Battery powered lawn mowers?! Yes, to Stihl RMA 510

[NWPilgrim]

I recently scoured the Web for info on battery powered mowers and settled on the Stihl 36v RMA 510. Other top contenders in my search were the Snapper 82v XD, The EGO 56v 21" push, and the Echo 58v 21" push.

WHY BATTERY POWERED?
In the past I had a much larger lawn and sometimes let it get way to long and rough and ended up with a 6.5HP Honda mower that cuts through nearly everything and does a great job. But this year I downsized the lawn area, dug it out, leveled it more, hauled in topsoil and planted nice new grass. The gas mower is way over kill and frankly I am moving away from gas engined tools to battery powered ones, primarily Milwaukee. Li-Ion battery and brushless motor technology make these tools very powerful for the homeowner, handyman and sometimes even professional users. I've been very pleased with my Milwaukee drills, drivers (12v and 18v), impact wrenches, Hackzall, angle grinder, and this year added the string trimmer and hedge trimmer. Fantastic quality and performance. After having to replace worn out fuel lines in my Honda tiller I got to thinking how much simpler the battery tools are for occasional use than gas engine ones. That's when I sold my Husqvarna trimmer and replaced it with the Milwuakee trimmer and am very happy with its power and endurance.

WHY STIHL FOR BATTERY POWER AT ONLY 36v?
I really wanted to wait for Milwaukee to release a mower in their new outdoor battery tool line-up, but no news of that on the horizon. EGO seems to own the majority of the market for battery powered tools, but they are not using brushless motors on any but their $750 dual battery mower. Echo looked pretty good and has a lot of battery outdoor tools but there were reports of the switch failing to turn off or not work at all within the first few months. Snapper looked very good and would be my very close second choice and I would probably be perfectly happy with it. But, I am trying to simplify the number of brands of tools I own so I have fewer places to go for parts, service and accessories. And having experience with Stihl chainsaws I figure I would rather get into the Stihl line of battery and gas outdoor tools rather than Snapper. If I was looking at just the mower then the Snapper would have been my choice. At 36v the Stihl is one of the lowest voltage mowers out there, but my experience with Milwaukee is that lower voltage tools (18v) can be designed to perform as well or better than much higher voltage tools. And Stihl does know how to build durable, hard working outdoor tools.

HOW DOES IT PERFORM?
It only took about 10 minutes to cut the new lawn of 1,000 sqft, and another 10 to go over a rough area that will be graveled over this fall for a driveway extension. The battery went from four LEDs to three in that 20 minutes. It took about 40 minutes to charge it from the one LED from the box to the full four LEDs. I had it on full speed mode, i.e. the ECO mode was switched off. So you should be able to easily mow 4,000-5,000 sqft on a single AP300 battery, and recharge in in 45-60 minutes. I think the manual stating 75 minutes to recharge includes cool down time if it is being worked very hard in hot temps.

The grass was about 4" high and I cut to 3" and it looks very even and well cut. I chose to bag this first cut because it was slightly damp from a light sprinkling. It filled up only about 1/3 of the bag. The overall design of the plastic deck and the blade looks like it would mulch very well, and I will try that out next week on a drier day. The mower is light and folds flat for vertical storage, and has an easy to use one-lever height adjustment. One thing about the Stihl I very much like is that you can switch on or off the load-sensing ECO mode, whereas most battery mowers are only in the equivalent of the ECO mode, and there is a second or so delay between encountering high/thick grass and motor wind up. ECO mode helps extend battery duration by slowing the motor down on light/no load conditions, then ramping it up when it senses a load. But with a lawn under 4,000 sqft I don't see a need for the ECO mode.

The RMA 510 costs about $580. You can get a VERY nice Honda gas mower for that or less. But, with battery power no hearing protection is needed, it is less annoying to neighbors so you could mow at earlier and later times than you might with a gas mower, and it requires no engine maintenance, oil changes, sparkplugs, or gas cans. It is pretty quiet. Not "mow at 4am" quiet but certainly "mow even if neighbors are having patio party" quiet. Cutting my fescue/micro clover lawn did not seem to even phase the Stihl mower. In the rough area I ran over some thick grass clumps and it chopped right through the thick matted clusters without missing a beat. It picked up most of the maple leaves on the lawn (bagging) but not every single particle of them. Not as good as my 6.5HP Honda mower on sucking up leaves, but pretty close.

