Which electric brushcutter

[damian]

Hi all.

I have to ask for some advice. I've tried to research myself but now I'm part blind and have difficulties reading I'm struggling. I am sorry for the trouble.

For 20 years I've had stihl FS220 and FS280 brushcutters. I use them mostly with tap to feed heads and lately I've been using the twisted pair line as it seems to fuse together much less than round.

My block slopes so a lot of it has to be slashed with brushcutters. The sthils are getting more troublesome as they age as you would expect. What really infuriates me is stihl service. The local dealers know sfa about the machines. They routinely sell me the wrong parts and won't fix or service them. $%^&*() hopeless. Stihl themselves won't answer enquirers.

Incredibly I can probably get decent money selling them off so I'm thinking of getting a new machine.

I am looking at the electric machines but I have no experience with them. I have found little of use online. I want something with grunt. We have what I believe is called panic grass here. A drop of water and the stuff is 3' high overnight. It's a thick clumping grass and it needs grunt to cut it. I would like to continue with tap to feed head and the thicker line. I'm looking for a reliable durable machine ideally with an hour runtime on a charge. I won't buy stihl. They have burned this bridge.

Can anyone report experience with the better quality brands in this space. I see husqvana honda etc seem to do electric brushcutters. In any case I would buy the buggest they have and I really need handlebars not a loop.

Your thoughts most appreciated.

[Bernmc]

I've had a stihl FS400 for many years. Just bought a Husqvarna 535iRXT (https://www.husqvarna.com/au/brushcutters/husqvarna-535irxt-skin-only/). It is phenomenal. I wonder around wreaking carnage and wonder why I waited so long to get it.

I already have a couple of Husqy battery tools so didn't need battery or charger, so you'll need to factor them into the equations. You'll want at least one BLi300 battery.

While the headline price looks and is a bit steep, remember that this particular model comes with a Balance X harness, 300mm 3-point steel brushcutting blade, and the E35B ergofeed trimmer head - which is a little different from the bump and 'auto' pain in the butt heads. You push a button on the control handle and it feeds out line. When you add it all up, you're not paying much more for the machine itself than the next model down.

I'm not sure about cutting time - I have a 750sqm steep block with excess jungle vegetation (it's a LOT to cut) and I think I'll get a 2nd Bli300 to cover cutting and blowing.

Overall, I've been very impressed with the Husqvarna battery range, and I keep adding to it as I replace the petrol tools.

AUs stocks are low at the moment, and delivery dates are out to June/July. However the bigger Husqvarna centres still seem to have stuff.

[damian]

Thank you for the reply.


I don't use anything other than lawn mower and brushcutter.


It takes me a long time to read and process things so I might be back with questions.


It's a pity hitachi/hikoki don't seem to do one as I'm already set up with that stuff. I was looking at the makita thinking I could buy some 40V skins to leverage the battery but I don't really need anything so...


It would be good to see some sort of comparison between the Honda and HUSQVARNA , and maybe the Makita...


I'll never buy stihl again. I will keep my harness though.


The line feed is intriguing. Do you know how it works ?


Also what size line does it use and are there any restrictions ? I am quite keen on the twisted pair line now. There are advantages to the round line but the constant fusing together drove me nuts.

[Beardy]

I have a Petrol Husky that I now only use for HD work with a metal slashing blade in it. My daily go to is my 36v Makita unit, I love it and has all the power I need. I live on acreage so have a bit to get through

I don’t know what is available in the 40v range but I have been using one of the new 40v drop saws this week and it is very nice, I already have the 36v version so won’t be changing in a hurry

[damian]

I've been looking at makita.


This video concerns me


36 VOLT MAKITA MOWER REVIEW - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhLuzqgaDK0)


Ideally I'd like to get a mower and bruscutter on teh same system. I can't find a mower that uses the 20V system for makita ? So I had a look at the 2x18V machines. The brushcutters look low on power but get good reviews but the mower review is concerning.


I can get a mower kit plus a trimmer skin for about $1190 which is cheap enough, unless you aren't happy with it.


