Backing up what Brandon and a few others have implied... first off, yup, you not need to look at the blade of the mower, but rather the tip of the blade of grass will tell all! Like an idiot light on a car, if ya notice that the grass is lighter brown on the top in color all of a sudden like, and the water table is still up, then look closer to the tip of grass blade.... if it is brown past just over the very top of the tip, then your blade needs sharpening.... if the grass blade is split, then you are very much damaging your lawn.... my ears are nowhere's near what they could be, but the first thing I hear with a new blade cutting is this cool sound... it just plumb makes a cool sound... you can hear it like a samari sword lol... leave the grass length up with good water tables, and follow it down in height while the dry out comes, then follow it back up during fall season... cut consistently... one way in direction one time, the other way next time, on borders, then stripe out... different angle of stripes each cut, and if ya can use a different size mower each other time... ok, that part is rather extreme, but all of these things are to prevent sway.... and striping, while also looking good, is also a economical bonus... closest distance between two points is... a straight line! simple math, good practices, and some experience and common sense will have your lawn looking it's finest Cheers!

G'day M8 I've always been an advocate of 4-stroke, unless there is a particular reason why you'd use 2-stroke [weight with a chainsaw...]. But, I've got to say that the 2-stoke Victas have made me a believer. I'd go with the Victa [better engine] than the [I'm guessing] China made Sanli [?]. Seems as though the China made are hit and miss. You might get a good one, or you may have to go through several [warranty returns] 'til you get a good one. The QC is not up to snuf and they'd happily warranty several than build a good one the first time. That attitude [barely good enough] is abhorrent, and I'd not buy one just for that reason.

g'day jamus, i was waiting to see if anyone would mention that but you are correct, buying a particular machine in this case battery electric because they "are environmently friendly?" isn't quiet rite now buying one because you have conditions that prevent you from starting the normal mower is another whole reason. flymo's work very well in the applications they are designed to cope with, from my many years as mower mechanic when mowers are put down it is usally because they are being used outside their design principals, this comes back to buying from a specialist shop the person selling to you should first ascertain your needs (if you buy from a discounter or such retailer you pretty much are on your own in making an informed decision). the batteries & the making of them and the recycling of them (???) is very hazardous to the environment. and also electric mowers just simply don't have the grunt of some of the petrol engine models, and the pollution caused at power stations is generally right in the middle of where your agricultural food is produced. if you are going to buy electric/battery seek out the top of the range model don't buy a cheepie, not sure that victa would be any better than if was way back then, they had a key start then and very unreliable and not very popular. most who bought electrics of some sort where not very satisfied (especially anything painted black & yellow/orange designed as single use throw away units when something anythings wears). also it was a heavy mower for its class. len mail len lens garden page

I like razor sharp, and you shouldn't use a lawn mower in the dirt or to 'scalp' on purpose. The argument will be 'you shouldn't make them sharp because they will get dull faster'. That's true, but after they lose the razor edge they'll be down to where you start with your 'business card' edge, and I will have enjoyed a few cuttings with that unmistakeable 'sigh' of a really sharp blade cutting grass. After that, it won't dull any faster than yours, so technically I have increased the interval between sharpenings by a few days. I have sense enough not to cut myself on a sharp mower blade and would sincerely hope anyone on the forum would too. I clean a used blade and inspect, then chuck it up in the vise and sharpen each end with various files. Sometimes if helping someone else out I'll be forced to use the bench grinder because they have hit so many hard objects. In either case, I check static balance and adjust if needed. Then I paint the blade with whatever kind of black I might have around and put it back into the rotation. When I check the blade before sharpening, if I find the airfoils are thinner than 1/16", or any other serious problem, the blade is done and is trashed.