Scotts Outdoor Power Tools LSW70026S 26-Inch Push Lawn Sweeper, Black/Green

Living in Texas with very tall pine trees our backyard is full of pine needles and pinecones that my daughters hate so much they don’t want to play in the yard. This yard sweep is the answer to the problem and does a dynamic job. It is easy to push so much so that this is the job I do while my husband does the rest of the yard work as I find it fun.

Oh, where do I even begin with this so-called "product"? I mean, it's not like I had high expectations, but boy, did it disappoint. In a staggering two months, the delightful little threaded plastic connector that supports the collection bag decided to snap. Can you blame it, though? It's made of the finest brittle plastic money can buy, with threads so flimsy you'd think they were designed to fail. I'd have suggested using metal, but what do I know? Apparently, nothing.And let's not forget the joy of contacting Scotts. It's a real hoot! All they do is graciously provide you with the contact information for the American Lawn Mower Company who actually manufacture this gem. Oh, but don't hold your breath for a response. These folks are masters of the disappearing act. Their website is a delightful maze of confusion, so you better clear your schedule for a nice chunk of time-wasting. I did manage to stumble upon their warranty request form and submitted a claim, but let's just say I'm not exactly holding my breath for a prompt response.Now, in my infinite wisdom, I thought, "Hey, I'll just order the replacement part myself!" But of course, that plan was about as wonky as the product itself. Surprise, surprise, the part is out of stock.At this point, I can confidently say that buying this disaster of a product was a mistake of epic proportions. Do yourself a favor and spare yourself the headache – get yourself a good old-fashioned rake. You'll thank me later.UPDATE: Oh, the American Lawn Mower Company, where dreams go to die! After an epic half-hour hold extravaganza, during which I pondered the meaning of life and whether someone would ever grace me with their presence, I thought, "Why not give Scott's Brand Ambassador one more chance to prove that customer service isn't a myth?"But lo and behold, no one rose to the occasion. The response? A masterpiece of indifference: "We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused" and a little bonus gem of wisdom – "you really need to contact the American Mower Company to get the issue resolved." Genius! Who knew?I couldn't help myself and shot back a sarcastic "Hey! Thanks for nothing!" The result? A snappy, begrudging reply materialized within five minutes: "Will get one out to you next week. ALM." Oh, what a privilege! Their words made me genuinely remorseful for ever seeking help with their garbage product.If only they offered to take their monstrosity back and return my hard-earned cash. But, alas, I'm now a month past their generous return window, so I'm stuck with this friendly reminder: NEVER, ever, EVER buy anything from Scott's or the American Lawnmower Company. It's a masterclass in how not to treat your customers.FINAL UPDATE/CONCLUSION: Well, folks, gather 'round for the latest episode of "Amazon Saves the Day!" So, I had this genius idea that Amazon could work miracles, and guess what? They did! After unleashing a tirade about the abysmal product and equally appalling customer service from Scott's and the American Lawnmower Company, Amazon, in all its glory, decided to extend an olive branch. Ta-da! I now have the privilege of returning this marvelous pile of junk on wheels. Thanks, Amazon, for once again proving that you're the superhero in my consumer drama. I'll wear my "I Survived Scott's & the American Lawnmower Company" badge with pride, knowing it only cost me some precious time and not my hard-earned cash.

I've got Bermuda in the front yard, Zoysia in the back. The Zoysia is super thick on the flat part of my yard while thinner on the hill. Same with Bermuda. I have various types of trees as well (Oak, Maple, Pine, and others). All have varying sizes of leaves and needles. I felt my yard was a good use-case for this sweeper, given the variance I have.I wanted to preface with that as, from what I found using this for the first time, that you will need to alter the height depending on the thickness and height of the grass. I originally thought it should be low, where the bristles go into the grass to fling everything. Unfortunately, that just binds it up to the point you can't push it, regardless of the angle you hold it at. What I also found was it wasn't allowing the leaves to go under the front guard, instead just pushing them out in front. Once I adjusted the height to have the bristles just above the grass, that's where this thing started working its magic.I absolutely hate raking and I refuse to maintain a gas blower. It's not about the emissions, it's more about the carb on those things constantly getting clogged or failing. I've had a couple, and they all suck unless used daily (punny!). I've got an electric Ryobi blower to clear off the driveway and deck, but outside of that it's not much use on leaves in grass. Since I have so many trees that are mature (Oak is about 50ft tall), it made sense to look at a different solution than just raking, where it was taking hours to just complete that one chore. I took a shot on this sweeper, and after the first pass in my yard it cleaned it up pretty well!I do have to fidget with the height, which will vary depending on the flatness of your lawn. Not the grass level, but the soil level. I have some dips and divots that are overlooked by this on first pass because it's set too high. Other areas were set too low. It wasn't constant, but enough to discuss. I'd love to see some type of suspension that takes care of this, but you won't get that with this sweeper (fixed axle) or at this price.It flings everything I want into the basket, but does miss some depending on how fast I was going (faster = less accurate). One sweep and it was a world of difference. I wasn't fretting about the few leaves it left behind, as that's expected even when raking. This just took the hard work out of it and sped up the process significantly, where I just took a break from work and knocked out part of the yard for 15 minutes. Couldn't do that with raking (I would also have been a sweaty mess too).The sweeper also picked up pine cones, small branches, and needles. This was welcome, as my front yard is primarily old pines that drop a lot of needles and cones that I like to push into the beds. I can now run this sweeper, get up the needles and cones, then just pour it in the beds versus discarding.I give it 4 out of 5 because of the height adjustment. If not a suspension to handle the variations in soil depth, having a way to adjust the height on the fly from the main handle would be great. Like a brake lever or wheel I could spin. I also want to point out that the collection bag is great, but it's also large...so large that it doesn't fit in a paper yard waste bag to empty easily. If you use a larger bag than those standard ones you get from HD or Lowes, then you should be fine. I just couldn't find a good angle where I didn't spill leaves, then have to re-sweep.Final thought: pick up your dog leavings PRIOR TO using the sweeper. I was flinging poo like a chimpanzee before I thought to grab the scooper.

It does a pretty good job on my artificial turf, BUT I would suggest the following improvements for any manufacturer of this product:1) The brush housing doesn't extend far enough over the catch bag. 25% of the smaller leaves and acorns just fly up and over the catch bag. There needs to be a longer (retractable?) deflector that knocks these down into the bag.2) The bag base is a solid piece of plastic. If you don't empty it right away, the leaves will rot. Maybe some perforation would help.3) It isn't clear how to disengage the bag from the frame. I have to bend the plastic guides on the lower frame to get the bag off the frame and it doesn't seem right. Eventually, I feel like these guides will break.4) The bag clips on the upper part of the frame only lasted a year in the sun. UV damage is making them brittle, and pretty soon the bag will have nothing to snap into on the upper frame.