Overall, after the first mowing I am very pleased with the Stihl 510 mower and it reinforces the appeal of battery tools for me over corded or gas engine ones. With several batteries I can run my Milwaukee tools all day long on decking, auto mechanics, and handyman or light construction level jobs. The Milwaukee trimmers are likewise impressive in the yard. Stihl I think lives up to its outdoor reputation with this 510 mower in good design, robust construction, and top tier performance. I have to admit feeling like a nerd buying this from my nearest Stihl dealer who is mostly a John Deere farm implement dealer. I think this might be the first battery power tool they have ever sold (not in stock, nobody knew nothin'). At least I loaded it into my Dodge diesel truck and not a Pruis or Fiat!

Anybody else try a battery mower recently? Or is everyone moving on to gas turbine and diesel-electric mowers?

[SomeOtherGuy]

Anybody else try a battery mower recently? Or is everyone moving on to gas turbine and diesel-electric mowers?

Positronium, it's the only way to fly. :)

More seriously - I've had two battery-electric lawnmowers, one which I still own (Lowes Kobalt brand, it's just a rebadged ?Greenworks?). The technology is mature for smaller lawns and easier mowing conditions. I hate operating and maintaining small gas engines, so I go electric whenever possible. I also have a battery-electric weed trimmer and chainsaw, which are so convenient to use. We still have the larger gas chainsaw for serious jobs, but it's 10x more effort and only makes sense for "I'm going to cut and buck an entire tree" type work.

[1168]

I’ve been using a Ryobi, and enjoy being able to listen to educational materials with earbuds while I mow.

[markm]

I'd rather wear a dress.

If I could get a mower with TWO gas engines on it, I would. There's ALMOST nothing more philosophically repulsive to me than an electric mower.

[MegademiC]

I'd rather wear a dress.

If I could get a mower with TWO gas engines on it, I would. There's ALMOST nothing more philosophically repulsive to me than an electric mower.

As someone who mows his lawn with a weedwhacker, I agree.
The noise and feel of gasoline engines are therapeutic.

[AKDoug]

I'm a Stihl dealer. I bought one for my wife and so we could use it as a demo for potential customers. We've sold a few of them. My neighbors are always asking why my lawn looks great. My answer is always "estrogen". When they look puzzled I explain that my wife mows the lawn. She loves the thing and doesn't miss the gas mower one bit. No issue at all doing a 4000 sqft lawn on one battery. We're planting another 20,000 sqft next year, so I guess I'll let her pick out a rider.

[NWPilgrim]

Unfortunately the Stihl dealers do not seem to promote the battery products much but they came out in the top tier in my search and comparisons. Since they are not sold through a big box store or Amazon there is very little consumer experience to read and even YouTube has only a handful of reviews. Most battery mower reviews focus on EGO, Greenworks, Ryobi, Kobalt, Worx, and maybe some with DeWalt, Makita, Snapper or Echo.

On the upside, Stihl seems to have applied their landscape tool experience to good effect in the RMA 510. Some companies using plastic decks are too flimsy, but Stihl’s is sturdy. A Stihl chainsaw has steel or aluminum where need but much of the case is plastic and those buggers can take years of being dropped and bashed. Their mower feels like it is built similarly. And the cut performance is excellent as one would expect from a Stihl. So although kind of a bastard child in terms of marketing and sales, at least the engineering is pure Stihl. Many of the other top mowers in my list had at least one compromised factor on an otherwise great mower: brushed motor, flimsy deck, flimsy electrical switch, great bagging but poor mulching, sub par battery or charger, four wheel adjusters instead of one, etc. Stihl was solid on all accounts.

My 10 yr old grandson is starting to do most of the mowing so I feel much more comfortable having him use this battery mower rather than gas engine one. That’s great that as a dealer you are actually using this mower. That should be extremely helpful to interested customers. Most of the farm implements at my Stihl dealer are bigger than my lawn!! They do have a lot of Stihl trimmers, blowers and chainsaws on the shelf but most of the mowers are Honda.

[flenna]

My father had a Black and Decker electric lawnmower when I was a kid. I hated that thing, I was always afraid I was going to run over the 100' extension cord. Anyway, I agree with markm.

[Business_Casual]

I'd rather wear a dress.

If I could get a mower with TWO gas engines on it, I would. There's ALMOST nothing more philosophically repulsive to me than an electric mower.