In a perfect world I'd prefer an 18" self propelled mower. I am struggling to work out what makita offer.


I'll have a look at husqvana and honda as I can. Struggling to find useful stuff.

Husqvana LC 347iVX + LC 347ivx + Bli30 $2309 near as double the price and that's only 1 300 battery and the cheapest charger.

Honda:

535iRXT
HRG466
DP3640XA
CV3680XA
2446



Even dearer. You might find better prices if you shop around, maybe... This does include the honda 21" self propelled, but only because they don't seem to do an 18" SP.

I grit my teeth and looked at stihl

FSA 135 + RMA 460 V = 1666 (note satan's number there...)

That's a self propelled mower kit plus brushcutter skin. $640 cheaper than the husky stuff... :(

[Beardy]

I have no experience with the battery mowers as I use a self propelled 21 inch Toro petrol mower. But find the 36v Makita line trimmer, blower, chainsaw and hedger fantastic gear.
There is a local lawn mowing contractor who has his van set up with all EGO battery gear and uses no petrol appliances so their gear must be good.

Just on that video review you posted Damien, does anyone use a catcher these days? I use the mulching setting and have never even tried my catcher , I wore out my last mower too with the catcher unused left on the shed shelf

[damian]

I use the catcher every time.


I haven't had time to look at ego, that was going to be next. I don't know anything about them. I'll report back.

Incidentally Stihl, in typical form, have 2 variations of batteries and it's not at all clear whether they are interchangeable. I can't find information on that anywhere.


Thank you for the thoughts.

[Fuzzie]

I have a Makita mower and line trimmer and wouldn't recommend the mower for any really heavy cutting. See my thread After market 18V 6.0AH batteries for Makita LXT (https://www.woodworkforums.com/f13/market-18v-6-0ah-batteries-makita-lxt-246305)

I was surprised at how well the 36V line trimmer runs, however the actual bump head is smaller than my old petrol one and is a frigging frot to reload. I have a bit of arthritis in the thumbs and pressing in the tabs where it is needed to release the head causes me grief, apart from just holding a shorter length of line than my previous trimmer.

I used to wear out heads regularly on my old Kawasaki petrol trimmer (sloping block, lots of rocks) and I eventually settled on Honda ones as the best replacements in terms of price and ease of reloading.

If you go through a lot of line be sure to checkout the ease of reloading and perhaps look for reviews of the battery Hondas.

[damian]

Thank you for the comments.

I've got a 3:1 fall on most of my block. That's the average, there are plenty of places steeper.

After 20+ years of slashing the thing I've found the stihl bump to feed head along with the twisted pair line works well. I think it's 2.7mm or so. 0.09" or something. The thickest common line.

I've been trying to get my head around the ego stuff. They had a big brushcutter where the battery mounted on the head and it had handlebars. It is of course discontinued. The replacement (I think it's BCX3800) seems to only work with backpack batteries which of course cost a fortune. There are backpack adapters and they are on run out at total tools (not my favorite retailer) for not much more than the battery alone, but it's somewhat unclear how well the machine will work for my application.

Youtube does my head in. It's amazing that people can talk so much and say so little.

The makita is cheap, but I am concerned they just won't have the power to deal with the jungle. I really don't like fitting a blade for all sorts of reasons. I still have a couple but I pretty much never use them anymore..

I've emailed Ego. We shall see if they reply. I'm going to get busy from Monday afternoon so this will be put on the back-burner until I get some things sorted. I'll post an update if I hear back from Ego.

[Bernmc]

Go into a shop if you can and have a look at the Ego stuff. It is cr4p.

Husqvarna do a 2mm twisted line (https://www.husqvarna.com/au/trimmer-lines/trimmer-line-whisper-twist/), which is what I have. No idea whether you can stick thicker stuff in.

I decided on Husq or Stihl rather than expanding my DeWalt range as I thought I'd go with brands that specialise in garden equipment, rather than generalists. I started with the Chainsaw - at the time the H was better than the S. That may have changed (they tend to see-saw with each new model).

The arborists that keep the forest from our door had the same Husqy saw dangling from their belts, so I felt I'd made a good choice.

