CHANGE OF OPINION: While trying to again adjust my Fiskars reel mower, I had it sitting up on the rear wheels, but it fell forward with a crash. This threw everything out of adjustment, and it took hours of tinker-toying with it to get it back to working order. I have never experienced such fragility in a push mower before. Now, I have learned about the Cottage Craft Works® Clipper Push Reel Lawn Mower, made in the U.S.A. by Amish craftsmen. Examining a photo of it, I recognized that it is identical in every respect (including the hubcaps, to the original Yard Man Silent Reel Mower, also sold as the Scotts Silent Reel Mower and the Agrifab Silent Reel Mower, all of which are long off the market. It is all steel construction: even the wheels. It is heavy: 45 to 53 lbs., depending on the width you order. Without actually seeing the Clipper Push Reel Lawn Mower, I now change my mind and declare that it is the finest reel mower on the market. Uhhh . . . There’s only one problem. I was eager to purchase one, but when I came to the Checkout, the price was $742.12. (I paid $99 for the Agrifab version of this model in 1998.). The mower is not sold at Amazon. So, for the time being, I’ll stick with my Fiskars. Now, here’s my old review: Two years ago, my twenty-four year-old AgriFab Silent Reel mower literally fell apart, and try getting parts for a hand mower which hasn’t been made in twenty years! So I began reading reviews and recommendations of the latest in reel mowers. It should come as no surprise that none are made in the United States, but a green one made in Germany was given rave reviews. (I forgot how many shills post reviews.) When it was delivered, I was dismayed to see that the side plates were merely cast metal, not forged, and it took extensive filing to get the handle arms to fit over the dowels. Upon assembly, I found that it would not cut any grass, but the blades would lock up and the mower slid across the lawn. Back in the carton it went and back to the retailer (not Amazon). Of course, I didn’t get >all< my money back; I had to swallow the shipping charges. On the return order, I simply wrote NFG as the reason for return. The second mower I bought was little better. There are so many junk mowers out there, that my words of warning are >caveat emptor< I finally settled on a Sears Craftsman Model 71-30377 (made in China), which was the best of a bad lot. It mowed the lawn . . . Sort of. It missed a lot of taller blades, and you had to mow twice, each time at a different angle, to get a decent cut. After two years, the blades were as sharp as kiddie scissors, and after repeatedly using lapping compound to sharpen them, I concluded that they simply would not keep an edge. What did I expect? The box it came in was marked LIGHT DUTY. Most of the other mowers listed here appear to be on the same pattern (the Green States 815 looks identical, so does the American Lawn Mower Company 815 — funny how products made in China all have American names). The reviews describe the same hit-and-miss mowing. Yeah, they’re much cheaper than the Fiskars, but as my dad used to say, “You gets what you pays for.” An obvious clue as to which mowers are cheap and flimsy is the shipping weight. Notice that the Fiskars weighs almost twice as much as the mowers from the Orient, because it’s solidly built of high-quality steel. With the other mowers, you could likely bend the light tubular handles over your knee, but not the Fiskars. The cheap mowers have handles which are assembled using plastic wing nuts, while the Fiskars actually has grade-6 self-locking nuts and bolts. (An 11 mm wrench or socket is necessary for assembly, although you might get by with an adjustable wrench.) Best of all is the performance of the Fiskar mower. I’m so enthusiastic about it, that I called the neighbor’s son over to try it, and he admitted that >the Fiskars hand mower is easier to push than a power mower
