Black & Decker MM875 Review

(Rated: 4.2 / 5) Review by Frank Lowery
Noise
Ease of Assembly
Maneuverability
Balance And Handling
Cut Quality
Check Price
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When you own a smaller yard, you have the option to switch from a gas powered lawn mower to an electric one. This can be a great mover for a number of reasons: electric lawn mowers have much smaller carbon footprints than gas powered lawn mowers, as they produce zero emissions at the point of use and can often be run on cleaner energy than gasoline. And because you do not have to purchase gasoline, which is only getting more expensive, you will enjoy considerable savings over the long term with an electric mower. Electric mowers are also considerably quieter than gas powered lawn mowers, which means if you are an early riser who likes to finish lawn chores before the sun is too high in the morning sky, you will not have to worry about disturbing any neighbors who are still sleeping in.

The Black & Decker MM875 is a plug-in electric lawn mower that provides all of the benefits you would expect from this kind of machine as well as a few extra advantages of its own. Because it plugs in, the motor is able to provide more power to the cutting deck, which means it is able to support one of the widest cutting decks available on an electric lawn mower. In fact, at nineteen inches wide, the cutting deck on the Black & Decker MM875 is comparable to most gas powered lawn mowers as well. It has convenient features such as an ergonomically designed handle and easy to adjust height options, and it comes ready to mulch clippings back into the soil or collect them in a rear bag for later disposal.

Review Summary

The Black & Decker MM875 is a plug in electric lawn mower with overall dimensions of 36.1 x 17.6 x 22.5 inches, as well as an extra wide nineteen inch cutting deck. Its motor has 12 Amps, which is a considerable amount of power in an electric lawn mower, and it allows it to cut a wider swath than other electric lawn mowers can, which makes it one of the most efficient electric lawn mowers on the market today. Its cutting deck is also comparable to what is available on many gas powered lawn mowers as well. This means it can get your lawn cit in fewer passes and less time than smaller lawn mowers can.

In addition to the extra wide cutting deck, the Black & Decker MM875 has a number of other great features. Its overall design is meant to make it convenient and easy to use. Because of that, it comes with a rear bag and mulching kit included in the initial purchase price. It starts up easily and runs reliably. Its handle is ergonomically designed and padded for greater comfort and better control. And it’s zero emissions at the point of use, making it much more environmentally friendly. I’ll cover each of these points in depth in the Pros section.

I’ll also discuss the areas where the Black & Decker MM875 falls short of perfection in the Cons section. Some of these areas include the limitations of any plug-in electric lawn mower, and others are more specific to the Black & Decker MM875. After that I will provide a detailed product comparison table so you can get a clear idea of how this lawn mower stacks up to similar models.

Specifications

The Black & Decker MM875 is a corded electric lawn mower with a 12 amp motor. It has overall dimensions of just 36.1 x 17.6 x 22.5 inches, and it is still able to support an extra wide nineteen inch cutting deck for more efficient, faster cuts. It comes equipped with a mulching plug so you can chop grass clippings into fine pieces that will break down more quickly into the soil as well as a rear bag for collecting clippings for later disposal or composting. Its cutting area is determined by the length of the extension cord you use, but the manufacturer recommends a 100 foot radius to the nearest power outlet. It has a manual push drive system. Once you plug it in, it starts up easily and reliably with a simple pull of the safety handle.

The Black & Decker MM875 has one point height adjustment, in which a single lever adjusts all four wheels simultaneously, so selecting the perfect height is a breeze. It has a wide range of height settings from 1 1/4 to 3 1/2 inches so you can always be sure you are cutting your grass at the optimal health to keep it looking and feeling its best. The Black & Decker MM875 has seven inch high front wheels and eight inch high rear wheels, which keep its center of gravity low and ensure that it maintains stability even if you are using it to cut grass on uneven terrain. The mower weighs just 52 pounds, which means it should be fairly easy for just about anyone to use it, regardless of their age or strength level. It comes with a two year limited consumer warranty.

