@@AutoAuctionRebuilds In general, Lithium ion batteries (Li-ion) should not be stored for longer periods of time, either uncharged or fully charged. The best storage method, as determined by extensive experimentation, is to store them at a low temperature, not below 0°C, at 40% to 50% capacity. Storage at 5°C to 15°C is optimal. Since lithium batteries self-discharge, it is recommended that they must be recharged every 12 months. We can further divide it into short-term storage and long-term storage.
I went all electric on my lawn equipment six years ago and it was the best decision ever. No more gas runs, jerking your arm out of socket pull starting, spending hours and money to winterize in the off season only to dragging equipment to repair shop for hundreds of dollars in repair costs just to get it to start. Now all I do is drop in the battery and push a button. Only maintenance is keep it clean and in off season keep battery from freezing weather. Great decision Randy!
Lol. 17 years ago I spent $550 on a Honda self propelled mower. In the last 17 years, I've changed the oil and plug every other year, and winterizing it takes literally 90 seconds. Use ethanol free fuel, to winterize, turn off the fuel shut off between the tank and carb, give it the one pull it takes to start, wait about 80 seconds until the fuel bowl of the carb runs out. It uses maybe 8 to 10 gallons of fuel a year for my half acre. At today's prices, I've spent approximately $170 on fuel, about $40 on oil, maybe $30 on spark plugs, and maybe 3 hours of my life performing maintenance. I learned a long time ago to buy the right equipment from the start and it'll take care of you for a long, long time.
I spent $180 on a Kobalt 210 electric mower 10+years ago and the only maintenance has been sharpening the blade and wiping down the deck. At today's prices, I have a couple dollars of electricity and 0 hours winterizing it.
Prices have dropped tremendously on these. This mower is now $4999, the 42" is $3999. Much more competitive now, especially with the gas and maintenance savings factored in.
I just don't trust Ryobi batteries, based on years of experience. I went with the EGO Z6 e-steer, and also have the EGO snow blower, weed trimmer, edger, leaf blower, and am looking at the pressure washer and chainsaw next.
I have the electric zero turn Cub Cadet. Got it around 3 years ago no maintenance needed and its been a great mower. What you say is true if i let the lawn go it does take more battery to mow it. Don't know if the Ryobi is the same or not but the blades mine came with bent easily and the vibration is probably that. The electric mowers typically have a lighter blade to increase range. After they bent I put on a mulching kit with different blades the new blades did effect the range. So if you end up changing your blades with a different set it might effect the range just as an fyi.
When I bought my mower from Home Depot, I told them I didn’t want one of the ones outside, so they ordered me a new one inside a pallet wrapped in thick plastic that I had to put together myself. It was delivered to my house in a huge transfer truck bolted to a pallet and unassembled .
That was how I got my 46" ($1098) MTD rider in 2005 from HD, had to pay $40 delivery charge. It was a BLACK beauty (MINT) untouched by humans! Just like I wanted it, a VIRGIN!
I’ll be damned if I’d pay full cost for something supposedly “brand new”. If they couldn’t offer a substantial discount on one in that condition, then I’d ask them to order in a “new” one in factory fresh condition! Might be an idea to contact Ryobi direct and complain.
Randy - take the mulching plate off the cub cadet and try cutting grass without it. It’s my opinion that your grass was so high when you went to cut it with the mulching kit on that the Mower had no place to discharge the grass clippings too (mulching kit prevents grass from being discharged through mower discharge chute) thus leaving large clumps of grass on your yard. Worth noting!😊
I'm watching now, and interested in your full review. I have to get a new mower, and while shopping, I noticed lots of electric now, and I was all wth?
I'm not a huge fan of the mulching mower, just doesn't seem to look as nice as a discharge mower? Might be just me however and I do understand the function of a mulch mower. Guess everything has it use and purpose.
