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hi whether the HLA85 is suitable depends what type of activities you want it for, I only use mine for inaccessible bits of growth, tops of wide hedges etc where its telescopic feature makes it essential, For everyday use the ''short long reach'' HLA65 gets utilised more as it is less bulky and lighter. Am still on my first HLA85 after 5 years but as I say it doesn't get used as much
Hi thanks for the reply I currently have a stihl hs82 30 inch trimmer but looking the best option for all round hedge work in regards to long reach for topping hedges plus dealing with tall and wide hedge
Yes the HLA85 is a great machine, the AP300 battery is the right one for this unit as its weight counter balances the front end as well as can be expected when telescoped out. I find the power plenty, cutting up to thumb thickness stems if needs be
So you would advise to go down the battery route as opposed to the petrol kn94 stihl? Appreciate your feedback
Cheers George I haven't tried the other machine to be fair, am not a fan of the multi tool type machines in general but I know some folk swear by them, the battery one has a seriously long reach and is nice to use, it has done me proud so far with very little maintenance needed
Super many thanks I'm not a great fan of multi tool either but just wary of lack of power with battery but reckon I'm swaying towards it now. Cheers for your help
youre welcome George quite a few other members on here use the HLA's so might chip in with their experiences
Definitely go for the battery tool. I moved over to batteries in November last year. I wish I had done it years ago. I have the HLA 65 and the HSA 86. They will cut anything the HS 56 Ce would, but without the noise, starting effort and most importantly, without the deadly two stroke fumes in my face. I also have the FSA 130 strimmer and AR3000 backpack battery.
The other day I did two hours hedge cutting [one and a half hours trigger time] and used about half the charge of one of my AP 200 batteries. If I had used the HS 56 I would have used three tanks of two stroke. The AP 200s give two and a half hours trigger time in either of the hedge cutters I have and are lighter and cheaper than the AP 300s, so don’t assume you need the 300s. Either the HSA 86 or the HLA 65 can be had as a package deal with two AP 200s and the AL300 charger. In the deal you effectively get the second battery at half price. You should also get about 12% dealer discount as well. The AL 300 will charge an AP 200 very quickly, so don’t assume you need the more expensive AL 500.
If you are using a pole hedge cutter [or a normal hedge cutter] then you need an Easy Lift Harness.
I have had mine for a few years now and it changed my life. I cannot emphasise enough the scale of the difference it makes. All I can say is imagine using a hedge cutter that weighs nothing. That’s what the ELH does.
That's pretty impressive tbh thanks very much for all your feedback the backpack battery is it heavy? How long does it last for on a charge? I'll definitely look into the ELH your feedback is great thanks again vic
The backpack battery is heavy to pick up [6.8 Kilos], but once you have it on your back you don’t notice it. The FSA 130 weighs nothing, and this is where you get the huge advantage over the petrol version.
Of course when hedge cutting, you can’t use a backpack battery and an ELH together, but then there is no need to do so. Although using the AE3000 makes the HSA 86 very light, having no battery on board, using the ELH instead is still by far the better option.
I use the AR3000 for the strimmer. Battery strimmers eat battery run time whereas the hedge cutters don’t. The AR3000 is over six times the capacity of the AP200, so with the HSA 86 that would be over fifteen hours trigger time.
I only get two hours with the strimmer despite much higher quoted figures from Stihl. It’s a bit like Volkswagen’s emissions figures. If you use very thin line and not much of it extended out then you will achieve much better run times. But in the real world of 3mm square line with plenty of it extended, it needs much more energy to spin.
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