Ryobi RLM36 Series
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Had the first mowe for less than 2.5 years only for lawn and the electric motor blew. Took it back to Bunnings and the replacement lasted less than once so got a full refund. Worst mower I’ve had in 50 years. Ryobi support and rep useless. I don’t… Read more
recommend Ryobi if you want support or reliability - waste of time, effort and money for a product unfit for purpose.
Follow-up · As Ryobi Au seem to have an exclusive national retail arrangement with Bunnings Au it was Bunnings that provided the refund and when it was clear to them my experience was genuine I was able to exchange for a different brand and this has worked out well. Still no acknowledgment from Ryobi about any known issues or other explanation - only empty… Read more
Could have been good – While it cuts well and mows even long grass with no problems, there's a fatal flaw with the design of the handle. The 'ears' create too much force on the join and the handle breaks too easily. Show details
- +3
This is a long term review of the Ryobi 36V 5AH kit mower, specifically the RLM36B46S1. I bought this about 5 years ago to replace a Victa 4 stroke mower and I’ve been very happy with it. No more petrol, oil, spark plug or air cleaner maintenance; just charge the battery and away it goes. Assembly is very easy out of the box. The handle is… Read more
attached using four bolts and the included Allen key tool. Ryobi warn not to overtighten the bolts and I was careful, but they became loose again after a few months and would not tighten any more. Having said that, I’ve been using it for five years now and I’ve become used to the slight movement of the handle. The catcher is in two pieces that simply push together.
There was a 4AH kit with a smaller blade but it made sense to get the 5AH kit since is has an 18inch cut, the same as my old Victa. I did look at a Makita but it was another $200 so no. The Makita has a bar which must be held and some people complain about that. The Ryobi has two handles so you can use either hand to give the other a rest. If you let it go even for a fraction of a second, the motor will stop and you will have to use the start button again. It has never given me any problem.
We have a small suburban lawn of Couch and Bufaflo and the mower handles it easily. The 5AH battery does the whole lawn taking about 35 minutes with charge left over. I prefer to wait until the grass is dry but it can handle a lawn wet with dew. With wet grass the catcher clogs before it is full. When dry it will fill the catcher no worries. There is also a mulching attachment which simply blocks the catcher chute.
The body is a thick heavy duty plastic. The motor is fully sealed and needs no maintenance. There is a single bar type blade which is easily removed and sharpened, and i bought a spare. I also bought a spare generic battery from eBay at ¼ the cost of a genuine item and it works fine.
This is a great product and I would recommend it to anyone with a small suburban lawn. If you want to slash a paddock though, forget it :)
Reviews with attachments
A mower that can cook, clean and give a massage – My venture into the 36v world was not taken lightly - as a petrol head who gets off on removing the muffler from petrol mowers to get that Harley Davidson-esque sound while mowing, I treated this trip to bunnings very blasse. I did wear my good thongs though. I had my doubts at first - what, with its light weight and plastic shrouding, but… Read more
instead of laughing in angst of impending failure, I got on the phone to a good mate of mine Chuck Norris (some of you may have heard of him). He says that Ryobi were using his lawn to test this puppy out in the R&D days. I did have a chuckle (see what I did there) because Chuck doesn't own a mower! His grass cuts itself in fear of being beaten to within an inch (literally) of its life, but he did say he let it grow just for this exercise. This mower impressed him. So much so he's making another movie about it.
So on his advice, I bought it.
I've not experienced the female "big-O" before (as a male), but after a month of owning this Ryobi 36v mower, guys, I'm a nymphomaniac. I have been charging the battery and offering to mow other people's lawns it's that good (and between you and I, it's better cutting someone else's grass with it too). The wife is a bit upset that I've always got "a headache" when it comes time for some mummy and daddy time now too. I feel it my duty to be faithful to the one I love, so I raise my beer to you Ryobi (against the begging plea of the handbrake), I'm yours.
It'll cut my overgrown 700m yard on a single charge without blinking. And I do like how it "revs up" when it hits a thick patch too. My petrol mower choked where this baby laughs.
