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Thread: Stihl battery power

  1. #361
    Member Redeye's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by Chris B View Post
    I stumbled across this video and now know why some hedge trimmer blades teeth are half gone lol
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lB1C8YdTKQs
    l'm gunna break out the 9" angle grinder..... ^^that's a hedge reduction lol




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    "All sin is washed away in the Holy goodness of Beer"
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  2. #362
    Senior Member Chris B's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Got the hsa94t a couple of weeks ago.
    If there's one machine that petrol will never compare to... this is it. There's no comparison

  3. #363
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by Chris B View Post
    Got the hsa94t a couple of weeks ago.
    If there's one machine that petrol will never compare to... this is it. There's no comparison
    I agree 24" blades 5.3kg with smallest battery compared to my Tanaka THT210S 26" blades 4.4kg
    Anything Ian says may or may not be garbage, it may also be his own opinion or it may not be his opinion at all, it may just be something he felt like stating anyone following his advice does so at their own risk and may be doing something Ian would actually advise against.
    And if you don't like what Ian has to say use the ignore function if you don't know how ask i will gladly tell you

  4. #364
    Senior Member Chris B's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by ian View Post
    I agree 24" blades 5.3kg with smallest battery compared to my Tanaka THT210S 26" blades 4.4kg
    Haha I think even Redeye will be impressed

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    Default Re: Stihl battery power


    .................




    http://curraronggardening.com/

    "All sin is washed away in the Holy goodness of Beer"
    Book of Redeye, Psalm 69

  6. #366
    Senior Member conrad's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Chris how have you found working with the cord to the off-tool battery? Any close calls yet??
    So far I've nicked my Husky backpack cord twice... $300 each time for a new one. Damn. Hopefully I have learnt my lesson and won't rush so much now.

    Is that weight right for the HSA94T - 5.3kg?? You wouldn't include the battery weight in that as the tool itself doesn't hold the battery, that's not weight that you have to lift when you're working.

    Quote Originally Posted by Chris B View Post
    No go lol
    Used it for a couple of jobs... then ended up selling to a mate with a spare battery and charger for half the retail price. It will be great for him to use at home

    The motor is actually pretty powerful and it didn't show any signs off bogging down when I used it. The biggest issue I found which applies to all battery mowers is the airflow.... the low blade speeds they have compared to petrol mowers produce way less suction
    With all the leaves and stuff on lawns the past few months.... the mower just doesn't suck it up well enough.

    Another issue with most battery mowers is they may not cut low enough for some as the blades are up higher in the deck

    Anyway I don't have time to muck around so it's gone

    One area I think battery mowers may work well in is mulching ... as less airflow will result in less deck packing... but I don't mulch.... Catch or discharge I find way faster
    Sounds like what I've found recently with the Husky LC 347VLi (19" homeowner model - I believe USA got a 21" version, no idea why we missed out on that..). It seems good by itself... but when used back to back with a bigger machine (the commercial lithium 20" Mean Green in my case) you really see the shortfalls. Weird that the Stihl didn't have good suction - I could see the Husky sucking up leaves from just outside the deck, and it fills the catcher really, really well. Electric motors have the torque to cut, but lower blade speed. What I've found is that they need a really well designed, well ventilated catcher to work well. Any obstruction to the air flow will be much more detrimental on an electric machine compared to petrol.

  7. #367
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by Chris B View Post
    Got the hsa94t a couple of weeks ago.
    If there's one machine that petrol will never compare to... this is it. There's no comparison
    Serous blade speed there. 4400 on low and 5000 on high. Great for fine precise work.

    Blurb from UK website ------

    Enjoy fantastic fine-trimming performance

    The HSA 94 T is a cordless tool specifically designed for precise hedge trimming, with a double-sided 30 inch / 75 cm blade.

    The trimmer variant of the HSA 94

    Optimised for precise trimming, this model features a different blade shape, with smaller tooth spacing and a lower tooth height, plus gearing for a higher stroke rate. This results in a machine that excels when performing precise trimming tasks and creating a multitude of different shapes. The blade itself is 30 inches / 75 cm long, and is double-sided, allowing it to cut both horizontally and vertically.

    Because the handle is multi-functional and can be rotated, you can easily cut both the tops and sides of hedges without strain.

    A comfortable & simple machine to work with

  8. #368
    Member of forum jd's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Which stihl whippy to buy? A couple of weeks ago went down the battery path and bought a stihl 86 hedgetrimmer so i'd like to stick with stihl. Just doing average suburban blocks. I've read all the posts on the thread. I'm guessing the fsa85 is not up to it as it hasn't been mentioned. The fsa130 is probably more than i want to spend. Is the fsa90 up to it? Currently running shindaiwa t270. Cheers.

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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by jd View Post
    Which stihl whippy to buy? A couple of weeks ago went down the battery path and bought a stihl 86 hedgetrimmer so i'd like to stick with stihl. Just doing average suburban blocks. I've read all the posts on the thread. I'm guessing the fsa85 is not up to it as it hasn't been mentioned. The fsa130 is probably more than i want to spend. Is the fsa90 up to it? Currently running shindaiwa t270. Cheers.
    Id steer away from the sthil whippies. The right hedgers and chainsaw are good but unless things have changed the whippies just arent up to it. Even more so if you dont currently have a battery. Happy to stand corrected by those who are using sthil whippies.

