Hello,
Bought a battery (18v) no name hedge trimmer about 5 years ago (3/4 inch tooth spacing. Used it on bramble, some really thick ones for many hours. And lots of managing thin wild overgrowth around fences ... (cuttingvthin branches). Used it in a process of clearing the land, where it could manage the branch thickness. I am fully aware that it is the border line of what it was designed for. But it stood its ground.
Today it broke. Upon dissasemby found pieces of needle bearing in gear housing. No idea where that bearing was originaly. Took it to pieces and trashed it, since this is one off equipment, with no spare parts available. Blades were surprisingly well made, kept an edge really well. Gears to my surprise were in good shape too.
Probably got twice the money worth what i paid for from this trimmer useful life. Not complaining there.
Same model is not available any more.
What is life expectancy of hedge trimmer ? (Years, working hours etc.)
Do you have any suggestions to buy a new one (have makita and einhell 18v batteries) ?
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Assuming you need a normal short-reach 18 volt, Makita DUH506 or DUH606 are good machines (brushless motor). Although I use 36 volt / 40 volt trimmers for doing jobs personally as they tend to be more powerful. Am not familiar with the Einhells though I have a few other 18 volt non-gardening tools from this brand and they are good. If your no-name brand charger & batteries are still working it's worth putting them on ebay as there is demand for discontinued ranges
Thanks.
I also have bl4050 battery and charger. But that battery is almost 3lbs heavy by itself.
If i went ahead and bought xgt hedge trimmer, i may be carying unnecessary excess weight.
I figure in this case its a role of a dice if you go cheap cheap or top of the line hedge trimmer.
Because those gears and bearings assemby can brake and it is not easy to diy repair it. And parts can be expensive. Also it is possible to not be able to assemble it properly if doing repair, even if you get hold of spare part.
When cheap hedge trimmer goes out (brakes), you can buy whole new tool for the price of spare blade of branded tools. Not to mention waiting time if part is not on stock, which can easily be 2-4 weeks.
I also have cordless secuteurs and loppers to aid trimming/reduction hedge work.
Not really sure on this one.
If i had stihl batteries already, then i think choice would be easier. But, not eager to jump into another battery platform.
Most of my budget battery gear has impressed me and still performing after Five years .
I bought a spear and Jackson battery chainsaw Five years ago from Argos as I was stuck on a Job and Argos was nearby , I charged the battery at the customers house and completed the work .
Five years on and that chainsaw has amazed me , the work it's done including cutting logs at home and on the same chain , rarely use my Stihl petrol chainsaw anymore .
My thinking is a battery chainsaw designed for a domestic user will have gone through stringent safety checks technically so some quality control in place although cannot account for user error .
Also bought a spear and Jackson battery power washer for home use and still going ok after Three years .
Have used and still use Gtech hedge trimmers successfully on many occasions owing to their lightness ( horses for courses ) obviously never had a problem and also fantastic customer service .
I find Stihl battery ticks all the boxes for my specific needs especially having long reach capability .
I went ahead and bought Makita 40v (XGT) hedge trimmer.
I was also considering Stihl Hsa 60, but since i dont have any stihl batteries went with Makita.
Normally the sthils we have are good for 3-4 years. (Hedgetrimming 2 months a year.)The batteries on the sthil app is what worries me - looks like they have a timer built in and therefore also a self destruct time!
if the Stihl batteries are as good as the original packs from 2008 onwards, many of them were still working fine 10 to 12 years later when I sold my old ones off gradually, there was no way of knowing how many charges or hours of work were done on those of course.
What I have always done is buy a couple of batteries initially and then stagger purchase of extra batteries and buy a couple more a year later so always got new ones even though the current ones are charging and working fine .
Only ever had one battery which became fully discharged with use which is interesting as it's partner battery purchased same time and charged on same routine cycle is still a good un .
Purchased 8 years ago so not complaining but battery life is fascinating and certainly not maths I can get my head around but if it could be broken down in terms of how much they cost to how much profit they made and also how much fuel they have saved .
The added bonus to me though is the value they add and savings on kit maintenance .
Saw this too late but I have an Einhell & I love it. Very light & surprisingly good. It's perfect for light trimming, deadheading etc & avoids getting the Stihl out
By the way don't trust the grease nipples - take the cover off so the whole machanism gets grease