Description

The Black & Decker MM875 is a plug-in electric lawn mower with a 12 Amp motor. The motor provides enough power to drive a nineteen inch wide cutting deck. That makes the cutting deck on the Black & Decker MM875 one of the widest you can find on an electric lawn mower today. A wider cutting deck is one of the most important considerations when you are shopping for a new lawn mower. That’s because wider decks allow you to finish cutting the lawn in fewer passes, which translates directly to less time spent on yard work and more time spent enjoying your weekend. And not only is nineteen inches wider than most electric lawn mowers’ decks, it’s also comparable to what is offered on the average gas powered lawn mower as well.

But unlike gas powered lawn mowers, which produce a great deal of emissions and fill your yard with smelly fumes every time you use them, electric lawn mowers like the Black & Decker MM875 are practically zero emissions. They produce no emissions at the point of use and can be run on clean energy. The EPA estimates that gas powered lawn mowers are responsible for producing as much as ten percent of the overall carbon emissions in the United States, so switching over to an electric lawn mower can reduce your household’s overall carbon footprint significantly. And because you will never have to buy another quart of gasoline to run an electric lawn mower, you can enjoy considerable savings on fuel and maintenance costs as well.

The Black & Decker MM875 comes with a rear bag assembly included, so you can collect grass clippings for later disposal or composting without having to pay extra for the privilege. And it’s fully equipped to mulch clippings as well. Too many lawn mower manufacturers either do not provide these options or consider them separate accessories that you have to pay extra for. On the Black & Decker MM875, they’re included. Mulching clippings back into the soil is one of the best ways you can keep your lawn looking lush and healthy. The clippings break down quickly, releasing stored nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus into the soil. This is a great organic way to keep your lawn fertilized without turning to chemical fertilizers, which can get expensive and be difficult to apply correctly.

It’s very easy to use the Black & Decker MM875. Unlike gas powered mowers, which require the engine to be primed before you yank on a heavy recoil starter cord five or six times to get them started, the Black & Decker MM875 is easy to start up. You simply plug it in and pull the starter handle, and you’re ready to go. And the mower does not require the kind of maintenance that gas powered mowers need. You’ll never have to change a single spark plug or clean an air filter with an electric mower like the Black & Decker MM875. It will run smoothly and reliably over the long term without any effort on your part.

There are a few difficulties associated with an electric lawn mower such as this one that you should be aware of before you buy it. Because it is a plug in mower, its range will be limited by the length of your power cord, so if you have a very long and narrow lawn, you may find it’s difficult to reach the far corners of it. And like many electric lawn mowers, the Black & Decker MM875 may have difficulties cutting dense patches of the lawn. And it may struggle with tougher varieties of grass such as St. Augustine or Bermuda grass. But I do not think any of the minor drawbacks associated with this lawn mower even come close to outweighing its great features.

All things considered, the Black & Decker MM875 is a quality electric lawn mower at a very competitive price. If you are fortunate enough to have the kind of small yard an electric lawn mower like this one can handle reliably, switching over can be an excellent choice.

Pros

There are a number of excellent features included in the Black & Decker MM875 that combine to make it one of the best plug-in electric mowers on the market today. Not only does it provide the advantages typical of all electric lawn mowers, such as a smaller carbon footprint, reduced emissions, extremely quiet running noise, and easier startup and use, it has a number of convenient other features as well. The mower comes equipped with a rear bag for grass clipping collection and is designed to be ready to mulch clippings right out of the box. Its cutting deck height is easy to adjust and has a wide range of options. Its handle is cushioned and its overall design is convenient and ergonomic. And it has one of the widest cutting decks you can find on an electric lawn mower. Let’s take a look at each one of these great features in more detail.

