Mowers Reviews

Well, first off, my wife thought this was crazy. Sometime in the shopping process I did too. I mean, is it *that* hard to mow your own freakin' grass?

I grew up in Florida, where lawnmowing is an ugly chore, in 100% humidity, with sticky, hot grass all over your shoes, legs, etc.
Bad lawnmowing memories.
Now that I needed to buy a lawnmower of my own, I had always wanted to pick up one of those Freindly Robotics robomowers... When I saw Toro private-lable these things, give them a bigger battery, and then the prices kept falling, and then they had the refurbs even cheaper... I thought, heck, why not do it?

Report that I'm pretty pleased. I started the thing in the dusk, so I wouldn't be embarrassed by neighbors seeing this thing eat my flowerbeds, or small children if things went terribly wrong. Ended up with my wife and I with big silly grins as IMOW just ate our grass while we watched it (or tried not to watch it and look cool while the neighbors gawked and found excuses to come over and watch it - we're meeting a lot more neighbors now) The kids like IMOW ("Daddy, IMOW likes to mow ALL BY HIMSELF!") and so do I.
The down side is that there aren't quite enough pegs, especially if you have lots of obstacles that need the guide wire navigated around. The refurb didn't ship with a video or charger, I am assuming Toro will make good on parts if you didn't get everything in the 'open box specials' though.
If you have a relatively flat, square lawn free of lawn gnomes and junk, you are a prime hassle-free IMOW candidate.
Hey, go for it. It's a cool little mower.

I asked for this Imow as a Father's Day gift. Wife was skeptical at first but she went along. It took some time to install the wire boundary for the whole yard but the mower worked quite well. Wife is impressed enough to consider getting one for her dad - maybe next year Father's Day.

The whole box weighs around 100 lbs so be really sure that you want and can use it as shipping to you is free but returning freight won't be.

Before you buy, go get a copy of the user manual from the manufacturer .. and verify that your yard terrain is within specs. Then do some paper layouts of the mowing plots. The thing uses a zigzag pattern to cover the area. You want to avoid bottlenecks/strait-like areas to allow it to traverse the plot. I found it more efficient to break a large block into smaller plots as the zigzags overlap with shorter distance between boundaries. My yard totals about 10000 sq ft with 4 plots. The smallest takes about 40 min., the largest 100 mins. With those work durations, it fully recharges overnight.

It is kind of fun to watch as it follows the boundary wire during the edge mode (very precise turning). The mowing is a triangular zigzag. Not entirely random though, I noticed it seems to track obstacles that it bumps into and maneuvers to avoid that area later on (my firmware is rev 3.2...) In any case, the pattern looks inefficient compared to the path a person would do. Just let the thing work and with enough time the grass becomes even. A couple trial runs and you can determine the correct time for each plot.

On dry days with long enough grass, I let it loose on a plot as I return from work. It is very quiet and can hang out thru dusk and night time w/o risk of West Nile, Eastern Equine Encephalitis and other nice effects of mosquito bites. And holy cow, I get to do other things on the weekend!

Finally, automation gets to the yard! I guess my son will have to do part-time web authoring for spending money in the future...

After reviewing several mowers, I feel this make and model is best suited for a variety of users.
The 4-cycle engine feature helped me make up my mind on which mower would be best for my family, we don't need to mix oil in the fuel. Also, the electric start is a good feature--for the weaker persons.

I almost bought a Toro with essentially the same features. With the promotional discount, I saved $100 and this mower is excellent. I have an acre and a half of land to maintain, and the variable-speed self-propelled controls work flawlessly. It's also great having the electric start. No more yanking on a mower cord to get it started. I can't believe I could have purchased a better mower for the money.

My order and shipping was handled without a glitch. All went well.

This cover is just like an expensive custom -fitted cover for a 21 HP Husquavarna riding mower with a 48" cut. It stays on the mower secure and now I can leave it outside nicely covered without taking up space in the garage.

This is my second season using the vac. Overall I am very pleased with the vacuum and have had little trouble.

