cheers for that charlie, are rotary mowers good at mowing right up to the
footpath?
and do they need any special care?


It looks like you're after the same thing I wanted last year. I wanted
stripes and almost bought a cylinder mower but I'm glad I didn't
rotary with roller on the back is definitely the way to go.

I bought a second hand Honda and it does the job just fine. They will
normally have wheels at all the corners so if you want to go right up
to a wall then you might need to get a strimmer as well. Apart from
that, I run off the grass on to the path and haven't had any problems.

I check the oil every month or so and have sharpened the blades once.
Apart from that give it a good clean before you put it away for
winter.

HTH,
Crom