Ryobi finally has a Steel Deck 40V push mower ...

[dougmacm]

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-2...-0Ah-Battery-and-Charger-RY40LM10-Y/308634192

Kinda looks like it could be a Greenworks deck (therefore Greenworks built mower), but hard to tell under all their plastic and fancifying of it.

Never liked LB/Toro Personal Pace, so I'd probably not like their similar Smart-Trek either. Interesting though as they got to be the first one to offer this feature on a battery operated push mower.

As it seems that Greenworks makes most of the steel decked cordless push mowers … including their own, Kobalt, Snapper, and thought at least one more that I can't think of right now … I would be surprised if Ryobi / Techtronic Industries was actually building this themselves.

Until I saw the GW Steel Deck mowers last Spring, the thought of purchasing a (plastic deck) cordless mower never even crossed my mind … so I think this is a good move for Ryobi considering they claim to be the largest seller of battery operated mowers.

Doug

 

[MowerMike]

I don’t see this new 40 volt Ryobi line competing with the 60 volt and 80 volt offerings from Greenworks and Kobalt, which are priced the same. I am also not impressed by all the high rated reviews from Home Depot Seeds members, who got the mowers for free.

 

[dougmacm]

I agree that Ryobi / HD is nuts pricing this in the GW / Kobalt / Snapper 60V & 80V range, I was just posting this as an FYI.

I'm already invested pretty deep in Greenwork's 40V line, so not for me … but if I were to do any kind of upgrade, I'd buy into the Kobalt 80V line now that they are including a 6Ah battery (currently $549 at Lowes or just $22 more than the Ryobi for same Ah at double the volts).

Just found GW's revised 40V SP mower on Amazon and it now comes with a 6Ah battery (just like the Ryobi) for $499.99:
https://www.amazon.com/Greenworks-B...greenworks+40v+mo,aps,173&sr=8-43-spons&psc=1
… which certainly confirms that they've priced theirs way too high. The Smart-Trak feature obviously adds cost & value, but not $128~200 worth.

Doug

 

[MowerMike]

That 40 volt Greenworks mower that you linked is part of a new “Elite” lineup that is different from the “G-MAX” series. Although the Elite batteries will fit and work in G-MAX tools, they will not recharge in G-MAX chargers. Instead, you need to use an Elite charger, which adds to charger clutter. I found this out when I purchased 3 ah and 6 ah Elite batteries, and they would not recharge in any of my many G-MAX chargers. I ordered an Elite charger, and will find out when I receive it if it is compatible with my G-MAX batteries.

 

[1 Lucky Texan]

 

[dougmacm]

Let's hope it is just a capacity issue in that the G-MAX charger could only handle up to 4Ah batteries so they had to come up with a new charger for the new Elite Series that can be above 4Ah.

Why they could not make the G-Max batteries interchangeable with the first gen tools & vise-versa would have me mad if I had any 1st gen stuff.

We are getting a bit off subject here !!

Doug

 

[MowerMike]

Let's hope it is just a capacity issue in that the G-MAX charger could only handle up to 4Ah batteries so they had to come up with a new charger for the new Elite Series that can be above 4Ah.

It’s not a capacity issue. The new Elite 3 Ah battery won’t recharge in a G-MAX charger either. The G-MAX charger simply does not recognize the presence of an Elite battery when inserted in the charger. The attached photo of the label on the 3 Ah Elite battery clearly indicates that only the Elite chargers may be used.

 

[dougmacm]

I realize now that the elite series has both 3Ah & 6Ah batteries. My point was possibly the G-Max charger was already maxed out with the existing batteries (5Ah BAF705 largest available), and to be able to go to 6Ah they needed to design a new charger and decided to come up with a whole new ELITE Series at the same time. Some items in the ELITE Series don't really need a 6Ah battery, so they are also offering a 3Ah size. I'm guessing there is some new tech built into this battery series that is not compatible with the old charger.

According to the Greenworks Elite web site, this product line was introduced in May 2018 ... funny that the Amazon listing for this mower is the first I've heard of this. Their 82V Commercial line that was launched in April 2016 is just as obscure. It also seems strange they would develop this new series around a 40V platform rather than (60V or) 80V like Lowes has them doing with the Kobalt 80V Max line. Possibly they have a non-compete clause in their contract with Lowes and this is why the GW 80V line appears stagnant right now.

I can see why you wanted to get the 6Ah battery to try out, but assuming you already have some G-Max 4Ah batteries why the 3Ah too ??
It is crazy that Amazon has the L-600 6Ah Elite USB ported battery priced lower than both the G-Max BAF704 & BAF705 (4 & 5 Ah USB ported batteries) and I see both the L-300 & L-600 listed on e-bay at rock-bottom pricing that sure is tempting. C-220 Elite Charger is only $39.99 on amazon which is only $10 more than G-Max charger, so if you got the batteries from this ebay seller I can see why you jumped on both of them.

As I said in the Kobalt 80V Max thread I started, I'm more likely jump into this than invest anymore into the GW 40V. However if I ever do get into this Elite Series it will be with a tool, battery & charger set.

Doug

 

[MowerMike]

Yeah, I did buy the batteries from the eBay seller, and at that time the 6 Ah battery was only $115 and the 3 Ah battery was only $47, which is why I bought both of them. Interestingly, the eBay seller wants $100 for the C-220 charger, whereas Amazon wants only $40, go figure. As to why I would buy a 3 Ah battery when I have a bunch of G-MAX 4 Ah batteries, the reason is weight. The 3 Ah Elite battery weighs a pound less than the 4 Ah G-MAX battery, and that is noticeable when using a one hand held tool such as a leaf blower.

 

[dougmacm]

Yeah, I did buy the batteries from the eBay seller, and at that time the 6 Ah battery was only $115 and the 3 Ah battery was only $47, which is why I bought both of them. Interestingly, the eBay seller wants $100 for the C-220 charger, whereas Amazon wants only $40, go figure. As to why I would buy a 3 Ah battery when I have a bunch of G-MAX 4 Ah batteries, the reason is weight. The 3 Ah Elite battery weighs a pound less than the 4 Ah G-MAX battery, and that is noticeable when using a one hand held tool such as a leaf blower.

That and at $47 for 3Ah I would have been tempted too especially if I were not aware at the time that I needed the charger.

All in at just over $200 for 9Ah worth of batteries and a charger you did well though !!

The brand new 2.5Ah G-Max battery I got off of ebay last Summer was $67 / shipped which I thought was a decent deal.

So how heavy is the 6Ah Elite battery compared to the 4Ah G-Max ??

Doug