Best self propelled gas mowers

There's an option for every lawn size and budget.

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. Emily Estep is a plant biologist and journalist who has worked for a variety of online news and media outlets, writing about and editing topics including environmental science and houseplants. If you dream of a lush, green lawn, but dread the maintenance involved in keeping it that way, then a self-propelled lawn mower can make your life easier. These mowers not only power the blades but also power the wheels to make your pushing requirements little more than guiding the machine across the grass.

Best self propelled gas mowers

Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. We may earn commission if you buy from a link. Why Trust Us? One of the perks of the warm-weather season is getting to spend time outside. If you own your own home and have a yard , it's very likely that in order to enjoy your outdoor space, you need to mow the lawn. The larger the yard, the more work it will be to maintain. If you have a lot of grass to cut, you'd be wise to consider a self-propelled lawn mower especially now that there are a ton of sales just in time for Memorial Day. The primary difference between a standard push mower and a self-propelled mower is that the former moves when you push it, and the latter essentially moves itself with only your guidance. Once the engine is running, all you have to do is squeeze a handle or push a lever and the mower will start moving forward with you as you walk. Turning the mower around is your job, but once you have your heading, just keep the drive handle squeezed and escort the mower down the path, no pushing necessary. Self-propelled law mowers take power off the engine and route it via a belt to a pulley on the transmission and axle. When you move the drive control lever on the mower handle, you tension the belt, causing the pulley to turn, and this drives the transmission, moving the mower forward. Move the drive control lever back and the tension is released, the pulley stops turning, and the mower stops moving forward. The belt-driven transmission is a time-tested design to power the mower and take the load off you in the process. A mower is like many consumer products in that the more features a manufacturer adds, the more expensive it becomes.

In This Article Expand. Fact checked by Emily Estep. Reel mowers also can cut grass very short, often less than an inch in height.

Do you need commercial or residential quality? Do you want to use gas or batteries for power? How much grass do you need to cut? Are you a mulcher or a bagger? Having tested dozens of the best walk-behind lawn mowers from entry-level residential to the top professional models, we got our Pro team together to choose our top mowers in a range of scenarios.

We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. Learn more. The mowers on this list can do both. Each of these models is among the top-performing mowers in their respective categories. Read on to find out how comfortable they were to use and how well they performed.

Best self propelled gas mowers

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. Emily Estep is a plant biologist and journalist who has worked for a variety of online news and media outlets, writing about and editing topics including environmental science and houseplants. If you dream of a lush, green lawn but dread the maintenance involved in keeping it that way, then a self-propelled lawn mower is a great solution. These mowers not only power the blades but also power the wheels to make your pushing requirements little more than guiding the machine across the grass. We tested six self-propelled mowers, both gas and cordless electric, in our own yards across the country for six months, covering a range of weather and grass conditions. We found that self-propelled mowers sometimes take a little getting used to compared to traditional push mowers , but once you understand the controls and set the right speed to match your pace, they are relatively simple and even fun to use.

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Check out some of the best sellers at leading retailers. Rear-wheel drive mowers shine on hills and inclines, and when the grass bag is full. To change the cutting height, you need to adjust each wheel individually. Reel mowers have multiple blades that spin vertically. What is better: front-wheel, rear-wheel, or all-wheel drive? We also made sure to try the mowers over a variety of terrains, including flat, bumpy, sloped, and studded with tree roots or other obstacles. Another way to extend the run time is to purchase either an additional battery or another Ego yard tool that comes with a battery. The handle is ergonomically shaped for comfort and can be set to two different angles to suit your height, although we found the instructions for adjusting the handle to be confusing at first. We also look to see if a mower is prone to leaving trails and clumps. The competition. This way, you can efficiently mow your lawn in any direction. The maximum slope we cut is about 30 degrees. Is the bag a pain to put on and take off? This creates more of a chopped cut than the clean cut created by a reel mower, but the physical effort required by the person pushing the lawn mower is much less. A few buyers have complained that it struggles to lift overly tall grass high enough for an even cut.

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For very small lawns, or lawns that have a lot of obstacles, such as trees planted close together, a mower with a or inch deck might be a better option than the standard 21 inches. So while we generally prefer single-point, we understand why gas mowers may opt away from them. Only Honda makes a gas-engine mower with a high-impact plastic deck there are battery mowers that have plastic decks. Pros Unbelievably quiet during operation — it almost sounds like a white noise machine. The end result is information you can trust because of the editorial, scientific, and real-world professional experience we collectively utilize each and every time we pick up and test a tool. Other models either significantly slowed down or periodically stalled out. The 10 Best Grills of , Tested and Reviewed. Thanks to the rear-wheel drive and good size wheels, the mower handles well on both flat and inclined terrain, but it is a heavy mower—with the batteries in place, it weighs 94 pounds. She has extensive experience not only in writing about all things related to the home but also in carrying out various DIY projects, including landscaping, painting, flooring, wallpapering, furniture makeovers, and simple repairs around the house and yard. For this roundup, she relied on testing results and comments from our panel of testers. These mowers give a very clean, precise cut, much like a pair of scissors trimming the grass. We compiled this list based on Popular Mechanics mower testing and our knowledge of the lawn mower market at large.