Rotary Mower
The rotary mower is the most common petrol lawnmower. It is suitable for family lawns and lawns that get quite a lot of use. A rotary mower is also good for uneven ground as the blade can be set higher compared to a petrol cylinder mower.
Rotary Petrol mowers are less manoeuvrable than a petrol hover mower. They have four wheels which makes it difficult to manoeuvre them in very small gardens with tricky edges.
Rotary mowers are named as such because of the rotary movement of the blade which rotates parallel to the ground. The result of this cutting action is a more uneven cut, although to most gardeners this will not be noticeable. It would only become noticeable when you are mowing a lawn such as a bowling green, where a much finer cut is needed.
Petrol Cylinder Lawnmower
If you want perfect neat lawn with lovely stripes then the petrol cylinder lawnmower is the one for you. Although this type of mower gives the best cut it is not suitable for all types of lawn – longer more uneven lawns are more suited to a rotary petrol mower. Cylinder mowers are used by professional / commercial gardeners on grass such as putting greens and bowling greens.They help give very short fine finish and give a neat looking stripe.
Cylinder mowers are called such due to their cylinder shaped blades. They rotate forwards cutting the grass when the two blades come together – a bit like scissors. They have a cutting height that varies from 6-400mm where as a rotary mower has a cutting height of between 25-100mm.
Petrol Hover Mower
Hover mowers have the same type of blade as a rotary mower, but instead of moving along on wheels they hover on a cushion of air created by the spinning of the blade. Hover mowers are ideal for the smaller garden because they are easy to manoeuvre. Compared to a petrol cylinder mower the hover mower gives a more uneven cut but as with the rotary mower this will not be noticeable to most gardeners. There are few petrol hover mowers available on the market – most are electric.
