I was thinking, hoping, that once that tool had taken care of the tussocks, another, cheaper tool could be used for regular maintenance. I thinking once every 2-3 weeks. Whilst there are clearly better solutions for more money, I'm stuck on finding the best solution for under £1000, ideally closer to £500.

This is the kind of grass I'm dealing with. In fact this is the best area as I went over it with a brushcutter a few times last year: I'm thinking the underlying ground is probably just a little bit too bumpy for a standard rotary mower. See also the slight slope to the site. I'm now thinking about the wheeled strimmer along with the cheaper power scythes. Is the ~£750 "Al-Ko BM 870-III Scythe-Bar Mower" or "Lawnflite BM87-35 Powered Scythe Mower" likely to fall apart within a year? I really can't stretch to the fancy models twice that price. Regarding the wheeled strimmers - how easy is it to get a level finish? Their usage seems a bit haphazard without much guide at the front end. Is it hard work mowing an acre with a wheeled strimmer?

Thanks for the wheeled strimmer suggestion. I hadn't even considered them but a brief look online suggests they might be more suitable for my rough ground. Much cheaper and lighter than a power scythe, a bit lighter and probably more manoeuvrable than a rotary mower. Any particular models to look at, or avoid?

I have around 1 acre of recently planted orchard. It's on a gentle slope and the field used to have cows but been empty for a few years. As such the ground is a bit lumpy in places and the grass, after not being cut at all for a couple of years is very tussocky. I've been over it once with a (hired) BCS 615L Power Scythe which did a good job on the tussocks. I need to buy a machine for long term grass management. The power scythe clearly works, but once under management seems an overkill (it's rather expensive to buy and heavy to use). I'm wondering if a big, self propelled rotary mower would be up to the job? I'm looking at the: Toro 20959 - 675 Series B&S, 55cm cut, 280mm rear wheels, up to 104 mm cutting height, 38kg ~£500 Toro 20975 - 875 Series OHV, 76cm(!) cut, 245mm rear wheels, 62kg(!), up to 108 mm cutting height, ~£900 Mountfield SP535HW-V - GCV190 OHC, 53cm cut, 280mm rear wheels, up to 87mm height, 39kg ~£500 McCulloch M56-190AWFPX - GCV190 OHC, 56mm cut, 305mm rear wheels, 90mm height, 37kg, ~£500 Basically I'm wondering if these self propelled mowers are up the job of mowing a field of rough grass, once the power scythe has taken all the big lumps out? I'm thinking the large wheels will help, and I like the 100mm+ cutting height of the Toro machines. Any other machines I should be looking at? Don't really want to spend much over £500 and 21"/53cm is the absolute minimum width.

A lot of folk suggesting Echo - I'm only seeing 2 stroke machines on their website. Do they have a 4 stroke engine?