Customer Reviews

Factory Reconditioned Ryobi ZR08510 25.4cc Gas-Powered Variable-Speed Hand-Held Blower/Vacuum/Mulcher

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(39)

 

 

After reading all the reviews I decided to take a chance with a reconditioned Ryobi blower. Why? Ryobi gas engines are some of the best in the business, bar none. I had one that was 20 years old. It only stopped working because one of the plastic gas lines deteriorated due to age. Other than that, the engine still ran strong.

The reconditioned unit arrived with all new attachments. The engine looked in new condition. No sign or smell of gas in the gas tank. The only downside was the casing was dirty and scratched on the bottom. This is a nit after a season of blowing grass clippings and leaves.

The engine kicked in with about 3 pulls the first time. One pull is all it took after the first start out of the box.

Hard to beat the price and value of this blower with an outstanding and relible reputation of the Ryobi gas engine.

The blower looked basically new with a few scratches on the bottom (nothing noticable). Filled it with fuel, followed the instructions and it started right up. Ran about a minute and died, Restarted ran another minute and died again. Since I knew it was a fuel problem, I checked the fuel filter, It looked new but I blew it out with an air hose anyway. Started it up again and ran it about 30 minutes with no problems. Have used it about 3 times since with no problems. The blower seems to be well constructed with the exception of the blower tubes which I consider to be thin and flimsy. It starts easily now and runs like a champ.

I was a little hesitant about ordering this blower after reading some of the negative review remarks, but for the price it was hard to pass up, and if it was junk I could always send it back. When I took it out of the box I inspected it for flaws, but found none, in fact, it looked brand new to me. I assembled it and filled it with fuel mix and it started on the second pull. It runs like a champ and is fairly quiet. I would recommend this blower to all. I do use premium synthetic RC 2 cycle oil for the mix.

I don't get upset too easily, but this product inspired me to write a review, hoping it will save other buyers from wasting their $$. I recently used it for the first time. I started with the vacuum mode. Well, that didn't last long. The vacuum tube falls out every 30 seconds, because it twist locks in place and the cheap plastic doesn't hold it secure. There's supposed to be a safety that kills the engine if the blower/fan access door is open. Well numerous times when the vac tube fell out on me, the door stayed slightly ajar and the motor kept running. Talk about an extreme safety issue. The engine also spat and sputtered and would hardly stay running while using the vacuum mode. As soon as I would increase the throttle it would not want to stay running. Yes, I read the owner's manual and know how to operate a gas engine. I was using new gas mixed in the proper ratio. After absolutely no success with the vac mode, I switched to blower mode. The blower tubes fall out all the time as well! This flimsy twist-lock design is worthless! Finally, I had to resort to some duct tape to hold it in. Like others, the zipper tab on the vac bag disintegrated half way the first time I opened the bag and completely on the second use. The handle for vac mode is right next to the exhaust so you practically burn yourself. On the positive side, the engine stayed running in blower mode and I could actually increase to max throttle without it killing. It does run quieter that my last leaf blower and the engine starts up good. You have to ask yourself why there is a vast supply of refurbed units being sold. After using the product firsthand, I can see why. No amazon return policy for items that use flammable liquids and Ryobi return policy says item must be unused. Well, what good is that? You don't get to truly experience how useless this leaf blower is until you put some gas in it and fire it up! I feel truly let down by Amazon. Why do I have to choose one star for this product, it deserves ZERO!

I bought this blower over a year ago, and for the first six months it worked fine. However, it began to start very hard in the later period. I recently let a small engine mechanic take a look at the blower, and he found the engine block to be cracked. It should have lasted longer than this, and it leads me to believe that this was either a defective product, or used negligently by the first owner as it was a "factory reconditioned" item. I won't buy a "factory reconditioned" item again, because it seems that Ryobi isn't checking the item throughly enough before reselling. Buyer beware is all that I can advise anyone looking at one of these "factory reconditioned" blowers.

WHEN IT RUNS IT WORKS FINE, BUT I'M TO TIRED TO USE IT FROM TRYING TO START IT! I CALLED RYOBI I WAS REFERRED TO A SMALL ENG SHOP INCLUDING PH# WHEN I CALLED THEM THEY SAID THEY HAD NO CONTRACT WITH RYOBI OR INFORMATION OR PARTS FOR THEM! GUESS ITS GETTING RETURNED!

I have been using this blower for almost a month. It is better than advertised. The one I received could not be told from brand new if the word reconditioned was not on the box. It started easily and seems to have more power than most in this class that I have had over the years. I have not used the vacuum/mulcher yet but it will probably work as well as the blower. I am extremely pleased with this purchase and would recommend it to anyone needing a light weight blower. My last blower was a WeedEater and it was a bit lighter in weight but the Ryobi is a lot more powerful and seems better built.

I used this Blower / Vac to suck up leaves when I got it. It worked GREAT for about an hour until I sucked up a a small piece of a stick that was hiding in the leaf pile and it just stopped working. It would not restart. I took it to the local authorized Ryobi repair shop and they said that the engine housing and drive shaft cracked and it would cost about 2x what I paid for it to fix. The technician there said that these units were "JUNK" and basically "THROW AWAYS"! Yes I am quoting the Ryobi Authorized Repair Technician! I said I thought it was covered under the factory warranty and he just laughed. Said I abused it and therefore it is NOT covered under warranty. Last Ryobi product I'll ever purchase!

Shipment arrived faster than expected, but I was very disappointed in the packaging. All of the pieces were loose in the box with only 2 paper size sheets of bubble wrap. The motor assembly had punched a hole in the shipping box, but I did not find any evidence of damage, and all the parts were there.

Starting was incredibly difficult every time. At first I thought it would never run after 5 minutes of priming and pulling. I looked for a cause and found out the choke was sticking in the on position. The choke assembly was very stiff and did not return to a normal running condition after moving the lever that engages it. I ended up moving it to the run condition with my finger.

Once I got it running, I found that the tube that mounts to the main motor easily falls off during use. The tubes do not lock in place, and when they come off it kills the engine. Starting it back up was a chore because I had to choke it to get it to start, and then had to deal with the sticking choke.

The manufacturer should be ashamed of themselves. I did not bother to complain because they likely would not care given the condition of this item. I will repair the choke myself so that the machine can be used as it is intended to be.

Needless to say, I am very disappointed in the packaging and poor quality. This machine is very difficult to use and I would not recommend it to anyone.

The product is good the price as well but it seems to be used and not reconditioned. I bought many reconditioned stuff and none of them came with that kind of heavy "used" signs.