I took the EV jump!

[clancey]

I had the experience of having a vacuum cleaner do that self propelled and I hated it....My electric lawn mower I bought with a very long cord and its a pain but a blessing to for I can run it as long as I want to without taking time to charge it and for my small lot it works just fine. But on a larger lot I might choose to go the battery route..These electric mowers cut very nice and they do not smell of gas nor do you have to take a trip to get the can of gas..I love my corded electric lawn mower and just need to be careful that I do not run over the cord. lol clancey

 

[EatenByLimestone]

So far, my most liked feature is the handle folds all the way forward and allows the mower to be stored vertically. I suppose the oil sump keeps this from being a feature of gas mowers. It doesn't take up much storage space. With a few pullies, it wouldnt be hard for a small person to raise it up on a wall and cleat it off to keep the floor entirely clear.

 

[BCC_Burner]

I hear you. We are too. The chain saw and leaf blower were the first to go The log splitter is next. That will leave us with the large riding mower and the Stihl weed eater. The Stihl is a commercial model with handlebars and harness. We have too large an area to do with just a handheld. Does EGO have a commercial weedeater?

If you aren't already heavily invested in another battery system, check out the Husqvarna 535 iFR. I bought one a month or so ago to help clear out the overgrown 2 acres I have. It's a bike handle brush cutter with a harness and is impressively powerful, smooth and well-built. The lack of engine noise and exhaust are both nice, but I think the biggest game-changer for me is the dramatically reduced levels of high-frequency vibration that get transmitted to the user. It's amazing to spend a couple hours running a brush cutter, and not have numb hands and forearms for the rest of the day.

I was so impressed with it, the power it has, and the battery life that I picked up one of their battery chainsaws this week.

I get about 35-50 minutes out of use out of a BLI300 battery, which is pretty much identical to the charging time, so with 2 batteries, you can work more or less uninterrupted for as long as you feel like being strapped to a brush cutter for.

 

[begreen]

If you aren't already heavily invested in another battery system, check out the Husqvarna 535 iFR. I bought one a month or so ago to help clear out the overgrown 2 acres I have. It's a bike handle brush cutter with a harness and is impressively powerful, smooth and well-built. The lack of engine noise and exhaust are both nice, but I think the biggest game-changer for me is the dramatically reduced levels of high-frequency vibration that get transmitted to the user. It's amazing to spend a couple hours running a brush cutter, and not have numb hands and forearms for the rest of the day.

I was so impressed with it, the power it has, and the battery life that I picked up one of their battery chainsaws this week.

I get about 35-50 minutes out of use out of a BLI300 battery, which is pretty much identical to the charging time, so with 2 batteries, you can work more or less uninterrupted for as long as you feel like being strapped to a brush cutter for.

Thanks for the tip. I read a cool forestry review on it. How is the line spooling and loading on this model? When you bought it, was the battery and charger included? What does it sell for?
(broken link removed to https://www.forestry.com/editorial/equipments/husqvarna-535-ifr-test-new-battery-powered-clearing-saw/)

I found out that there is a handlebar option for the EGO professional trimmer, but that system appears to need a battery backpack and is super expensive. Yes, I have heard that electric weedeaters vibrate less. Our Stihl is not too bad. I usually weed-eat for about 1.5-2hrs and by then I've had enough.

 

[mellow]

Wow, 1.5hrs of trimming, no thanks. I would be breaking out the backpack sprayer and some roundup

My 1994 grasshopper mower is still going strong, will see how much longer that kubota diesel goes before thinking about switching out, got over an acre to cut, need that 60" deck.

I have looked at those electric robot systems, maybe they will be viable when the current mower dies.

 

[BCC_Burner]

Thanks for the tip. I read a cool forestry review on it. How is the line spooling and loading on this model? When you bought it, was the battery and charger included? What does it sell for?
(broken link removed to https://www.forestry.com/editorial/equipments/husqvarna-535-ifr-test-new-battery-powered-clearing-saw/)

I found out that there is a handlebar option for the EGO professional trimmer, but that system appears to need a battery backpack and is super expensive. Yes, I have heard that electric weedeaters vibrate less. Our Stihl is not too bad. I usually weed-eat for about 1.5-2hrs and by then I've had enough.

At this point, I haven't reloaded the trimmer head yet, as I've been working mostly with the grass and brush blades lately. The locking nut that attaches the blades is a wear item according to Husqvarna, so I try to work with the blade until I've done everything I can with it, then I'll swap it back to the string head for detail/clean up work. The string trimmer head did have very nice "action" as far as advancing the string goes. I'll probably be reloading and re-installing the trimmer head this weekend, so I'll report back on that when I do.

It was an expensive setup; the brush cutter, two BLI300 batteries, and a QC500 charger ran me around $1250. It is a professional-caliber piece of equipment, as evidenced by the fact that every single component was manufactured in either Sweden or Japan, which helped make the cost a little easier to stomach. It also comes with three different cutting attachments and guards, which is nice.

My property is steep enough that I think even a small, self propelled push mower would be a major PITA to use, so the 535 functions as my lawn mower, rough cut mower, and brush/woody veg clearing tool all in one. Having three power settings is also really nice, as the string head seems to work best on low and medium, whereas I tend to run the blades on full-power, on the theory that a faster spinning blade will cut cleaner and drag/catch less.

 

[jetsam]

I have old Dewalt NiMH tools, forget the voltage. On my third round of NiMH packs after 16 years.

The NiCad batteries were 18v- the same voltage as the new Li "20v" ones. The change to 20v happened entirely within the marketing department- they are 18v batteries with a float voltage of 20v, the same as every other 18v tool battery on the market. If ya don't believe it, put a meter on it and see (or just read the box it came in).

Dewalt sells an adapter that lets you use the new lithium batteries on the old tools- highly recommended, as lithium lasts longer, comes in larger capacities, and stays charged when you charge it. (You need the adapter because they changed the connection from a post-style to a flat slide-on connector.)

They are selling both "20v" and flexvolt chainsaws now. (FlexVolt uses the same math, where 56 volts equals 60 volts.)

 

[woodgeek]

I only have a drill/driver, and will probably just replace the tool. The brushes are starting to smoke a bit under heavy load, I think 16 years might be its useful life.

 

[jetsam]

I only have a drill/driver, and will probably just replace the tool. The brushes are starting to smoke a bit under heavy load, I think 16 years might be its useful life.

Brushless are more efficient anyway, and pretty common now.

Ridgid has a crazy lifetime warranty that covers batteries, if you are looking to jump ship. They're made by TTI (same company as Ryobi and Milwaukee). The warranty is unbeatable but the assortment isn't as good as the other brands.