1. Zero emissions for a smaller carbon footprint : One of the main incentives to purchasing an electric lawn mower is the fact that doing so immediately and significantly reduces your overall carbon footprint. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that gas powered residential lawn mowers are responsible for up to ten percent of the total carbon emissions in the United States. Electric lawn mowers not only reduce the overall emissions at the point of use to zero, but also are often reliant on much cleaner energy sources than gas powered lawn mowers use. There is the additional benefit that you will save a lot of money with an electric lawn mower, since electric power is considerably less expensive than gas, which only seems to get more and more expensive these days. As a result, switching to electric power will help you save not only the environment but your wallet as well.
2. Mulching and rear bag included : All too often, lawn mowers are manufactured such that they either do not have a mulching or rear bagging option available, or they classify them as accessories, and charge extra if you want them. This results in an inconvenient hidden additional price on the lawn mower. The Black & Decker MM875 comes with a rear bag assembly included in the initial purchase price, and it is fully equipped for mulching. Mulching grass clippings is a great way to keep your lawn looking its best. The mulching blade on the Black & Decker MM875 slices grass clippings into tiny pieces that will break down much more quickly into the soil, where they will release important nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous for the growing lawn to use. This helps to keep your lawn lustrous and healthy without resorting to expensive and inconvenient chemical fertilizer treatments.
3. Easy to start up and use : One of the major drawbacks to a gas powered lawn mower, other than the emissions it produces, is the fact that they are difficult to get started and maintain. You have to keep smelly gas cans in your garage, make sure the gas tank is full, prime the engine, and then pull on a heavy starter cord over and over until it finally sputters to life. With an electric lawn mower like the Black & Decker MM875, all you have to do is plug it in, press the starter button, and you’re ready to go. And electric lawn mowers don’t require nearly as much maintenance or tune ups to keep them running very smoothly. You’ll never have to change another spark plug or clean a clogged air filter again. The Black & Decker MM875 is easy for anyone to use and maintain with very little effort.
4. Convenient, ergonomic design features : The Black & Decker MM875 has a number of very convenient design features that help to make it so easy to use. It has an ergonomically designed handle with a cushioned grip. This reduces the vibrations you feel in your hands and wrists while you are using the lawn mower that can lead to fatigue or soreness, and also gives you greater control and more safety. The handle is adjustable, so you can find the perfect height for you, instead of slumping over while you are using the mower, which can lead to back pain. The cutting deck height is conveniently easy to adjust: instead of adjusting it at each wheel individually, there is a single point lever that adjusts all four wheels simultaneously. The mower has a wide range of height options from 1 1/4 to 3 1/2 inches, so you can be sure you are always cutting your lawn at the perfect height to keep it looking and feeling its best.
5. Nineteen inch cutting deck for increased efficiency : The cutting deck on the Black & Decker MM875 is a full nineteen inches wide, which is not only much wider than the average electric lawn mower but also comparable to the average cutting deck width found on gas powered lawn mowers. Wider cutting decks are a very important feature of lawn mowers, as they allow you to finish cutting the lawn in fewer passes. Fewer passes simply means less time spent on yard and garden chores and more time spent relaxing and enjoying the weekend with your family. All too often, electric lawn mowers do not have engines that are powerful enough to support extra wide cutting decks, which limits the size of the lawn they can efficiently take care of. But the Black & Decker MM875 has a powerful 12 Amp engine that can support a wider cutting deck easily.

Any one of these features, such as the extra wide cutting deck or rear bag and mulching options being conveniently included in the initial purchase price, would be enough to draw a very positive review for the Black & Decker MM875. But taken together, they make this one of the best plug-in electric lawn mowers on the market today. Features like the ergonomically designed, cushioned handle and multiple cutting height options between 1 1/4 and 3 1/2 inches are exactly what you need for a very convenient and enjoyable grass cutting experience. As a result, I think the Black & Decker MM875 is an excellent lawn mower. If you have a yard that is the right size for its ability, it can take a lot of the hassle out of taking care of your lawn.