Do yourself a favour, buy this mower, tell the wife you're moving into the shed and have yourself a bloody good time. No more petrol or two-stroke for me lads... Time to work out how to put a 36v motor onto the Harley.
Hooroo
EDIT 05 Jan 2017
So I've had the mower for a year now and I'm still in love! I managed to convince the wife to stick around as well!
The 5.0ah battery that came with my mower is still charging on strong, easily doing my whole yard on a single charge, being used fortnightly.
Again, buy this mower! Charge the battery as soon as you've finished using it, and enjoy years of enjoyable mowing.
Hooroo
EDIT: 21 Jan 2021
This old girl is just relentless! For years I’ve been giving her a weekly workout, on the same cutting blade might I add, and it just keeps coming back for more! You’re crazy if you are looking at these and don’t buy it. I’ve saved heaps in petrol, and even the handbrake says it’s light enough for her to use as well.
CHECK out the video attached to this review to see it in action.
Hooroo
Great Light Weight Mower – Got this today and couldn't be more pleased so far. Very easy to assemble and so light weight. Easy to push around. Mainly got it to do around the edges and fiddly bits my ride-on can't reach and it's perfect for this purpose or for mowing smaller lawns that take say less than an hour to do. Very quiet too and instant go at the press of a button. No messy fuels or oils to bother with, folds up nicely for easy storage. Highly recommend. Show details
Great product – Bunnings upgraded me to this self propelled cordless mower as the 629 was out of stock. I had doubts after reading some ordinary reviews. Then I used it and wow! I love it for ease of use, great cut and catching. Effortless compared to my last Honda 4 stroke. I used half charge on full power and self propelled through 110 sq meters of long… Read more
Buffalo with 3 and a half full catcher loads. End result looked like a golf course fairway. Didn't break a sweat! Couldn't be happier.
Warranty a dud – The mower did the job, easy to start, suited my lawn. Didn’t do so well in thicker grass but I worked my around it with the line trimmer. Unfortunately, I actually only used it once. Battery I had came with line trimmer and blower, which I purchased in 2018 and had no issues with, but after one use with Lawn mower, suddenly no longer works. Says… Read more
it’s fully charged but won’t power any of my tools. Manufacturing date is clearly 2018 on the battery yet Ryobi refuses to honour 3 year warranty. I have no receipt, it’s been almost 2 years, but it’s obvious it’s faulty and obviously still within warranty. I am super annoyed. I now have 3 useless skins until I pay out over $150 for a new battery. My tip, perhaps choose the cheaper Ozito. I’ve never had any problem with their after sales service or warranty. Incredibly disappointed.
In-depth reviews
Poor cut, poor power, awful handling through thick grass – Cut - I get lines up and down my lawn now. I’ve tried going over multiple times but doesn’t help. Power - it cannot handle thick Sir Walter buffalo grass so I constantly need to stop. Even worse now with the regular rain. Battery - barely gets through the lawn on my quarter acre block and takes a long time to charge. New batteries are very… Read more
expensive. Grass catcher - terrible design as the grass gets stuck in the chute between the blade and the catcher. The chute is way too narrow. The catcher rarely fills up because the chute clogs up. I need to dig out grass from the chute each time i empty the catcher and yeah I have a dog and can miss the odd pick up - nothing disgusting... yet. Quality - soft foam on the handle is already coming off, 9 months after purchase. Handling - this is the WORST part. The handle is loose and at a poor angle (both settings) which forces the front of the mower into the turf not across it. Noise - its nice and quiet. Yay, 1 good thing. My wife was happy using our petrol mower but won’t use this one. I’m a 90kg guy so can wrestle it through. What was I thinking buying a mower from a cordless drill company? Fooled. Rubbish like this stops people making environmental decisions to stop using petrol. I hate this mower.
