Victa 16" Razor Cut

The right manual mower when lawn too small for a powered reel mower – Feb 2025 The Razor is a great mower BUT Victa DO NO CARRY SPARES! The back roller has cracked open. I did a tempoary fix to finish mowing and then contacted Victa (Briggs and Stratton) only to be told they do not carry the back roller as a spare. Jan 2023 Like all barrel/reel mowers it won’t cut long grass. Our mower has produced a beautiful… Read more

result on our Sir Graham Zoysia DNA certified lawn. My only problem is the “very lousy misleading” statements in the User Manual that claim the mower was adjusted and ready to use, what a lot of nonsense. The barrel was so far out of adjustment on one side of the mower it wouldn’t cut a strip of cardboard from the box it came in. Really, really bad QA Victor! The other TERRIBLE failing is the poor design of the grass catcher. The grass collects at the lip of the grass catcher and as one turns for the next grass cut, clippings fail from the catcher. There is no mechanism, active or passive, to stop clippings from falling from the catcher. I have adjusted the catcher so that the rear is actually dragging on the ground. I found that I had to scrape the clippings away from the lip of the catcher at the end of each cut before turning for the next. I will fix this myself. All in all, after cutting the grass at third lowest setting, beautiful result! Just remember, if you want long grass don’t buy ANY type off barrel/reel mower. I do recommend this Victor Razor manual mower. Great exercise too!

For that perfect low cut lawn to envy your neighbours! – Firstly- if you are going to purchase this, understand reel mowers. They aren’t designed to attack your knee high grass, unraked lawn covered in rocks/twigs etc. You’ll also need to mow more frequently unless you like effort I got this beast as an entry level manual reel mower. The initial mow was horrible, but I got through it (great workout) I… Read more

set it at the highest cut, then went over again until I was on the lowest setting. (Nice and low) Now, There is zero effort involved, I’d almost say pushing a standard petrol mower would be more effort, but that isn’t because I keep on top of the growth. I mow every 3-4 days, I have a relatively small yard with couch grass. The catcher is a good enough size to handle the clippings each now, how ever the first cut took a lot of grass. I also like that it folds up taking up no space. I get compliments on the grass now, and i think it looks brilliant!

Now the things I don’t like- I’m not a fan of the plastic wheels (no particular reason) and it does have a cheap look, how ever is still up to the job. I do feel the blades could be made stronger, I have slightly bent some but I don’t feel it isnt affecting the ability to cut.

Overall- I think this thing is great for the price, and it’s doing exactly what I expected it to do. Give it a chance, understand it is different to a petrol mower and it’s capability’s and capacities and it will be your best friend. Expecting it to be a cheap alternative to a petrol mower and a neglected lawn, it will be your enemy.

Terribly thin steel reel blades bend and lock up the mower – I purchased the mower from Bunnings thinking that the notion of added exercise and environmental positives from not having a powered mower would be great. My grandparents had a Flymo reel mower when I was a teenager and I used to love mowing with that. It was much, much better made than the Victa is. Within the first 2 minutes of using the Victa… Read more

it locked up and after investigating I found that the reel blade had bent and deformed. I checked the ground looking for rocks or something else that would have caused the blade to bend. There was nothing but a very small tuft of grass. I bent the blade back into position with my fingers and this fixed the problem. Within another 30 seconds it did it again. I fixed it three more times but eventually gave up and took it back to Bunnings to exchange. The replacement also did it again and again. I took that back also and was told that it was user error and that I must have been running over rocks or exposed roots. They declined a refund. Not happy!

Razor 16" reel mower. Worth getting the hang of – A lot of comments about the Razor 16" jamming and not turning. Needs lubricating the cutting reel blades before each use. Makes a big difference. I use wd40 or if I'm out just light spray of cooking spray oil. If cutting bar is adjusted so reel blades are just touching the cutting bar it should spin easy enough and self sharpen as it goes. … Read more

They aren't designed for long grass so mow regularly and it will be a breeze. Also this mower cuts great when grass is still wet. They are designed to cut grass that is quite moist. Cutting bar could be stronger material that doesn't bend so easily when something gets jammed. But works quite well otherwise. Helps to understand how they work and use them as they are very different to petrol traditional mowers etc. But when used as they are designed will do a great cut and better improved and more level lawn.

