Customer Reviews

Ryobi 10-Inch 12-Volt Cordless Electric String Trimmer and Blower 155VP

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought this a year ago for use on a yard that is less than 1/3 of an acre. It worked well initially and was able to trim and blow my yard on one charge. The blower attachment is nowhere near as powerful as a Toro electric (wired) blower I also have, but it works reasonably well. It's right next to the ground, which makes it more effective, and it can't be beat for convenience.

This season (the trimmer's second), the battery is not keeping up as well. If my yard has gone more than a week and a half or so, it can not complete trimming and blowing on a single charge. This knocks the convenience factor way down.

"No problem" you say, "you can swap the battery". Yep, that's what I thought too when I bought it. However, Amazon (or anyone else as far as I can tell) no longer carries the battery or external charger. When I bought it, they did, and for a reasonable price. I figured I would get it a couple of years later, when the battery started to wear down. No such luck though. It started wearing down after only a year and the battery is not on Amazon any more.

You can call Ryobi's parts vendor to get the battery and charger, but they are now 65 dollars. Add that into the price of this trimmer if you are planning on getting one. And buy the battery now, before the price goes up again.

--- update - Received battery and wall wart, but not part for charging the battery. Add another 10 dollars to this total. Editing this review will not allow me to change the rating, but I would drop to zero or one star. I no longer recommend Ryobi products, which I have been using for many years.

OK, I got that line while reading someone elses review. Like the others who made comment, I purchased mine at Costco and really enjoyed it for the first year. I had a large lawn (Approx 1/4 acre) and for the first year, it worked great. the second season, it would barely make it without a recharge. That is assuming I didn't go more than a week between mowing and the grass was completely dry. Last season I moved and my lawn area was not even half as before. (season 3) I had to edge the front, put the edger back in the charger and by the end of the day, I could go back and barely get the back done before the battery would die. I have been searching for a replacement battery to no end and only the manufacture seems to have the replacement at $65.00 plus shipping and tax. Talk about BS! What a shame, a simple battery replacement would make this a great product, but the insane price for a replacement makes this a poor choice with so many other options out there. In either event, I feel better now that vented.

Battery does not charge up to full capacity after a year of use. When I first bought this item I could edge my entire front and back lawn then use the blower to clean up after mowing. Now I can't even complete the edge trim on the back yard before the battery runs out of power. Impossible to find replacement battery. If you're into disposable diapers and throw away butane lighters, then you'll love the disposable lawn trimmer, because once this dog's battery ceases to hold a worthwhile charge it becomes an expensive door stop!

I like the trimmer very much, and rate it on that basis. The battery is lead acid and, like any, will lose capacity, especially with deep discharges (exactly the opposite of NiCads, which need to be fully discharged to avoid memory effect). If you run the trimmer until it seems "weak" the battery is deeply discharged and it's losing life.

I simply keep two batteries on hand, fully charged, and ration my use of the machine between charging sessions, so as to prolong battery life.

I have experienced the battery problems too. After two seasons I can't even edge my small, urban front lawn (the whole property if 60 feet wide so there's really not much edging to do) on one charge.

I've been using my Ryobi 155VP for nearly 10 years now. I have replaced the battery three times. I average three years per battery. The battery is available but will set you back at least $[...] each time. Ryobi doesn't appaer to support this anymore but parts can be found at BUYMTDONLINE.com. This is where the Ryobi site will send you. As of today, the 155VP 12 volt battery is $[...]. That's $[...] plus shipping. (They're heavy) Other than the battery, I had to replace the little plastic bump start piece a few times as well. I have a LOT of trimming so all in all it has held up well. Mine has never been used as a doorstop! :-)

I love this trimmer. I have trouble starting the gas trimmers. I gave my old gas Ryobi away - after kicking it across the lawn a number of times!

I've been thru more than a season with this and it's been great for trimming about 1000' of edge and blowing about 100' of sidewalk. It's bween doing this on a single charge. Solidly made and will probably last quite a while.

I'm hoping that a Powersonic PS-1270F2, available thru Amazon will replace the battery when it goes. A little duct tape will be needed since there's a custom plastic bracket glued on to the original battery.

Chargers are also available from the Amazon partner.