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30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another success for American Gardener!, September 25, 2003
Based on my positive experience with the Yardstick 24V Trimmer, I decided to give another American Gardener product a try.Right out of the box you can tell this hedge trimmer is serious. The 18" cutter is stainless steel and almost razor sharp. Balancing the large cutter blade are two 12V (wired together for 24V) sealed lead-acid batteries inside the housing. The balance (center-of-gravity) of this tool is nearly perfect. Gripping the rear handle with one hand, and the front handle, with the other causes you to naturally hold the trimmer level to the ground--nice! And considering it has two batteries, it is surprisingly lightweight. After an initial overnight charge, and some light machine oil on the cutting blades, I was ready to tackle two large bushes and four medium sized bushes that were much past due for a "haircut." Even with a full charge, I noticed the hedger was quiet and low on vibration. I would say it's three times quieter than an equivalent 120VAC powered tool. It's so quiet you can talk in a normal voice to another person while using it. But does quiet mean wimpy? Not in my experience. A pass over the top of one bush made the branches fall like dominoes. I could tell the motor was working hard, but it never slowed or bogged down. An hour later and all six bushes looked great! The weight balance is so good I almost forgot this beast was at the end of my arm. The motor was just starting to slow down and I had been using the hedger almost continuously. So the one-hour run time seems right on. Others may experience even greater run time, if they trim their shrubs regularly. On mine, the trimmer had to cut back some serious growth. To recharge the battery after one hour's run took about 24 hours. Not a problem for this tool's occasional use. Other features of note: Motor runs cool and doesn't blow air in every direction like a 120VAC powered hedger. Motor has a circuit breaker so if you stall the blade, this trips instead of damaging the motor. Push the red button to reset and you're good to go. Thick plastic housing and rubbery blade shield appear very durable. LED light on charger changes from red to green to let you know the battery is fully charged. Another home run for American Gardener!! The stainless steel blade sets it apart from other consumer level hedgers and the battery/motor performance is excellent. A pleasure to use!
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