Perfect for small-medium lawns!! – glad I took the chance and bought this! I have a medium sized back lawn and small front lawn, all buffalo grass with some scattered dandelion weeds and this thing tore through it so well. I recommend being patient with it and clearing out any sticks, stones from your lawn before mowing as you’ll have to stop constantly to remove them from the… Read more

blades (which only takes two seconds, turn it on the side and do a quick shake) it’s easy to use, easy to assemble and clean, plus no servicing, oil/petrol ect ect. Didn’t have to use the catcher either :)

Don't take a knife to a gun fight – Don't buy a 'roller mower' for anything but a perfect lawn. Roller mowers are not good on wet grass. Buy an electric thrasher mower to cut anything else. Victa Razor Cut is a value for money roller push mower for my small putting green of 10 m2. Does need ongoing maintenance to keep it unclogged as any push mower needs. Being a roller… Read more

mower, any rocks, or tough material will stick the roller blades. Roller blades do this which is why the lawnmower man cracks the preverbial when rocks are left on the grass. They have to fix the machine and sharpen blades.

If you want vac leaves, look at Ryobi push vac.

Pretty poor design – Been using this mower for about three weeks. It cut fines when it cuts, but the blades jam constantly. It's just grass getting caught but the jarring stop every few metres is annoying. The only way to clear the blade is to stick your hand in to unclog the grass. I've tried loosening the assembly for more space between the blade and the roller but… Read more

no luck. I've also found that no matter what angle I adjust the catcher too, it only catches at best 50%. At worse it aids in the blade jamming. Overall poor design means my tiny yard takes much longer to mow than it should.

I thought I was too old for one – Purchased from Bunnings 2 weeks ago and immediately thought what have I done? Began using it and was whingeing as it was hard to push and I am 75 years old. Used it yesterday and was astonished at the change, The blades move much more freely now and I set it on two and it was much easier to push. My lawn looks immeasurably better than when I used… Read more

the powered reel mower, that left great scars and many different levels but this little ripper has ironed a lot of that out already. I am very pleased I bought it.

Poor materials choice in critical moving parts – Had the mower for less than two years. Only used for cutting small laws and nature strip. Used 1-2 times a month. At the start the concept was a perfect match, but once the plastic ratchet in the wheel wore down, the remaining working wheel couldn't turn the blade. Couldn't return it to the outlet, as I couldn't find the catcher. We have always… Read more

bought Victa, starting with my father. Not any more. Such a sad representation of the bottom end of a once great company.

Waste of money – Purchased as I've just had some major landscaping and needed something light to take up steps to a relatively small newly seeded lawn area. Mower went together easily enough. If the lawn is even slightly longish it will jam. (Had mowed 5 days prior with a petrol mower as I thought it might be too long after a prior attempt). The blades are sharp… Read more

so it does cut nicely however it also misses patches when the grass collects in the blades. The catcher is flimsy and useless. It's a piece of plastic so the grass slides back between the catcher and the roller. I had to go over the lawn 3 times to pick up the grass it left behind. With the mower jamming unless you virtually power walk with it and having to go over a few times to pick up the grass, it takes longer than it should. I do not recommend this product.

Gave up and returned it. Got something cheaper and better.

Flimsy handles, soft blades, worst push mower I’ve owned – I have owned several push mowers. In my opinion, this is the worst I’ve ever owned. Out if the box, the handles were flimsy and twists easily. It’s terrible to hold and twists around awkwardly. This should have been my first warning. The blades cut well out of the box but heed the warnings, your lawn must be ABSOLUTELY clear of ALL debris. I… Read more

rake before I mow and haven’t ever had a problem with other push mowers. But on by third or fourth use of this mower, I managed to hit a TINY stick remnant (probably about 3-4mm thick) that jammed in between the blade and the cutting bar. It bent the reel/bar adding a tiny kink. Adjusting the cutting bar to open the gap and avoid the kink in the reel made the cut quality poor and the cut surface only work for part of the blade.

