Hedge trimmers- petrol/corded/cordless

poppy_w

Hi everyone,

I am struggling to decide which hedge trimmers to buy and have reached review-reading overload. I would appreciate any help.

I am considering the Bosch AHS 65-34 (corded), the Stihl HSA 56 cordless or the Stihl HS 45 petrol hedge trimmers.

The Bosch is around £130 from Amazon, it's got good reviews (apart from when people have cut the cord), and is said to be powerful (700 watt) and has a good review from Which. People said it cuts through hedges like a knife through butter, which is what I need as some of the hedge is dense, like bay. The downside is one side of the hedge is on the street with no pavement, and the cord migh make it harder to move out of the way of cars quickly.

The Stihl is around £200. It has the advantage of being cordless. It can cut up to 30mm branches so slightly smaller than the Bosch. The blade is also shorter ( a bit on the short side at 45 cm vs 60 cm for the Bosch). On the other hand, Stihl seem to be a good brand and people seem to complain about corded hedge trimmers. It's also recommended by Which, and you can get them serviced at Stihl dealers, I think. I am just not sure that it will be powerful enough, and I don't know how to compare it to the power of the corded one and if it will be good enough.

Finally, there is the petrol Stihl, also around £200. I wasn't really thinking about petrol, but it might solve the issue of power. Somehow the petrol ones seem 'scarier' to use but that probably isn't logical as any of them could do damage. I suppose the advantage is not having a cable but still having power, but the disadvantage is the noise and petrol fumes, and having to wear ear defenders. Also having to buy and store petrol. Nevertheless, it might do the job better?

Thanks for any help.

keith969

It depends a lot on the size of the hedge, a cordless may not have enough charge to cut the whole thing, although a spare battery will help. Batteries that can supply plenty of power tend to be heavy though.

My neighbour has a large hedge and has a petrol trimmer, it can certainly cope but yes it is a bit noisy (and you might also want to check the weight).

phil24_7

I have a petrol hedge trimmer and I love it. I always feel that cordless one will be gutless or will run out of power too quickly (though I don't have many bushes to trim anymore) and corded ones are just 1 wrong movement away from needing a repair. Whilst my Stihl is a little noise it is a dodddle to use and isn't much heavier than an electric one.

poppy_w

Re: the weights, the Bosch AHS 65-34 corded is 3.8 kilos, the Stihl HSA 56 cordless is 3.7 kg with the battery and the Stihl HS 45 petrol is 5kg.

phil24_7 wrote: »

Whilst my Stihl is a little noise it is a dodddle to use and isn't much heavier than an electric one.

Thanks, which Stihl do you have? Do you wear protective equipment? The shop I spoke to said I should get a forestry helmet with a visor as well, not sure if that's not overkill.

Is it difficult to start? I have not been able to start someone's petrol lawnmower once, so it worries me that I might not be able to start it.

d0nkeyk0ng

I have a similar Bosch one (think it's the 70-34). Comfortable to hold. Easy to use but I have to use an extension wire with it. Our garden is quite small (10x15m probably) and it definitely cuts through hedges with ease.

However, on any large garden, I'd want some sort of cordless variety - be it electric cordless or petrol powered.

poppy_w

The garden isn't massive but very long, there is around 40 metres of tall leylandii, 10 of lonicera, then another 10 of 5 foot mixed hedging (much shorter). I have a 50 metre extension already that I use for other tools.

I'm planning on getting a long pole trimmer for the leylandii, so this other trimmer would be for all the other stuff. The leylandii also needs an annual cut from a tree surgeon, no way of avoiding that as the trunks need a chainsaw and at a height to boot. This costs hundreds of pounds annually.

The other hedging is still dense, though and needs some power to be brought under control. It's not working to do it by hand, and it's very expensive to get someone in to do it every few months.

keith969

poppy_w wrote: »

The garden isn't massive but very long, there is around 40 metres of tall leylandii, 10 of lonicera, then another 10 of 5 foot mixed hedging (much shorter). I have a 50 metre extension already that I use for other tools.

Sounds like you need the petrol one. I have a petrol strimmer and chainsaw (don't have any hedges!), its not really any bother mixing up 2 stroke for them.

EssexExile

I have back trouble & have gradually got rid of most of my petrol gardening stuff as it's just too cumbersome to hold for any length of time. I have hedges down both sides of my 300ft garden & my Bosch corded hedge trimmer has been handling it fine for years. I bought a long reach one recently but it's too awkward for me, I let the neighbour do those bits now, he's younger & fitter.

Ganga

poppy_w wrote: »

The garden isn't massive but very long, there is around 40 metres of tall leylandii, 10 of lonicera, then another 10 of 5 foot mixed hedging (much shorter). I have a 50 metre extension already that I use for other tools.

I'm planning on getting a long pole trimmer for the leylandii, so this other trimmer would be for all the other stuff. The leylandii also needs an annual cut from a tree surgeon, no way of avoiding that as the trunks need a chainsaw and at a height to boot. This costs hundreds of pounds annually.

The other hedging is still dense, though and needs some power to be brought under control. It's not working to do it by hand, and it's very expensive to get someone in to do it every few months.

I do not know if you are male or female ( the user name poppy would sugest female ) but before you go down the avenue of a petrol hedge cutter bear in mind the weight and the fact that you will be using it with raised arms,also most are two stroke,that is petrol and oil mixed which has to be purchased as petrol and the oil mixed by yourself and also the storage of the petrol which is highly flammable.
I would have thought that by now most battrey run tools are designed to run for a decent period of time on a single charge.
You might also look at Ryobi,Bosch,Makita etc.There are loads of brands on the market.

poppy_w

EssexExile wrote: »

I have back trouble & have gradually got rid of most of my petrol gardening stuff as it's just too cumbersome to hold for any length of time. I have hedges down both sides of my 300ft garden & my Bosch corded hedge trimmer has been handling it fine for years. I bought a long reach one recently but it's too awkward for me, I let the neighbour do those bits now, he's younger & fitter.

Thanks, what kind of hedge do you have? And have you ever cut through the cord (seems to be a common problem)? Also, I understand that corded are fine for trimming, but can you do a 'cut back' with it or is that too much?

EssexExile

Beech one side & hawthorn the other. If I want to seriously cut back then I go as far as I can with the hedge trimmer then finish off with loppers. The hedge trimmers will go through anything up to about half an inch. Yes I've cut through the cable once in 20 years, that's what RCDs are for.;)