  10. #370
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by steveo View Post
    Id steer away from the sthil whippies. The right hedgers and chainsaw are good but unless things have changed the whippies just arent up to it. Even more so if you dont currently have a battery. Happy to stand corrected by those who are using sthil whippies.
    In the first sentence of his post he says he's bought a Stihl battery powered hedge trimmer (HSA 86). I'd agree with you to steer clear of the old model Stihl whipper (FSA 85) but I have the much newer FSA 90 which I happily use for regularly maintained properties. I've used it in rough stuff too but just a bit slower than my petrol Stihl. Using 2.4mm square cord in both. The even newer FSA 130 is the ducks guts I've heard but not cheap.

  11. #371
    Senior Member steveo's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by Crankitup View Post
    In the first sentence of his post he says he's bought a Stihl battery powered hedge trimmer (HSA 86). I'd agree with you to steer clear of the old model Stihl whipper (FSA 85) but I have the much newer FSA 90 which I happily use for regularly maintained properties. I've used it in rough stuff too but just a bit slower than my petrol Stihl. Using 2.4mm square cord in both. The even newer FSA 130 is the ducks guts I've heard but not cheap.
    Yeah, I realised that after I posted. The one I had a bad experience with and took back I think was the FSA85, that may have been the best Sthil battery one available at the time. Thats good to hear about the FSA90. How do you go with runtime?

  12. #372
    Member Vic joeymoey's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Gday!
    I've bought the Husqvarna Whippy, pole saw and arborist saw. Love Em
    I find the Husky significantly more balanced than Stihl gear. I'm waiting for the battery powered mowers to catch up.

  13. #373
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by steveo View Post
    Yeah, I realised that after I posted. The one I had a bad experience with and took back I think was the FSA85, that may have been the best Sthil battery one available at the time. Thats good to hear about the FSA90. How do you go with runtime?
    About 35 minutes on an AP 300 battery. I have several. For me the biggest advantage of the FSA 90 over the FSA 85 is the bullbar handle over the d-loop. Much prefer that setup. Just looked at runtime for the FSA 130 on Stihl's website and it says 45 minutes on an AP 300 running flat out.

  14. #374
    Senior Member Chris B's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by conrad View Post
    Chris how have you found working with the cord to the off-tool battery? Any close calls yet??
    So far I've nicked my Husky backpack cord twice... $300 each time for a new one. Damn. Hopefully I have learnt my lesson and won't rush so much now.
    Damn that's gotta hurt lol
    The way the cord comes out of the rear of the Stihl machines, I think it's nearly impossible (knock on wood)

    Quote Originally Posted by conrad View Post
    Is that weight right for the HSA94T - 5.3kg?? You wouldn't include the battery weight in that as the tool itself doesn't hold the battery, that's not weight that you have to lift when you're working.
    Exactly, it's 3.7 or 3.9 kg depending on which website you look at
    Honestly this machine is FAR better than any other I've used
    Before I had the battery gear I had the top model Stihl Petrol which had a RRP of $1000 and this has the blade speed and feels like more power
    Build quality is way superior
    As soon as you pick it up you feel the quality.... press the trigger and dayyuummnnn
    I just wished it was a machine I used more often as most hedges I use the pole version hla65
    If they upgrade that and keep the battery on tool... would be perfect

    Quote Originally Posted by conrad View Post
    Sounds like what I've found recently with the Husky LC 347VLi (19" homeowner model - I believe USA got a 21" version, no idea why we missed out on that..). It seems good by itself... but when used back to back with a bigger machine (the commercial lithium 20" Mean Green in my case) you really see the shortfalls. Weird that the Stihl didn't have good suction - I could see the Husky sucking up leaves from just outside the deck, and it fills the catcher really, really well. Electric motors have the torque to cut, but lower blade speed. What I've found is that they need a really well designed, well ventilated catcher to work well. Any obstruction to the air flow will be much more detrimental on an electric machine compared to petrol.
    Maybe I was a bit harsh on it... not ready to give up petrol mowers just yet but I was definitely hoping I could... battery pros did not outweigh petrol efficiency and speed for me
    Watching videos the husky and stihl perform similar and probably similar machines under the name tags anyway

  15. #375
    Senior Member Chris B's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stihl battery power

    Quote Originally Posted by jd View Post
    Which stihl whippy to buy? A couple of weeks ago went down the battery path and bought a stihl 86 hedgetrimmer so i'd like to stick with stihl. Just doing average suburban blocks. I've read all the posts on the thread. I'm guessing the fsa85 is not up to it as it hasn't been mentioned. The fsa130 is probably more than i want to spend. Is the fsa90 up to it? Currently running shindaiwa t270. Cheers.
    I've got the fsa90r... does the job but if you can stretch the budget and don't mind using backpack battery or holster.... then fsa130r is in another league

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