Owning a lawn mower is perhaps the most essential part of any homeowner with a garden. Grass is quick to become untamed and needs to be taken care of often- especially if you live in colder, rainier climates.
When it comes to selecting a new lawn mower, it's a good idea to consider:
McGregor MER1232 32cm Corded Rotary Lawnmower - 1200W
Read on to learn about our thoughts and recommendations, through our McGregor Lawn Mower review.
The McGregor Corded Rotary Lawnmower MER1232 can be purchased online and in-store, popularly from Argos, as well as Amazon. We recommend Argos, which has a large and varied selection. Most of the products from the vast array of Argos lawn mowers to choose from arrive in about 4 days' delivery time.
There's also a 3-year Argos Replacements Care program, which is priced at £14.99. This is actually a reasonable price to have your components covered, so that's a great reason to buy via their site. Most Argos lawnmowers have the option to add 3-Year Servicing.
What we noticed when using this lawnmower was that it tends to pull certain parts of the grass out from its roots, rather than actually cutting it.
This may be down to a slightly blunt blade, or it could be that it doesn't perform well with large lengths of grass.
In addition, this behaviour seemed to be more present when cutting damp grass, as we found that the machine deposited wet clumps of cut grass on the lawn.
Below, we're going to run through the best aspects of this lawnmower- and express our views on it. As a whole, this lawnmower did not disappoint us. It's budget-friendly, does the job, has an integrated safety switch for protection, and it's corded- to ensure that you get as much runtime as needed.
This lawnmower has an expertly designed carbon steel blades, which are amongst the best materials to use for achieving perfectly-crisp, neatly cut grass.
Carbon steel is a preferred manufacturing material in comparison to stainless steel and is often used for high-end knives. This is because carbon steel is wear-resistant and remains sharper for longer, even if your blade width is very small.
The only downside to carbon steel blades is that, unlike stainless steel, it's vulnerable to rust; meaning you will have to up your maintenance game to preserve the blades.
Another disadvantage to using carbon steel in comparison to stainless steel lawnmower blades is that they can be more brittle- meaning easily fractured. The occurrence of this is very uncommon though, so this is a negligible factor.
If you're looking to achieve camera-worthy stripes in your back garden, having a lawn mower with an integrated rear roller is essential. This corded rotary lawnmower does include an integrated rear roller.
This rear roller is designed to bend the blades of grass, thus creating a crisp striped effect. The best way to reap maximum results is to switch directions each time you renew your lawn. For example, if you cut your grass vertically one time, cut it horizontally the next.
In order to preserve stripes and successfully renew them, you need to cut the grass regularly. We recommend doing it weekly, but do ensure that you don't go longer than a fortnight without renewing it.
You can vary the cutting length of your lawn mower too (this one has 5 to choose from) to help achieve different looks.
Topping the EGO Power Plus, which had a grass collection capacity of 30 Litres, this hover collect McGregor lawn mower has a generous 33 litres.
The grass bag of this lawnmower is actually collapsible, which is great for storage purposes when not in use. Additionally, the grass bag has a level indicator that informs you of when the grass bag needs emptying to be used further.
The benefit of this extra-large waste depository/grass bag is that you can mow the lawn for extended periods without any interruptions of having to empty the bag out. Small grass bag sizes can create this issue, making grass-cutting a tedious task.
With a 1.6 Horsepower motor, this lawnmower slices through the grass in your back garden like nothing else! This product has a rotary electric motor of power value 1200W, where many available lawn mowers rarely exceed 1000W.
Using lawn mowers that have a power cable is the key to maximum power; battery-powered/cordless rotary lawnmowers, or any cordless lawnmower (such as battery-powered, solar-powered, or electric), do not have much power to offer.
A corded rotary lawnmower/cordless rotary lawnmower can have a power value of up to 1500W, which is ideal for the wildest, largest back gardens out there. This is great for anyone with a lawn greater in size than 900m².
This rotary lawnmower has 5 different cutting heights settings to select from when picking what your desired grass length is. This is about the average number of options you receive; some lawn mowers give you up to 9 different cutting heights settings to choose from.
The cutting heights range from 2-6cm, so you can personalize your lawn as much as you like- many enthusiastic hobbyists like to create patterns in their grass, for example, by creating grass stripes.
To have maximum longevity of your freshly trimmed lawn, we suggest using the shortest of all cutting heights: 2cm. This will mean that you don't have to renew your lawn as much, but the end result will also be much more shallow looking grass.
A two-year guarantee is offered on all McGregor Garden Power-and-Pressure Washer products, which is great for if you ever need to replace components or conduct repairs- you save money in the long run.
