Stihl interesting

[Kev]

Hi All,

Thought I'd take a peek at the 36V Stihl gardening tools ...
[attachimg=1]
The range consists of ...

3 small chain saws ...
  I grabbed the larger of the three and it works well, 6mm chain cuts fine and efficiently.

3 hedge trimmers ...
  I grabbed the larger of the two hand helds and also the pole version, they cut extremely well.

2 edge trimmers ...
  I got the larger one and I'm a bit ho-hum about it. Fine for a manicured garden.

1 mower with catcher and 14.5" blade
  I didn't bother, one day this may suit my garden, but it won't be for a while and a 4 stroke petrol Honda will take a lot to beat.

1 blower
  I did get this, it absolutely chews the batteries, but has very impressive gusto for a cordless blower!!

1 pole pruner
  A must have, this is the jewel of the cordless range to me the light and compact chain head is a winner.

3 battery sizes
  115, 180 and 900 (backpack). I went with 2x 180's and they'll give 2 hours with a hedge trimmer and 40 minutes with a chain saw.

3 charger types
  Slow, ok and awesome. I got the "awesome" one and it charges the 180 battery pack fully in 25 minutes.

Other stuff
  There's a cut off saw and other bits and pieces in the range that I'm not in the market for, but seem well made.

Summing up ...

This stuff isn't for everyone and switching from a powerful petrol variant and expecting similar will leave you mostly disappointed. They do seem to hold their own with most mains electric models of similar size to me.

If you do anything approaching commercial work, only a couple of the items will be useful. Probably the hedge trimmers in conjunction with the backpack battery and perhaps the really compact top handle arborist's chainsaw (I may still grab this one).

The chain saws will require you to keep the chains clean and sharp to get through anything. I doubt you'll ever see one of these cordless units in the back of a pickup [wink]

All in all I'd say cordless battery gardening is mostly here and it's nice to have much quieter gardening tools.

I'm keeping an eye on the robot mower market .. there's some serious stuff for the big end, but the domestic stuff has a way to go yet.

 

[Stephen B]

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[member=13058]Kev[/member]

 

[Kev]

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[member=13058]Kev[/member]

I do blame you ... you didn't exactly "talk me down" [big grin]

 

[Coliban]

Nice collection !

While most of my colleagues also use Stihl, I bought a McCulloch CS350 (petrol powered, now a subsidiary company of Husqvarna, Sweden), our lawn mower is a Bosch Li-Ion, which is running for years (but the lawn is only about 150 square meter) without problems and we think, for smaller sawing tasks we get a li-ion powered chain saw from Makita, because we already have the big Makita lo-ion powered drill hammer.

 

[Kev]

Nice collection !

While most of my colleagues also use Stihl, I bought a McCulloch CS350 (petrol powered, now a subsidiary company of Husqvarna, Sweden), our lawn mower is a Bosch Li-Ion, which is running for years (but the lawn is only about 150 square meter) without problems and we think, for smaller sawing tasks we get a li-ion powered chain saw from Makita, because we already have the big Makita lo-ion powered drill hammer.

My "petrol stable" is a bitsa ... I'll be glad to clear most of it out. It has some Honda and Husky stuff in there, but also a couple of strange brands that a local shop conned me on (once I trusted them, but no more!)

As things stand today we've got ~500sqm to deal with, but that's going to decrease to less than 300sqm over time. A cordless battery mower is likely then ... plus I'll be critical of the type of grass, hopefully making it more of a friendly lawn for maintenance.

 

[Kev]

Update ... apparently all of these gardening tools belong to my wife [huh]

Well guys, buy your wife a cute little 36V electric chainsaw for Christmas .. Hey, I think she needs her own shed [wink] [big grin]

 

[Stephen B]

Update ... apparently all of these gardening tools belong to my wife [huh]

[size=13pt]
Fine, then let her do all the work then!
[size=10pt]
MsUntidy 'rescued' a Bosch 4.5V screwdriver from the Untidy Shed today. I know she will soon tire of it and then will look at the CXS.  [eek] She already thinks it is cute.

[member=13058]Kev[/member]

 

[Cheese]

MsUntidy 'rescued' a Bosch 4.5V screwdriver from the Untidy Shed today. I know she will soon tire of it and then will look at the CXS. 

[member=13058]Kev[/member]

I can appreciate that...
A couple of days ago I couldn't find one of my Festool tape measures...So my wife & I were at a gardening store and I needed to measure something, so she pulls the Festool tape out of her purse. I said, "hey that's my tape measure", she says "not any more, besides, you never even knew it was gone, so it's mine now".

 

[cliffp]

Cheers Kev, you've just cost me £1300! I couldn't resist the idea of some shiny new tools in a different category from woodworking. Initially the idea seemed completely stupid, then over the course of a week or two I managed to persuade myself that I HAD to have them. I am getting the largest chainsaw, the largest hedge trimmer (not pole version), largest edge trimmer and pole pruner. I am also getting one 180 battery and 'awesome' charger. I only need the 'ok' charger but don't want to be outdone by a fellow Festool fanatic!

