Mountfield are a generous bunch, they offer this petrol mower in one of two configurations, either with a Honda engine, or their own, a OM55 OHV 160cc powerhouse. Both work well, but if were to choose between the two we’d have to opt for the versatility offered by the Mountfield version. It’s more powerful overall, and it offers full throttle control, so you can adjust the power output of the engine to suit the task at hand.
With the Mountfield engine on board, this is THE machine to choose if your garden has a range of challenges to deal with, from slopes to overgrown areas the SP53 will have it covered. As you’d expect from a top end petrol lawn mower, it’s self propelled, meaning you can concentrate on steering and not have to worry about pushing all 35kg of it – yes it’s certainly not the lightest!
Besides the engine this is a very solidly built machine, the large wheel are great for negotiating obstacles such as kerbs when the mower isn’t under power, and the steel deck even features a guard plate at the front to prevent accidental lawn scalping.
All possible cutting modes are provided for, with a collection bag and mulch plug both included as standard. You can also of course opt for discharge mode instead by removing both items completely. The grass bag itself is massive 60 litres, the perfect accompaniment to the 51 cm cutting length. This will enable to work fast and with minimal interruption. Although having said that the angle at which the grass bag sits does mean the bag won’t fill to maximum capacity before it starts to shed grass rather than collect it, so this is definitely an area for improvement in the design.
One point of contention among users seems to be the cutting height adjustment mechanism, some people love it while others feel it doesn’t work properly. Whilst we couldn’t comment on any specific defects in individual cases, we would suggest making sure the locating pin that locks the blade at its various heights is properly located, and it isn’t inadvertantly allowed to slip into another position.
Pros
- Excellent build quality, the sturdy large wheels and steel anti scalp deck ensure the mower performs well in all settings and will do so for a long time
- Mountfield engine (not the Honda variant) has full throttle control, allowing you to adjust the power to suit your requirements
Cons
- Grass box design needs some attention to improve performance
- Mulching attachment doesn’t strictly ‘mulch’ the grass in the traditional sense, though it is a step up from simply discharging. It would probably be better described as a ‘discharge aid’
Conclusion
This is a fine petrol mower by Mountfield. It feels well built, and you can just tell it will last a long time if properly maintained. When you consider that you might easily pay 200-300 pounds more for a mower with similar specifications, you decision to buy gets even easier. Of course it isn’t perfect (very little is, let’s face it) but to be honest the negatives are so well outweighed by the positives in this case, it’s almost not worth mentioning them at all.
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