Great mower, easy to start, easy to use – I decided to buy this mower after having used my dads mower, which he bought close to 3 years ago now. I fell in love with How easy it was to start and use, it was lite enough for me to handle and pack away and it was very quiet in comparison to a petrol mower. My dad has a medium sized suburban lawn which he could cut front and back on one… Read more
charge with Enough battery life to do a second cut in a few weeks time. I was impressed. I have a much larger plot of land and my mower handle it with no problems. I don’t mow my lawn very often, which means the grass is fairly overgrown. I end up having to mow it twice, first on the high setting, then I drop to the lower setting to get a shorter cut. The mower powers through this on one charge, although I do have to empty the catcher more often, however if I mowed more regularly, It wouldn’t be an issue. I did struggle and got very frustrated trying to connect the catcher to the mower. I also found the flap didn’t sit properly over the catcher either. My dads mower was far more easier to connect the catcher and wished I could still buy this earlier model. I persevered for about 6 months and then decided to contact ryobi. They told me to contact the store I bought it from, which I did. turns out that there was an issue with a set of mowers where the catcher wouldn’t line up. I ended up getting a brand new replacement mower. My original mower was purchased in Dec 2019 and got my replacement in July. I am yet to use the replacement and will need to check if connecting the catcher to thIs mower is any better.
Amazing, easy to start, easy to use – Mowing the lawn is certainly not my favourite chore, and fighting with a pull start mower is too traumatic. Got the Ryobi battery one after my brother raved about them, and was sceptical. Have a huge yard, flat thankfully, and didn't expect a battery mower to be able to cope. It starts so easily, no more pulling my shoulder out of my socket and… Read more
it is light and very easy to move about. I had finished half the front yard in the time it took me to normally get my petrol one started. Initially it took a little getting used to having to hold the handles while you push, but I don't even think about it any more. i
It has full power until the battery drains, and I can get my whole yard (1000 square metre block) on one charge, if the grass isn't terribly high. Cuts like a champion and with 5 settings, there are lots of choice height. I use the highest setting, and the differential between settings is quite large, so if I go down to 4, can see a huge difference.
The mower is marginally less noisy than my petrol one, but there is no worry about spark plugs, mixing fuel properly etc. It folds up for storage nicely and is light enough for me to lug around without straining anything.
There is only one thing I am not so keen on. The catcher. It is VERY tricky to get the thing on initially. It is easy enough to see how it works, and if you get it just so it is fine. However if you are off by even a millimetre, and it is hard to get it on the angle you are forced to use, it can be a bit of a struggle. I have found that this newer model is a big improvement on my brothers older model (about 18 months ago) and I can get this on with much less of a fight and now I have got the hang of it, can usually do it on the first go.
When the grass is wet (which has been all the time lately) it does tend to get clogged and block the catcher, which is true for most mowers, but because the flow hole is much smaller on this, it is a bigger problem.
The catcher is the only thing that stops me from thinking that this is a perfect mowing solution.
Positive reviews
Proved me wrong – Only bought this week but I am happily pleased with this mower has a heap more power than I thought it would it mowed down the longer grass with ease only issue really is would like to get more run time from it Only have the 4AH battery and only got through 2 / 3rds of my lawn so am pleased I also bought the 36 volt straight shat weed eater as… Read more
have the 2 batteries which I think is a must unless you have a tiny lawn other from that I cannot fault it great tool
Value for money mower – Light and easy to handle, easy to assemble and reasonably large catcher Battery gets about 35 minutes, definitely need a second for average lawn Need to go easy on wet or thick grass, but fine on dry normal lawn If you have a thick lawn, then you will have to do two cuts or mow more often Very happy with this, my first battery mower. Prefer over… Read more
petrol mower anyday unless you have a very thick type of heavy grass Overall good value for money, but remember the second battery will cost you another $299
Convenient and effective – I have had this for over 2 years now and mow about 200sq metres of lawn in Geelong. Depending on seasons its weekly to every 3/4 weeks. Lightweight, fairly easy to manoeuvre but LOVE not having to keep a can of petrol or run out. Just plug in the battery once I've finished and it's ready for next week. Battery life has declined about 10-15% but… Read more
still does a full lawn at moderate growth on one charge. The sponge handgrips are starting to tear a little bit holding on ok. Body is plastic but no signs of wear and tear. Catcher was originally a bit stiff to put in place but its now fine. Cutting efficiency is great and the first time I mowed this overgrown lawn it handled it easily. Not recommended for lots of heavy work but im 100% sold on battery power. Would easily buy again and highly recommended.
