Hi
I found a local dealer near me that caters to lawn pros, so I was luckly enough to have the unique ability to actually try these mowers before making up my mind. My local dealer almost always has used McLane and Tru-Cut reels on hand, and every once in a while has a Trimmer there too. I also looked at the Locke reels. Since there was no dealer near me that handled the Locke mowers I emailed them & they told me they'd be glad to sell directly to me since they had no dealers in my state. I was shocked when I got the price quote! I could have a fleet of Tru-Cuts for the price of a single Locke 25" mower! Seriously! The price is 4 times the price of a Tru-Cut!

I chose the Tru-Cut for many reasons. Primarily, ease of use, ergonomics and overall quality/durability. It's my opinion that this is the last mower purchase in my life. It's a well built machine, is all chain driven, so there's no belts to break/replace, has grease zerks instead of sealed bearings like some of the others. It also cuts very close to the side similarly to the Trimmer, but has swivel front wheels so it's easy to maneuver, it has separate controls/clutches for the reel & for the drive wheels so they can be run independent of one another (if you wanted to run it up a ramp to a trailer or p/u truck bed, you could do it without the blades engaged.) You can engage the blades without running the drive, so you can carefully maneuver close to bushes or beds etc. Also, by gently pushing on (or what I call "feathering") the left side drive button, you can get it to move very slowly. It acts much like the clutch in a car. It's a very well engineered machine & makes using this mower easier than you can imagine.

{{gwi:137186}}

I'm biased! I own a Tru-Cut now :)

My 2 cents....

Good day, Dan

While I respect my brother's comments, and agree that Tru-Cut is a fine machine, I am at heart a Trimmer guy.

I prefer the roller drive of the Trimmer, and the fact that the rear wheels are free-wheeling. I believe it is more manueverable and has better traction than the wheel drive and differential of the Tru-Cut. I also think the Trimmer's single plate clutch is inherently more rugged than the dual clutches of the Tru-Cut. Obviously, I'm talking about 20" and 25" Timmer Original models. The Homeowner model is not in the same league.

I also believe the swivel casters on the Tru-Cut are of limited utility. Tru-cut provides a means of locking the casters in the forward condition, and at least in Southern California, most professional gardners who ran Tru-Cuts locked the casters down.

After having said all that, it's pretty much of a tie, and you need to try each machine out personnally and make the decision yourself. One isn't really better than the other, and the market seems to agree. Both makes do well in the market at very similar price points.

Lastly, as I said, make sure you're looking at the all chain Original Trimmer, and for Tru-Cut same goes for the "C" series of mowers. The Trimmer "Home" model and the Tru-Cut "H" series are inferior to the commercial versions.

Does anybody know what a Trimmer "homeowner" model costs approximately?

Hey Todd

Check out this post from last month:

RE: Help me to choose a reel mower for Bermuda lawn

Posted by bo_reese (My Page) on Tue, Jul 18, 06 at 8:22

Hello wcnngt -
The discussion has focused on which reel mower is better. Of the two you mention, the Tru-Cut is the only choice. I own a 25" Trimmer, and as the other posts state, is an equally good alternative. If you want a good education on reel mowers, take a trip to Peachtree Mower on Buford Highway in Chamblee, GA. They sell Tru-Cut and Trimmer, and are the foremost experts in this area on reel mowers. They recommend Trimmer over Tru-Cut, but that recommendation is subjective (Tru-Cut is better on hilly terrain, Trimmer is simpler to operate, etc.).

The more important element to your question is whether you'll get the desired appearance mowing with your rider at 1.25". Unless your lawn is extremely level/smooth, it is improbable that your rider mower will give you a nice appearance at 1.25". All rotary mowers will create some scalping and leave swirl marks in the turf, especially if mowed too short.

If you purchase the reel mower and use it a few times, I doubt you'll ever be satisfied thereafter with the results of your rotary/riding mower. Reel mowers are a lot of work, you'll need to decide if it's worth it to you.

Good luck.

Looks like you have a dealer not too far from you that you could go check 'em out. They may possibly even have some used ones around there.

Good day, Dan

Wow, lots of good input.

Which mower would be better if my yard is not perfectly flat? Slope wise it is level, but my lawn is less than a year old and needs some leveling which I am planning on doing late february early March. However, as it stands now it's a little lumpy in some places.

Also, I have about 12,000 square feet of Tifway Bermuda. Which size mower do you guys recommend?

As I said before, it's pretty much of a draw between Trimmer and Tru-Cut. Personal preference will be more important. To one guy certain features are "must have" and the next guy will focus on something else.

You need to try out both. By that I mean operate each under power for at least 10 minutes or so. Cut will be of least importance, because brand new both use similar reel/bedknife designs and cut equally well (as long as you have same number of blades). Most mower shops will have a patch of grass they use for demos and test driving their repair work.

Several people (Plano and others) used to post price on internet but no longer. My recollection is about $1150 for Trimmer 20" Home, $1350 for Trimmer 20" Orig, and $1600 for 25". Tru-Cut are roughly in step with Trimmer.