Then you’d have to wear a tutu to use mine. It’s a Sun Joe, from Walmart for $119 on sale. But I don’t mind, I only have 8k sq. ft. and most of that is house and drive. There’s diminishing returns for the hassle of gas for me.

[Adrenaline_6]

Never tried an electric mower and in my current situation, never will. An electric edger might work, but I already have my 2-stroke Echo Pro Attachment that can change into a edger, wheedwhacker, and I need to buy the pruner attachment with extension for it. I use a zero turn Gravely residential line mower for my lawn and still think it takes too damn long to work on my lawn, especially in the Florida Summer. For me, nothing about yard work is therapeutic, it just sucks donkey balls and is taking time away from me doing something I'd enjoy. The money saved is what keeps me doing it.

The mower has paid for itself many times over the years by not paying someone else to do it, but if and when it dies, I will be looking to buy a used commercial mower that can do the job 3 times faster. Screw yard work.

[ggammell]

I'd rather wear a dress.

If I could get a mower with TWO gas engines on it, I would. There's ALMOST nothing more philosophically repulsive to me than an electric mower.

Where is the “Like” button and why can’t I hit it 10 times!

The only Jinny worse than a battery powered mower is one that runs off an extension cord.

[markm]

Where is the “Like” button and why can’t I hit it 10 times!

The only Jinny worse than a battery powered mower is one that runs off an extension cord.

I see those f#cks in my neighborhood from time to time.

[Jer]

This thread almost instantly devolved into some ignorant ePeen contest that has nothing to do with the topic at hand. This forum prides itself on professionalism but then allows posts like this that have no relevance to the topic to go unchecked?

You have to have some serious self confidence issues to take another person's choice in propulsion for lawn care as an affront to your manhood so much that you feel the need to bring theirs into question. Reading threads like this make me less inclined to try to defend gun owners as reasonable human beings. My favorite part is when the other booger eaters come rushing in to high five the blatant stupidity somehow confirming that this is not only acceptable but somehow cool. Reminds me a lot of when one person says something racist and then another joins them in their racist stance and both somehow feel not alone in the world because they share the same pathetic standpoint.

I'm not sure which is worse, these idiot's opinion or those so spineless they would read said opinion and want to earn the approval of said idiots by basing their decision on such opinions.

[kerplode]

We converted all of our front yard into Xeriscape this summer, so all the grass we have left is a small patch in the back for the dogs. At this point, the gas mower is overkill for the space. I'll probably start looking more seriously at getting an electric next summer, just to make things easier. No point in gassing up a heavy-ass mower and hauling it over the landscaping just to cut 200sqft of grass.


I have a couple neighbors running various eGo mowers that they love. I've not tried one directly, but would prob lean that direction. Thanks for the info on the Stihl, though! I didn't know they made electric tools.

[markm]

This thread almost instantly devolved into some ignorant ePeen contest that has nothing to do with the topic at hand. This forum prides itself on professionalism but then allows posts like this that have no relevance to the topic to go unchecked?

You have to have some serious self confidence issues to take another person's choice in propulsion for lawn care as an affront to your manhood so much that you feel the need to bring theirs into question. Reading threads like this make me less inclined to try to defend gun owners as reasonable human beings. My favorite part is when the other booger eaters come rushing in to high five the blatant stupidity somehow confirming that this is not only acceptable but somehow cool. Reminds me a lot of when one person says something racist and then another joins them in their racist stance and both somehow feel not alone in the world because they share the same pathetic standpoint.

I'm not sure which is worse, these idiot's opinion or those so spineless they would read said opinion and want to earn the approval of said idiots by basing their decision on such opinions.

Are we taking this topic THAT seriously??? I mean... we're talking lawn care equipment on an M4 forum for f@ck's sake. :sarcastic:

[Jer]

Are we taking this topic THAT seriously??? I mean... we're talking lawn care equipment on an M4 forum for f@ck's sake. :sarcastic:

Which is it then? This forum is professional and doesn't deal with the nonsense or it's a forum where people can bring someone's sexuality into question for not agreeing with their outdated opinions on lawn care?

Seems to me it was you who took this thread a bit too serious by personally attacking anyone who dares do something different than you and your great grand pappy.

Grow up.

[AKDoug]

Unfortunately the Stihl dealers do not seem to promote the battery products much but they came out in the top tier in my search and comparisons. Since they are not sold through a big box store or Amazon there is very little consumer experience to read and even YouTube has only a handful of reviews. Most battery mower reviews focus on EGO, Greenworks, Ryobi, Kobalt, Worx, and maybe some with DeWalt, Makita, Snapper or Echo.