Find out how Ryobi RLM36 Series compares to other Battery Lawn Mowers
Know better, choose better.
Negative reviews
Utterly hopeless mower – It simply does not cut the grass cleanly; it just hacks weakly at it so, 2-3 passes are necessary to get a semblance of mowed lawn. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY. I bought it to do the "right thing" by the environment by charging the battery during the day, on solar power
No good for couch and buffalo lawns – This mower has design faults that make it unsuitable for use on any thick lawns like couch and buffalo. Even when the grass is between 10 and 20mm it is too light and the front edge is too low so it digs into the lawn and causes the wheels to spin. Even when not using the self-propelled function it is very hard work to mow due to the front digging in. Show details
Cheap design and falls short – In earnest I’ve had this mower now 3 and a bit years. I loved the idea of it more than I love the mower. It’s service free, petrol and oil free, the energy I use on it comes from the Sun so that’s free too. I’m all for this type of mower but since I’ve had this model I’ve seen some issues which I’d love to enlighten you to below. Battery died… Read more
just outside of warranty period. Mower blade is very soft and dented easily. Battery never lasts the whole job. Our grassed area is only 40 square meters and still it does not go the distance. The cable has kinked- design flaw. The battery cover broke off. The handle bars wobble and give in corners.
It’s no masport or Briggs and Stratton, I know it’s an electric mower but I have to eat humble pie and admit my dad was right about this, it’s still a bit of a toy.
Recent reviews
Works well, Good build, Slightly Expesive with some battery concerns Show details
Poor product manufacturing quality and disappointing reliability – Bought this one back in later 2019, failed after 3 months due to poor placement in manufacture of the ignition cable which kinked and shorted. Replaced via Bunnings. Second one lasted almost a year, but the motor stopped due to starter handle problems. Took back and got full refund from Bunnings. Great for light use when it worked. Poor… Read more
reliability. I have a grass whipper snipper as well which has been good, but on the reliability issues with the mower I decided not to risk it and bought a much better and more expensive Ego mower to replace it. You've let your reputation down Ryobi.
Thin and weak design of the of the cutting dome – Great mower to work with. In fact I was very impressed with it until after about a year of using it I looked under to check the condition of the cutting blades. To my horror I discovered that the dome (the enclosure over the cutting blades) was damaged with holes and cracks! The damage was most likely caused by wood chips covering the adjacent… Read more
patches of the yard. The dome plastic is thin and brittle. There is no (stronger) replacement part according to Ryobi. Can get the same part for $90 and get new holes after the season is over. Disappointing really. Edit. Following an exchange of few emails Ryobi promised to send me a new unit and to my surprise a new lawn mover arrived at my door! What a service!