When loading on a trailer, you're supposed to back it on because it gets squirrelly going forward ... this is stated in the owners manual. Bought a 42" two weeks ago for $3999. So many similar experiencess as you. The mower was left outside and was filthy, marked up by the security cable, and the stickers were peeling off. Home Depot staff didnt know how to drive it and banged it up a little loading on the trailer. It supposed to come with 3 keys but I only got one, they couldnt find them. Choked it all up to "ots hard to find good empolyees these days" and moved passed it since I m capable of cleaning it myself. Cleaned it up and removed the scuffs with some automotive rubbing compound. Peeled off the stickers and cleaned up the glue residue. Charged it up and got to mowing. The yard look great, very happy with the cut. The joy stick requires a soft touch and takes some getting used to... not sure if I like it or not, but I think I will adjuest to it. Its supposed to cover 3 acres with one charge, but realisticlally it cuts 2 acres (RYOBI needs to be up front about this). My yard is slightly less than 2 acres and it cut it all with one charge in low drive speed and low blade speed so its not really an issue for me. I have one area with a sharp incline and the mower slid down it rather than rolling down it and I lost steering control since it was sliding... the manaul warns about this, will have to mow this area with a push mower instead. With all this said the mower is a keeper for me. It was very comfortable, much quieter, and ought to last me. Don't expect to go back to a gas mower again.
Randy randy. If I bought a new mower online and I arrived to pick it up, then see it dirty, scratched plus no charge, I would have went in the store and said I bought a NEW mower, not this one outside. I already paid for it, so order me a new one. You're too nice a guy, but then I'm old and look at things different. Great video!
I use a 1989 Kubota G6200 that has a 3-cylinder Diesel engine to do all of my grass cutting. Sometimes the back pasture gets about 6ft tall and I just mow it down no problem.
I could not see paying that kind of money for any Ryobi product. For that price he could have bought a commercial grade gas mower that would last for several thousand hours.
If i paid that much for something i want it in the condition advertised (NEW CONDITION). Luckily i have a cub cadet dealer 10 minutes down the road from me so that's where i bought my LT46. So far everythings going good with it. Plan to buy a 10 foot shed to store it in for the winter.
I have a ZT II 54" cub rider that is the next step up from yours. It has heavy duty trans and wider tires and high lift 54" deck. I installed a mulching kit for it and it works great. I have 70 hours on it and no problems to date. The transmissions on these mowers seldom need work done on them and are easy to fix if something goes wrong. When I was in my early 20s, I was a automation designer for Sundstrand, they were the manufacture and designer for the hydo transmissions that went into the first mowers. The first ones were indestructible. We actually tested our transmissions in full size John Deere tractors. The Ryobi mower you have tested will have diminished battery power storage by next season. Those batteries will cost more the the gas you saved. Don't sell your gas mowers you will need them soon. Your lawn does look great and the mower seems to be doing OK this season. Ray
Plus, you can store the batteries somewhere that doesn’t get crazy cold over the winter and make sure they stay between about 30% to 50% charge. They’ll work as well as they did before your stored them.
I bought the greenworks pro zero turn, it's $3999 at Tractor Supply. 42" cut, but that's good for getting between my shrubs. I have about 2/3 acre to mow and it does that on 25-30% of the battery. Just like you, I got tired of the upkeep on the gas mower. And yes, it cuts far better than my old Simplicity tractor
Lol. The upkeep on a gas mower is an annual oil change that costs $15 and takes 15 minutes. Then you just clean the air filter every couple months. I’d much rather do that than pay EIGHT THOUSAND DOLLARS for a crappy Ryobi! Lol.
C,Mon I can't believe you accepted the mower in that condition seriously I would take it back home Depot got to do especially with rust on it already, for that type of money it should be perfect
Remove those guards from the deck on the cub cadet and keep them off. It makes cleaning the deck alot easier and won't trap grass and debris around the belts and pulleys. I remove those guards on all my mowers and IMO its better in the long run to just leave them off. Its not a golf cours 2 inches is way too low to be mowing your grass. 3 inches is about as low as you want to cut it. It will not only look better but its alot better for the grass.
