This purchase was for my suburban garden, a little under the old 1/4 acre but covered in trees and shrubs. I have a no-grass policy at home to minimise maintenance.
But, I also have the property outside Castlemaine, which means having to buy a range of tools that will help maintain that property as well.
At this point my list of garden tool requirements is:
- Hedge trimmer
- Blower
- Chainsaw
- Lawn mower
- Possibly an extendable pole trimmer
In the end I bought the Stihl HSA 66 Battery Trimmer
Why Stihl?
In Australia, Stihl is just a bit more common than other brands and I felt that the support was there. I would have had no problems with Husqvarna or Makita, though.
The main issue is that these Stihl units are made in Austria. All the competitor units are made in China. (The Stihl cheaper battery units that are about to be released will be made in China)
Why battery?
Battery systems have a number of advantages for both the home owner and the professional gardener. I would sit somewhere in between, as I have the current house as well as the need to manage and maintain a larger area. Battery tools are powerful, quiet, east to start/stop, low emissions, low maintenance (no oil, spark plugs, fuel lines, etc) and can be quite affordable once you have the right battery and charger.
I opted for the AP300 battery, which is the longest lasting of the three that Stihl offer. This will give me greater convenience with other tools I might purchase, versus a shorter run-time battery.In fact, this tool is rated at 3 hours run-time with the battery I bought.
I also opted for the AL500 Quick Charger, as I want the convenience of fast charge in case I need spend more time on a task. The battery was $260 and the charger $150.
The battery charged up in about 30 minutes, clearly indicated on the charger unit. Once charged the charging system shut itself off automatically.
What does it cost?
The unit as $310. There is very little margin for dealers to move. The RRP is $319.
If you already had a battery, $310 for a powerful trimmer is good value. A Ryobi, Chinese made trimmer in Bunnings is $279 - good luck with that!
In contrast, the Stihl trimmer is made in Austria, the charger in Slovakia and the battery in Germany.
The HSA 66 Stihl Trimmer
Stihl offer three models in the normal trimmer segment (versus the pole trimmers): The HSA 25, 66 and 86.
The 25 comes with a battery, so it is good if this is the only piece of equipment that you will use. As I have the need to buy multiple tools, the HSA 66 gives me the option to have one battery used across the range. I didn't need the HSA 86, as the 50 mm blade on the 66 will be fine for my backyard needs.
The unit is not a light-weight. It weighs 4.8 kg including the AS300 battery. In fact, it's reasonably heavy and requires some muscles to get the job done. I found that after 20 minutes of trimming I was sweating plenty!
I really like the on/off system with this trimmer. The ergonomics beat my old corded trimmer hands-down. You really just pick this thing up and go. All the safety lockouts are immediately nullified by simply holding the unit. You can hold it horizontally or vertically, left or right-handed and it just works.
How does it cut?
Like a hot knife through butter!
It has very sharp blades that cut up to 23 mm, which is fine for most backyards. More than that and you will need a chain-driven trimmer or a specialist branch cutter. Not an issue for me.
It was so good at doing clean cuts that I had most plants trimmed with a single pass. Bushes that were about 1 m square were done in literally 10 seconds. Even plants standing higher than 6 foot were done so quickly I as looking for something else to cut.
The thing I liked most was that there was no slow down in the cutting action, even when I cut some larger diameter branches - up to 20 mm. It just sliced through them.
This has a very powerful motor and I think that this is where people might be interested when they compare this with a petrol, corded trimmer or other power tool.
Would I recommend it?
Yes, yes, yes.
I am yet to buy any other Stihl equipment, but I can tell you, based on my use of this trimmer, that I will have no hesitation in buying more.
I'll be saving money in servicing. I can start it and use it whenever I want to. It's powerful and well built.
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