Worst purchase ever – I am one of these people who normally never complains but i have had enough. I recently purchased a Ryobi cordless mower and i have regretted it form the first day i bought it home. The safety switch on the handle is poorly designed and became faulty almost straight away, the mower itself has absolutely no torque so will not cut slightly damp or… Read more
overlength grass and the battery life is woeful. It is poorly designed and poorly designed. Do yourself a huge favour and dont purchase this lawnmower
No spare parts available for upper handle – While it is a great lawn mower it suffers from badly clogging the grass when wet. But the main problem is that the plastic upper handle is poorly designed with the plastic breaking and making the mower useless with no parts available. This no parts available is a problem that would be suitable for consumer affairs investigation. Not good enough. Show details
Works well when new, mine now 5 years old - Beware battery replacement cost! – Good concept, environmentally friendly in suburbia. Easy to use and store, tho’ “dead man” (person?) on/off switches are a pain to use. When new, easily mowed a suburban yard and footpath with charge to spare. BUT, after 5 years the battery has expired and Bunnings replacement cost is an eye watering $299 ! Prospective buyers be aware! Show details
Find out how Ryobi RLM36 Series compares to other Battery Lawn Mowers
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Works well with some minor problems – Nice and light, easy to maneuver around trees etc. Heaps of power available and it speeds up when the going get rough. I did my complete lawn and footpath and still had one light of power available. I did find it hard to push initially however lifting the handle up to the top notch fixed that. I tended to lean forward too much due to the low… Read more
handle. I have not tackled really heavy grass as yet however I think the fact that it goes faster if the going gets tough will surprise me. My last mower, 4 stroke Talon lasted about 30 years and finally gave up the ghost so I decided on a new battery machine. I doubt very much it will last 30 years however I will be under the grass by then anyway. Catcher should have been made larger as it works well enough to fill a bigger bag. I get one run up and down my outside lawn and it is full.
Small but mighty – This mower is the perfect addition to any lawn care range. While it's small and light it has no problem getting through the job of my medium sized yard. Super easy to operate, drop the battery in and off you go. Battery lasts approx 30 mins which prompted me to purchase a spare battery in case it takes longer than that. The catcher is the perfect size and I empty it approx 3 times during a mow. Show details
Broke after two uses – Mowed the same way as the first time. Suddenly died while i was mowing long grass on 5th setting for the second time since purchase. Checked blades and everything, seems to be engine or battery, not sure which.
Bunnings – great easy to use would recommend to not had any problems with the service person was very helpful to us and it was very helpful on our choice on what to but Show details · 1
Useless – Absolutely gutless, dies on anything longer than bowli g green length. Leaves clumps of grass everywhere and dont even try to mow wet grass. Ok if you mow twice a week on dry bowling green length. Is quite light to use which is why I purchased it. Show details
Works really well! – Light weight, easy to use, works incredibly well. Battery lasts for the hour. Really quiet. Struggled to figure out the catcher, but otherwise incredibly easy to set up and use. So many childproof checks in place, making it incredibly safe to have around.
Great Little Mower – This mower has all the power needed is easy to manoeuvre in my small yard and has a great easy to detach grass catcher. The battery has plenty of power. Highly recommended. Show details
Wow, so pleased – I managed to get the Launch edition, 36v with a 5ah battery instead of the 4ah. It is so light and easy to use, I have various grades of grass and one sloping level. which the mower managed with ease, you could hear the engine change level, when it got to the really thick stuff, but it kept going, slow down your pace when it does this. I had to… Read more
empty it a fair few times, but did not mind this and catcher is very easy to install. it possibly would be a bit better with a larger catcher. I did my back garden, front verge and front garden which is quite large, and did it in less time than the petrol mower I had, and still had 2 bars left on the battery. I only got it Monday, but am so pleased with it and 6 year warranty gives me confidence. One thing to be aware of, when putting the handle up be careful about catching the power cable, I will find something to stop this happening.