On the upside, Stihl seems to have applied their landscape tool experience to good effect in the RMA 510. Some companies using plastic decks are too flimsy, but Stihl’s is sturdy. A Stihl chainsaw has steel or aluminum where need but much of the case is plastic and those buggers can take years of being dropped and bashed. Their mower feels like it is built similarly. And the cut performance is excellent as one would expect from a Stihl. So although kind of a bastard child in terms of marketing and sales, at least the engineering is pure Stihl. Many of the other top mowers in my list had at least one compromised factor on an otherwise great mower: brushed motor, flimsy deck, flimsy electrical switch, great bagging but poor mulching, sub par battery or charger, four wheel adjusters instead of one, etc. Stihl was solid on all accounts.

My 10 yr old grandson is starting to do most of the mowing so I feel much more comfortable having him use this battery mower rather than gas engine one. That’s great that as a dealer you are actually using this mower. That should be extremely helpful to interested customers. Most of the farm implements at my Stihl dealer are bigger than my lawn!! They do have a lot of Stihl trimmers, blowers and chainsaws on the shelf but most of the mowers are Honda.

Since every Stihl dealership is an independent shop, you get a broad cross section of dealers. We happen to be a hardware store that sells Stihl. Unlike most hardware stores that sell Stihl, though, I have a salesman and a tech on duty 7 days a week. Our closest competition is a heavy equipment dealer like what you have to deal with.

You can only sell so many chainsaws. They last too long and most people really don't need a saw like they do lawn and garden equipment. Stihl is continuing to push into new areas to cater to homeowners that normally wouldn't shop the Stihl name. Stihl battery powered tools is one of those areas. It took a bit for me to embrace the technology, and I'm still having difficulty convincing people that they work great. However, I have reached a pocket market that I haven't in the past.. older folks and women. Honestly, I have husbands that have used tools I've sold their wives that begrudgingly agree that the tools work well. I've got a bunch of carpenters using battery powered blowers and chainsaws now. They love being able to blow off construction sites vs. sweeping with a broom. Using a battery powered saw indoors is much nicer than a gas saw.

People don't realize that the very first chainsaw produced by Stihl was electric powered.

[AKDoug]

Are we taking this topic THAT seriously??? I mean... we're talking lawn care equipment on an M4 forum for f@ck's sake. :sarcastic:

Do you even have a lawn in AZ, bro? :haha:

[Watrdawg]

I'd rather wear a dress.

If I could get a mower with TWO gas engines on it, I would. There's ALMOST nothing more philosophically repulsive to me than an electric mower.

100% agree! I do all of the yard work and absolutely forbid any electronic yard equipment in my yard period. As far as Stihl equipment is concerned, it's about all I'll use. Not the battery powered mower though. these past 2 weekends I've about wore out my 2 Stihl chainsaws. Had to cut up 2 75ft or so huge oak trees that the hurricane blew down in my father in-laws yard.

[NWPilgrim]

Yeah, yeah I knew “battery power” and “mower” would raise some hackles. No worries [emoji41] But if you ever tried Milwaukee’s 18v high torque 1/2” impact wrench you would not chuckle at battery power anything. I cut a lot of trees with. 6.5 cu-in 36” bar Husqvarna back in the day, and most of the time now my ears ring with the comforting sound of wide open chainsaws. But I think the new tech in cordless is just starting to revolutionize tools especially in replacing pneumatics and gas. For hard, day after day use I would stick with the older tech. But batteries make a lot of sense for most homeowner work, and more and more becoming worthy replacements or supplements to older tech especially in construction.

I really liked my interaction with the Stihl dealer. 7-day return policy, automatic registration for warranty at any dealer for 3years. Never have to deal with third party retailers or off shore service for parts or repairs. Super nice even though was probably way below their normal commissioned sales.

I was think of getting a smaller Stihl saw to supplement my ancient 45cc Husqvarna, but now thinking I might try one of their battery saws since it would be for much lighter use. Battery tools are nice in you can just pick them up and work and put it away with no
prep or fueling. And having multiple tools using the same batteries it is easy to always have full charged ones lying about.

I enjoy big Diesel engines and wide open gassers, but beginning to appreciate battery options. I mean, a battery just stores energy from a gas turbine, or coal burner, or plutonium fusion, right? I like it all!