After a few uses I gave up on this mower.

By contrast I still have another much older reel mower (orange in colour) at my folks place. Over its life it has encountered sticks and rocks and jammed really hard, but it keeps on cutting beautifully. It’s sturdy and doesn’t flex.

Perhaps this mower would be ok for a small manicured lawn that you can easily rake completely before you mow. But I don’t think it’s suitable for any reasonably sized lawn or lawns with trees around them.

Good cut, simple mower – Got this just to take the tips off my Kikuyu, works great. People experiencing jams should maybe google how to set up the blade distance to the bed knife. Only weak point is the 3 piece handle, 2 piece would have been sturdier but it appears to have been made 3 piece so the whole mower goes in a smaller box. I'd read the blades were really flimsy… Read more

but they are fine, mowing over a yard full of sticks is a job for a petrol mower. Mow regularly, say twice w eek and you'll love it. It works great for the price and the front lawn looks like a bowling green. Plus I can mow in thongs. Would buy again.

Do not buy this mower – I'm here to tell you not to buy this mower, there are others way better. I read the not so good reviews but still went out to buy one from Bunnings as the place I live at has a small yard and the lawn is quite flat. Well, it was a fail. I tried to love it but after the second go I gave up. Nearly every metre or so it would jam up with small twigs.… Read more

It would only move every few feet and then jam up again. The most frustrating experience ever. Returning it tomorrow.

Practical and cost effective but shows some serious flaws – This is not a bad unit. It has 3 settings for height. Cuts cleanly. It is much lighter than motor mower. Cost to benefit is positive overall. There are several problems. 1. It can get stuck on very small twigs and sticks (<5mm) this can also occur if grass builds up behind the blades. These need to be pulled out and I do not like putting my… Read more

fingers near blades. 2. The handles can pull out from the cutting mechanism if twisted slightly.The 2 pins on each side are not well designed for this unit. 3. The grass catcher is just terrible. It falls off, catches on everything, does not hold enough grass and what is in there falls back into the cutter head when turning.

Positives. 1. Cheap by comparison to motor mower. 2. When it works it is quite solid. 3. Light. 4. seems to be better for my lawn.

The score breakdown. Cost: 4/5 Effective:3/5 Reliability:4/5 Design:3/5

Victa Razor cut Reel mower – I just got off the phone with Briggs & Stratton customer service, makers of Victa razor cut mower. I informed them that I am now returning my Victa razor cut replacement mower for the 4th time for the same fault nearly everyone else on this forum has complained about. They told me they were not aware of any complaints regarding this mower. They… Read more

directed me to take it to a local dealer (not Bunnings) for an assessment of the fault. On my last trip to Bunnings after my 2nd Victa razor cut mower jammed, (like the 1st) I was told I was the the only person they'd had with a complaint about the mower. Again, this time, with No.3, on the the first outing the mower jammed half way through doing my front lawn this weekend. Sadly there are only 2 options at Bunnings for reel push mowers and Victa had the better features if only they hadn't used 'Play Dough' materials. It's a piece of crap. Word of warning. If it hasn't happened with yours yet, It will.

It's alright – I have used this mower for two days now. So not a long term review. I'd say I have a medium sized back and front yard to deal with. The mower cuts the grass very well. The blades did lock up on the second day after bumping it around a few times. But instead of kicking it and returning it, like a few on this review site did, I read the manual,… Read more

found the issue being one side of the blade couldn't get around (probably because of the bumps it recieved) and I fixed the issue with an allen key. So the mower is mowing again, just as good as it did at the start.

The people who have given it poor reviews and returned it because it has locked up probably throw everything out once it stops working, instead of fixing things. They probably didn't even read the manual to look for a solution.

Look forward to using this mower for many years to come. If my opinion changes I'll post another review.