Works great (2 months) – Very light, very easy to start by just pressing a button and holding handle. I have thick (after recent rain) Walter buffalo and it handles it great. I mow fortnightly at 3rd level. Very easy to push. Only had it 2 months so can’t comment on longevity. Battery (5ah) lasts enough for standard front and rear yards these days. Only minor issue is catcher is a bit smaller than I’m used to but it doesn’t bother me. Show details
Great until the battery gave up the ghost – I was a big advocate for this product until I had the same misfortune of others here on the site - battery failure. I've had my mower for 2 years and was a big fan. So much so I bought the blower vac, line trimmer, pole saw and other accessories, all using the same battery and life was bliss. The items themselves perform well so long as you have… Read more
reasonable expectations - domestic use only in suburban well kept gardens, not jungle like conditions or acres of fields to mow. I got rid of my petrol products as I was so impressed. Unfortunately, I may have been a bit premature in that aspect, as it would appear that the battery has now thrown in the towel. Symptoms include significantly shortened run time (previously I could mow footpath, front and rear lawns, edge trim and then blower vac to finish on a normal suburban block). Now I'm lucky to get the footpath done before it is depleted. After charging, on-board battery meter shows full, but as soon as you place it in the mower, shows level one. Red and green charging fault indication on occasion. I treat the battery well as I'm very familiar with Lithium batteries from aircraft modeling. No hot charging. Not leaving it on charge or in the product, not running it completely flat, etc. It was working great until all of a sudden it has failed from one week to the next. Which is disappointing considering the age of it, and the price of a replacement, which I believe is excessive. For the price of a battery you can get a very good petrol mower which would run for over a decade if treated well, not just 2 years. Luckily I'm covered under warranty, but what about in a years time when I don't have that piece of mind? Previously I would have encouraged people to convert, but now with this experience, I would hesitate to do so until the technology can keep up with expectations. I am writing this as a guide to others who are potentially considering making the change, something to keep in mind. If the warranty changes to include the battery for a longer period, say 4 or 5 years, I would still encourage the swap. The products themselves are fine.
Would not waste your money on these batteries – Bought the mower from Bunnings, while the mower works great, the work needed to keep the battery working is beyond a joke given the technology in batteries. The fact that the 36v will go into hibernation mode an not recover unless you are “using the mower and recharging the battery every two weeks” as explained by a Ryobi sales rep at a Bunnings… Read more
store is sign that the product is either cheap or Ryobi have no understanding how often people need to mow small yards. Bunnings won’t do anything unless u have the receipt for a mower bought less than 12 months ago, even with each individual mower being tracked by serial number into a store. Stay away
Never thought I’d buy a battery lawn mower – Light weight, I’d never go back to petrol again. I will mention don’t buy and expect to mow an acre of grass these are designed for smaller yards. I get around 65 minutes out of my mower. I was so impressed I bought the whipper sniper as well. Show details
Don't bother with Ryobi – I sold my petrol driven self-propelled lawnmower and bought the Ryobi self-propelled lawnmower in June 2019 believing it would easily handle the job. In September 2019 I had both my front and back garden fully landscaped and chose to have Sir Walter Buffalo DNA certified lawn. Imagine my disappointment when the Ryobi struggles to push through… Read more
the grass. I am now having to mow my lawn every 7-10 day's or it simply can NOT push through!
I've had to return the mower THREE times. First it was found to have a faulty battery which was replaced, second time the mower wasn't starting because the screws weren't aligned. Now for the THIRD time I must lift the Ryobi lawnmower into my car and return to Bunnings because the battery is stuck in the mower! I suffer health challenges so for me to have to ask a neighbour to lift this Ryobi lawnmower it in and out of my car and for me to have to return the to Bunnings for a third time is absolutely infuriating .. to say the least! This time around they should come to me, why should I be inconvenienced?
I should add, I am not cutting wet grass and it is not long - how much can grass grow in 7 days?!
I have contacted both Ryobi and Bunnings. Ryobi wanted photos and asked ridiculous questions (ie. is the grass wet?), I responded to their questions politely and sent photos but have not heard back from them which I feel is rather rude.
Bunnings on the other hand were far more accomodating, ringing me to leave messages and offering to help in any way they could.
I really don't think there's much I can do other than return the Ryobi lawnmower for a full refund and buy the EGO or the STIHL lawnmower, they both have rave reviews from Choice magazine.
I paid $750 for the Ryobi lawnmower and it's given me nothing but TROUBLE!
Buyer beware, the Ryobi self-propelled lawnmower may cut fine Santa Anna couch grass but it struggles with Sir Walter Buffalo DNA certified lawn.
Since heard from Ryobi, have attached their response ... It's ridiculous!
Bunnings have been marvellous, offering to send a courier to collect the mower and refund my money. Thanks Danielle.
Note: Bunnings no longer stock this Ryobi lawnmower in any store in Australia!
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Update after 18 months of usage... it just gets worse. The battery now only lasts for half of my… Read more