Pros: Fast shipping. Powerful engine with a lot of suction. The blades are well built and strong. I have picked many pine cones and small sticks (even though it is not recommended) and have not had any problems. Dumping works well if you don't get it completely full. The trailer holds a lot of material. Trailer is very well built and heavy duty. Built much better than the flimsy ones you can get at most retail stores such as Sears or Home Depot. The boot was easy to cut for my mower, however, I did have to make my own brackets to attach the boot to my mower deck (not a big deal).

Cons: Definitely does not work well with wet grass or morning dew (big surprise there). The hose is starting to show some small holes and will need to be replaced at the end of this season (2nd season and always stored inside when not in use). I will probably go to a local hose shop and see if I can get something a little stronger that will wear better. The instructions did not give any indication of how to hold the hose back using the swing bar. I finally used a couple bungee cords and secured it back to the small tie down hook on the trailer, which seems to work well. I used a short bungee to go around the hose (make sure the hooks point away from the hose) and a longer bungee hooked to the small one and the other end hooked to the trailer box tie down hook.

Overall I am very pleased with the quality and perfomance of the Swisher vacuum and would highly recommend it. I gave 4 instead of 5 stars for the few minor problems I have experienced, however, you may not have any of these problems.

I received the unit very promptly as another reviewer mentioned. It was mostly assembled and took me another 2 hrs to finish at a fairly leisurely pace.

The worst part of the assembly was the instructions. For a machine of this type, 2 1 page instructions sheets without a lot of illustrations isn't enough. This actually led to a failure of the vacuum hose in the first ten minutes.

The instructions were quite unclear as to how to secure the vacuum hose to the swiveling "boom" that holds it from dragging on the ground. You get a couple of "S" hooks, two tie downs and no guidance whatsoever... I fastened it as best as I could imagine it should be fastened and embarked on my first use. On the second trip back up the yard I noticed that the hose was severed and I had no vacuum. I think that the tie down was too tight and the corner of the "S" hook dug into the hose causing it to split. The hose is very sturdy but the neoprene ribbing will tear quite easily once a hole is started.

After making some hasty repairs to the hose (lots of duct tape for the hose and plastic pipe hanging strap with lots of slack to hold the hose to the boom--a mod I will keep even with a new hose) I was able to continue using the product for my yard, my neighbor's yard, and my friend's yard. I haven't contacted swisher yet regarding a replacement hose so I can't comment on the customer service.

The device works very well once you get used to monitoring it's operation. There is a very specific "vacuum" sound that is present when all systems are a go. This sound, and the effectiveness of the device diminishes when a blockage has ocurred. For my two acre yard with 2 dozen trees I got about a dozen blockages the first time I used it. The first 3 or 4 were due to trying to go to fast and the others were due to an enormous amount of leaves.

The blockages typically happened at the "boot" attachment to the mower deck. The debris has to make a 90 degree turn and on my John Deere at least it would get blocked at the back of the boot just before the hose.

There are hose clamps at either end of the vacuum hose, and I quickly removed the one that attaches to the mower deck boot. It fits great with just friction and this allows you to quickly check for blockages.

The basic procedure is:

1) Turn blades off
2) Set brake
3) Pull hose from boot
4) Stick arm in hose to check for blockages in hose
5) Stick hand in boot to check for blockages
6) Remove blockages
7) Continue

I don't want to make the product sound worse than it is. I am very satisfied with its efficiency and capabilities. If you're trying to vacuum a lot of leaves and they are the slightest bit wet they will block the boot. If your realistic in your expectations you will be very satisfied.

The other thing I didn't see specifically mentioned in the documentation was the fact that for the product to work you need to turn the blades on the mower. Perhaps this is common sense but I actually thought it would work without the blades turning.

The Briggs & Stratton Intek 5.5HP engine is a monster. The big beefy 3/16" thick impeller blades chewed up just about anything I threw at them. Easy to start and ran without a hitch.

The wagon portion of the product is quite beefy as well. The finish seems very durable and in 5 uses of clearing out the back with a pitchfork it still hasn't scratched.

One of the most impressive things about the product is the degree to which the wagon / canopy combination gets STUFFED full of debris. The product literally "packs it in" making for maximum utilization of the 37 cubic feet of space.