Believe it or not I actually enjoyed the voice over, there are certain times when it works and this was one of them. So thank you for the electrical issues with the sound much appreciated.
Call them if you ever have any issues. They send a technician out. I just bought a 30" mower for $800. It was missing some parts and they have someone coming out 3 days after I bought it. They had the 54" for somewhere around $1,000 with all the batteries and charger, but someone got there before me and cleaned them out. Close out sale to get stock out of stores and moving to online only to these. You can see why they have sat outside to rot.
This Ryobi big boy EV mower if basically a first generation large zero turn. It’s not commercial grade, but a residential grade quality level. It’s quite expensive at this point and it will probably evolve over the next couple of years as battery tech changes and Ryobi and other vendors sort out what works and doesn’t dork on these out in the field. I myself would have a cow dropping $8,000 for one of these mowers. But I do Ryobi 21 inch 40v push mower that I am overall quite happy with. Had that one for 2 1/2 years now. The only thing I have done to it is change the blade.
I bit the bullet almost 10 years ago and bought a Honda Commercial HRC-216 and I’ll get another 10 years out of this. If want the best push mower spend the extra and get a commercial Honda
I did the same, buy once cry once. Can't imagine this electric chinesium will be running in 5 years let alone 20. On the bigger side Kubota are top notch.
@@IrelandBurning Facts. That’s how I saw the purchase. It cuts 4 foot high grass that’s wet without any issues. And my neighbors constantly say my lawn looks like a golf course. And I didn’t skimp on the Stihl BR600 blower and my FS250 trimmer.
At first, I thought it was stupid to spend that type of money on a mower. But then I saw that lush lawn, and you started talking about all the things that your brand new Cub Cadet would need over the years, and it made so much sense to spend the extra $4500. I agree 100%, definitely worth spreading $8600 over three credit cards, especially when you factor in the $4500 price difference, plus the $4100 you paid for the Cub Cadet, it is so worth it. Gas, oil, belts, maintenance, you could easily justify that extra $8600 you spent. You'll never ever have to spend money on batteries or maintenance. Fully understand the rationality to literally having to make this well thought out purchase, to the point that you were willing to suffer through the treatment you received at Home Depot, and the necessity to take this particular one, instead of going to another Home Depot and getting one in good condition. Then to hear how efficient it was, who cares how often you have to charge it, or how long it takes to charge it, beats lifting those heavy gas cans, and getting the job over with. Man. You truly are an effing idiot. Just lighting money on fire. Best part is, even though it's brand new, it looks like all the other piles of crap you buy, looks like one of those old flood damaged heaps you buy with salvage titles. Not even getting into that lawn you have at the Ponderosa, imagine all the grass seed you could buy with $8600. While you plop your ass on the rider mower, the old lady is pushing a mower. What a prince. What's up with her anyway, how long you engaged, a decade, wow. You sure must be worth the wait. Totally fascinated by you, love to hear when you explain your thinking and financial decisions, like watching one of those daytime talk shows, where they have all those poor souls on trying to find out who's the baby daddy. You've out done yourself on this one. You deserve giving yourself a gift, get your a$$ down to the Dodge dealer and pick yourself up some six figure shiny toy, do it quick, before the prices drop. LMAO.
Take the mulch kit off get high lift blades for the cubby you won't have that issue anymore take the belt guards off and blow off deck after every mow I have a 42" cub it cuts like a dream
I have had my 46" MTD "600" mower for 21yrs. It cost me $1098 +tx at HD in 2005. Never needed any engine or work (except belts occasionally). I even STILL have the original spark plugs. It starts INSTANTLY, hot or cold! I DO keep it garaged and maintain it RELIGIOUSLY!
