Ryobi 48V Mowers

Tools

Tools and Supplies

On this page I'll list a number of tools and supplies you may find useful for working on your mower. You certainly don't need all of these, so please read to see when you might need them.

Multimeter

In order to do even basic troubleshooting, you'll need a multimeter. You can find a basic multimeter sometimes for as little as $5 on sale at Harbor Freight to over $1000 for a top-of-the-line Fluke meter. Generally, as the price goes up, the quality, features, and accuracy increase, but sometimes you're just paying more for a name brand. For troubleshooting these meters you don't need anything fancy or expensive.

You'll want t o make sure the meter has  3 settings:

When comparing mulimeters  you may want to look at:

Here are a few options. You can get much fancier meters than these, but you won't need one for working on these mowers.

This is a very popular entry-level multimeter that consistantly gets good reviews. It's pretty basic, uses 2 AA btteries, has manual range switching, and has a 2000 count display.

Available on Amazon for $15 or less.

Also from, AstroAI, this meter has more features including auto range switching and a temperature probe. The test leads also have removable covers to reduce the contact area on the tips. Uses 3 AAA batteries and has a 4000 count display.

Available from Amazon for $25 or less.

This meter has similar features to the AstroAI ST132A, but is from a name brand and includes lead holders integrated into the case. For many functions, AC and DC are the same switch position and you have to press the SEL button to select between them. Uses 2 AA batteries and has a 4000 count display.

Available on Amazon for $50 or less.

Load Tester

With lead acid batteries, even if the voltage is good, the only way to really know if they are good is to load test them. Many auto parts and battery stores will test them for you, but that can be inconvenient. I like to have a load tester on hand because it also allows me to check the battery in my vehicles when I suspect the battery is failing.

KONNWEI KW208

This is a basic load tester, but get the job done. It runs off the battery you are testing, so nothing else is needed. For the stock batteries, I select AGM and use the default setting for a load test. With a fully charged battery, I look for a 100% SOC and around 5mΩ of internal resistance or less when the ambient temperature is around 77 F (25 C).

You can by this tester on Amazon. The price for this tester tends to fluctuate a lot, but there are often very large coupons. In January 2025 it's $18 after a 40% coupon is applied.

Step Drill

If you're looking to add new meters to you're mower, you may need to enlarge existing holes or create new ones. For example, the popular TR16 100A meter requires a 2-1/8 inch hole while the stock meter is only 1-15/16 inches. There are a few ways to do that, but the easiest is to use a step drill. You will also want some cutting oil for a cleaner cut and to extend the life of the tool. Also be sure your work is secured to prevent damage and injury.

Cortool 1/4" to 2-3/8"

There are definitely better step drills than this one, but this is the cheapest option that will make a large enough hole and you will find the same drill selling under different names for more. Unless you plan on using it all the times, this one should work for what you need. Typically runs around $20 on Amazon.


Battery and Power Cables

You may find your battery or power cables are damaged, missing, or need to be extended. You can always buy a replacement for the stock battery cable, but sometimes it makes sense to create something new. Here are some tools and supplies for making your own cables.


A hydrophilic crimping tool makes it much easier to crimp larger sized terminals. This one has dies foe 12 AWG all the way up to 2/0 AWG. I did find it often made sense to go back over crimp with the next size down with some connectors to get a really tight connection.

Sells for $40 or less on Amazon.

It took me a while to find wide lugs like these. You'll get a better connection and these will hold up better than the ones with narrower pads. The quality is great and you'll be very happy with these. The 5/16" (M8) size will fit most batteries.

Available on Amazon with or without shrink tubing.

When looking for a battery cable, you want to make sure it's solid copper and not CCA (copper clad aluminum) which you may see for a lower price. This cable is high quality and very flexible with a soft insulation jacket. You'll find it's easier to work with than the stock cable, especially in the cold.

This item comes with 3ft each of black and red cable, but you also get it in other lengths up to 30ft and other gauges. Available on Amazon.

The stock battery cables go into a 120A Anderson connector. The pins can be released by pushing down on a metal clip.

These sell for about $1/pin on AliExpress.

You can reuse the Anderson connectors on the stock cables, but if you need additional connections or need to replace a damaged or missing housing, these will do the trick.

These sell for about $1.50/each on AliExpress.

The connections to the in-line fuse are M6, so you will need these if replacing that section of cable. Like all SELTERM connectors, these are excellent quality.

Available on Amazon.