[Ryobi battery riding lawn mower]

That's great news about the MAX battery!,,,, I will be changing all the batteries and there will be considerable savings if I go with the MM's. Did you have any issues with charging? Also, did you pre -charge the MM before you installed it? I'm assuming you did..

 

[Riding mower RM480e Battery Changing]

I'm pretty sure there's a Youtube video that covers removal of the tray.

 

...Also check the Roybi website for the service manual download.

 

[Ryobi battery riding lawn mower]

On 5/24/2022 at 6:11 PM, jamis said:

Thanks for the info Jim... I'll start by building that dolly riser.

 

On 5/24/2022 at 6:11 PM, jamis said:

Glenn: Yes, I built the dolly to be the same height as the tray slide. Ryobi's advice for not having an adjustable height dolly was vary the height of the tray by adjusting the rear tire pressure to bring the two into alignment. I really don't know about the MM batteries as I've not seen the results of anyone using them with the Ryobi charger. They appear to be very much like the LPC12s though. As for how many batteries to replace, it's up to the owner. My neighbor has a RM480ex with over 600 hours of run time and he just replaced one battery two weeks ago with an LPC12-100 from HD. He's been gone on a trip so we haven't seen what the change has done for his run time yet.

 

[Ryobi battery riding lawn mower]

Finally found this thread after hours of exhaustive online research... 

 

Jim, I've read through the entire thread and I must say, your posts are gold!

I am grateful that you've followed up to date with this valuable information that i couldn't seem to find anywhere else.

 

I've had my ZT480E now for, I believe this is the 5th season of mowing. I believe it's the 75AH model. ....same battery issues that others have reported, 50% / 70%, can only mow for about 20 mins right now. Mower is always stored in heated garage on the Roybi charger, etc etc.

 

Considering the age of the mower/batteries, I will most likely be replacing the pack very soon.

I understand your advise about individually load testing each battery to find a bad one, but I have to consider the chances of another battery in the pack going bad after not so much time which brings me to my fist hurdle/question.......

 

From the photo you posted, I see you've built a wood riser on top of a dolly to help removing the battery tray. Are you able to slide the tray right onto the riser from the mower without having to do any lifting?.. This will be a must for me before I can consider anything else. Any info on that would be greatly appreciated. I have a dolly that would work, with locking wheels.

 

Finally, The current price for Leoch LPC12-100 from HD is $239.20.

The current price for the Mightymax ML100-12 from HD is $185.39

Amazon has the Mightymax ML100-12  w/free shipping (prime) for $179.99

 

Do I take a chance with the Mightymax?... that is a considerable price difference considering 4 batteries. 

 

Glenn