Weed Whackers

[sodaksooner]

Kinda going through the same dilemma but I think I need to Err on the gas side. I do a lot of volunteer trail work and need more life than batteries can give me. My yard alone would be fine with just electric however. I looked yesterday at gas and Damn, they have gotten pricey...Wow. $300+ for a gas one. Think I paid less than 200 7 or 8 years ago for the same machine.

 

[doc holiday13]

Spraying diesel fuel on those spots will work also...

Dish soap and industrial strength vinegar works the same and has a 0% chance of ruining the ground water..

Just saying

 

[blicero]

I'll never get other electric weed eater again. Got a Steihl, and it's the prius of weed eaters. No power. I'll use gas until our gov shuts it down

I'm sure there are use cases for electric lawn equipment, but mine isn't it. I got an electric mower that can barely do the back and side yards before it needs to be recharged, turning a simple mow into a multi-hour ordeal. Electric weed whackers make no sense to me either but to each their own. I've got a Stihl trimmer and backpack leaf blower and they're awesome.

 

[Watrdawg]

I've tried a few electric yard tools and won't use them again. I'll stick with my tried and true Stihl gas products.

 

[CorbLand]

Kinda going through the same dilemma but I think I need to Err on the gas side. I do a lot of volunteer trail work and need more life than batteries can give me. My yard alone would be fine with just electric however. I looked yesterday at gas and Damn, they have gotten pricey...Wow. $300+ for a gas one. Think I paid less than 200 7 or 8 years ago for the same machine.

If you need long run time, I think gas is a no brainer but for just stuff around the house electric seems to be the way to go. Plus, I dont have to worry about my wife putting the wrong gas in it.

 

[Tater86]

I personally did not like the Milwaukee because mine wouldn't autofeed the string. I had to stop it and pull it out by hand every few minutes. Everything else about it worked fine, but I got tired of it and went back to a gas Husqvarna.

As for getting a deal though, check Home Depot's site every day. They have daily deals and once a week they always have some type of Milwaukee tools on sale. I always grab my tool deals that way.

 

[displacedtexan]

I personally did not like the Milwaukee because mine wouldn't autofeed the string. I had to stop it and pull it out by hand every few minutes. Everything else about it worked fine, but I got tired of it and went back to a gas Husqvarna.

As for getting a deal though, check Home Depot's site every day. They have daily deals and once a week they always have some type of Milwaukee tools on sale. I always grab my tool deals that way.

That's definitely a defect, I'd have sent it back.

 

[displacedtexan]

I'm sure there are use cases for electric lawn equipment, but mine isn't it. I got an electric mower that can barely do the back and side yards before it needs to be recharged, turning a simple mow into a multi-hour ordeal. Electric weed whackers make no sense to me either but to each their own. I've got a Stihl trimmer and backpack leaf blower and they're awesome.

If you have a large yard, for sure.

My Milwaukee does my half acre around the fence and shop and doesn't come close to killing a battery.

 

[Remington92]

All my cordless tools are Milwaukee so I'm already bought into that ecosystem of batteries but Ill also add I love my Milwaukee weed eater it ran all summer last year on a 9ah battery if I remember right. I dont have any desire to own gas tools again unless it was for commercial or heavy remote use.

Only thing Makita has that I'm truly envious of is the cordless coffee pot. If Milwaukee ever makes one I'll be first in line.

 

[mtnbiker208]

how well do the electric weed wackers work with a brush cutting blade?

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

They're the wrong color, but I have 2 Dewalt 20v string trimmers for around the acreage. I get around 60-75 minutes run time on a full charge from a 5amp/hour battery. They have a hi and lo setting for normal vs. thick/tall stuff. I would absolutely recommend both of them to anybody looking. Loading the string is the easiest I've ever used, basically run 30" or so through opposite holes on the string head, and then wind it by twisting the outside of the string head. Couldn't be easier or more reliable.

I also use this trimmer for trimming tall brush from the path of trail cams, etc... It is powerful and does a good amount of work for the cost.

I abandoned the shoulder busting gas string trimmers after having some cheaper and more expensive models. I got rid of my last one after it broke from being launched across my machine shed after it wouldn't start.

 

[mgray]

I have electric and gas Stihl weed eaters. I usually use the gas, but if my wife does it, she'll use the battery powered one. It will do our large lawn on one battery.

