Strimmer/Brushcutter

May 05, 2014 17 Replies

Ok, I've just managed to kill my old McCulloch (sp?) petrol strimmer/brushcutter, so I need to replace it.



My front garden is about 20'x20', back garden three times that size. I live next door to a woods, so it tends to get covered in weeds.



I am *not* a natural gardener (translation: I hate it).



So suggestions please for a replacement - it needs to have a bit of power due to thistles etc. Not bothered whether it's petrol, mains or battery powered. Max budget about £100 (less if possible)



TIA


How about "do nothing". Say you are letting wild flowers grow (weeds are wild flowers).

I doubt you would get an Electric one to do that sort of thing. Not enough torque. Brian

How about a load of Readimix, spread about 4" thick? That'll stop the weeds!

Nah, he is probably in a conservation area. These are to be avoided at all costs as even a simple shed needs to look the part and cost three times as much. Brian

I have recently got this one:

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36V Li-Ion. The string seems to fare better than my old petrol (ie it does eat it at a rate of knots).

I get about 30-50 minutes hour at about 50% duty cycle out of one charge on the "eco" speed setting. That's enough to take out non woodly stuff. Full power is pretty destructive but will reduce the run time.

Now, you can either get a 2nd battery for heavy continuous use (recharge time is similar to run time) or do as I do which is do a bit then charge it and switch to another job.

My use is not as heavy as yours sounds, but compared to a Ryobi strimmer I had:

1) Much lighter;

2) About the same useful power (which is partly a function of string size)

3) Cannot run continuously without 2 batteries, but only you can decide if this is OK for you.

4) Lack of faffing is nice - not fiddling with 2 stroke mix or burning arms on a hot engine.

It's NOT a brush cutter, but is seems to be a very capable line trimmer.

I cannot say what the batteries will be like - Bosch I'd be happy to say they'd probably last a few years, but Bosch do not have a 36V strimmer.

Don't bother with 10.8V "toys". Cannot comment on the 18V machines but they might be OK.

I share your sentiment, with the proviso that the "wild flowers" are actually flowers and not crappy weeds like cow parsley :)

I have just thrown some wild meadow mix seeds around the edges of my garden where grass does not flourish.

I think the momentum makes up for the shortfall in torque. I have not noticed my 36V strimmer struggling.

God no!! I have spent 4 years on and off finding random concrete which goes under the grass for a metre in some unexpected direction. I have used god knows how much skip space as well as shagging my car springs getting rid of the bloody stuff! I think this house was owned by a readymix driver...

I still have about 60m2 of concrete that will one day be gone...

A bit of a non-starter I'm afraid. Rented house & all that.

Nice idea, but maybe a tad on the expensive side. I can't see the landlord being incredibly impressed either TBH.

I like the look of that, but as far as I can tell, it is a mite expensive. The cheapest I can find that online is around the £130+ mark.

You can't throw £15 of seeds about?

Expensive is when you buy the Makita version!

To be honest, *if* it lasts, £130 is as good as you'll ever get for a Li-Ion device that is not totally crap. If you want a lot cheaper that actually works, a mains version is your best bet.

I wish I could give it the green light long term, but B&D is a brand I've not touched for 2 decades. I'm hopeful, but I've taken a chance...

How dead is it? What is the problem?

Mike

It's the end result that I suspect they wouldn't approve of. I like the idea, but they expect the garden to be kept tidy.

The engine is falling off the shaft, there is also a problem with the electrical system (no spark most of the time).

TBH, it's a fair few years old and wasn't particularly expensive - I'm suprised it's lasted this long.

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