Help / recommendation to buy a cheap string trimmer quickly

[SC Maintenance]

Please learn me on cheap string trimmers. For my little yard I use a B&D plug in model. 100 feet of cord gets me wherever I need to go and has never been an issue (I have 3 outdoor plugs and a small lot).

However I am being volunteered to trim some long grass elsewhere. Its going to be maybe 15 minutes of work tops. So I need a portable string trimmer - no plug in available.

I hate making these decisions quickly but I likely need something this weekend. I could pay more if I needed to, but Lowes has this 20V / 5AH one for $119. Am I asking to be annoyed?

I could get a Rigid 18V that matches my other power tools, but its $250 and takes much longer to get.

Any suggestions / guidance?

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-...g-Trimmer-Battery-Charger-Included/5013829397

 

[Rand]

EGO or greenworks if you are going into a new battery system.
Cant recommend my dewalt its ok for light duty but the trim head lasts about 2 years.

That one you linked doesnt look too bad.
120 with a 5ah battery is decent price.
the motor is on the head which is good and bad.
more efficient and easier to control.
doesnt last as long if you let it get really dirty and wet.

After using my dewalt 90% of the time (motor on head)
going back to my craftsman gas trimmer with its gyroscopic forces definitely
makes me less accurate in my trim.. and maybe a few gouges in the yard... it likes to dig in and twist.
the battery one I just fly along level and trimming.

Just killed my dewalt replacement head.. thats 2 heads in 4 years.
IF replacement heads were more than 30$ I'd trash can it.

 

[Nukeman7]

What about renting a gas or battery powered trimmer for a few hours to perform the job? Home Depot rents either Makita unit for $33 for 4 hours or $47 per day. Or just borrow one from a good neighbor.

 

[SC Maintenance]

What about renting a gas or battery powered trimmer for a few hours to perform the job? Home Depot rents either for $33 for 4 hours or $47 per day. Or just borrow one from a good neighbor.

I will need it ongoing (15 minutes, likely once a week)

My neighbour would lend me his fancy one as many times as I like. I hate to take advantage of a good neighbor. Don't want to be that guy.

 

[Nukeman7]

I will need it ongoing (15 minutes, likely once a week)

My neighbour would lend me his fancy one as many times as I like. I hate to take advantage of a good neighbor. Don't want to be that guy.

Understood...in that case, my neighbor loves his Black and Decker 20V unit.

 

[daves87rs]

Understood...in that case, my neighbor loves his Black and Decker 20V unit.
View attachment 235741

My neighbor just got this one…..

 

[drtyler]

The Ryobi battery trimmer from HD isn’t bad, and its not heavy or loud. Had one for over 5 years.

 

[Rand]

not applicable but your thread here reminded me to order a replacement head for my dewalt 920
Trying a knockoff for 9.96 delivered it couldn't be much worse than the OEM ones....
They get beat up then jam and wont advance.. and you can work on them and clean them..
but a new one fixes it for another 2 years (for me) apparently.

 

[DemoFly]

We have a ryobi 18v trimmer at work and it's outlasted about 4 batteries. So that's pretty decent. It's a small jobber, they run 060 in it, but they use it to cut grass and some weeds. Never understood why everyone thinks every trimmer needs to be a brush hog.

 

[Dave P.]

I just bought a DeWalt cordless a few weeks ago so I've only used it twice. I bought DeWalt since I already have their batteries for other products. This seems substantial and well built. I've had cheaper, corded ones before and I find they don't last. I believe I paid about $160.00 for the tool only. It does seem like it goes through batteries pretty quickly though, but I have three so it's been ok.

 

[shortyb]

Is this one of those situations where the initial trim will be a bear, but then maintenance trims will be much easier? If so, the one you listed MIGHT work out fine, or crap the bed halfway through (or not cut well at all) your work. Check the return policy and get a new one once the heavy work is done if it lets you down mechanically. Or borrow neighbor's (I don't like being that guy either) just the first time and get the Ridgid so it's battery compatible, especially since your trimming is on the lighter side. One thing to consider is battery trimmers are better for lighter jobs, until you get into higher voltage units that can spin heavier line or rigid blades.

 

[Pablo]

Greenworks 80V PRO is a beast. But definitely on your high end or outside your range.

"Last purchased Apr 22, 2021"

Well over an acre cleared many times now, over 3 years, mucho string of three diameters gone through. I'm telling you, no and I mean NO maintenance. Gas trimmer? Gas hassle, oil, tune, plug, gack. Can't hold my beer!

