Long reach hedge trimmer vs multi tool

[HDAV]

After the recent strimmer thread I may be in need of a long reach hedge trimmer.....I don't fancy trying to do it off steps and was wondering if a multi tool was the answer or a straight pole trimmer happy with 2 stroke and looking around there are loads of no name ones under £200 on fleabay or Stihl/Husky at mega money new or used..... Wary of buying unseen or unknown so any advice. In the past have paid a guy with all the gear to come and do it and take away the rubbish which is £150 a time. My mum wants some hedges cut back and am pondering the options it will only get a couple of outings a year and will probably keep it at my folks which means collecting when I want to use it ( 220 mile round trip but an excuse to visit!)

 

If anyone has one to sell happy to have details but not sure if I am buying yet.

[norfolk dumpling]

Be very careful of make - guy who services my kit won't touch some stuff eg Ryobi and Flymo (petrol). Check reviews and go to a good long established dealer. This will save u money in long run.

[Big Marty]

Have Ryobi chainsaw bought it because they make great drills,, but they do NOT make good petrol gear mine is worse than useless.

[figgy]

Shindaiwa make decent pole trimmers at a reasonable price.

 

Some older stihl trimmers are good new ones can be problematic and very expensive.

 

Have a Ryobi 30cc expand it strimmer and leaf blower attachment that is over seven years old and has been fine never gave me any problems or failed to start, light use only though.

 

Figgy

Edited June 16, 2013 by figgy

[HDAV]

I don't own any garden equipment per say but may dad has quite a collection, Honda and Warrior strimmers, McCulloch Tivoli hedge cutter started on second pull after not being used for 3 years! made in 97!) McCulloch leaf blower same vintage! Honda and Husqarna mowers......Oh and a Husquarna chainsaw...........Most bought froma local dealer thats does repairs and sorts him out if he has issues.

 

All the gear no idea springs to mind reading that little lot! Looking at the Shindaiwa they are £400+ http://www.thegreenreaper.co.uk/Hedge_Trimmers/Pole_Hedge_Trimmers/Shindaiwa_AH242s_Articulated_Double-Sided_Pole_Hedge_Trimmer.html?cm_mmc=ShoppingSite-_-GoogleShop-_-null-_-null&gclid=CMP_5Y3D6LcCFVHMtAodo0IA_g

 

OR these http://www.thegreenreaper.co.uk/Other_Garden_Tools/Multi_Tool_Systems/Mitox_Multi_Tools/Mitox-271-MT-Multi-Tool-4-in-1-Kit.html loads that look the same on ebay for £150-180

[njc110381]

I've got a Shindaiwa AH230 and it's been reasonable. I've bent two sets of blades since I had it but both times I was taking on far more than I should have been (1"+ stuff). It's done a lot of hours and the engine, gearbox and drive shaft are all original.

 

With all the driving and messing about to consider would you not be better off just paying the pro to do it? I know I'm biased because it's what I do, but by the time you've taken in your time doing it and getting rid of the waste, bought the hedge cutter and fuelled/serviced it you may just find that the £150 per year isn't that bad?

[keg]

I have the Stihl Kombi system and currently have the leaf blower, angled hedge trimmer, pole pruner and strimmer heads, give it plenty of welly with all attachments, not a peep. Buy the engine and the tools as you can afford them.

[HDAV]

 

With all the driving and messing about to consider would you not be better off just paying the pro to do it? I know I'm biased because it's what I do, but by the time you've taken in your time doing it and getting rid of the waste, bought the hedge cutter and fuelled/serviced it you may just find that the £150 per year isn't that bad?

I know what your saying its a long and complex situation (families) but it would be 2-3 cuts a year in various locations that means 3-4 weekends doing it. Shame your not closer there is plenty to be done but as i say its complex what i needs is regular maintenance which it hasn't had for 10 years so will take bringing back, shame as it was very well tended at one time....

 

A Stihl Kombi i was watching on ebay failed to get a bid so might try a cheeky one but never know what it will be like.

 

Are the ol.der and newer kombi systems interchangeable i.e the older engines with newer tools and vice versa?

[keg]

Hi HDAV, I believe they are but nt 100 sure, I will check with my supplier in Normanton, even if the ebay one was ropey, a good service is not too dear.

[HDAV]

The issue is a worn shaft connector which reading about make the machine scrap?

[njc110381]

I'm not sure why a worn connector would be an issue on a known make? All parts are replaceable as far as I'm aware?

[Beardo]

I've had a Mitox 281MT for 16months or so now and it's good value for money - certainly does what i need it to. only thing i've damaged on it is the pruner chainsaw tensioning pin - but that was my fault anyway.

Parts are easy to get and there's a good dealer network.

If i were a professional i'd have gone for a husky or stihl, but it's just for our large garden and using on the shoot occasionally - so budget was important.

[HDAV]

Thanks beardo I had seen the mitox but not heard of it before I'll see if they can get a pro to do it and if not look to invest, if I get my ipaf ticket there is some serious pruning to be done!

Edited June 17, 2013 by HDAV

[HDAV]

I have the Stihl Kombi system and currently have the leaf blower, angled hedge trimmer, pole pruner and strimmer heads, give it plenty of welly with all attachments, not a peep. Buy the engine and the tools as you can afford them.

 

Well I am hopefully picking up a Stihl Kombi tomorrow (where is the fingers crossed smilie) its a few years old and is the smallest engine and only comes with angled hedge trimmer but its what i need at a price i can afford and i can add bits as required...... What sort of cost for a service? Anything to look for when i collect tomorrow?