For your lawn a 20" or 21" is satisfactory, although if you can afford the extra dollars, a 25" would save some time. I don't think you need or could justify a 27" Tru-Cut.

Yes that is sort of nearby. I just came back from the Ace hardware where they sell tru cuts and the guy there tried to talk me out of the used mclane sitting outside. I realize those machines are a lot for the average homeowner which is why the guy there said people go in there wanting reel mowers thinking it's going to be like a rotary and then they are disappointed.

I just mowed half my front yard with my murray rotary with all 4 wheels removed. Yes, all wheels removed. That was so I could get down to exactly half an inch to see what that would look like. And yeah there were some burns and swirlies but it isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I hear even with the power reels you have to make a couple of passes with them to get everything and so I have to weigh the benefits and cost here. For $400 I can get a new snapper 19" that does half inch with the wheels on with the bagging kit. That's a very basic mower though and there's better deals out there but it does a half an inch and it would cut the grass thoroughly in one pass and if it breaks in 5 years then I got my money's worth out of it. I could maintain with a non powered reel mower in between so maybe it has swirlies once a month and looks better the rest of the time.

Using a power reel might get me better quality results but it will also take more time to use, not as easy to manuever, more maintenance and adjustments and sharpening and so on and so forth.

I think I'm going to wait until the end of season clearance sales and see what comes up. Maybe I'll even wait and see how the murray does on the KBG sans wheels before I decide what to do.

OkcDan,
It looks like you bought the P20S-H-7 from Pro Power in the city???
Did you get used or new.. I live in West OKC and have a McLane 20" (was a gift from a neighbor). I want a new mower.. :-)
From all the posts, it looks like Tru-Cut is in my price range..

Thx
tk

If you want to sell that Mclane let me know, Im in Moore and wouldnt mind a decent power reel. My $20Garage sale Mclane wont last much longer

I just want something different, but parting
with over a grand for a mower is something to get used to..
sure I would consider selling it...
I am probably going to make a trip to the mower shop on Tuesday.. :-)

thekat

You're right, I got my Tru-Cut from Professional Power Equipment in Oklahoma City. I bought mine used just before spring. They often have used Tru-cuts available, but they don't last long! When I first decided I wanted to buy one, I went in to buy the mower I saw there 2 days earlier only to find it was gone! I went in once a week or so to check & when they took in a "trade-in" 20" (the guy upgraded to a 25"), I "jumped" on it. I asked what he wanted for it & he said $599.00, "because it's just like new", I counter offered him $500 & said "I'll take it right now for $500" & we settled @ $549.00 which I gladly agreed to.

okgrassguy
I didn't realize you were in Moore! We're neighbors! I live in Moore too

Dan

Dan, I thought you lived in Moore and by the photos you posted of your lawn I thought I recognized the neighborhood. If you are in the Eastlake addition by Santa Fe Elementary, Im not too far from you.

okcdan
Bit the bullet and bought the same Tru-Cut...
I have to take it back to get the reel adjusted though.. it is putting a ridge in my yard.. other than that I love it..

okgrassguy
If you are still interested in the McLane.. let me know.

I used to live off of 119 and S Penn.. both of yall where really close to the May 3rd tornado..

Let me know how much you want. Yep a little too close to may 3rd if you ask me.

I have a Honda Rotary and although it works well my heart lies with the reel types. I've had a King O lawn (similar to True Cut), Mc Lane 20", and finally got a Used Trimmer Commercial 20" with 3.5 HP Honda. I like fixing up stuff and got the paint and decals to put it back like new. It's built tough, operation is bulletproof and construction is quite rugged. I would suggest the catcher be available in poly similar to Mc Lane. Cuts the lawn like a carpet.

My recommendation - 25" Trimmer w/4HP Kolher engine. They are bullet proof!! I have used one for over 10 years cutting Bermuda and St Augustine and never had to put a dime into it except for blade sharpening and spark plug/oil changes.

I enjoyed / appreciated all the comments, and want to purchase (ideally) a used, commercial grade Trimmer. Let me know if anyone is aware of one, or suggestions for finding one. I've looked at eBay, Amazon, and some of the commercial shops like Peachtree Mower. They seem to run forever, but difficult to find.

Ready to trash rotary mower!

@Stephen Baum. Not sure where you're located, but since you mention Peachtree I assume Georgia or the Southeast. You did not mention Craigslist. If you haven't tried, I would search CL. I'm in Jersey, so nothing up here. However there are a number of 20" and 25" Originals in California (my old home) and Arizona (where we moved in-laws). I'd try "Trimmer" and "mower" and "front throw" as your search items.

Be aware that a lot of 25" have high mileage and were used commercially. Often a 20" will have been used as a trim mower, even professionally, and will show less usage. As always with Craigslist, buy smart and bargain hard, and don't believe anything your told unless you can verify operationally.

Thanks, I am just north of Birmingham, AL Plan to check out CL, appreciate it.