the Black & Decker CM1836 18-Inch 36-Volt Cordless Lawn Mower provides unparalleled power and convenience, making yard care better than ever before. With this high-performance cordless mower, you can create and maintain a manicured lawn without the hassles, expense, and emissions of a gas-powered model.
- Good! Better than previous version
I purchased the Black and Decker Cordless 24 volt mulching mower (CMM1000) in 2005 and have been using it ever since. When I had the opportunity to upgrade to this mower (CM1836) I jumped on it.
I wanted a cordless electric mower to:
- Not have to deal with gas and oil
- Be able to mow without feeling like I need a shower due to exhaust fumes
- Save my hearing
- Keep me from re-injuring my right shoulder by not having to pull the cord to start
- Mulch
The CM1836 is Now OnSale
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The CMM1000 did all of those fantastically for 4 1/2 years for me and the CM1836 improves on most features. I’m really happy to have the newer version. I know I have just barely used this mower and I promise to update this review if anything changes. For now, I can give you a good comparison of this mower with my previous cordless electric, keeping in mind that I’ve been quite happy with the previous version.
The CM 1836 Improves in all of these areas over the CMM1000 which I really liked quite well:
- This mower claims to be 50% more powerful 36 volts vs 24 volts
. – Good because old mower struggled with tall grass
- This mower is a tad quieter than the old one
- The handle is more ergonomic and easier to grip
- This mower as a whole is a bit smaller and lighter
- This mower stores more easily because it has a fold down handle
- The starting mechanism is easier and more elegant
- The safety key is better (safer from 2 year olds than the old one)
The CM 1836 actually is a bit worse than the CMM1000 in a couple areas:
- The height adjustment mechanism is harder to use than the old one.
. – Although it may be safer because there is no way to adjust while running now
. – Note that it is still a single lever that adjusts all wheels
- The cutting width is 1″ less on an already short cutting width (only 18″)
- The bag is a bit smaller on an already small bag (although I mulch)
- There is no longer a battery level indicator on the mower which was nice to have
I’m not sure is this is good or bad, but this mower has a smaller rear wheel as well. I haven’t noticed it as a problem yet.
I still have the following complaint with this mower, but I think it is slightly improved over the old one. The mowing deck is deceptive. It has a wide side area embedded within the deck that prevents the blade from going out as far as the edge of the deck. You have to have more overlap between strips of grass when mowing. (I think that the frame of the mower with the wheel height adjustment is hidden in the mowing deck.)
One word of caution is that my battery quit working just short of 2 years on the old mower. Luckily, it was still in warranty and Black and Decker replaced it free of charge. Unfortunately, the nearest authorized service shop to do it was 70 miles away and they were not very accommodating (9-5 Monday through Friday).
One thing to note is that when I set this up I found that the front right wheel was sort of caught up on the mowing deck and the adjustment lever wouldn’t work with that wheel. I determined that the axle for the wheel had not been inserted all the way across (it had a little stopping mechanism). I fixed it quickly by loosening the axle bracket and sliding the axle the rest of the way and then tightening the bracket back up. Hope the rest of it was assembled correctly by the factory.
BOTTOM LINE: I absolutely love having an electric mower. As long as you don’t let the grass get totally out of control, you shouldn’t ever have problems with it and you will LOVE that you don’t have to deal with fumes, noise, or running to get gas for it.
- It’s won me over from gas
About 13 years ago I bought a battery powered lawn mower made by Black and Decker (I think it was their first). In many ways it was perfect: quiet, clean, easy to use. It only had one minor flaw that might discourage the user: it didn’t actually cut grass. It was more of a “grass brusher”, or perhaps a “grass massager” – bathing the grass in a gentle breeze without harming any wildlife, or grass.
I’m happy to say that 13 years later B&D seem to have worked the bugs out.
I’ve been able to use this mower three times now and I’m happier with it each time: it’s light, quiet, easy to use, and yes, it cuts grass. I’ve even used it to mulch up small branches after pruning with great results. While not nearly as powerful as my gas mower it actually does a better job of mulching, perhaps because it was clearly designed with mulching in mind. With my gas mower it always seemed like an afterthought. I did put the bag on it once: it switches from mulching to bagging easily enough (remove a small block and put the bag on back). The bag looked a little small but I’ll have to wait till summer brings me more grass to really try it out. That doesn’t bother me since I mostly use the bag for cleaning up around sidewalks or to suck up leaves in the fall.
Starting it is easy: there is a “plug” where you plug in the charger – unplug the charger and plug in a small dongle, push a button and pull on the safety bar and it starts right up. I’d suggest attaching the dongle to the mower so you don’t lose it. Height adjustment is also really easy: one hand, one wheel, and you’re done. I’ve had no issues with the charge running out. I don’t have a large yard so I don’t expect this to be an issue (my grass area is about 1500 sq ft). Just to see what would happen I didn’t charge it again after the first time I mowed and I got two more mows over three weeks out of it and I might even try for a fourth. That tells me it should handle a pretty good sized yard (though I should note the battery is not removable so if you have a really big yard you may want to step up to the 19inch model with the removable battery).
As mentioned in the description it folds up, something I love. I live far enough north that I don’t need a mower for a good part of the year. Being able to fold it up into a corner is really nice. I’ve definitely decided to ditch the gas mower in favor of this thing. The only person I could see who would not want this mower would be someone of limited strength since it is not self-propelled. It’s light enough that I have no trouble pushing it up hills, but if you have any physical limitations this is probably not the mower for you.
The only thing it doesn’t have that I would like is a batter level indicator. Beyond that this is a fantastic electric mower.