[damian]

Thank you for the comment.

I was coming to the same conclusion with Ego.

I have confirmed the Stihl battery systems do no interchange. To go stihl I'll need:

RMA 510 V Skin Only 649, FSA 135 Skin Only 749, AL 300 - Quick 159, AP 300 S Battery 299. Total 1856.

Still much cheaper than Husky or Honda. I'm probably going to call a husky dealer and see if I can answer some questions. It kills me to buy stihl but if there is $450 in it... :(

[Beardy]

I have a Makita mower and line trimmer and wouldn't recommend the mower for any really heavy cutting. See my thread After market 18V 6.0AH batteries for Makita LXT (https://www.woodworkforums.com/f13/market-18v-6-0ah-batteries-makita-lxt-246305)

I was surprised at how well the 36V line trimmer runs, however the actual bump head is smaller than my old petrol one and is a frigging frot to reload. I have a bit of arthritis in the thumbs and pressing in the tabs where it is needed to release the head causes me grief, apart from just holding a shorter length of line than my previous trimmer.

I used to wear out heads regularly on my old Kawasaki petrol trimmer (sloping block, lots of rocks) and I eventually settled on Honda ones as the best replacements in terms of price and ease of reloading.

If you go through a lot of line be sure to checkout the ease of reloading and perhaps look for reviews of the battery Hondas.

I don’t dismantle the head, you can just thread the line through the holes and wind it into the unit until full. Much easier and quicker than opening it up

[Fuzzie]

I don’t dismantle the head, you can just thread the line through the holes and wind it into the unit until full. Much easier and quicker than opening it up

Luxury! Unfortunately my battery Makita DUR368LZ came with just a basic manual take it off, hook it on and wind it round to load line. The manual list four or five other different nylon line heads, but none of them appear to be a Speed Feed style.

[Beardy]

Luxury! Unfortunately my battery Makita DUR368LZ came with just a basic manual take it off, hook it on and wind it round to load line. The manual list four or five other different nylon line heads, but none of them appear to be a Speed Feed style.

Mine is the same model number without the Z on the end whatever difference that means :?

This is what my head looks like

509155509156

[Bernmc]

It may also be worthwhile looking around at different dealers.
Our local stihl dealer has been pretty good (depending on which staff member you get to deal with). Service has been good, although it's usually a 4-6 week turnaround, blowing out to several months during COVID and supply chain issues. I'd have bought Stihl again if Husqy didn't have a better offering at the time (and I didn't like the fact that Stihl had two different noon-compatible battery systems)
In contrast, the local Husqy dealer has not been great (but occasionally I've got a bit of sense and reasonable service from one staff member). I tend to drive down to a big dealer on the central coast for most of the gear now. It's the difference between a general/non-specialist store, and a dedicated Husqvarna agent.

So maybe a different Stihl agent will make the Stihls a tolerable option

[Fuzzie]

Mine is the same model number without the Z on the end whatever difference that means :?

This is what my head looks like

509155509156

Interesting.
That looks like a head that only appears to be available in the US.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-M10-x-1-25-LH-Bump-and-Feed-Trimmer-Head-T-01753A/305698001

[Beardy]

Interesting.
That looks like a head that only appears to be available in the US.
Access Denied (https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-M10-x-1-25-LH-Bump-and-Feed-Trimmer-Head-T-01753A/305698001)

I bought it from Sydney Tools and haven’t changed the head

[damian]

This is what my head looks like

509155509156

You are a funny looking bloke!

I have no doubt your dealer experience depends on who you are dealing with. The killer for me is Stihl's determination to not engage with me at all despite my explaining the problem and asking reasonable pointed questions.

Regarding brushcutter threads for example they list them nowhere, like it's some special secret. The thread is never in the owner's manual, nor the website. They just have a list of compatible attachments for each machine and if you can't access that list you are stuffed.

Anyway the boss and I have a list of stuff we want between us. I'm going to email it around some dealers and see if we can get a discount. I am at her place until Saturday so I might not get to it until the weekend. My machine at home is better set up than this one for my blindness.