Ryobi mower brakes

paul2

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Hi, I'm planning to get a RY48110 mower after I sold my Craftsman seated gas mower.
I have steep driveway (18 degrees) and the Craftsman brakes are these standard 2 inch disk brakes that could maybe stop a skateboard but not a 500 pound mower. After adjusting and still crashing twice I gave up and sold it - before it would kill me.
So, does anyone had a look at the brakes of the electric RYOBI seated lawn mower?
What is the disk size?
Does the mower allow engine braking?

As a reference, the specification of the RY48110 says 15 degrees for maximum hill incline. I have no doubt that this probably means going up, which is determined by the motor. There is no specification for maximum hill inclination going down- which is determined by the brakes.

Thanks for your help!
Paul
 

bertsmobile1

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That 2" brake will stop 2 tonnes
It is identical to the ones we had on the small gantry cranes
In your mower it locks the layshaft so the wheels can only turn in opposite directions thus the worst that can happen is the mower swig in an arc the size of the rear axel .
 

Rivets

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I can’t find any info on the type of braking system on an RY48110 unit. Personal experience on Ryobi units and reading different material, while I tried to find an answer for you, I would have second thoughts about purchasing this unit. 1. Sold by BIG BOX stores only, who are you going to have the unit serviced by? Majority of shops won’t touch them. 2. If you do find some one to service the unit, getting parts is difficult. 3. This is a light weight unit, exceeding the 15 degree operating angle in either direction is dangerous. 4. Online reviews are not that good, especially battery life and cost. In my opinion 48VDC is on the low end of power available for this type of unit. Batteries cost a minimum of $150.00 each and almost everyone will say replace all at the same time. I’ve attached a copy of the owners manual and one thing jumps out at me, 5 pages of safety instructions. Please read this before purchasing. Finally I suggest you contact Ryobi with your question about the brakes, if you are uncomfortable with the answer, definitely stay away. Just my opinion, which many on this forum say isn’t worth the time it took to read this.
 

paul2

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Bertsmobile1: thanks for your reply. A few notes:
  • the Craftsman gas mower 2" brakes were simply life-threatening. There was no stopping going down hill, even after maintenance (greased all the links and bearings and a installing new brake path). The maximum hill specification for the Craftsman was also 15 degrees. Even on such a hill the brakes would not bring the mower to a stop. And mind you, this is with maximum engine braking. I looked in stores; all gas powered mowers seem to have the same brake.
  • I am under the impression that the Ryobi (and most other lawn mowers) have RWD without a differential. This means that the wheels always turn in the same direction - or both stop. That's why the Craftsman needed only a single brake on one driven shaft.
Rivets: thanks for looking for an answer to my questions.
  • I tried manuals, spare parts, videos; nothing seems to reveal the actual brake. In the past, I too had a less than positive experience with Ryobi for power tools. Dumb design, poorly executed. Over the years, that general quality has improved, it seems. I just bought a Ryobi hedge clipper and it is simply the best. Smart design, well executed. I really think that in general the service of bigger power tools is a problem. The strategy seems: replace with new parts until problem is fixed - oh and let's try to first replace parts that are not broken. I'll stay on the subject and not slip into a paper back novel about my Polaris, Stanley, Craftsman, Makita... I can replace parts in an electric mower, maintenance is at a minimum so hard to screw up, right?
  • I do agree that mowing on a hill should never be done going up or down. However, driving down a tarmacked driveway really should not be problem. Most of the driveway is 15 degrees, there is just one small patch that is 18 degrees.
  • I am very interested in the manual, but there is no attachment to your message? I could only find a virus-infected manual on-line.
  • I tried the Ryobi help-chat but they had no answer. The help-email system doesn't work and the tech support phone number has a waiting time beyond the time to binge watch a season of Downton Abbey.
Paul
 

bertsmobile1

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Paul
There was something drastically wrong with your brakes
They hold the mowers I repair on my tilting trailer when it is at about 40 deg
In fact the normal hydro in good condition will hold the mower stationary at the same angle unless pushed which is how I asses the condition of the hydros when bringing in a mower for service .
I spend more time trying to increase the time between brake releasing & clutch engaging to reduce the take off jolt.
If your mower would not stop then it is not because of a bad brake design it is because of either a bad adjustment or faulty diff .
As previously mentioned, it locks the diff and this is exactly the same as the Park position on an automatic transmission
The brake is not there to stop you it is there to hold the mower stationary
The actual stopping mechanism is usually the hydro drive itself or engine breaking via a variable drive system
The slope recommendation is all about tip over hazard when going sideways on a slope or having the oil level lower than the oil pump pick up
It is not about the ability of the mowers brakes to stop you
In fact right now I have 2 mowers in the yard to have the brakes pulled apart because the mowers were flooded & the rotor is rusted onto the pads .
And FWIW I mow a street verge with a compound slope that is 38 deg up hill ( steepest hill in the state ) and 43 deg sideways so I have to hang off the mowers sideways like a GP motorcycle rider to prevent them flipping .
The same brake ( just about every mower uses the same peerless disc brake ) stops me fine .
Shame you did not contact us earlier so we could have guided you to get your brakes working properly .
 

paul2

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Hi Bert,
Re: going up 38 degree slope. Going up is not the issue. It is going down a 300 ft long driveway - roughly 15 degree slope and 60 ft drop. I used engine braking -- engine in lowest gear_ to no avail. The machine picks up speed and I have no choice but to engage the brakes. The brakes overheated and failed. This all occurred in the space of a 10 second trip down my sloped driveway. I need a seated lawn mower that can handle this decent. I am not concerned about slope tipping. I am concerned about downward slope navigation. Re: Ryobi -- I am interested in seeing picture of the brake. I have been unable to find it after a thorough search on their site/manuals. Thx
 

paul2

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Rivets,
Thanks for the manual!
It implies that there are two brakes, which is exactly twice as much as the Craftsman! That might be a good sign. Still no real picture of the actual brake(s).
 

paul2

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I finally used my high school physics training....

A 550 pound Mower + 200 pound driver going down a driveway with a decline of 60 feet dissipates a total energy of 61 kJ (=58 BTU). Let's assume that the disk brake and surrounding metal weighs 1 pound. That metal would heat up from ambient 60 F to 600 F. The brake pad surface temperature would probably be much higher. Beyond 500 F brakes could fade and fail. My driveway is simply too long for a mower with simple brakes.

Combustion Engine braking does not have this problem because the engine cools itself quickly enough and it has a lot more metal to absorb heat. However, engine braking requires a certain speed and that is exactly what I don't need going down a hill.
Reading the manual, I could not get a good understanding of engine breaking with the Ryobi electric mower. It probably has none !?

I guess it's back to the old push mower ?
I appreciate the interaction and help.
 

paul2

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I just found a review that stated:
Going Downhill – engine braking. The Ryobi RM480 will pick up speed going down any slope. (freewheel) It can be quite a surprise the first time you go into a ditch with it! It does not have natural engine/transmission braking like your gas-powered riding mower and the regenerative braking is not enough to hold the mower going downhill. What than means is when you go downhill you will have to keep your left foot on the brake. It does have a good rear drum braking system so you can feather the brake as needed.

This means it is could work - or not.
 
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