 

[EastHumboldt]

My whole kit is EGO. Mower, blower, weed wacker, chainsaw. Work well around the house but I have a small yard, probably 2000 sq feet.. I’ve had them for 5-6 years and they seem to be holding up fine. Batteries are 56 volts and come in a large and small size. Lots of power. Blower will actually 1-2” rocks around.

Everybody swears by Milwaukee, but I’ve run Dewalt for years for my work tools and used them hard day in and day out. I think they’re comparable to Milwaukee. Dewalt also makes a 60 volt battery that fits both 60 volt amd 20 volt tools. I’m a carpenter and electrician. I have a big Dewalt right angle boring drill that runs the 60 volt battery and the only thing I don’t like is it will break your fing arm. Those batteries weigh about three pounds but they’ll run a drill hard all day. No experience with a Maakita recently, but 30 years ago they were the s**t. I built a giant garage and my partner had a mAkita. They seemed weell made and good functionality, but no idea about longevity.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

My whole kit is EGO. Mower, blower, weed wacker, chainsaw. Work well around the house but I have a small yard, probably 2000 sq feet.. I’ve had them for 5-6 years and they seem to be holding up fine. Batteries are 56 volts and come in a large and small size. Lots of power. Blower will actually 1-2” rocks around.

Everybody swears by Milwaukee, but I’ve run Dewalt for years for my work tools and used them hard day in and day out. I think they’re comparable to Milwaukee. Dewalt also makes a 60 volt battery that fits both 60 volt amd 20 volt tools. I’m a carpenter and electrician. I have a big Dewalt right angle boring drill that runs the 60 volt battery and the only thing I don’t like is it will break your fing arm. Those batteries weigh about three pounds but they’ll run a drill hard all day. No experience with a Maakita recently, but 30 years ago they were the s**t. I built a giant garage and my partner had a mAkita. They seemed weell made and good functionality, but no idea about longevity.

My first DeWalt trimmer ran the 60v battery. Well, the battery it came with took a dump after a few years (my fault for leaving in unheated machine shed every winter) and it was cheaper at the time to buy the regular 20v model with a charger and spare battery than the new 60v battery.

Seriously though, i should look around and see if those big batteries have come down in price. They were like $350 at the time, and that trimmer is an absolute beast and ran longer.

 

[Wolf13]

Have Milwaukee hand tools but went dewalt on the string trimmer. Milwaukee string trimmer has a habit of burning up if used for larger jobs. I have never been married to a battery system and just want the best tool for the job regardless of color or brand.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

Have Milwaukee hand tools but went dewalt on the string trimmer. Milwaukee string trimmer has a habit of burning up if used for larger jobs. I have never been married to a battery system and just want the best tool for the job regardless of color or brand.

All of my other cordless tools are DeWalt due to sharing batteries. However, I've not been impressed at all with my Dewalt skill saw. SOB binds up on even thin material with a brand new blade. Run time has been mediorce with 5ah batteries too. I don't use it that often thankfully, but that's one tool I may shop a different brand for at some point.

 

[Sunshine40]

I'm a pretty hard core Stihl guy. I recently acquired a milwaukee weed trimmer with an edger attacment and a saw pruner. My stihl trimmers just got retired.

 

[JMundy84]

All of my other cordless tools are DeWalt due to sharing batteries. However, I've not been impressed at all with my Dewalt skill saw. SOB binds up on even thin material with a brand new blade. Run time has been mediorce with 5ah batteries too. I don't use it that often thankfully, but that's one tool I may shop a different brand for at some point.

Is the the worm drive style or the smaller one? A coworker of mine has the worm drive and we were making 10" cuts through 1/2" steel plate the other day using Diablo steel demon blades and it did awesome

 

[Dos XX]

I have a Snapper 82v mower and weed whacker. The whacker will eat some pretty rough stuff. I think they are owned by Briggs and Stratton because the batteries are Briggs and Stratton branded. I had a battery go bad, and I contacted Briggs & Stratton, and they sent me a replacement.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

Is the the worm drive style or the smaller one? A coworker of mine has the worm drive and we were making 10" cuts through 1/2" steel plate the other day using Diablo steel demon blades and it did awesome

I will check on that and get back to you