One final feature. If you keep the hose clamp off the boot end of the vacuum hose, you can easily remove it from the boot and use the hose in a hand-held mode. This works GREAT for clearing leaves from shrubbery and around steps and porches and such.

So all in all I would buy another one in a heartbeat. It's a great product that will save you TONS of work. If the instructions were a lot better I would have given it five stars.

Very fast shipping and an excelent product. Almost completely assempled and it works extreamly well. lots and lots of room with 37 cubic feet so your not dumping all the time, and it dumps easly. I was shocked at the value and would buy again if I lost this machine.

I purchased this lawnmower at Home Deport because of the electric starter. Physical problems make this a necessity for me. After a few starts, the fuse blew. Home Depot does not stock the fuses. The auto parts stores do not stock because it is a lawn mower fuse. Toro website says purchase parts only from authorized dealers. The authorized dealers do not stock these fuses, but they will order them - shipping for a $1.00 fuse is $8.00. The mower itself is wonderful, but I have literally thrown away the extra money for the electric starter, and I will never purchase a Toro product again.

I purchased this mower after my 30+ year old Lawnboy finally decided to die. I was reluctant to get a new mower because I liked my Lawnboy. No electric start, no mulcher, no self-propelled.....just a mower. I was able to bag my grass and that was important to me when selecting a new mower. I was used to a side discharge but this Toro is rear, which I have learned to like. The feature that I find to be the best is the Personal Pace RWD. This is so nice. I tried my neighbors self-propelled mower once and found myself either running after it or pushing it along. The Personal Pace propelled system is just that. It goes at your pace. If you stop, it stops. If you walk fast or slow, whatever, it adjusts. The electric starter has worked flawlessly for me. A very nice feature. I also like the handy foot-released lever used to get the handle out of the way to remove the bag. Overall this mower is easy to handle; not very bulky or heavy. That was also important to me.

If I were to find anything negative about this mower, I would have 2 small things: 1.) the battery compartment lid easily pops off, especially when the foot-released lever is used. This can be a little anoying, but not that big of a deal. 2.) emptying the bag can be a little messy. Some of the grass spills when disconecting from the mower. This too would not stop me from buying it. I have not used it to mulch so I cannot comment on that feature.

Anyway, long story short, I love this mower and would buy it again in a heartbeat. I recommend it to all my friends.

My main reason for purchasing Scotts Push Reel mower was environmental. Gas mowers are among the dirtiest of modern machines. A study funded by the Swedish E.P.A. found that using a four-horsepower mower for an hour causes the same amount of pollution as driving a car 93 miles. Gas mowers not only emit a disproportionate amount of CO2, they are also responsible for releasing carcinogens such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons into the air.

I've been satisied with the results I've had using my new mower. The only issue I had with it is that the screws provided, which I feel are too short, fell out after the first use. I went to Home Depot and bought longer screws, used them with the nuts provided and that has worked well for me.

I'm saving money by mowing the lawn myself rather than paying the gardener to do it plus I get a sense of satisfaction knowing this is better for the environment.

First I have to warn that I use it on a small patch in my back yard that does not have great grass. I think it would work better if the grass was fuller. But it does a good job with a couple of extra passes, and is perfect for small areas.

I hate mowing the grass with a passion. It is difficult work and I am lazy. Ever since I got this little mower, I just can't stop. Mowing is a breeze with this little mower on St. Augustine grass. Of course, the thicker the turf and tougher the push. (same goes for regular lawn mowers, so what is the difference) It can miss a couple of spots, where then you just need to go over them again, but that is no big deal. This mower will not create lines on your lawn like a gas mower does. So it really does not matter if you are going in rows, sideways or circles. Its like a bunch of scissors cutting your grass.

I don't suggest this mower for BAHIA grass. My mom has a couple of patches of Bahia in her back yard and it can be quite a fight. Bahia is that thin and nasty grass that grows those extra long seed heads the shape of a V. Regular lawns mower do not make it any easier though.

The advantages of little mower is that it is lightweight. It also does not create dust storms, nor will crack your windows with flying rocks. You also do not have to curse the world when you realize that you have an empty gas container and have to make a special trip to the gas station for a three dollar gallon of gas.