The Chinese have a 120V ROBOTIC mower available for $3000. I have seen it advertised. Problem is...............DOESN'T come with batteries AND NO information about where to buy them!! I mean WTF!!
I agree. Got to break down cost to justify the initial out of pocket expense. Also, we don’t know anything about the reliability of the battery operated mowers as well as their long term maintenance costs. I”ll stick to gas mowers much cheaper to own and operate. 😊
It would be understandable if the buyer had no experience with mechanics, but Randy does it for a living, I think this decision is just plain confusing.
It's not just the cost of those things, it's the maintenance. Gotta change your oil, change/clean filters, belts wear and snap a lot, carbs get gummed up, starter battery can die, have to winterize it etc.. On top of that you have to you go to the gas station and fill your gas cans up. Way more wear and maintenance parts on a gas mower, Emower, you just plug it in and done. . On top of that it's much louder. Also now, the 42" is $3999 and this mower is $4999.
I have an electric push mower since my yard is really small. I like not having to buy gas/change oil or spark plugs, but the battery runs out of charge if the grass is too tall or wet. It sounds like a good deal if you buy spare batteries and keeping primary battery charged at all times so you don't have to wait when you're ready to use. Suggest storing batteries in conditioned (AC/Heat) space to extend their useful life, they can be expensive to replace. My battery takes about 6 hours to charge at 70-75 degrees F in a conditioned space. For reference, I bought a Kobalt brand 20" 40 volt electric push mower at Lowes 4 years ago.
I got my RYOBI Zero turn for $4,000 and it is insanely good. Much better than my gas powered and the maintenance on it is literally like zero. Crazy good purchase for me!
You have those beautiful Engwe bikes. I'm droolin' I have a Pro 2. Great bikes! Oh, nice mower. Mower electricity is delivered by lawn nomes at night for free.
Brother has 5 acres and last year bought one of those electrics to replace his aged, inoperable zero turn ice mower. Spent 7k on it a couple of years ago. This year he rebuilt his ice mower because the electric just can't keep up with Texas heat and budding mesquite trees.
I’ve had a gas mower and made repairs,it seems better than a battery operated,I do mow that much or more,so yeah,those weedeaters will not trim both lawns and you’d have to charge the lawn mower also,so good luck buying more batteries
Charlie the 6.75 Briggs is a great engine give it a tune up and it'll last another 4 to 6 years I worked for Briggs and I can tell you that old 6.75 engine is damn near bullet proof most of the time for an engine that Briggs only rates to last 2 to 3 years
When I got my 5 acre property, it was nearly fall and there were no zero turns around except for a Cub Cadet ZT-2 60. It's been a great mower but I'd be lying if I claimed I didn't want something a little better. They're running a sale where the Ryobi electric mowers are 30% off. I think I'm going to wait a couple years for the refinements.
How are you supposed to park your vehicles in the garage with all that stuff you got in there? I would invest in a storage shed to put all that stuff in the garage in it 😊👍
Exactly what I have just said, at least now I don't feel like I over reacted. If that had been where I live in Germany, or England, it would have been heavilly reduced in price.
Pretty kool Ryobi zero turn electric mower but to be fair Randy think could made Home Depot give y new one clearly first one was used before & never been zero turn mower myself Ryobi is awesome
The only shortcomings I can think of is battery availability and cost! I'm sure they're manufacturer specific. I gotta admit,Randy you do step to the plate when it comes to cutting edge tech!
As of March 2024, they've gone down $1000. Word of advice to anyone ordering these online - call in your order from the number on their website and request they ship it directly from Ryobi, otherwise you may end up with one delivered from your local HD that's been sitting outside 24/7 for weeks/months, dirty and scuffed up from all the customers sitting in it...as well as some accessories missing.
I remember cutting grass, and the company used Toro products. We had to grease the barrings, change blades, and change belts. Oh, and tires too. The reason of greasing barrings is because of the the certain silt sand we have down here in new Orleans, that can really wear your barrings down.
