Skil 2x20V Lawn Mower Offers Lightweight Value
It’s amazing how many battery-powered lawn care options exist today. Most of them don’t use the same batteries as your power tools, forcing you to manage multiple systems. That’s not the case for the Skil 2x20V lawn mower and we brought it in to see what types of lawns it’s a good fit for.
Skil 2x20V Lawn Mower Performance
To run the mower, you need a pair of Skil PWRCore 20 batteries. Two 4.0Ah packs come in the kit and that’s the way to go. If you have 5.0Ah packs, that’s even better. You can run on a couple of 2.0Ah or 2.5Ah batteries, but your runtime is very limited.
The 2x20V configuration is important. By going that route, Skil takes two of the same batteries that power their entire line of PWRCore 20 cordless tools and raise it up to 40V to give the mower more power. There are 18V/20V mowers on the market, and they don’t have near the cutting power that Skil delivers with this model.
The mower’s poly deck is 18 inches and it houses a 16.9-inch blade. Using a brushless motor that offers better performance, runtime, and life, the blade spins up to 3100 RPM. When the grass gets thick, the motor’s electronic controller is able to call for more power to adjust.
Using a poly deck has a couple of practical benefits. First, it’s lighter than steel. It also directly affects performance. Because the design is infinitely customizable, the product engineers can dial in the size and shape to get the best cutting and airflow out of the blade they choose. It’s much more challenging when you’re working with steel or aluminum.
Runtime
We sent Josh out into the backyard with the Skil 2x20V lawn mower and a couple of fully charged 4.0Ah batteries to see what kind of runtime you can expect. The backyard was taller than we’d prefer, but rain over the last several days prevented us from getting to it sooner.
Even with that tall grass in the mix, the mower ran for 28 minutes, 30 seconds. That’s plenty to cover smaller lawns. With an extra set of batteries, even a 1/4-acre lot is within range in the same cutting conditions we tested. On a standard maintenance cut, we expect 40+ minutes with the same batteries.
Noise Level
One of the great benefits of kicking gas engines to the curb is lower noise. Even among battery-powered mowers, this model is quiet—just 67 decibels on our meter (A-weighted, slow response).
Cut Quality
Skil gives you what you need to bag or mulch. We primarily mulch here in Central Florida so we just pop the mulching plug in and go.
If you prefer to bag instead, Skil is able to hold 1 1/4 bushels. When it’s time to empty, the airflow drops and the flap on top of the bag closes as a visual indicator. It’s much easier than stopping to pull the bag off and check every time.
While there’s certainly a difference between the mulching and bagging efficiency compared to a high-end mower such as the EGO Select Cut XP, the bagging and mulching were effective considering we were using 20V batteries to power the mower.
There are several keys to getting the best cut quality. First, cut when it’s dry. The airflow the blade creates can pull the grass up more effectively for cutting and then either keep the grass in the deck as it mulches or deliver it to the bag. It also keeps grass from sticking to the deck and disrupting the airflow.
Secondly, cut when you only need to take about a 1/3 of the height down (~2 inches or so). That keeps the amount of grass coming into the deck more manageable and the blade’s RPMs can stay higher to cut, mulch, and bag more effectively.
As we experienced, the weather or your schedule can make it impossible to cut in optimal conditions, but when you can, your lawn will look better and be healthier.
Skil 2x20V Lawn Mower Design
Weight
The mower weighs just 35 pounds. If one of your concerns is pushing the mower or moving it in and out for storage, you’ll find this model incredibly easy to manage compared to many of the battery-powered and gas options out there.
Deck Height Adjustments
The deck is adjustable from 1 to 3 inches and it’s super-easy to change. A single-point adjustment lever on the left side of the deck takes care of it. With its position and handle size, it’s much easier than levers that mount on the wheels.
Vertical Storage
In addition to its compact size, storage is even more compact thanks to a vertical fold-up frame design. All you need to do is unlock the telescoping handle and push it down, pull the handle heights pins to fold it forward, and lift the mower to a vertical position using the handle on the front.
It’s an easy process and lifting the mower doesn’t take much effort thanks to its light weight.
Additional Features
- Cooling material wraps each battery cell to improve runtime and service life
- 3 handle height positions
Skil 2x20V Lawn Mower Price
You can grab this mower as a kit with two 4.0Ah batteries and a dual-port charger for $299.99. When you look at what’s available for under $300 in the battery-powered lawn mower landscape, this is about as good a value proposition as you’re going to find.
If you’re still on the fence, Skil backs the mower with a 5-year warranty.
The Bottom Line
The Skil 2x20V push lawn mower is a great fit as an entry into battery-powered mowing on a budget or for folks who need a lightweight option and it can easily handle 1/8-acre lawns on one set of batteries. Even lawns up to a 1/4-acre are an option, though you might want to have an extra set of batteries on hand during the peak of the growing season for those. If you’re interested in a single battery platform to cover your lawn care and power tool needs, you’ll have a hard time finding more for your money than you get on the Skil PWCore 20 system.
Skil 2x20V Lawn Mower Specifications
- Model: Skil PM4912B-20
- Blade Diameter: 16.9 inches
- Deck Material: Poly
- Max Blade Speed: 3100 RPM
- Deck Height: 1 to 3 inches (6 settings)
- Price: $299 kit with two 4.0Ah batteries
- Warranty: 5 years
