Customer Reviews

Factory Reconditioned Homelite ZR08580 26cc Gas Powered MightyLite Backpack Blower

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I have a Ryobi gas blower that wouldn't start. After replacing the plug and feeding it starting fluid, still no firing, so I went blower shopping. Consumer reports rated the Toro Ultra 12 Amp Electric Blower/Vacuum #51599 as the number one, beating out any gas or electric model, with more power at 235mph. So I bought one, with a 100 foot 14 gauge cord. It was powerful, but quite frankly dragging around a 100 foot cord was a challenge after growing accustomed to a portable gas driven unit.

I was considering this reconditioned Homelite gas powered back pack before buying the Toro electric so I decided to try it out. The entire unit looked brand new. The one feed tube could have a few scuffs on it from a little use, or it could just be from sliding the control cuff over it during assembly. It looked, smelled, and was wrapped in plastic just like new. It did have the word "recon" on the plastic shroud, the letters were clear, like they had been touched by a hot metal iron. Thought it was a logo impression at first. Ok on to performance.

Immediately after taking it out of the box, brought it outside, and put some fuel/oil mix in, pressed on the fuel bulb a few times, turned the large easy to read knob over to the choke setting, pulled it twice, and it fired up. Then I popped the unit on my back, and decided to try it out. My first impression was with the motor so close to my head, the noise became a factor. Not that it was louder than my Ryobi, but it was closer to my ears. Fortunately I have a set of NOISE CANCELING HEADPHONES FOR PC CD and MP3 (980409-0403).

The amount of air that was moved is more than the small hand held units, but after using the Toro electric it didn't seem like a lot, although I would consider it more than sufficient. The half throttle setting has a very pleasant whir to it that is much quieter.

After putting the unit on for the first time, you simply tug on the straps to snug it up to a comfortable fit. After using it for a while, it gets more comfortable, the harness settles to a natural fit, something I wouldn't mind wearing for extended use.

I love the extreme power of the Toro, and considering the price, it was a keeper. The Homelite is a backpack, and one I do not want to give up either. By the way, with a backpack, you do not have the flexibility that you have with a hand held; for instance clearing off the top of the boat cover from pine needles is difficult. A hand held you can raise it up over your head.

One last feature I wanted to comment on; this reconditioned model is (Non carb compliant) which as I understand it means that it does not pass California's stringent emission standards. To the green enthusiast in me, that is something worth being concerned about. To the motor head in me, less smog controls means more stable starts when cold, and more power as in more horsepower coming out of the same motor. I noticed the compliant models are now selling at Amazon for more money then these units new, so these recons may be, and I am not sure of this, but may be the last of the oldies but goodies. This is mere conjecture on my part, but is another reason why I am glad I got one of these, especially at such a nice price. I did notice the reviews had mentioned running problems with complaint new model just as I had anticipated.

So the Toro will come in handy when I am clearing out the gutters on the roof, due to the flexibility of the hand held, plus the Toro has metal blades, and leaf vacuuming/shreadding capability, and the Homelite does not do leaf vacuuming/shredding, as stated in the instructions, but does have the back pack feature, and does a great job of clean up after cutting the lawn. Both are keepers for sure. I was also pleased with the overall build quality on the Homelite, it didn't seem like a toy at all. It's built pretty solid, especially for a unit at this price point. I highly recommend getting one, before they once again, run out of them.

THIS BLOWER WORKED GREAT RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX IT DID A GREAT JOB ON THE LAWN WAS EASY TO USE AND ONLY $89.00 SHIPPED. SORRY TO SEE IT IS OUT OF STOCK AS IT IS TRULY A GREAT VALUE

