Modern reel mowers are quite efficient at cutting grass using nothing but your own push power.
There’s a good overview of manual reel mowers at Reel Mower Guide. They cover the advantages and disadvantages of manual mowers, and offer some tips for using the mowers.
Here are the top rated reel mowers:
Scotts 20″ Classic Reel Mower
Reviewers seem to think the Scotts 20″ Classic Reel Mower has great performance, and it gets a average of 4/5 from 356 Amazon reviewers. The price is around $100.
Brill 33 Reel Mower
Brill Luxus 33 is also well-liked — it is lightweight at 16.1 pounds, making it easy to maneuver and push. It uses a silent cutting blade system, and the cutting height is adjustable. It sells for about $200.
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I bought used, an approx. 2 or 3 yr old used American (brand) manual reel mower, model 1404-16. I didn’t expect much but was pleasantly surprised. Though I am a 53 yr old woman in only modertely good shape, I mowed 5000 sf of weedy grass that was kind of damp, in an hour. There were thick patches of mallow, a broad leafed weed, and that was the hardest to bull through but I took runs at it and got it done pretty quickly. It did help to clean the stuff out of the blades frequently. I was very surprised this thing even cut let alone that well. I am a fan of these type mowers now and would never go back to gas or even electric. It WAS a workout, but that was part of the reason I wanted that type of mower. The way I look at it, I spent very little money on the mower, and can mow the now-trimmed grass very quickly a few times a week…that way I get a workout and a lawn mowing for pretty much free. You can’t beat that!