As a widowed mom, I needed something simple to operate and I really didn't want to fool with the gas and oil thing of a gas motor. I also HATE starting gas mowers. So this seemed like the thing. My yard is not huge and is relatively flat and this mower works perfectly. I do find that if the grass gets slightly high (which unfortunately happens with my busy life) I find it best to mow it with the setting on high, then go over it again with a lower setting. It will choke out if the grass is too high and the mower is too low. I have very little problem with the cord. Like the instruction pamphlet said, start with your cord in a little pile and mow away from it, zig zagging away. No cord issue at all with that method. And yes, it came right out of the box completely put together, I just had to adjust the handle height and off I went. I didn't purchase from amazon but from Home Depot, the price was comparable when you added in shipping, but after doing my research I was ready to purchase this and go. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who wants to avoid a gas mower and has a reasonably mid sized or small yard. Also, starting it is great - just pull a lever which you hold with the handle. When you want to stop, just let go of the lever. Very handy for those times I see my four year old standing on the porch yelling for my attention!

I am writing this because I have found the product reviews on Amazon.com very helpful.

I have used this mower about 4 or 5 times so far. There was virtually no assembly. I have a fairly large property but the 100' cord does the whole lawn and yard. It does a good job in cutting the grass and is not too heavy on hills. Of course, you have to manipulate the cord to keep it out of your way but it hasn't been a big problem. The great thing is that I plug it in and it STARTS every time. I had so many problems starting my gas-powered mowers (too much gas primer or not enough???) and pulling on that cord was difficult for me.

One of the handle grips started to split after the first mowing but I called Black & Decker and they sent me a new set. I haven't tried to replace it yet as it doesn't look "easy" but will try soon. Over all I am pleased so far.

Ive had this mower for the last 2 months now, and it is extremely easy to use, and store away (the handle folds down). The Extension cord is a pain sometimes cause it keeps getting in the way, but once you get used to it, its not that annoying. The mower is pretty quiet (as compared to an equivalent gas-powered mower).

Make sure to get a GOOD extension cord and not some cheap crap. I got a Rigid no-bend cord with extra protection for outdoor use. It does not entangle which helps a lot.

With sufficient power and width, this is a great mower for a small and well-kept lawn. Plenty of power to mow grass and no local emisssions, just electricity (which of course is generated somewhere else). The housing is plastic and does not appear it would stand up to rocks and sticks. The flip handle is very useful in maintaining the electric cord (over which you do not want to cut). One must think carefully about cutting patterns to keep the extension cord from under the mower. Height adjustment is simple, with all four wheels adjusted from a single lever. This does prevent tilted cutting, which is occasionally used. All in all I'm pleased with performance, price, and results.

I owned the smaller version of this mower and decided I needed the upgrade since we don't mow regularly and our weeds can get thick and high at the beginning of the seson. This did the trick cutting through the 3 foot high weeds and grass without a problem. Old mower still running well after 6 years. I'm happy.

This mower replaces a 1959 Lawn Boy at my summer home. I decided to buy this mower so I didn't have the problems of starting a gas mower (especially in the spring) or storing batteries in sub-zero temperatures over the winter.

It has performed perfectly. It has a nice even cut, the handle flip keeps the cord under control, and the mulching feature leaves no grass clippings.

But it does take some getting used to. It's "on-off-on" every time you flip the handle, going around trees or other obstacles takes some planning, and it's not for very large lawns. I've learned to give myself room for the handle flip...you can't just go the end of the row leaving no place to stand.

The only surprise I've encountered is the electrical requirements. The length and size of the power cord affects the performance and life of the motor. I bought a 75' power cord with #14 wire after reading the manual.

This is a great mower. If used properly, it will make your lawn look like a golf course fairway. This mower is so much better for the environment than conventional mowers and you get a good workout while using it as well.

I just started using it, but it works great. I was weary about the reviews of twigs stopping the mower, but I purchased anyway and thought I could rake the lawn since I have lots of overhanging trees and branches/twigs. I didn't rake, I just picked up anything big. The mover does get stopped by larger twigs, but only if moving slow. I just backed it up and gave it a shove and no more twig. I mowed the whole lawn and couldn't mind a branch I couldn't mow through. Plus - no gas, no noise, no fumes, great exercise. I'm extremely pleased.

