Sisters new Cub Cadet mower, but she needs a leaf blower and a weed trimmer

[skyactiv]

My younger sister lives in my old house and needed a mower, so I got her a Cub Cadet with a Honda engine. Model SC 100 H. It's not self propelled, looks to be simple and well built, so it should last for years. It pushes and handles very easy and does a good job mulching. It started on the first pull after fueling it up and I'm surprised how much easier it is to pull start it compared to other mowers. Now she needs a leaf blower and a weed trimmer. The yard is too large for corded. I like the ideal of 4-stroke power equipment, but I had a Makita 4-stroke blower that was underpowered. I want her to have something reliable and am open to cordless, 4-stroke, but I'm not so sure about 2-strokes.

 

[CT8]

4 Stroke blowers and weed wackers aren't the best choices. A high quality 2 stroke blower and weed wacker are the way to go.

 

[Milkman]

I think that I would look into cordless.

 

[Rand]

handheld blower? Hitachi RB24EAP Backpack blower? Echo 580 String trimmer? how tall is she? shorter= curved shaft taller = straight shaft the entry level echos are a good value for the $$$(around $150) buy 2 stroke gear 4stroke is not good in those applications. Echo has 20% off dealer appreciation days a couple times a year (dates vary by dealer) see list here https://www.echo-usa.com/Promotions/One-Day-Sale Might also consider a cordless(battery) string trimmer if the trimming is under 30min. home depot has refurb ego string trimmers with battery for $125 https://www.homedepot.com/p/EGO-Rec...s-Charger-Included-ST1502SF-FC/305339009 the 2.5ah 56volt battery is actually pretty decent my dewalt string trimmer with 18v 5ah battery (2/3 the size of the ego) runs for about 15-20min on high or 30min+ on low(never ran it down that much on just low) Battery electric blowers are just suck, underpowered and/or last less than 10min on battery. ok for drying a car, or blowing dust out of garage... not so much for grass and leafs. I've owned 2 of those Hitachi blowers for 5+ years now and they always start on 1-2 pulls Every time. 50% of the bad reviews are from a batch of blowers 5 years ago that had bad fuel line that fell apart after years.. Neither of mine have.. they have hundreds of hours and thousands of starts on them.. nothing done to them but gas(and 2 stroke oil)

 

[Snagglefoot]

For the weed wacker, battery electric. I like my 20 V Dewalt.

 

[maxdustington]

A decent 2T whipper snipper is going to be half the price of a battery powered Dewalt or Milwaukee. Homeowner grade STIHL might be 1/3 around here in Toronto.

 

[Snagglefoot]

Originally Posted by skyactiv

I want her to have something reliable and am open to cordless, 4-stroke, but I'm not so sure about 2-strokes.

See if you can have her handle an battery electric weed wacker vs a gas powered one. I'll bet she'll like the battery electric one a whole lot better. Also, get her some cool looking sun glass type safety glasses.

 

[maxdustington]

Originally Posted by Snagglefoot

Also, get her some cool looking sun glass type safety glasses.

Hearing protection > vision protection. All the old men I know who used power tools professionally are deaf but still have both of their eyes. Hearing damage is cumulative.

 

[skyactiv]

Thanks for the advise, especially in regards to hearing and eye protection. My younger sister is very tall at 6'2". She is the one I spoke about before that played basketball in college. I have a curved Stihl elongated shaft trimmer, FS 50 C-E. It's a long shaft model for tall people. I've never had an issue with it in the 4 or 5 years I've owned it. Echo makes a similar curved shaft trimmer for taller people, too. I take care of my equipment. Maybe if I get her something from Echo or Stihl, maintain it, use fresh fuel and winterize it, it might be good for years of trouble free operation. With big trees in her back yard and how the house is in a cul-de-sac facing west, there is a ton of leaves to deal with every fall. The city sucks the leaves up on the curb. So I'm going with a backpack blower. I'm going to research who has the better, easier to use line spool and choose that brand for her.

 

[joekingcorvette]

I have a 4 stroke string trimmer and blower. They both start and run very well but the string trimmer is just too heavy IMO. The 4 stroke blower is nice and quiet and the extra weight is not bad on that one.

 

[ragtoplvr]

I have an Echo blower bagger and while I have never got the 20 to one reduction it does very well. It will even do pretty well with wet oak leaves. It will be the 4th season for it this year. It started right up this spring. Runs perfect. Pretty quiet. Especially compared to my cheap weed eater. I mix 40 to one using only good syn JASO FB or better Rod

 

[jeepman3071]

Definitely go cordless. I have en elderly neighbor that had a 2-stroke stihl trimmer. It was such a pain for her to start, and with ethanol fuel it seemed to always need something whether it was a fuel line leaking, carb gunked up, etc. She got a black and decker cordless weed trimmer and it has been perfect. She keeps the batteries charged, and just pulls the trigger when she needs to use it. It's nice and light, and perfect for trimming. If your sister isn't planning on cutting brush with it, a cordless should be fine.

 

[JTK]

^ Did the same for my 80yr/old mom. I believe here little rechargeable string trimmer is B&D as well. She loves it. For little jobs, or someone that's not engine/fuel savvy, they're the way to go.

 

[Eddie]

E60 from Home Depot. You have one battery to serve a weed wacker & blower. I have this combo and it is great. Ed

 

[Duffyjr]

I agree with the rechargeable for residential use. I've been using the B&D 40v weed wacker for a couple years and last summer added the sweeper/blower and couldn't be happier. Just need to take care of the batteries, keep them charged and bring them in the house when done to charge/store.

 

[Rand]

Amazon has the hitachi blower I recommended for $97.xx https://www.amazon.com/Hitachi-RB24...tag=506d9c5866f111e9a06896bc129f10c70INT 7 year warranty.