Stihl RMA 235 Review – Trusted Reviews

Introduction

As expected from the clever minds at Stihl, the RMA 235 cordless lawnmower is built to last and cuts incredibly well. It would be perfect if it had a more comfortable handle though.

Design and Features

• Quiet mowing
• Superb build quality and materials used
• Automatic blade speed adjustment

It’s immediately obvious that this Stihl lawn mower has been built to last. Unlike some low cost cordless lawn mower models that are plagued by bendy plastics and rattling handles, the RMA 235 is built like a tank.

Starting with the handle, it’s bolted to the mower body, so it doesn’t creak or rattle about on uneven ground. Although it doesn’t fold down completely for storage, it does away with fiddly cam locks or annoying butterfly bolts on the bottom half of the handle. It also has two height settings for gardeners of different heights.

Weighing just under 14 kg, this slight but stout lawn mower with its 33 cm cut width is ideal for small to medium lawn sizes. It’s no lightweight, but it feels really solid and well made to make up for it. It feels like it’s built to last, which is always a relief. If you need to mow a bigger lawn, the excellent Stihl RMA 248.3 has the cut capacity for you.

The top of the handle is a bit basic. It lacks a foam grip, such as the one found on the incredibly comfortable Gtech CLM50, but the RMA 235 feels comfortable because of the balance. I’ve always found Stihl garden tools to be perfectly balanced, which adds to the overall comfort and handling.

The wheels are large and the big operating handle is oversized to make it easy to operate. The only annoying thing about the RMA 235’s design to me is the bulky grass collection box. Although it features a full level indicator, it doesn’t fold flat for storage, and the best you can do is sit it on top of the folded-over handlebars.

And it’s all powered by Stihl’s tried and tested AK battery platform. The big blocky battery or charger weren’t included with the version I tested of the RMA 235 but are compatible with loads of great tools in the range. The battery is held in a compartment on the front of the cordless lawnmower body. The clever cutout on the flap serves an extra purpose too- you can check the battery level indicator without having to lift it up.

Older versions of this lawn mower used to have a safety key above the battery, but this has been removed. If you want to make the lawn mower safe for children while not in use, you’ll need to take the battery out while you’re not using it.

The cutting height from 25 – 65 mm is done in five steps and controlled by a little plastic flap on the side of the cordless lawn mower body. It’s not as slick as the sprung handlebar on the Karcher LMO 18-36, but you can just about adjust it with your foot.

Performance

• Quiet at just 76 dB
• Excellent quality of cut
• Doesn’t fold down small for storage

Setting up the RMA 235 is slightly different to a low of cordless lawnmowers I have tested out. Instead of attaching a fiddly bottom handle to an adjustable joint, I simply had to bolt it on to the mower body. It’s not ideal for ultra-compact storage later, but it’s great for getting a quick start. The upper handle bolts on with butterfly bolts.

It’s hard to beat a Stihl lawnmower on the grass. The cleverly designed, curved blade underneath is sharp and well-balanced, producing next to no vibration and keeping the noise right down. The big wheels help it to glide across uneven lawns while maintaining an excellent, even cut.

And the motor is intelligent too: The blade speed goes up and down depending on the resistance felt from the grass. If there’s barely any grass to cut, the rotations per minute are kept low to around 2900rpm to help preserve the battery. However, if you shove it into long or rough grass, the motor kicks the rpm up to 3400rpm. It’s a smart system that gets the most from each charge.

I used the AK 20 battery for testing. It’s rated to cut up to 200m². The larger capacity AK 30 battery will increase that by 100m². Another plus is the grass collection box. Although it doesn’t fold flat, it really packs the grass in.

The curved blade underneath helps to blow the cut grass into the box, so you don’t have to empty it out every two minutes.

What lets this cordless lawnmower down, is how much storage space it takes up. For a relatively small mower, the handles stick out too far. And the grass box takes up plenty of space, as it’s a hard clamshell-style one. This would be forgivable if the mower stood upright, but unfortunately it doesn’t.

Should you buy it?

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