Types of rotary mowers

• Walk-behind mowers may be either of the push type - you provide the power to move the mower; the engine or motor spins the blade - or self propelled where the engine (usually only for gasoline types) drives the front wheels via a fixed or multiple speed transmission. Typical engine power is from 3 to 6 HP with the trend nowadays toward the higher end of this range especially for self propelled models.

• Side discharge mowers eject the grass clippings from the right side (usually) to the rear. These are probably the most common type in use today due to their low cost. Some perfectly serviceable new mowers of this type sell for $100 or less. Optional grass catcher bags permit some of these to be converted to side-baggers if desired but the bags tend to be much smaller and thus less convenient than those for rear bagging mowers to prevent them from becoming side-heavy when the bag fills up.

• Rear baggers eject the grass clippings into a bag mounted behind the mower. Bags tend to fill quite quickly - especially if you keep putting off your mowing assignment - and need to be emptied or changed frequently. The weight of the grass clippings in the bag also contributes to the mass of the mower - which you have to push if it is not self propelled.

  WARNING: Rear baggers should never be operated without a bag unless the opening is fully blocked or the proper deflector is installed. Grass cutting performance will then be similar to that of a mulching or (side) discharge type mower respectively but since this is a compromise, the resulting appearance of the cut lawn may suffer.

• Mulching mowers do not discharge the clippings but continue to chop them up under-deck until they are small enough to cease being sucked up by the airflow. The best will result in almost no detectable evidence of grass clippings though the worst may leave big clumps behind. The appearance of the lawn from a mulcher may be as good or very nearly as good as that from a bagger but this is not assured. Some mowers - both discharge and bagging types - can be converted to mulching mowers by using a special cover to block the discharge port and possibly a different mulching blade.

  Side discharge and bagging mowers can often be converted to mulching with the use of a mulching kit which includes a means of blocking the discharge port and possibly a special mulching blade. However, performance of one of these may not be as good as that of a mulching mower since the airflow requirements differ and these are largely determined by the design of the deck.

• Riding mowers are basically larger versions of the self propelled bagging mower with a seat for the operator, steering wheel, and more controls for cutting rate and forward speeds. The engine is typically in the 8 to 10 HP range and is mounted in the rear beneath or behind the seat.

• Lawn tractors may be even more sophisticated than riding mowers with larger blades and additional options for non-lawn mowing tasks. The engine is higher power - 12 to 18 HP or more - and is mounted up front under a hood as in a real tractor.