I was looking at these and also at the ZT1. My experience was a lot like yours, my local HD store had these things sitting outside and they looked like crap. The paint was faded, the bolts on the control panel were rusty, and the bin doors were discolored from sun. It's bad enough leaving any $8000 equipment sitting outside, but I'd be especially worried about the electronics sitting outside, since it's not even supposed to be hosed down for cleaning. I do have an electric walk behind mower, made by Greenworks, and it's been fabulous.
As a former Home Depot garden associate, I'm appalled at the condition they let that mower out the door. We not only would have the mower and its accessories ready for you to load up, it was cleaned up and we would go through the mower's operation with you. The way Home Depot stores are designed, there is no storage on the floor, especially for riders so they do have to sit out. My management would have had a fit if I let a mower go out the door looking like that.
Apparently the mower speed impact range more than drive speed. I'd recommend medium or slow for the speed you are moving at. You might see improvement.
Hey Randy new mower and you said in your videos that you are no longer driving the ram 3500 and instead you normally driving the cars at aar headquarters and now you drove the ram 3500 to your house but it's okay but you're awesome
I went "Whoa!" to myself when I heard you were cutting the grass at 2". Maybe the type of grass you have is OK with being that short, but the St. Augustine and Bahia in our area does better if it's cut no shorter than 3-1/2", and it's been doing very well for the many years I've cut it at 4". The shorter it's cut, the more advantage the weeds have. Also, the longer it's kept, the more moisture it tends to hold in the ground. If you haven't already, research your type of grass to make sure of what the optimum cut length is. 2" sounds awfully short.
Your getting clumps on the Cub Cadet probably because you still have the factory 3-in-1 blades. Get a mulch kit which includes a mulch plug and dedicated mulching blades and gauranteed it will leave less clippings behind.
Take the mulching kite off the Cub Cadet, it will cut better. The Ryobi is way too expensive for a normal home owner. I drove one last year at the big Equip Expo in Louisville KY last year. There is a learning curve on any zero turn. I mow about 10 yards each week. Batteries are way too expensive. Thanks for buying and trying them out for us. I use an Areins Icon X 42 inch. it does a great job and it gets in tighter places.
I hope you asked for a hefty discount due to the condition of this thing? If not, try filing warranty claims with the manufacturer right away on all of those problems.
There is no freeking way that this is the right channel, I would NEVER have EVER expected the Randy that I have been watching from the get go, would get so SCREWED OVER buying a mower that cost over $8,000. The thing is supposed to be NEW, not SECOND HAND, it's got scraped paintwork, rust, a charger that looks like it was left outside with the mower, the stickers peeling off, covered in dirt, all the batteries were discharged, the service was CRAP, having to wait until somebody found the keys, even though you called to say you were comming, and you still paid for it, MAN, if that had been a car at Copart, you would have walked away. I think that you should be impressed as to how the mower performs, it cost more than some of the luxury cars that you buy, but the fact that you didn't kick up a stink and demand a reduction in price, THAT is dissappointing.
They may be nice if you have small yard I got a lawn mower I had for 12 years or more I changing oil blades and filters and a couple batteries and a few belts and it still runs good they ant no electric mower going to last that long
You're never going to get a dealership experience at Home Depot including a wash and topped off batteries or gas. They don't care if you buy it or not. They will sell it to you if you want it, and that's as far as it goes usually. I've said for years big box stores are not the place to buy mowers, especially expensive ones. I don't know what Ryobi's model is like, but for John Deere stuff, you can go to the dealer, pay the same price, and they will at least in most cases have it presentable, and put some gas (or electrons) in it for you. Plus you have people that know and care about the brand. But aside from that, it's going to be interesting to see how electric lawn equipment advances in the coming years. Interesting to say the least. Great content as always Randy.
