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Stihl MM56 Multi tool

Hi, 

Does anyone have any experience of teh Stihl MM56 multi tool? Reluctantly, I am having to pay more attention to lawn care and I thought this machine looked ideal, lightweight, foldable, reasonable price when compared to dedicated machines and, of course, it's a Stihl. In particular then I am looking at the aerator, dethatcher and possibly edging tool. I cannot find much at all regarding reviews and usually YouTube is full of them. I am told most peopl opt for the Kombi-system but that doesn't have the aerator and dethatcher attachments. I look after 5 large gardens so I'm not looking at doing lawns professionally. Is it too lightweight? Can it do the job? Any other suggestions? 

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  • PRO

    I use one with the tines for dethatching and have removed both treated moss and even live moss prior to reseeding It is a powerful machine which is very efficient . i find you can clear oatches quickly but has a tendency to dig holes until you get used to the machine . 

    I can gently dethatch a healthy lawn in around three passes without ripping it up and see improvments . 

     A dedicated scarifier will perhaps offer a more refined and methodical approach to moss removal I have discovered the lawn can look a bit drastic after using the MM , its best to warn the customer in advance because it will take out lots of healthy grass and cause alot of extra work until you get used to it .

    • I assumed the dethatcher would act like a lawn rake but without the effort. I expected it to scratch out the thatch and moss not annihilate the lawn. God knows what the aerator would do. 

       

      • PRO

        It gets the job done . 

        The drawback is its a fast machine and you cant adjust the tines , great for detatching as part of a maintenance service and it wont do any damage , the lawn will benefit .

        If you use it to remove moss i find i have to hold the machine on the spot and it can be fierce , a scarifier you can adjust the blades .

        I have used the MM as part of lawn restoration and it  has saved time and done a thorough job . 

        One particularly bad lawn the specialist couldn't get the moss out with a scarifier , the job was taking forever so i used the MM and it cleared the area but the customer was not impressed initially and a bit shocked but it did the prep necessary to enable us to reseed the lawn and resulted in a beautiful lawn . 

        Its the right tool for the job sometimes .

        • Thanks for that John. Have you used any of the other attachments? I was thinking of the aerator and possibly the edging tool for grass work but the tiller tools might be useful which would mean I could sell my rotovator. 

           

  • PRO

    Do any of the dealers actually have one in stock or the accessories to be able to sell them you ?

    • I have tracked down a machine with one dealer and the attachments with another. It seems that nobody wants to hold stock anymore. The accountants will tell them that it is money tied up but accountants are bad businessmen. 

       

      • PRO

        No not used the other attachments so can't comment . I bought mine from a dealer it was pre owned and came with the rake which is what i wanted as already had a mantis with the aerator and tiller . 

        Mantis has since being stolen and the replacement cultivator is not great so it would be logical to buy those attachments for the MM if the demand arises .

        First time i had seen one in the dealers although they were stihl dealers they could get the attachments but did not hold them in stock and they were brilliant dealers but called it a day due to online competition .

        • I'm beginning to think that getting one at a knock down price or pre-owned is the only way I'll get one. It's too pricey to take a punt on it.

           

      • PRO

        I ordered a ladder stay over three weeks ago from a firm local to me, several years ago I went to their warehouse at a former farm and collected a step ladder, now it seems the warehouse has gone and they just have an office at another former farm on the other side of the village.

        So I presume they have just handled the order and I am awaiting a direct delivery from the manufacturer or another intermediary.

        These days you generally have no idea where orders are being fulfilled from with the stock often being held elsewhere in Europe ready to ship to the UK.

        Between Covid and Brexit I cannot see where it’s all heading, I suspect a lot of the small businesses selling from redundant farm buildings repurposed as commercial units are going to disappear as well as there being empty offices and warehouses around towns.

        • What gets me is how people didn't see this coming. So they think they'll save money by moving from an expensive shop front and move the operation to an industrial unit on a farm somewhere and sell online. Then they save money by not holding stock but ordering it as they make a sale. So, they are only as good as the manufacturers are at getting production out. They too are only making the product as they get orders so the whole thing slows down until the new customer base hasn't a clue what is on offer as they can't see what is on offer. I tracked down a machine but even if they let me try it out (which I doubt they would) they didn't have any attachments. Another online company said 'well Stihl are the best so it must work', yes for some but does it work for me? They then tell me they can't get one until the end of October anyway. Frustrating. Just waiting for some enterprising company to come up with the idea of opening a shop where the customer can view what's on offer. Now wouldn't that be a good idea.

           

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