I hope my wife will enjoy using the tools after I have finished playing with them and the novelty has worn off

 

[Mark]

I've been tempted to go with Stihl after having some problems with my top handle Stihl due to operator error... but not that thing is awesome... dang noisy, but powerful and nice to have up in the tree. I've been trying to hunt down the Husqvarna version of their arborist saw but its running around $800+ to get one here in Hawaii and our local Husqvarna dealer is also a Stihl and Corepower dealer so I don't think they want another battery saw in their shop.

Stihl is supposedly coming out with their version of a top handle arborist next year but who knows how much that thing will cost. I'm hoping Dewalt will compliment their new 20 and 40v brushless line with a chainsaw soon.

For now though, and for smaller and quick jobs, I'm getting a Milwaukee m18 Fuel recip with a pruning blade... quieter, toss the blade when it gets dull or bent...

 

[Kev]

I've been tempted to go with Stihl after having some problems with my top handle Stihl due to operator error... but not that thing is awesome... dang noisy, but powerful and nice to have up in the tree. I've been trying to hunt down the Husqvarna version of their arborist saw but its running around $800+ to get one here in Hawaii and our local Husqvarna dealer is also a Stihl and Corepower dealer so I don't think they want another battery saw in their shop.

Stihl is supposedly coming out with their version of a top handle arborist next year but who knows how much that thing will cost. I'm hoping Dewalt will compliment their new 20 and 40v brushless line with a chainsaw soon.

For now though, and for smaller and quick jobs, I'm getting a Milwaukee m18 Fuel recip with a pruning blade... quieter, toss the blade when it gets dull or bent...

The Stihl top handle 36V arborist has been out for a while here. I was actually thinking of grabbing it tomorrow morning ...

[attachimg=1]

 

[Kev]

Cheers Kev, you've just cost me £1300! I couldn't resist the idea of some shiny new tools in a different category from woodworking. Initially the idea seemed completely stupid, then over the course of a week or two I managed to persuade myself that I HAD to have them. I am getting the largest chainsaw, the largest hedge trimmer (not pole version), largest edge trimmer and pole pruner. I am also getting one 180 battery and 'awesome' charger. I only need the 'ok' charger but don't want to be outdone by a fellow Festool fanatic!

I hope my wife will enjoy using the tools after I have finished playing with them and the novelty has worn off

Sorry [wink] [big grin]

The pole hedge trimmer is awesome if you have over fence or tall hedges, I hadn't realised what I'd been missing. No more ladders, no more noisy two stroke and a much better cut than my old petrol hedge trimmer too (that wasn't a cheapie either!)

I grabbed the little file guide for the chainsaw (300 guide). The chain saws cut really well, but it's worth keeping that narrow little chain sharp.

The tool I'm actually liking most lately is the blower. It's the only tool in the range that can empty a battery as fast as the 'awesome' charger can fill it!

I've got two of the 180 batteries and I'm tempted to get a third, that way we can go bonkers in the garden with 2 tools and have a spare battery charging.

You've gotta love the reach of the pole pruner [smile]

Less that an hour ago my wife asked me if "her" tools are charged for tomorrow. Maybe I can justify the dainty little aborist's chainsaw as a present [cool]

 

[Tinker]

I have been behind the times.  I was not aware that there are battery type chainsaws. VERRRRYYYYY interesting.

For years, i have using all sizes of chainsaws.  the problem has been that the longer i am 39, the harder it gets for me to start them, to say nothing about my back pains from holding on to them.  I always carry a chainsaw in my truck when out snow plowing. That and an armstrong powered snow plow with a hickory boom.  For years, i carried a small Echo that was adequate for emergencies and for tree work.  It always started on first pull in warm weather.  In the cold, i sometimes need three pulls before it made noise on its own.  The last time i took it into the shop for repair, parts were no longer available (I think i had been using that saw since I was 37 :)  I replaced it with a slightly larger model of the same brand.  That saw I cannot start in the cold weather.  Most of the problem with that is that since I turned 39, it is impossible for me to pull the cord once the temp drops below 50º.  I can not find much snow to push when temp gets above 50º.

Even when i store the saw at the floor heater in my truck, i can no longer pull that cord once the cold air hits (the saw/not me).

I will start looking into cordless chain saws, or even reciprocating pruning saws.  I plan to keep working until i am 40, so a cordless saw will be handy to me for at least a few more years.  maybe even after retirement.

This discussion has been very enlightening so far.  Thanks guys.
Tinker

 

[Cheese]

[member=156]Mark Enomoto[/member]
I have a collection of Stihl petrol powered tools but most of the time for quick trimming jobs I simply use a 18 volt Sawzall and one of these blades.

I can see the time is coming very soon when most of the small gas powered equipment will be replaced with battery powered gear.

https://www.milwaukeetool.com/accessories/cutting/48-00-1301

 

[cliffp]

Kev, thanks for the extra info. I think I'll pass on the pole mounted hedge trimmer (for now at least!). I'll pick up the saw guide (I presume it is the FF1?).