Since the batteries were dead when you purchased (who knows how long they were discharged), did you see better performance as time went on? Great review. Thanks.
I'd keep both mowers and use one set at the Byars location and the other at home. It would reduce your transport requirement for the lawn equipment, plus you'd have an 'emergency backup plan' if one of the mowers were to fail.
Great video! I bought the exact same mower online and the local HD delivered one from the front of the store that had been sitting there for who knows how long??? I refused the delivery and went with a Greenworks brand new.
This top model Ryobi is getting good reviews and is now "only" $5000 at Home Depot. I will probably get one when my Gas Zero turn bites the dust which is likely one more season.
I have had the same experience at Home Depot. It is not the same as it was years ago before they started cutting staff and changing procedures. I have bought several mowers from them over the years and the last one I bought was like your experience. No one wants to help you and finding the person that can unlock the chains and get the paper work on the mower was a pain. I am a veteran and getting the veteran discount can vary from store to store and it can be a pain too. You mentioned you have a 5 year warranty, the question is where would you have to take it to get it worked on. Home Depot does not offer any warranty service themselves on the regular mowers. I live about 20 miles for the Depot but the nearest warranty center by the mower manufacturer is over 50 miles away.
I think you might should have considered the green works lawn mower there would have been less of a learning curve bc the handles for driving are the same
If you ask to speak to a manager and politely talk to them about your disappointment they often will knock a percentage off the price. They also leave BBQ's out in the weather. I've had to pick through all of them to find one that didn't have rust.
Randy they sell warranties and that mower is probably a store return! Home depot clears out all the returns in my area 50% off on black Friday ! I wouldn't have taken it and would get a new one even at another location! I would return it!
Full battery set for the mower is about the same prize as the as Cub Cadet :P (3200$) Warranty on the battery's is 3 years not 5 years. only 5 years for the 80v ones IF you register them at Ryobi.
So bought a mower that's been sitting out in the weather and your wondering why it's weathered? Have you checked to see if there is anyone in your area that is or will work on these mowers?
I would be surprised as well, typically warranties do not cover "consumable items" like batteries. Also typically a battery is heavily influenced by the manner in which you treat them so again extended warranties on these types of items are rare. But at 8500 bucks maybe Ryobi is thinking they need to cover them in order to sell the damn things? Randy is not normally a dummy so if he believes they are covered he probably is correct?
The batteries specifically are warrantied for 5 years IF you register them within 90 days of purchase. If not, they knock it down to 3yrs or less, which seems like a rip off, is what it is.
Don't kid yourself when you say you don't have to maintain a battery anything as there is maintenance there too. You may not have gas and oil but you still have lubrication. Batteries, especially anything Lithium can be in some ways more hazardous than gasoline. Look up Teslas on fire and you will see that some fire departments aren't equipped to handle these things and the larger the battery, the potiential of turning your house into ash is more likely, especially if you store it in your attached garage. You have to keep these machines clean and unlike gas, electric machines really can't be washed with water. There are vents all over these machines and you have to keep them clear as well as checking on the cooling fans of the machines to be sure that they are in tact and working correctly. Also, Lithium based batteries have a deterioration factor that's worse than say an internal combustion engine that can last forever if maintained correctly. Speaking of which, your lawn boy Charlie probably needs some adjustment on the valves, the top removed over the fan shroud and wash it with water. Also, as much as that engine says that you don't need to change the oil, I would recommend that you do that as well. It's really not that difficult as you can measure the appropriate amount of oil and fill the sump. The valve clearance isn't a problem either if you have a set of feeler gauges and you watch videos from other youtubers like Donyboy73, Taryl Fixes All, James Condon, Chickanic, Home Garage and Inside House Garage.
u need to mow your lawn more if our getting clumps,.. my commercial mower does that when the grass gets about 8 inches high. that cub does not have a commercial deck or hydraulics either.. interested to see how the ryobi holds up
