Spoonbed Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Any of you lot have any opinions on garden shredders? Will prob have to be an electric one, as petrol will be out of our price range. Budget is around £350 ish. Will be used no more than a couple of times a year, mainly to mulch down leylandi cuttings upto 30mm thick. Cheers Spoonbed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
working dog Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 When I looked at electric shredders I wasnt impressed with them. You couldnt chuck a load of branches in at once and the shredded material want that well shredded. I went for a petrol driven shredder that will handle bigger branches and take bigger bundles of material in. The petrol one will clog if you shred wet hedge clippings which is a real pain. Things may have moved on since I bought my shredder about 10 years ago and the electric machines may be more up to the job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Well I always wanted a but I think it may come in a bit over your budget! If I were you I would check the second hand market for a used Elliet. These little machines are pretty good and I've seen them go for the sort of money you want to pay. Failing that a little MTD will do the job. I used to have one before I upgraded to a small Timberwolf and although well out of the pro league it will do a pretty good reliable job in the garden. I wouldn't buy new. £350 isn't going to get you much that's worth having. I only paid just over £1k for my towable Timberwolf second hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Looking around it seems that the Elliet machines don't come up often. Plenty of MTD's though. Here's what I found in the completed listings on ebay... http://www.ebay.co.uk/csc/i.html?_nkw=mtd+shredder&_sacat=0&LH_Complete=1&_odkw=elliet+shredder&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3286.c0.m270.l1313 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKPoacher Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 I had the use of a shredder that worked off the PTO on a tractor. It would handle anything. Anything that wasn't bent or forked that is. :blink: Total waste of time. Glad that I hadn't bought it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonbed Posted June 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Cheers for the info all. Judging by the comments so far, I'm half tempted to hire a petrol one for the few occasions I'll use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpbeaver Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 (edited) I wouldn't buy new. £350 isn't going to get you much that's worth having. I only paid just over £1k for my towable Timberwolf second hand. my first chipper was an entec truckloader the same as your timberwolf, great little choppers on the right stuff. Edited June 5, 2012 by jpbeaver Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Funnily enough that's what mine is - from the pre Timberwolf branding change. It's great on conifer and straight stuff but drives me round the bend trying to chip hawthorn or cotoneaster, in fact anything with lots of bends in it! I'm saving up for a Unimog with a PTO chipper at the moment. Something with roller feed would be nice, maybe the TW150PTO? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodcock11 Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Cheers for the info all. Judging by the comments so far, I'm half tempted to hire a petrol one for the few occasions I'll use it. I think that is the RIGHT answer - unless you have a lot of material to shred/chip, it is just not worth buying a shredder - electric ones are really just toys and petrol/diesel ones are expensive. Depending on the material you have to deal with there are as I see it three alternatives 1. Compost 2. Burn on bonfire [if allowed] 3. Take to Council tip/dump. By all means hire one and "test drive" it before buying - however, after the initial thrill of stuffing branches in and - jams & blockages permitting - see chips coming out, watching paint dry is a much more exciting and less tiring way of wasting your time! Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ack-ack Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 but drives me round the bend trying to chip hawthorn Feeling your pain. I have to go through it first with the Billhook to streamline it. Takes yonks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smig4373 Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Funnily enough that's what mine is - from the pre Timberwolf branding change. It's great on conifer and straight stuff but drives me round the bend trying to chip hawthorn or cotoneaster, in fact anything with lots of bends in it! I'm saving up for a Unimog with a PTO chipper at the moment. Something with roller feed would be nice, maybe the TW150PTO? We have these 2 at work at the mo... a tow behind diesel...works very very well..will take 4in stuff.. and this 1 for the more bulkier stuff...we used to hire them in...much more cost effective,no servicing,sharpening etc... The gaffer got the tow behind cheap...and we scrounge the track chipper off another contractor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vulpicide Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 You will have to cut the pieces of the body small as its most embarissing gettting a tech out for a jam if half your wife/lover/Boyfriend is half cut and hanging out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
four-wheel-drive Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I borrowed one of my neighbour it was only a cheep one and the time that it took me to do all of the stuff that I had to be chopped up. I could have loaded it all in the trailer and took it to the dump got home had a cup of tea and watched a film on TV and still had time to spare. Rather than spend out all of that money if you are not going to be using it that much you would probably do better to hire one as and when you need it then you can get a decent size one that will chop up decent size branches makes life much easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonbed Posted June 6, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I think hire will be my preferred route. Looks like unless you spend big money, you end up with something of little use. Funnily enough there was one of those charming Irish types around our way yesterday offering to do all the hedges and the rubbish cleared for £100!! Sadly I'd rather feed my testicles through a shredder than give them one pound of my hard earned. It never used to be a problem getting rid of the cuttings. I'd simply empty my van and take them up the tip. The council in their infinite wisdom has now banned any vans during the weekend, so it would mean me having to take a few hours off!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpbeaver Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I'm saving up for a Unimog with a PTO chipper at the moment. Something with roller feed would be nice, maybe the TW150PTO? What size mog are you after? I live 500 USA from Atkinson Vos. I've got a timberwolf 150 dhb, great chipper just getting a bit old now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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