Purchased this blower after researching for a few months. I was as most consumers interested in a good value where as product performance and cost meet somewhere in the middle. Typically, I like to see more performance for less money. First off I found the reconditioned blower to be in new condition. Only very minor cosmetic blemishing and only on the footing where it had been sat down. The rest of the unit including motor and fuel areas appeared factory new. Considering this is a backpack blower (my first) I have found this as other reviewers not as mobile as a handheld when used in tight quarters such as the inside corners of a garage or porch. As far as rest goes mixed the fuel, filled the tank, followed starting instructions on the unit's housing and it started right up. The blower has an adjustable harness, is lightweight and therefore easy to use. For the money I have no complaints. I would say had I spent several hundred dollars as most backpack units cost the performance could be better but for under a hundred dollars this backpack unit is a good value. Noise is no more an issue than any other blower I have owned. One last word on performance which is a personal experience and observation. Being a backpack unit and the fact I'm tall I feel may possibly be a disadvantage. My experience with most blowers is to get the blow tube close to the ground where as the curved exhaust tip is at a parallel angle which promotes a better direct flow of air to sweep the debris. The idea is to make the air move parallel with the ground and not be deflected off the ground forcing the air to rise up. The backpack eliminates this approach because once it's on your back your height denotes what angle the tube will be at and therefore your only adjustment is how far out you maintain the debris field which as expected you lose velocity and therefore effective blowing power. My observation is this blower is universally designed for the average height of roughly 5'10". Let me clarify under most conditions I would not be concerned but when you encounter wet leaves, heavy debris it's nice to be able to get more parallel straight-line, concentrated air flow close to the debris to lift it and sweep it away. A handheld makes this task a breeze...pardon the pun but the backpack to me has advantages such as less fatigue as well as disadvantages less mobility.

nice lightweight blower,inexpensive but works just as good as new ones for 1/2 the price.

Sounded like a great deal BUT received my blower and absolutely NO protective packaging in the box and found the idle screw and bracket embedded in the cardboard box. So thought I'd return it for another but Amazon won't honor what it sells and says no returns on this product. Again buyer BE AWARE!!!!

I hadn't checked the blower out since I received it til yesterday. I followed the set up instructions and attempted to start it. It ran for about a minute then stopped. I reviewed the instructions noting that I did everything correctly and attempted again to keep it running. After adjusting the choke differently than instructed, I finally got it to run. It idled very nicely til I tried to use it to actually do what it was intended to do, blow leaves, and the unit stalled. It would restart okay, then as soon as you accelerate it would stall. I have been an automobile mechanic for 29 years and I know that the carburator needs to be rebuilt on this unit to get it to operate the way it was advertised.
I would like to return this unit as soon as possible and receive a total refund. This is the first time I have had a problem with Amazon and I know that I will be taken care of.
Please notify me of prepaid shipping instructions as soon as possible.

This is a great product. It takes a little bit to get it started, but runs great. I would recommend this product to anyone with a small to medium sized yard. This works great for my 7/8 of an acre.

I have wanted a backpack blower for some time and due to cost I opted for the handhelds. That is until I seen the cost of this one. $99 for a backpack blower is exceptional. The fact it is reconditioned makes no difference as it looks and acts as if it was new. I opened it , filled with gas/oil mix and started using. 2 hours later I ran out of things to blow off and much to my surprise I had only used 1/2 a tank of gas. I have used this many times now and love it. Easy to start, runs good and provides mores than enough power. The only complaint I have is I waited so long to get one. The blower is not heavy on the back even after hours of use. It does take a little adjusting to find the comfortable spot on your back as the frame will cause some discomfort if not in the right spot but not enough you want to stop using it just noticeable until you readjust the straps.Bottom line is, buy it , cost is exceptional value and you will be glad you did , I am.

great deal. worked right out of box. As others have said A little differant then the hand held ones but for the lawn and everything else I need to do it works great!!

Item arrived well packed and once 2-stroke fuel was added, it started after a couple of pulls. Its extremely comfortable and light enough to carry around for serious home leaf blowing. Aside from very minor scratches from previous use and the word "recon" stamped on the red plastic housing, it looks almost new and works like a dream. It has operated much quieter than I expected and I would recommend this Homelite highly if you want to have an effective reliable affordable blower.