Best Lawn Striping Mower

Echo’s new LM-2119SP 21-inch Self Propelled Mower has some traditional features, like a steel deck, topped with a 190cc Briggs & Stratton gas engine, and driven by large, rear wheels. But tradition stops there because the LM-2119SP has two mower blades, a variable speed self-propulsion system that adjusts to your walking speed, and what Echo calls ReadyStart technology that eliminates the need for fuel priming or a choke to start. And to its credit, the mower was incredibly easy to start. Like many mowers these days, it can be used to mulch, bag, or side discharge all the grass clippings, and it did each of these well. Where the LM-2119SP excelled was in cut quality and the striping it left behind. After just a couple passes, alternating directions, it had left its mark, clearly—despite the patchy early spring grass when we tested—with remarkable contrast.

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Dewalt’s 60V MAX 21 in. Self-Propelled Mower has rear-wheel drive and boasts features designed to extend run-time. It has a newly designed, shallow steel deck and two blades intended to maximize cutting efficiency. Although it looks a little odd, it seems to work well. Interestingly, the deck has no provision for a side discharge. Instead, removing the bag allows for a rear discharge chute, which directs grass clippings to the side from behind the rear wheels. This feature allows you to mow tight against either side of a deck. Switching to mulching or bagging is easy, just remove the discharge chute and insert the mulch plug or install the bag. Drive speed is manually adjustable via a thumbwheel on the control panel, where you can also monitor battery level and cutting load indicator. The mower comes with two 12-amp hour batteries that can last up to 75 minutes, depending on mowing conditions.