Cons

At the same time, there are number of areas in which the Black & Decker MM875 is not exactly perfect. There are limitations to what a plug in electric lawn mower can do, as well as how much area they can efficiently cover. The Black & Decker MM875, like many electric lawn mowers, can sometimes have difficulty with taller grass, which can slow down the cutting deck somewhat. It also may have problems with tougher varieties of grass like toes that are grown in the Southern United States and the Southwest. The rear bag, while very convenient, tends to fill up quickly and may need to be emptied before you are finished cutting the lawn. And its materials and construction are mostly made of plastic, and may not hold up to wear and tear over the long term. Let’s take a look at each one of these drawbacks in a little more detail.

1. The mower is limited by its power cord : There are two schools of thought on this point. A plug-in electric lawn mower will often be able to support a more powerful motor, which means it will be able to handle tough jobs better than a cordless mower. On the other hand, you are limited with a plug in lawn mower in terms of the radius it can handle. The Black & Decker MM875 can cut a radius of 100 feet of the nearest outlet. While this should be sufficient for smaller yards, you may find that a far corner of a medium sized lawn might be slightly out of range. Also, power cords have disadvantages of their own associated with them. They may get lost in taller grass, where you run the risk of mowing over them and potentially slicing through them or damaging the cutting deck. And they seem to get tangled up no matter how carefully you wind them up before you put them away.
2. It may have difficulty with taller grass : This is a problem that seems to be fairly common among electric lawn mowers. Because they do not have engines that are as powerful as those on gas powered lawn mowers, they tend to struggle with taller grass. If you are the kind of lawn care expert who always cuts their grass on a strict schedule, then this will probably not be an issue you ever encounter. But if you like to let your lawn get a bit long and shaggy between cuttings, or if you periodically go out of town or otherwise find yourself too busy to get to yard work, you may run into this problem. When you do, you will just have to be patient. The Black & Decker MM875 can cut through taller grass, but it may be a bit slower going or require multiple passes to do so.
3. It can struggle with tougher varieties of grass : In some parts of the country – particularly the Southern United States and the Southwest – varieties of grass that are more drought and heat resistant are typically grown. These grasses, such as St. Augustine and Bermuda grass, do dormant and turn brown over the winter, but are able to stay green and lush without too much watering through the hottest months. But they are much tougher and have thicker stalks than the grasses grown in the rest of the country, such as Kentucky bluegrass and fine fescues. As a result, electric lawn mowers such as the Black & Decker MM875 may have difficulty cutting through them. The mower’s cutting deck may get slowed down and fail to cut through the stalks on the first pass, which could require multiple passes to cut lawns with these varieties.
4. The rear bag fills up rather quickly : While it is certainly very convenient that the rear bag assembly is included in the initial purchase price, there are a couple of issues I have found with it. The discharge chute on the mower is not perfectly angled, so it may get clogged – especially if you are cutting grass that is still wet. And the rear bag tends to fill up fairly quickly. Because the chute is at the bottom of the bag, the bag will seem full when it is only at about 50%. If you have a lawn that is a bit on the bigger side, you may find that you have to empty the rear bag more than once while you are cutting the grass. Finally, the rear bag itself is made out of a nylon mesh, and so finer particulates can permeate it, which means that dust or dirt may blow out of it when you first start up the lawn mower.
5. The materials are not very durable : While the cutting blade is made out of hardened steel and the motor is designed with high quality parts, some other parts on the Black & Decker MM875 are not made of very durable materials. The wheels and the body of the lawn mower are made of plastic, which may not hold up to wear and tear as well as composite materials or metal would. The handle is held together with wing nuts, which do tend to loosen over time and have to be tightened almost every time you use the lawn mower. Of course, this problem can be mitigated by simply replacing the wing nuts with a more fixed bolt. And the cushion on the handle is also not particularly durable and you may find that it tears after repeated use. At the same time, if you treat the Black & Decker MM875 with care and do not subject it to too much punishment, it should perform well for you over the long term.