Easy to assemble. Easier to use. The easiest pushing, sharpest lawn mower I have used in the past 15 years. My experience, however, is limited to 4 sessions with the mower. It appears to be solid and well built.

The MM575 definitely a good mower, especially for small yards. As others have mentioned its advantages are - no gas, clean, quieter, easy maneuverability, good range of settings to cut the grass, quick assembly. I bought the side bag assembly (BA-075) and a 50 foot 14-guage extension cord as well. In my experience the side bag assembly is a must to cut taller grass. The mulching function (when used without the bag) is very good when the grass is much shorter. The bag is a bit small though and even with my small yard (only about 400 sq ft) I have to empty it twice.

The one big problem I have experienced with this mower is that motor tends to die after a year or two. I have had this mower for three years now and for the second time the motor has died. The first time it was covered under the two year warranty (barely), but now within another year of repair, the motor has died again and the repair cost would be 80$. I was told by the repair center that a wrong guage cord can burn out the motor; I don't believe this is the problem (14 guage 50 feet cord) in my case and think that there is a problem with the reliability of the motor with this product.

Despite this experience, I might go in for another Black and Decker mulching mower (I may just buy the MM875 instead).

First off, let me echo and add to the many positive qualities of The MM575 listed by previous reviewers:

-Assembly is literally a snap - attach the handle and you're ready to roll!
-Astonishingly lightweight. This enables you to nimbly pivot at the end of each row, and I've even found myself able to push the mower back and forth, one-handed, "vacuum style," in hard to reach areas between small trees in my yard. Look, I'm lazy and have a bad back, and yet I look forward to mowing my 1/4 acre yard each week. That's how easy this thing is to move.
-Cuts/mulches very well. I've used it a half-dozen times - the first time on embarrassingly-overgrown grass, the second on wet grass right after a rainstorm, and haven't had any problems acheiving a lovely, even cut throughout my yard.
-The cord dance is only hard for the severely logic-impaired. Let's try it one more time: Start mowing next to the cord pile, and gradually move away from the pile, back and forth, one row at a time. No tangles, no hassle.
-No gas, no fumes, lets me be an eco-conscious consumer and still have a dang purdy lawn.
-Did I mention how light it was?
-Adjustable cutting height is very easy to activate/use.
-Fairly quiet. About the same volume as a powerful vacuum cleaner.
-Starts and stops with satisfying immediacy. Just grip the handle trigger, and the motor instantly comes to life! Let go, and the mower instantly shuts off. Very safe, very well-engineered.

So, all that's left is a little constructive criticism, aimed more at inspiring any lurkers from Black & Decker's QA dept. than scaring anyone off purchasing this fabulous piece of lawn equipment.

-I've only had the mower since the spring, so although it's worked like a charm up till now, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the mower won't up and die like other Amazon reviewers' units (or like my damn Black and Decker toaster did last year!)
-Let's talk about the cord. Even though every heavy-duty extension cord on the planet is a grounded, three-prong unit, the mower's plug receptacle is two-prong. Hello?? I've been able to shove my three-prong extension cord into place on the mower, but you can forget about threading it through the tiny opening meant to keep it from pulling out during mowing. After several frustrating attempts, I realized that I could just loop the cord once around the handle, and all the cord tension would be removed from the plug itself, so I haven't had any problems with it falling out since then. But still, B&D deserves a slap upside the head for not having a more accomodating plug receptacle.
-The start/stop trigger is very easy to use, but that plastic is damn sharp along the sides! I've cut myself (not badly) a few times, while stopping and starting the mower (mainly during my rookie mow, when I was stopping every ten seconds to plug the damn cord back in [see above]). Just be careful, and you should be fine. Gloves might be advisable.

All in all, I'd give it 41/2 stars if I could. I don't think you could buy a better mower at this very reasonable price, electric or not.

...you can use this mower! It's light-weight, quiet, and reliable. It may take a few trials to get used to watching the cord, but if you just pretend that you're vacuuming it's actually pretty second-nature.