Rover Regal Catch N Mulch Electric Start Lawn Mower $349 Delivered @ rover.com.au

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Rover

• 

  Daniel Plainview on 02/12/2019 - 13:07

  +2

  Not saying it's either a good or bad deal but just be aware Rover isn't anything like the brand they used to be - were bought by USA co, MTD a while back and word is the quality of a lot of their stuff significantly dropped - again this is kinda similar to other brands like Victa so DYOR but as always with mowers preventative maintenance is (IMHO) more important than buying 'quality'.

  • 

    iwearpants on 02/12/2019 - 13:15

    Definitely agree.

    Apart from a Rover chipper (which I got second hand) I don't have any pre-conceived view about its quality relative to other brands. They all seem the same to me. Some people swear by their Honda's, and I'll take their word for it, but I just don't have that much to spend.

    And so, preventative maintenance is the only thing I can control that will help prolong the life expectancy of my mower.

• 

  pjetson on 02/12/2019 - 13:47

  +1

  not sure if the delivery deal is Australia wide

  Seems to be - I tried an order for delivery to 3204 and freight was free.

• 

  enigmaticvip on 02/12/2019 - 14:12

  The reviews on this are terrible..only 7 though but still..pretty bad..

  https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/rover-mulch-n-catc…

  • 

    iwearpants on 02/12/2019 - 14:16

    If bought at $799 and something broke I would also be pretty scathing.

    More reviews can be found here:

    https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/rover-mulch-n-catc…

• 

  enigmaticvip on 02/12/2019 - 14:22

  +1

  I want to buy a new mower under $350-400 after trying my hand (and failing) at a $99 ALDI electric lawn mower which kept stopping on me. Want something with minimum maintenance and a colleague said they got a SANLI $229 one from Big W (2 years ago)and they can't fault it at all..I don't mind spending a bit more than that but not $599 on a Masport 490 4n1 from Bunnings (which has great reviews).Not sure which one to get. I have a big (almost 800 m2) lawn.

  • 

    zyj494949 on 02/12/2019 - 15:06

    +2

    I will avoid electric lawn movers. They can only keep the peak performance when battery is full. The power does not last long and drops significantly during mowing.

  • 

    iwearpants on 02/12/2019 - 15:15

    +1

    I'll let others more knowledgeable chime in, but my advice is, pick a mower based on the following criterias:

    • Has the features that you need. Eg. Mulch, Electric start/Pull start, power, weight
    • Comes in at the price that is comfortable for you
    • Can easily get consumables: eg. Air filter

    The Rover Regal ticks all the boxes for me. I'm on a 600m2 block. And roughly speaking I probably do at least 6 cuts a year, probably more. I've never really counted.

    Based on my one experience with the no-brand (Actually it's called Automatic) mower from Big W, I think for the most part it's maintenance.

    Things I consider maintenance:
    * Start mower on highest clearance setting
    * Let mower idle for a minute before lowering chasis
    * Keep petrol topped up
    * Lift chasis to highest clearance setting before stopping engine
    * Top up engine oil on a semi regular basis
    * Replace engine oil on a two-yearly basis (depending on use)
    * Clean out air filter on a regular basis

    Tbh, I only replaced the oil twice in the 7 years. I've also neglected the air filter, but it seems to happily start 1st pull in summer and maybe three pulls in winter.

    So if mulching or electric start isn't your thing, then the Sanli might do the trick for you.

• 

  cybergenX on 02/12/2019 - 15:04

  +1

  Recent reviews look pretty decent to me, good value here

• 

  cybergenX on 02/12/2019 - 16:03

  Gonskies

  • 

    iwearpants on 02/12/2019 - 16:08

    Oh wow! Good one. I hope enigmaticvip got one

    • 

      enigmaticvip on 02/12/2019 - 16:40

      +1

      Didn't get one mate..But I can live with that..On to bigger and better ones..the search continues

• 

  iwearpants on 03/12/2019 - 18:46

  FYI, there's a Rover promotion going on affecting this product. I posted it as a separate deal here:

  https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/502880

• 

  pjetson on 13/12/2019 - 09:28

  My mower from this deal finally arrived yesterday. From the condition of the box and all the dust on it, I'm guessing that it's been sitting around somewhere for quite some time.

  The mower itself looks fine, but I need to buy some engine oil on the way home tonight so that I can start it up.

  I was surprised that there was no battery charger in the box - when I called the distributor before ordering, they said that the mower itself doesn't charge the battery and that I'd have to charge it from time to time.

  And unless it's already fitted, there was no mulching plug in the box.

  I'm a bit concerned that there was a nut rolling around at the bottom of the box, so I'll need to see if I can work out if it's a "spare" or if it's fallen off something.

  There's no specific manual for this mower, so it's hard to tell if there's anything missing. After I've more closely checked it all out tonight, I may give the distributor a call.

  • 

    iwearpants on 13/12/2019 - 10:29

    Yeahp mine arrived yesterday. I haven't had the chance to open it yet. It's a bit concerning that there's no battery charger (although I was planning to mod a 1W solar panel on it) and that there's no mulch attachment (a key feature).