[mike-b]

im a tree surgeon and spend a lot of my summers cutting hedges so have a bit of experience! stick with stihl buddy ! its all we use (hedge cutter wise) there really good, reliable if your sensible with it! if your going to look at one the main things id check for are :

 

• compression when you pull it over (how easy is it) if its tight and take a little (not to much) then its good if its got no compression then walk away
• general condition = are the stickers still there how battered etc look for subtle signs of hard use
• petrol leaks on some of the older stihl hedge cutters they often leaked round the petrol tank! not a big issue to fix but its all time and money
• make sure the owner knows the correct starting procedure! on off button in start position, push the primer button 3-5 times, choke set to fully open, pull over till you hear the engine kick but not start, set choke to half open and pull over again till you hear it start up and run at half revs (it will do this with out hitting the throttle) then when its running at half revs just blip the throttle that will then knock the choke in to run mode and set the revs back down to idle! if they dont know this then they might not know the other basic maintenance bits!!!! regardless whether they say they look after it!
• at the base of the shaft where the pivot point is there will be a little screw in plug that will require a star combi spanner to remove, this is a grease point to lube the pivoting mechanism, either take a star combi spanner and open it up or ask the owner to if its never been greased then it may be fairly worn i grease ours twice a day!
• there is one more grease point just before the cutting blade and will look the same as above! again check! if either cant be opened then its likely its never been grease and quite worn!
• lastly check the blade make sure its nice and sharp, not to many chunks taken out of the blade from misuse and that the top and bottom blade sit flush with each other and are not bent!

 

this is what i would look for! and are all good haggling tools! write a check list of what to look for and be very anal!! i usually get excited when i buy something and forget to check every thing im meant to!

hope this helps!

[HDAV]

Thanks mike very useful I'll try and remember a bit set and check the grease points I hope the guy I am buying from is super anal about these things! How do you grease them? Is there a nipple under the star drive? In the photo it looks brand new guess I'll find out when I see it!

 

What sort of cost for a service and any other maintenance requirements? Hoping its been run on Stihl oil, chances are as its a domestic owned unit it's been used less than a pro would in a week it's whole life! But never maintained!

[mike-b]

no nipples just a screw in plug and open hole! ive used a grease gun in the past but this type of grease gun is ideal!!!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VINTAGE-TECALEMIT-GREASE-GUN-MG-TRIUMPH-AUSTIN-HEALEY-MGA-AC-COBRA-TOOLKIT-/151065569993?pt=UK_Car_Parts_Vehicles_Automobila_ET&hash=item232c35aac9

 

there really isnt much to service on one of these! all can be done your self

• new spark plug £2-£4
• sharpen blade (easy but time consuming to do your self!)
• check starter cord and replace if needed £4
• clean air filter (free if you know somebody with a air line)
• change in tank fuel filter £2

thats about it all very simple things to do! if your not using it a lot then drain the petrol out after you finish and run it till it dies the 2 stroke sitting in the carb can separate the petrol will evaporate and the oil can gunk the fine needles up making it run rough! only make enough 2 stroke mix for what you need dont use old mixtures! hope this helps and makes sense!

[HDAV]

Thanks http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/cgg250-grease-gun?da=1&TC=SRC-grease be ok for the greasing and normal nipples? need to improve my maths to make 50:1 in 0.34l batches (and my measuring skills!)

[mike-b]

yes that will be fine i use normal multi purpose grease and just top it up regularly! as for working out measurements there are plenty of measuring jugs out there that have correct measurements on the side !

[HDAV]

Well picked it up this evening, mint looking machine, owner showed me the proper staring procedure and it ran fine, no cutting action at idle. Evern gave me an almost full bottle of Stihl 2 stroke oil and a tube of the proper stihl grease! forgot the right spanner to check its been greased but all looks good. It was bought exactly 4 years ago for £400 from a Stihl dealer so far very pleased and it even fits easily in the boot of the car!

 

Thanks for the advice every one.....

 

Oh and the best bit...it was £150!

[HDAV]

Just a quick update on this the stihl's work is hopefully done for the season, After taming some large leylandii, a huge laurel and a rapidly overgrowing privett (privett was cut by pro's early in the year at a cost of £200) its certainly earned its keep! In the time my dad did one side of the privet with electric Bosch hedge cutter i had done both the sides and the top of an equivalent section with the stihl. It uses so little fuel its causing me an issue i bought a 1 litre mixing bottle and so far have used 1.3l of fuel......... leaving me a 3/4 full mixing bottle!

 

So any tips on what to do to "winter" it I am going to drain the remaining fuel and let it burn dry, anything else to do/check and what about the cutting head? It got a bit wet yesterday as the hedge was wet give the blade a spray of WD40 or is there more to do to preserve it? I greased it and ran it for a couple of min after use to move the grease round the cutting head.

 

Going to keep an eye out for a Pole pruner and strimmer attachment (possibly a blower) for use next year as i think i will be tackling more of the garden maintenance myself.

 

It really is in a different league to the cheaper all in one kits and seems to have more power despite it's relatively small 27cc engine.

Edited September 15, 2013 by HDAV

[keg]

I have the Pole pruner & blower- both good choices.

 

all I do for winter is drain the fuel.

[HDAV]

Thanks keg, I got out bid on a brush cutter attachment on ebay it sold for £90 + £12 postage http://www.tfmsuperstore.co.uk/shop/stihl-km-mb-grass-blade-combi-attachment_50563_11444.html for the extra £7.20 i'd go new! Fortunately TFM is near my aprents so when i need it i'll pop along and get the bits there if i cant find a bargain beforehand.