You’ve got mulching, bagging, and side discharge and a top cutting height of 4 inches. And when we say smooth, we mean they’re as easy to shift as any we’ve seen in decades of testing, with hundreds of mowers behind us.Īlso, DeWalt didn’t overthink this design. For example, its deck height adjustment is via two smoothly operating levers. We also liked several other features on the DeWalt. It has great maneuverability, and it left a flawlessly cut surface, about on par with other great cutters (Toro, Ego, and Ryobi’s Crosscut). Until the DCMWSP244U2, we had never tested a front-drive battery mower. Toro has, wisely, not altered some of the previous features that make this mower work: rear wheel drive, a one-piece deck that’s all steel (no plastic nose), rear-wheel drive, 11-inch wheels to help it roll over roots and crevices, and the same fold-forward handle that was an industry breakthrough when it was introduced some years ago. Finally, the three-phase, 60-volt motor is exceptionally efficient, resulting in a large cut area for a single battery. Next, the company’s redesigned “Atomic” blade configuration appears to assist the air flow and clipping movement. We can’t verify that, but we can say our results indicate the design is successful. The company says it helps the grass stand straighter under the mower and the clippings to be suspended longer for more thorough mulching, but it also helps airflow into the bag. Toro calls it Vortex technology, a design to increase air flow in the same way as a hood scoop on a car. First, the air vent at the front of the mower deck seems to improve mulching and bagging performance. We attribute this outstanding mower performance to three features, all upgrades to the previous version of this machine. And those were amply demonstrated in our testing as the 21466 Recycler turned in the best ratio of cut area per amp-hour of battery in the self-propelled category, while at the same time not skimping on cutting, mulching, or bagging quality. Toro mowers have garnered more recommendations from us than any other brand for two reasons: build quality and cut quality. Below are the mowers we recommend, followed by buying advice to help you select the right one for your needs.įor more lawn mower reviews, check out our guides to the best riding lawn mowers, our favorite zero-turn mowers, and the self-propelled mowers we recommend. We’re confident our research will lead you to the right mower, regardless whether your lawn is like a putting green or more like our retention basin. These tests are long, hot, tiring, and repetitive. We cut a section and lie on the grass and sight along the top of the surface of the grass to get a better sense of the finished product. We also check for a neatly mowed surface. Anybody should be able to get behind any mower and mow safely without a lot of instruction. We raise and lower decks, check the controls for their comfort and whether they are intuitive. Every feature and accessory on every machine gets a thorough workout. We cut lawns that are immaculate and we mow the rim of a retention basin. We mow flats, washboard surfaces, uphill, downhill, and sidehill. Our specimen grasses vary from soft and thick bluegrass and fine fescues, to perennial ryes that are bit more wiry. We anticipate these varying needs by testing accordingly. People have diverse mowing needs, from tidy little patches of grass to rough-and-tumble rural properties. Use this low-power setting at the height of summer when the grass is dry and brittle it may need only a light trim.īattery mowers are also quieter than their gas-engine counterparts, and since they don’t burn fuel, they don’t have hot surfaces like an engine or muffler that can burn you. Other battery mowers are equipped with a manual switch that conserves battery charge by running the motor at lower rpm (often called an Eco mode setting, or something similar). The reverse occurs when the load on the mower eases, such as when it enters low or thin grass. When the mower encounters tall grass, the motor speed increases automatically, also ramping up the blade speed. This is especially important given that a mower operates in harsh conditions and high temperatures.Īnother factor that has enabled the success of these motors is their electronically controlled output. Next, brushless motors have fewer parts and increased reliability, compared to motors equipped with brushes that slowly wear away. And that equals better durability and run time. First is the lithium-ion battery, which has grown in size and sophistication, with the ability to better manage the heat and electrical strain that it experiences. Several features have enabled the improved capability of battery mowers.
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