How it all started
In 2016 our family decided to pull the trigger and build what we still to this day hope will be our forever home. Moving from Herriman to Riverton was a big decision. After our home was built, the next thing on the list was landscaping. Across the street from us in Herriman was a deep dark green, smoother than smooth lawn that I envied. Our Herriman home was a foreclosure in 2008, and the lawn had not been watered in 2 years. So, I had a lumpy miserable lawn that made me angry, and gave me lawn envy. So the I watched my neighbor take care of his lawn with the hopes of improving mine. It wasn’t too much later that I noticed in the heat of the summer, he would put is traditional Honda mower away and he would whip out, what I thought at the time, was a mower my grandpa would have used. IT WAS A PUSH REEL MOWER. Moving into our new house with a large yard, I knew I wanted a reel mower, but I also knew that there was no way that I was going to push one. So the search began!
The search was a long one. I did my homework on all sorts of brands. Some of the most common were the Tru Cut, Mclane, Allet, and even a Toro Greensmaster 1000. What I found was that the Mclane controls seemed more complicated and it was $400 more expensive. The True cut had 4 wheels on the back and would leave too big of wheel marks. The Allet, OH DANG, so so so nice, but who wants to drop $4,200 on a mower? Toro’s greensmaster was super hard to find because new they were over $10,000 so I was calling golf courses to find an old used one and that was still $3,500. Then there came the California Trimmer.
California trimmer checked all the boxes. It was $1,100. One set of wheels. EASY to adjust the height of cut. Easy to service and operate. So I purchased the mower, had sod installed, waited three weeks to mow and BAMB, the intrigue was on. Most people get nervous to cut their lawn too low too fast. I just went for it. It wasn’t even a month later that my neighbors were giving me grief about making them look bad. “You are the guy with the million dollar lawn”. “You are the guy with grass that looks fake”. “You are the guy with the nicest lawn I have ever seen”. This went on for a year. The following year my cousin and his neighbor bought a mower from California Trimmer and their lawns immediately turned to the nicest lawns on their streets with complements GALORE. My brother the following year also wanted one. He called CT and asked what it would take for me to become a dealer since I already had a warehouse for my rental business. So, we got set up as Utah’s ONLY California Trimmer dealer AND Utah’s ONLY residential reel mower dealer.
7 Years later and HUNDREDS of mowers sold (7 of my neighbors LOL) I we are still the only shop in town. A long with selling mowers we have also accumulated all the tools and equipment to help people level their lawns and get as crazy as they dare! I thoroughly enjoy watching people fall in love with and growing super proud of their lawn. It becomes a form of joy and happiness for homeowners.
Which Mower Is For You?
The 20” Classic is by far the best Intro for someone who isn’t quite sure they are all in on a reel. Its perfect for 1/4 acre lawns and smaller. Easy to use and maneuver.
25” Commercial is for first timers with bigger yards. It is faster and leaves a wider stripe. Its also still afforadable for the first time buyer. A litter more tricky to use but still beats a Toro Greensmaster!
Catalyst 20” and 25” are for the all in guys. Removable cartridges for different lawn projects. Reel disengagement and heavy for good striping. Rear roller drum without wheels! You get what you pay for, and with this, YOU GET IT ALL!!!
FAQ’s
Can I use a reel if my lawn is bumpy? Absolutely! We sell all of our mowers with the roller option included. This allows the bed knife of the mower to float of high and low spots. Even with a lumpy lawn, the reel cut will make a dramatic improvement with appearance and health.
My grass is too long and cutting it short will kill it, right? NOPE!! This is one of the biggest myths out there. There is “ideal” but there is no actual right and wrong. We have cut peoples lawns from 3-4 inches straight to 1-1.5 and within 2-3 weeks it looks night and day different!
Does cutting with a reel take longer? If I mow once a week and bag it can take me up to 30 minutes to mow my lawn with a rotary. If I cut it 2 times a week with my reel, I don’t need to bag, so it only takes me 20 minutes. (you should be mowing twice a week anyway).
Do I have to mow my lawn short? Nope, California Trimmer offers a high cut option that can go as high as 4 inches. (you can’t use a roller if you go over 2”)
You aren’t bagging your clippings? Here is another huge benefit of a reel. Instead of whacking the top of a blade of grass off. The reel is cutting with 7 blades so your clippings are super small. This allows the nitrogen and nutrients of the blade of grass back into your lawn (recycling your fertilizer).
Will I have to water my lawn more if I cut it short? NOPE! even better, if done right, you can water less! We always focus on thatch, and root depth. With the majority of the plant in the ground via deep roots, and less plant above the surface exposed to heat and wind, you can actually water less. I use about 60 percent of the water my neighbors do.
Why is a reel better than a rotary? A reel would be like taking a pair of scissors and snipping each blade of grass with a smooth clean cut. A rotary mower blade uses air to stand the blade up and then whacks the top with high speed like a machete. This creates a frayed tip that goes white.
Did you know? One of the unexpected benefits of a reel is NO ALLERGIES. I am allergic to grass. So when I mow with a rotary mower the allergens get blown into the air and make my nose runny and my eyes itch. With a reel, we aren’t using air to stand the blade up, the reel does it. The allergens aren’t stirred up, and I can mow Allergy free!
Where do I get the blade sharpened? Unlike a rotary mower, you don’t have to sharpen the blade, we back lap them. It is super easy to do. We offer that as a service as a dealer, or we sell you the Kit where you can do it at home. It only needs to be done 1 time a year maybe 2 if you are up tight about it.
Do you guys offer other services? Yes, we can back lap, do blade adjustments as well as change the oil and air filter.