farmblog towards actually sustainable farming in Ahualoa

I bought a new lawnmower on 2022-05-13 – here’s a comparison to my previous mower.

	Toro model 20340 (“Toro Recycler® SmartStow (22”) 163cc Personal Pace® “)	Makita XML08 (“36V (18V X2) LXT® Brushless 21″ Self-Propelled Commercial”)
Typical cost:	$450	$700 (includes 4 5Ah batteries)

Caveats: I can really only compare these two mowers, so this is not a general review of electric mowers. This is just one data point with my own experience. Also, our farm is in the wet subtropics so grass is typically wetter and taller than typical lawns, and the whole farm is sloped (no flat ground). I always use the bagger to catch all grass, which feeds our compost system (and hence the gardens).

As gas mowers go, this Toro is reasonably quiet, reliable and affordable. It’s survived years of heavy use without any engine issues, and only minor repairs (like the starter cord). On our farm, it does struggle to fill the bagger. Unless I am (rarely) cutting a very small height of dry grass, it jams and requires me to stop the mower, lift the bag and manually clear the grass into the bag. The bag is not very large. This means I am re-starting the mower very frequently (no doubt contributing to the starter cord wearing out).

Buying the Makita was influenced by the dozen other great Makita products we own that use the same LXT batteries. After a week of use, here are some key differences I experienced:

1. Power. The Makita is actually a bit more powerful, and the batteries last well enough for my long mowing sessions.
2. Bag. The Makita’s grass bag is a little larger, and (possibly because it is angled closer to the ground) the grass goes into it more reliably, which saves significant work.
3. Noise and fumes: Electric is wonderful.
4. Handling: The Makita is a little larger, a little heavier, and has more traction and rolling resistance. That means it’s significantly more effort to maneuver it, and it’s harder to push through grass, level or uphill. It does roll fairly easily backwards, or downhill. Thankfully, it is self-propelled, but:
5. Self-propulsion. The Makita’s powerful drive has a speed knob, but the handle to engage it is either on or off, and pressing the bar requires waiting a second for the drive to engage. That also means when you ease off the handle, it abruptly halts. The Toro has what it calls “personal pace”, which is a variable speed that responds instantly to how hard you push the handle. This makes the Toro much easier to maneuver. Part of my struggle is surely due to the years I’ve spent with the Toro, my reflexes and habits have grown on it, so some of this will improve as I spent more time with the Makita. However, the lack of responsively variable drive on the Makita is undeniably more awkward. If another brand of electric mower has it, that would be a big deal.
6. Height adjustment. The Makita has a single easy level to raise and lower the entire mower, the Toro has one stiff difficult level per wheel.

To summarize: I give the Makita +1 for power, +1 for better bag, +2 for being electric, -2 for being harder to maneuver, and +1 for easy height adjustment. Overall, the pros outweigh the cons.