I think I might pick up the blower a bit later in the year when the leaves start falling here. I already have a Viking blower/vacuum (like this one below

http://www.stihl.co.uk/STIHL-Products/Blowers-and-Vacuum-Shredders/029575/Electric-vacuum-shredder.aspx

This is a fantastic tool for sucking/shredding but it takes too long to switch between sucking and blowing so I could do with a separate blower.

I googled "chainsaw accidents" to see if this would sway my decision to acquire such a lethal tool and as a result I am thinking of investing in at least a pair of chainsaw gloves.

One thing I won't be buying is a snow plough! Here on the south coast of England it hardly ever snows.

 

[RKA]

I would recommend Kevlar chaps and steel toed boots.  Your legs and feet are usually at much higher risk of accidental contact with the chain.

 

[Mark]

The Stihl top handle NAINA till 2016 and NAIH (not available in Hawaii) till who knows when Like lots of homeowners, I don't use the tools enough to keep them running enough, though when I need them its often a question of IF it will start. Using canned non-ethanol gas is key as well as running the tool dry before storing it. I've handled the Echo 56v at Home Depot and their weed wacker is too heavy as well as their blower. I was looking for something for my 86 year old Dad to use but these are all too heavy for him.

The only guys that seem to buying the Stihl Li-ion are resorts that want to reduce noise. Aulani, the Disney Resort out here I'm told bought a bunch of Stihl Li-ion hedge trimmers for on site use.

Can't beat gas for portability and out in the field. I sometimes do trail maintenance and you can't beat gas for portability and not having to lug dead batteries back to the car versus empty gas cans.

wrt to sawzall... those pruning blades work really well. I just got tired of pulling an extension cord and Milwaukee just has a July trade in sale of old tools and an extra battery deal. So I'll see how the Fuel 18v works for me.

 

[Kev]

The Stihl top handle NAINA till 2016 and NAIH (not available in Hawaii) till who knows when Like lots of homeowners, I don't use the tools enough to keep them running enough, though when I need them its often a question of IF it will start. Using canned non-ethanol gas is key as well as running the tool dry before storing it. I've handled the Echo 56v at Home Depot and their weed wacker is too heavy as well as their blower. I was looking for something for my 86 year old Dad to use but these are all too heavy for him.

The only guys that seem to buying the Stihl Li-ion are resorts that want to reduce noise. Aulani, the Disney Resort out here I'm told bought a bunch of Stihl Li-ion hedge trimmers for on site use.

Can't beat gas for portability and out in the field. I sometimes do trail maintenance and you can't beat gas for portability and not having to lug dead batteries back to the car versus empty gas cans.

wrt to sawzall... those pruning blades work really well. I just got tired of pulling an extension cord and Milwaukee just has a July trade in sale of old tools and an extra battery deal. So I'll see how the Fuel 18v works for me.

We're a long way from battery technology that'll comprehensively challenge a petrol engine when you're working any distance at all from your charging station. The Stihl backpack battery is the closest I've seen and I reckon that's very much geared towards resorts, hospitals, corporates, etc. (It's EXPENSIVE!!)

I will say the 36V Stihl pole pruner is excellent.

As with anything, the tool must meet your needs or it actually starts to fall short of the definition of being a "tool" [smile]

I also can't imagine we'll see a cordless equivalent of a 10hp chainsaw any time soon [eek]

 

[jmbfestool]

A very nice collection!

Well jell!

Couple weeks ago I was using our petrol hedge cutter and it was playing up and before I finished it wouldn't start any more.

Been thinking of getting an electric one to replace it.

We have the egomower  http://egopowerplus.co.uk
Not had it long but so far it's doing the job fine with the 4ah battery. They do a 6ah also.

I like Sthil so would lean towards getting their hedge trimmer however egopower do their own range of tools. It would make sense to go with theirs.  Seen as we already have battery and charger.

I have learnt tool companies do have good and bad tools in their range.

So struggling to decide which route to go down.

 

[Kev]

A very nice collection!

Well jell!

Couple weeks ago I was using our petrol hedge cutter and it was playing up and before I finished it wouldn't start any more.

Been thinking of getting an electric one to replace it.

We have the egomower  http://egopowerplus.co.uk
Not had it long but so far it's doing the job fine with the 4ah battery. They do a 6ah also.

I like Sthil so would lean towards getting their hedge trimmer however egopower do their own range of tools. It would make sense to go with theirs.  Seen as we already have battery and charger.

I have learnt tool companies do have good and bad tools in their range.

So struggling to decide which route to go down.

[member=5671]jmbfestool[/member]

I think the EGO mower is near the top end of town when it comes to cordless mowers, but I don't think their hedgers and chainsaws are in the same league as their mower. It is all relative though.

You'd think a sharp blade and a scissor action wouldn't be that hard to get right, but my Chinese brand petrol hedger is complete rubbish!

Take a good look at the pole hedger from Stihl .. that and the pole pruner are the real show ponies that other cordless garden tool makers seem not have in their range. If you're inclined towards them then it's certainly worth the extra charger/battery overhead, otherwise maybe not.

I don't think you'd be happy with the Stihl mower either after the EGO. The Stihl isn't an alternative to a petrol mower at all.