 

[Cujet]

I have the 20V Dewalt. It is acceptable, powerful enough to do the work, but not as easy to modulate as a 21cc Echo. 4AH battery makes it about 15 minutes of use.

The newer version has a few improvements and bigger 5AH battery.

 

[meep]

The plug in model is going to likely have more power than the 20v variety. I think it all depends on how heavy the grass is you’ll be trimming. I have a 40V ryobi and work it hard. One trim around my house kills the 4A, 40V battery. It has half the power of my previous gasser (but none of the noise, fumes or fuel, and the screws don’t keep falling out from vibration). If it’s reasonably tamed grass and light weeds, perhaps a 20V will be great! The 40v is as heavy as a gasser, and potentially not as well balanced. But for the convenience and the power, it quickly became my go-to.

 

[cptbarkey]

Ridgid sounds smart given your current battery investment. Or bite the bullet on an echo 2 stroke gasser.

Expanding to another brand requires further commitment to get the most value on the other things you do. Its too bad Hercules hasn’t gone that direction yet and they muddied the waters with whatever Atlas is. Bauer has one for $49.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Update. Since there was no particular warnings on the Craftsman I went ahead and got it because I could get it now, it has a 5Ah battery, and Lowes has a decent return policy.

Charged overnight - went to the jobsite, knew it was going to be a slog - 2 feet high grass and other heavy weeds. It actually worked better than I expected EXCEPT it wouldn't advance string. Certainly no powerhouse but could work with patience.

Question - this one has a button you hit to advance. It stops the spin head which I assume is supposed to make it ratchet out a piece. But it is about 50/50. Hit 2 or 3 times in a row and sometimes you get a couple inches, sometimes you don't. Mostly I had to stop, snap open the string cover and it would immediately ratchet out a bit. Its almost like the cover is too tight or the spool too thick. Either way the stopping is ridiculous even if it worked. Do they all do this?

I was able to get the job about 80% done - taking lots of patience. Ran the battery dead.

So it will need to go back. Do I get another cheap one, or spring for the 56V Ego or the 40V Kobalt - on sale for $149 but only has a 4Ah Battery. I see extra battery is as much as the trimmer almost. Rigid way too expensive even though I have batteries.

I don't think I want to deal with gas. I predict I will be doing this job 18 months at most, and we do have a couple winter months that will tame it a bit. I presume once I get it 100% cleaned up it will go pretty quick.

 

[Nukeman7]

Update...

Question - this one has a button you hit to advance. It stops the spin head which I assume is supposed to make it ratchet out a piece. But it is about 50/50. Hit 2 or 3 times in a row and sometimes you get a couple inches, sometimes you don't. Mostly I had to stop, snap open the string cover and it would immediately ratchet out a bit. Its almost like the cover is too tight or the spool too thick. Either way the stopping is ridiculous even if it worked. Do they all do this?

No they all don't have trouble with string advancement. The B+D 20V trimmer in Post #5 automatically advances the string without any problems. No buttons to push or bumping the head needed.

 

[meep]

My bump feed head binds when it gets dirty … have to clean it out, and I mean all the way out, regularly.

A 40V 4A battery will carry twice the overall power as a 20V 4AH battery. $149 for either sounds good. I don’t know much about the kobalt, but the majority of ego reviews seems great. Note - I don’t like to charge these large batteries unattended overnight. They do scare me a little in this regard.

 

[xspeedy]

Just get the Echo at Home Depot. Yeah, a touch above $200 but it will last a long time. I had one for 15 years.

 

[BlakeB]

EGO or greenworks if you are going into a new battery system.
Cant recommend my dewalt its ok for light duty but the trim head lasts about 2 years.

That one you linked doesnt look too bad.
120 with a 5ah battery is decent price.
the motor is on the head which is good and bad.
more efficient and easier to control.
doesnt last as long if you let it get really dirty and wet.

After using my dewalt 90% of the time (motor on head)
going back to my craftsman gas trimmer with its gyroscopic forces definitely
makes me less accurate in my trim.. and maybe a few gouges in the yard... it likes to dig in and twist.
the battery one I just fly along level and trimming.

Just killed my dewalt replacement head.. thats 2 heads in 4 years.
IF replacement heads were more than 30$ I'd trash can it.

How does the head attach? Can you put a universal type head on it? I have fixed line heads on my gas trimmers and use .155 line. These are not available anymore and hard to find, but I have a few put back… I’ve been considering a battery powered trimmer…. If a fixed line head will fit it.