All things considered, I do not think that any of these drawbacks is serious enough that it would warrant giving the Black & Decker MM875 a poor review. Some of these cons are simply par for the course when you are shopping for an electric lawn mower, especially a plug in one. These machines will be limited by the radius of the extension cord, and it is not uncommon for them to struggle with tall grass or have difficulties getting through tougher varieties of grass. If you have a smaller yard, the fact that the rear bag can fill up fairly quickly should not present too much of a problem, and fortunately if it does fill up, it’s very easy to remove and empty. Finally, although the body and wheels of the Black & Decker MM875 are not made of the most durable materials, the fact that they’re plastic does make the mower more lightweight, and if you take care of it I don’t think this will be a problem either.

Product Comparison

Whenever you are shopping for a new piece of lawn or garden equipment, it is always a good practice to do some comparison shopping. This way, you can get a better idea of how an individual product stacks up against similar ones made by its competitors as well as a clearer overall picture of what a particular market has to offer. There may be product specs that one piece of machinery offers that you are not aware are even options. Because of that, it’s always best to shop around a bit and compare what different machines have to offer before you make your final decision. In order to make it a bit easier to do this, I like to provide my readers with detailed product comparison tables that look at a number of important lawn mower product specs such as cutting deck width, cutting area, and height adjustment. The following table compares product specs for the Black & Decker MM875 with those of the Worx WG775 and the Black & Decker CM1836. Let’s take a look.

	Black & Decker MM875	Worx WG775	Black & Decker CM1836
Dimensions	36.1 x 17.6 x 22.5 inches	26.8 x 16.1 x 13.2 inches	37.5 x 15.5 x 21.5 inches
Power	Corded 12 Amp Motor	24V Removable Battery (Inc. 1 battery)	36V Integrated Battery (Inc. 1 battery)
Charge Time	n/a	5 Hours to 100%	12 Hours to 100%
Deck Size (cutting swath)	19-inch	14-inch	18-inch
Mulch/Bag/Discharge	Mulch and bag	Mulch, bag, and discharge	Rear bag (mulching insert and side discharge chute sold separately)
Cutting Area	n/a	up to 1/4 acre	up to 1/3 acre
Runtime charge (conditions may vary)	n/a	up to 30 minutes	up to 45 minutes
Drive System	Manual Push	Manual Push	Manual Push
Starter	Handle pull	Key + Push button	Handle pull
Height Adjustment	One point (single lever adjusts all four wheels simultaneously)	Handle (6 positions)	One point (single lever adjusts all four wheels simultaneously)
Height Settings	1-1/4- to 3-1/2-inch	1-4/5- to 3-1/3-inch	1-1/2- to 3-1/2-inch
Wheel Size	7-inch front / 8-inch rear	6.5-inch front / 6.5-inch rear	7-inch front / 8-inch rear
Weight	52 pounds	32.2 pounds	64 pounds
Warranty	2 years	2 years	2 years

As you can see, the cutting deck on the Black & Decker MM875 is the widest of the three lawn mowers, at nineteen inches. But it is also the only one of the three lawn mowers that has to be plugged in; the Worx WG775 is equipped with a 24 volt removable battery and the Black & Decker CM1836 has a 36 volt integrated battery. Batteries extend the potential range of an electric lawn mower beyond what a power cord can reach, but at the same time they take hours to charge up and limit the run time significantly. The Black & Decker MM875 comes ready to mulch or use a rear bag assembly, as does the Worx WG775, while the Black & Decker CM1836 sells side discharge and mulching kits separately. The Black & Decker MM875 has the widest cutting height range of the three lawn mowers, and also has fairly large wheels, especially when compared to the Worx WG775.

Conclusion

When all of its features are taken under consideration, I think you will agree with me that the Black & Decker MM875 is an excellent plug in lawn mower. Unlike a gas powered lawn mower, which will produce a great deal of emissions, fill your yard and clothes with gas fumes, and force you to spend a lot of money on fuel and maintenance costs, an electric lawn mower like the Black & Decker MM875 is great for the environment and your wallet. The Black & Decker MM875 has plenty of power, with a 12 Amp motor, so it can support a larger cutting deck than battery powered law mowers can, although it is limited in its range by the length of the power cord. Although there are a few drawbacks associated with the Black & Decker MM875, overall I think the Pros considerably outweigh the Cons on it. Let’s take another look at both before we wrap up the review.