    Have you checked if maybe the mulching attachment might be already installed?

    [EDIT] My box was fine. Although I assumed this model was a older model anyway.

    Also, after the deal expired, I noticed they added the following to the product description:

    NOTE: This is an older stock superseded model. Some carton damage may be present.

    • 

      pjetson on 14/12/2019 - 08:46

      The mulching plug was already fitted, so that's fine. However, the battery was completely flat, and combined with the condition of the box, I think it's obvious that it's been sitting in a warehouse somewhere, possibly for years.

      I removed the battery and borrowed an SLA charger and charged it overnight, but the battery didn't hold the charge and it won't start the mower, so the battery is faulty. I'll call MTD on Monday and hopefully they'll replace the battery and give me a charger as well.

      • 

        iwearpants on 14/12/2019 - 13:18

        Dumb question: Did you measure the voltage or did you assume the battery was dead because you couldn't start it.

        I couldn't start the mower either manually or via the electric starter. And I found the culprit.

        The problem (for me) is that the cable has lengthened (due to age/heat/expansion) and this has caused it to not be taut enough to disengage the kill switch (?) when the stop lever is depressed.

        This is how I fixed it (temporarily). I don't have a permanent fix yet.

        • Remove the screw for the stop lever bracket (near throttle control)
        • Disengage the stop cable from stop lever
        • Hold the end of the cable, pull it until taut and then maybe another 1cm. Don't over do it.
        • Now start the engine.
        • Managed to start engine on 11.98V on the battery

        This could have been easily overcome if they had installed a barrel adjuster at either/both ends of the stop cable.

        I may have to install one of those barrel adjusters (ones you see on bikes) to the end, near the engine.

        • 

          pjetson on 14/12/2019 - 13:54

          @iwearpants: The battery was so flat that the starter wouldn't even click, let alone crank the engine. It was below 10v, and in my experience, that's end-of-life for an SLA battery. I charged it overnight, and it still only barely cranks, not enough to start the engine, which started first pull on the cord. The battery is definitely dead.

          I did notice that the bar that you have to hold to start the engine is tight, but that's kind of an advantage to me because I can pull start the engine without needing to hold it!

          I take it that you didn't get a charger either?

          I'm in no rush to use the mower today - I was going to mow this morning but there was some light rain overnight and it's too wet.

          • 

            iwearpants on 14/12/2019 - 16:57

            @pjetson: Ah OK. Looks like the battery is dead. Good to claim that on warranty straight away.

            I can pull start the engine without needing to hold it!

            So you've got the opposite problem to me, the cable being too tight. I did find the stopper bar annoying because it'd stop the engine every time I needed to clear out something that was in the way. I'm looking for some sort of clamp to remedy this.
            Don't want to cable tie it.

            I take it that you didn't get a charger either?

            Yeah, no charger for me either. Reading the manual it states that your dealer will recommend you a charger for the battery.

            Which is to say, it isn't missing. It's just not included.

            I'm not fussed with this, I've got my own battery charger but definitely want to go the solar panel mod.

      • 

        iwearpants on 14/12/2019 - 13:39

        OK I found a solution!

        Don't know if you want to go down this route or not - depends if you want to mow the lawn today or whether you want to go through Warranty for safety reasons.

        I just drilled an a 5mm hole on the stop lever, next to the current hole where the end of the stop lever cable goes in.

        This gives the cable about an extra 7mm extension. And it's worked for me.

• 

  pjetson on 20/12/2019 - 10:51

  I went directly to MTD in Dandenong with my faulty battery, but they told me to go to a dealer instead. The dealer said that I'd have to bring in the whole mower to make a warranty claim, and that it'd likely take a few weeks. Pretty crappy service!

• 

  pjetson on 20/12/2019 - 11:47

  MTD/Rover just rang me and basically, they're digging their heels in over the battery. They say that I have to take the whole mower to a dealer and leave it with them to be assessed. Even though I purchased the mower from MTD, they say that I cannot return the mower to them.

  MTD/Rover say they don't have any batteries, and that they don't assess warranty claims themselves. They say that if the dealer decides that the battery is faulty, the dealer will source and fit a new battery.

• 

  pjetson on 21/12/2019 - 07:23

  +1

  MTD/Rover have reconsidered and stepped up their game - they sent me an email later yesterday offering me a new mower. I'll go see them on Monday, but all I really wanted was a replacement for the faulty battery!

  • 

    iwearpants on 21/12/2019 - 11:03

    Lucky you! Brand new mower. Hope nothing else pops up.

    I don't want to say it's "more trouble than it's worth" but these extra bits of technology, especially on an item that's been sitting around for a while does make it more prone to these issues.

    • 

      pjetson on 23/12/2019 - 11:10

      +1

      I just picked up the replacement mower, and everything seems fine. A good job (eventually) by MTD/Rover.

      • 

        iwearpants on 23/12/2019 - 14:01

        Nice. Where did you have to pick up your mower? From their factory or from your dealer?

        • 

          pjetson on 23/12/2019 - 21:01

          @iwearpants: From MTD's Dandenong South (Melbourne) office.