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Best long reach hedge trimmer unit

Hi all i currently have a kawasaki long reach hedge trimmer which is pretty good i also have a stihl kombi unit which im not sure on the model but it doesnt seem that powerful maybe 85 my question is i want a brand new 1 to save the mucking about when 1 or the other decides to work itself so what are everyones reccomendations for the best long reach unit?Thanks guys

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  • How long is a piece of string?

    On a serious side, I have a km130 with 135 hedge trimmer attachment, I would imagine the 95 and above would be enough

    You could buy the dedicated machine?
    • This reply was deleted.
      • For a short long reach machine, you can just take the combi engine off and stick it straight onto the combi hedgecutter driveshaft when you need that particular length. All Stihl 1" shaft kit is mix and match, including the telescopic polesaw shaft.

  • Hi Adam,

    The Stihl 135 head is a good tough unit, although expensive to repair if it does break. I'm very happy with mine, we run half a dozen and use pattern blade replacements. I bought a job lot of broken ones and with a few new bearings and some JB weld they're right as rain. Easy to work on if you're handy.

    You don't need power for hedgecutting- your 85 would run it fine if it is in good working order. You do need a solid driveshaft however. So my question would be, do you plan to use it for strimming (as this is what saps power)?

    I'd not buy a Stihl 4-mix personally. So that only really leaves the FS-94, which is a nice little unit with a solid driveshaft. FS-70 is similar but has a flexi shaft and the clutch drum is also weaker.

  • Hi Adam
    I have been using the Kawasaki long reach hedge trimmer for the past 3 seasons and love it.
    It's shorten than the Stihl HS 95 and Shindawi which I have used and has several little things I don't like, which is a contradiction I know when I said I love it. But the main things which it's easy to start, the blades stay sharp, sharper than Stihl imo, they do not bend like the Shindawi, it's lighter more manoeuvrable as it's shorter and has a fantastic clip rate.
    They are not cheap and would lose out for resale against the Stihl . In fact I have a brand new Stihl 95 but will probably sell it and get another Kawasaki when the time comes.
    The Kawasaki actually looks a bit toyish out of the box but they do a great job and despite the shorter length I have still managed to do the exact same jobs as previous years without problem. Would not thought that as some hedges are very wide, perhaps my arms have grown ha ha (:-) .
    The lower weight actually makes a difference when using for long periods. Wouldn't think the small weight difference would count but for me at least it has.
  • PRO
    Stihl hl95 k has served me well for the last 5yrs plenty of grunt, whack it through thick laurel no problem, good for reductions and trimming, if you want something lighter mainly for trimming I also use a tanaka tph 230 leaves a high qulity finish...
  • PRO Supplier

    Hi Adam,

    I would be inclined to buy the Stihl 130 Kombi Power unit, so that you have a spare if you're original power unit breaks down and flexibility to use your existing attachments.I have owned and used a number of Stihl 130 Power units and have found them to be very reliable, they have carried out many hours of work over the years!

    • If you're never had to mess around with adjusting valves or have them pissing out petrol through the air filter you're a lucky man. 2-mix gets my vote.

  • I like the Shindaiwa AH243S, had many of their tools and the reliability is excellent. Not that many others seem to use the Shindaiwa brand though so maybe I've just been lucky.

  • This reply was deleted.
    • I must admit I never knew that either, always assumed it was something to do with the risk of fresh petrol splashing onto a hot exhaust and making a fire ball, even with the cordless I use now I think it is good practice to let the motor and battery cool between periods of intensive use, although running nowhere near as hot as a petrol and you are never going to burn yourself on it, excessive heat could potentially damage components 

    • That's not the case mate. Hedgecutters are air cooled, and will run all day without overheating unless there is a major malfunction. Was it a salesman who told you that?

      Think about it- once it's warm it's expanded ever so slightly. Air cooling keeps it at this stage. Firstly, the machine will be built with this tolerance in mind. Secondly, if you were to be pedantic, letting it contract is a stress cycle in the materials life, and probably more damaging (although un-measurable in regular use)

      The delay before refuelling is probably to do with fire risk. We just top straight up and go away again, it's never bothered us. I run Stihl handheld blowers flat out all day pushing air down a pipe into big fires, and they just keep going.

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