Conclusion Pros

1. Zero emissions for a smaller carbon footprint.
2. Mulching and rear bag included.
3. Easy to start up and use.
4. Convenient, ergonomic design features.
5. Nineteen inch cutting deck for increased efficiency.

Like all electric lawn mowers, the Black & Decker MM875 helps you reduce your household’s overall carbon footprint considerably. Not only will you not have to use fossil fuels to run it, you also won’t be producing nearly as many emissions as you would with a gas powered lawn mower. Unlike many other lawn mowers, which either do not provide a mulching or rear bag option at all or else force you to purchase them as separate accessories, they are both included in the initial purchase price of the Black & Decker MM875 . The mower is very easy to start up every time, and it does not need a lot of maintenance to keep it running smoothly. It is designed with convenience and comfort in mind, and the overall grass cutting experience with the Black & Decker MM875 is downright enjoyable. Finally – and perhaps most importantly – it has the kind of extra wide cutting deck that will help you finish cutting he lawn in fewer passes and less time.

Conclusion Cons

1. The mower is limited by its power cord.
2. It may have difficulty with taller grass.
3. It can struggle with tougher varieties of grass.
4. The rear bag fills up rather quickly.
5. The materials are not very durable.

There are advantages and disadvantages to using a plug-in electric lawn mower. Unlike battery powered lawn powers, which have a limited window of time before they run out of juice, you can run a plug-in lawn mower almost indefinitely. On the other hand, the plug in lawn mower will only go as far as its extension cord can reach, so its range will be a bit limited. Also, dealing with bulky power cords that get tangled up and can be lost in tall grass can be a bit of a hassle. The Black & Decker MM875 may run into difficulties if you are using it to cut tougher varieties of grass such as St. Augustine or Bermuda grass, and its cutting deck may get bogged down in denser patches of your lawn.

The rear bag fills up fairly quickly and if you are cutting wetter grass the discharge chute may get clogged easily. Finally, the materials used on the body and wheels of the mower are made of plastic, which will not hold up to wear and tear over the long term as well as metal materials would. However, I do not think any of these drawbacks are serious enough to raise the kind of red flags that would result in a negative review.

Final Word

When you own a property that has a smaller lawn on it – less than about 1/4 of an acre – you have the option to switch over to an electric lawn mower that can get small jobs done quickly and efficiently. These machines are better than gas powered lawn mowers for a number of reasons. They are better for the environment, because they do not produce any emissions or require fossil fuels to run them. They are much quieter than gas powered lawn mowers, which means you can use them as early in the morning as you like without worrying about disturbing still-sleeping neighbors. And they’re generally easier to use and require less maintenance than gas powered lawn mowers are.

The Black & Decker MM875 provides all of these advantages as well as a few others. It has enough power to support a wider cutting deck than battery powered electric lawn mowers can. It has convenient features such as a mulching kit and rear bag assembly included in the initial purchase price. And it is so easy to use that you will find cutting your grass to be an enjoyable experience with it. Even with its minor limitations, I think the Black & Decker MM875 is a solid, good quality electric lawn mower that is reasonably priced.

Best Price

Electric lawn mowers can offer a great deal of efficiency and excellent performance quality, but when they do, they’re often fairly expensive. But they don’t have to be. The Black & Decker MM875 is reasonably priced for an electric lawn mower: it falls roughly into the mid range of what electric lawn mowers with similarly sized cutting decks and other product specs tend to offer. Part of this is due to the fact that it is not a cordless lawn mower, which can be more expensive than plug-in models. But if you have a small enough lawn, the range limits caused by the power cord will not be a problem. And because you will never have to spend a dime on gasoline, maintenance, or replacing batteries, the Black & Decker MM875 will save you a lot of money over the long term as well.