It doesn't solve the clipping problem, in fact makes it worse (get a leaf
sweeper and pile grass clippings by the back fence), but if you don't have
a huge lawn and have lots of time, a European scythe is a great way to cut
grass. No grass too high for it, either.

Just an alternative if you're getting a new mower. I cut an acre but I have
_lots_ of time. You do a few swaths a day and by the time you get done
with the whole lawn, it's a perfect time to repeat, at that size.

A scythe leaves a windrow of clippings at the edge of every ten-foot-wide
pass though, indeed that's its original point.

http://www.scythesupply.com has a nice outfit, you need snath (I suggest
straight, which works best with long grass blades), blade (26" grass is
good general one; the 36" is good on easier spring grass), sharpening
stone (Begrenzer medium grit is good), bar peen hammer and wide anvil
(for thinning the edge again after you've sharpened it away enough); and
stone-holder, since you stop and sharpen every 5 minutes or so, for a few
sharpening strokes. A lot of stuff but a nice pasttime. They have
a package deal on price, the last I looked.

With a European scythe, you're slicing grass, not whacking it. It's a very
smooth activity. The blade rides flat on the ground, the curve of the back
keeping the edge just off the ground, and the odd shape of the snath that
holds it is to keep that geometry through the stroke.
--
Ron Hardin


On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.