You can also buy an Argos 3-Year Servicing Program subscription (which is what we bought). This is great because other retailers like Amazon don't offer such elaborate, useful schemes.
You can get gadgets insurance from other providers such as your bank, which will service or replace certain components of your machine which have undergone mechanical damage, such as the cutting blades (if your cutting blades are chipped- make sure you replace them as soon as possible, because they can chip further break apart while you use the mower).
The height adjustable handle on this lawn mower makes this a universally suitable product to use.
We suggest setting the handle height adjustment to a level where your elbows have a slight bend (about a 45-degree angle), and to the point where you can comfortably push it, without straining. This method allows you to use your corded rotary McGregor Lawn Mower quicker and more effectively.
To enable height adjustment, just click down on the height adjustable handle or pull up- it's smooth and easy.
This McGregor lawn mower has a comfortable, secure grip handle which is extra-long for added safety. There is also a safety switch feature, which ensures that the McGregor lawn mower blades are only active when you are ready to cut the grass.
Overall, this lawn mower is a great choice for people who have the average sized lawn, and want a good, long-lasting trim. With a 10m power cable, you'll be able to extend usage into the farthest corners of your garden. This is more of an affordable item, and if purchased with a warranty, this mower will last you a long time.
Appearance: 5/10
Functionality: 8/10
Value for Money: 8/10
Overall, 4 out of 5.
| Motor Wattage | 1200W; Electric Rotary Motor |
| Item Weight | 9.47 Kg |
| Grass Collection Capacity | 33 Litres |
| Cutting Heights | 5; 2-6cm |
| Colour | Dark Green |
| Power Cable Length | 10 metres |
| Blade Width | 32cm |
| Warranty | 2-Year Manufacturer Guarantee |
In a generation of seemingly endless technological innovation, one can be spoilt for choice. In general, there are four main types of lawn mowers : Petrol, Battery/Electric, and Manual (Push). A good set of guidelines to help influence your purchase are:
Electric / Battery Powered:
This type of mower is usually best-suited to most people, as the average UK garden is not larger than 400m². When looking amongst this type of mower, the factors to take into account are cutting width and power. Look for the largest power value for the same cutting width- this shows you which mower will cut your grass cleanest and quickest.
Another great advantage to using an electric or battery-powered mower is that you don't need to service it, i.e. the blades and engine. All you need to do is ensure that the blades are clean and sharp. These are also more eco-friendly, with less harmful gas emissions.
Electric/battery-powered mower types are generally lighter in weight, making them more easy to maneuvre. Battery lawn-mowers are heavier than electric ones, but they banish the problem of twisted, hazardous cords.
The electric hover collect lawnmower is also another type of lawn-mower to consider. The hover collect lawnmower, while popular and rather common, are quite gimmicky in our opinion. They tend to chew grass up, the grass compartment fills up unevenly on most, and you often need extra parts to help it function. We don't recommend purchasing one of these unless you find one at a bargain price.
Torque, simply put, it the drive (torque drive) or power to twist the blades of your mower. The higher the torque drive, the more power availble to twist lawn-mower blades; which provides a quicker, cleaner, and sharper grass cut.
Torque power is separate from Horse Power and Engine Power, and are subsequently measured differently.
For a push mower, low torque power means your machine is likely to wear faster and require replacement.
How can you determine how much Torque Power you need?
You need to consider the following factors when deciding how much torque drive you need to power your mower:
Small, flat lawns only require available torque power of 4.50 to 5.50 ft-lbs. This is ideal for those who regularly trim their lawns. Tall, thick lawns need higher torque, with a value of around 6.25 and 6.75 ft-lbs (medium-to-heavy duty), or 7.00 to 8.75 ft-lbs (heavy duty).
For small yards, or people who manage to finish the job quickly, it may be worthwhile to buy an electric or battery-powered mower. The McGregor one we talked about today is corded, making it suitable for those with medium-to-large sized lawns.
Electric and battery-powered have limited runtime, making them better-suited to small gardens- small gardens can be covered in the 30-50 minute runtimes offered by cordless machines. Larger cutting widths also allow you to cover the grass in a faster amount of time.
For wet grass, battery-powered mowers tend to give more power output, thus performing generally better. Electric ones can "chew up" grass- this is because of the low power given to the machine to help turn the blades.
Did you like our McGregor Lawn Mower Review? Take a look at the other lawn mowers we've reviewed. We scan all the available products in the UK from sites such as Argos and Amazon, after which we give you a detailed, comprehensive review on the best lawn mowers.
Let us know if there's any particular lawn mower you would like us to review for you.
