 |
Flymo Mini Trim
by 2night
The majority of our yard is paved, but we do have a section that if left to its own devices can quickly turn into something resembling the amazon rain forest which is fine because when I'm not shaved I do resemble a gorilla but when I am clean shaved an unkempt garden offends me. Seeing the area that needs tending to is quite small it's ... not worth my while getting the large lawn mower out of the shed, setting it up all for this stamp sized patch of grass so that's why we use this Mini Trim Trimmer by the well know name of Flymo. We also use this for the edges around the pathway and any other, hard to get at, fiddly area.
This garden tool can packed in a surprisingly compact box and the trimmer itself was in only two parts, so getting started was a very fast and simple procedure. The is of course an instruction booklet with easy to understand assembly instruction and precautions you MUST follow as this may be a mini trimmer but it can still be dangerous if used incorrectly or left unattended. Once the two sections are attached to each other there is the all important guard is attached this slips easily over the front of the unit and clips in to place with an easy to hear CLICK! You are ready to go.
These trimmers are not really designed to cut an entire lawn and if you did use it for that use it would take you far longer than necessary and it would be a much harder mess to clean up than it need be. However if like me your garden has tiny areas that sprout grass this is a good compact option. The lead on this trimmer is surprisingly short when compared to our large lawnmower. It has a 6m lead and seeing that our garden is rather long and we don't have one of those handy out door plug sockets we do need to use an extension lead to reach the problem area. The entire unit is in the very familiar, very understated (I'm being sarcastic of course) shade of orange that Flymo favours. It's that wonderful, almost pulsating, "I'm surprised it's not luminous" easyjet shade of orange. To cut the grass it uses a thin 1.5mm line of hard plastic, it doesn't really cut it, it whips it, slicing the blades of grass like a machete (although a mini plastic one). This line can and does snap but you just pull and replace it, and when it runs out completely, a replacement spool is easily found in most hard wear stores or online and is quick and simple to replace. Instructions for doing this are of course included in the strimmers box and the spool costs around £5.
When it comes to using the strimmer it's just a case of holding it at an angle and pressing the large trigger like button located at the top of the unit. It surprised me how loud this strimmer actually is. It's as loud if not louder than most large sized lawnmowers. Most lawnmowers nowadays are very quiet and just glide over the grass. This gets louder as it whips it's way through the grass, and the thicker the grass the louder the trimmer.
The guard does a good enough job at containing the flying, blades of grass as it cuts but of course it doesn't contain it all and some will end escaping, so the further you stand away from it the better to ensure clean shoes. And also it doesn't collect the cuttings like a lawnmower so you will need to rake them up once you complete the job.
Cleaning the head is easy enough once you're finished. First of all make sure you unplug the unit before cleaning. Then just tip it upwards so the handle is down at the ground and remove the guard, this will be where most of the mess will be. This can be wiped clean using a cloth or just run it under the tap or hose it down. The cutting line area should only be wiped clean.
This unit stores away easily if it's not put back into it's box. I have it standing upright in the shed so it's easy to grab and go. But it is easily dissembled and repacked if you do wish.
I'm very happy with my Flymo Mini Trim, it suits my needs perfectly but do remember it will not replace your lawnmower if you have anything other than a small patch of grass.
Thanks for reading :0) 2night
This can be purchased online at :
Amazon.co.uk marketplace
For £18.99 + £5 shipping
The replacement spool can be purchased on line at :
Amazon.co.uk
For £6.69 + shipping
Read the complete review |
 |
Bosch AHS 48 Lithium Ion Cordless Hedgecutter
by MrMonochrome
When we moved into our new home we didn't realise how much work it would be keeping the seemingly endless hedge in check, so after hacking away for hours with my old hand shears I decided to bite the bullet and go electric. This was more than I wanted to pay but the lighter weight of the lithium battery seemed like it worth paying a bit ... extra to take the strain out of a prolonged cutting session.
The lithium battery is about half the weight of a traditional battery pack of the same power and although this is what makes the whole unit cost more it does come with some other advantages. Normal lead/acid or nickel battery packs like to be used so when storing over the winter they have often lost some of their performance when you charge them up for the next season and as they will discharge themselves over time even without use they will need a good long charge to get them to a usable state. Lithium ion batteries on the other hand keep their charge effectively when left for months at a time and so are more resilient when faced with a long period of no use.
As for the cutting unit, it is comfotable to hold for extended use and can be used easily at arms length without much effort. The teeth are well spaced so you can tackle larger branches and while it will sometimes struggle and jam it is a very capable machine and will cut through far more than you expect.
The big downside is the battery life between charges, at about an hour it could do with being a bit longer. That said an hour of cutting time actually means a fair bit more time when you add in the climbing of ladders so having the excuse of the battery being flat is often a welcome chance for a sit down with a cold beer before starting again when it has charged up.
For roughly the same price you can get a similar spec cutter but with two standard weight batteries so the choice is really between weight and length of cutting time. I'm glad I chose the lithium option as I now use this in combination with a large, long arm petrol trimmer for the wider sections of hedge and having two weight cutters to wield would be a real struggle at the end of the day.
Read the complete review |
|
|
Flymo Mini Trim
by danny691
I wouldn't say I love to do gardening, or that I find it a chore either. I go through phases of enjoying sprucing up the garden and the Flymo Mini Trim was purchased at the height of one of these periods! I have a reasonable sized garden covering three sides of my detached house and as I have two lawns I like to keep on top of cutting ... the grass and also trimming the edging.
The bright and bold colour of the Mini Trim really stood out when I came to purchase it, and at a price of around £20 it certainly seemed too good to be true. Weighing in at a lightweight 2.1kg it doesn't feel cumbersome or a tiring experience. The package contained the Mini Trim, along with a detailed user guide and a 1 year warranty. The Mini Trim comes in very few parts. In the box there are the main body of the Mini Trim and the lower blade area with head guard and line feed which only takes a minute to feed through the hole and then screw into place. Overall the assembly process is very simple.
The Mini Trim has a 230w/240v motor power and a cutting diameter of 21cm. Other important figures are that the cable length is 12metres, and the line is 10metres in length. These compare reasonably in comparison to more expensive models, so
Whilst using the Mini Trim I found it easy fault straight away. The automatic line feed does occassionally need to be reset during the edging process and this can become quite annoying after a while. The safety guard is also a permanent fixture, meaning that curved edges are more of a challenge, leaving you with no option but to alter your stature as opposed to moving the machine. The results leave me more than satisfied though, so other than the added hassle the end result isn't affected.
The Flymo Mini Trim is also one very noisy piece of equipment! I dont' use the Mini Trim early in the morning as to avoid disturbing neighbours, but there is no way of reducing the noise given off. I don't use the Mini Trim regularly, but if I did then I would suggest earplugs or protectors to prevent damage in the long term! I do occassionally find I have a ringing sound in my ears after use, but this soon disappears.
The ultimate question is, is the Mini Trim really worth the £20 pricetag, or is it worth paying a little bit more for something more substantial. The answer is quite simple, this is a bargain. Although it does have a number of 'quirks' I think all products like this will have things that annoy the individual. You may not find the automatic line feed annoying, for example, but I personally do. For the price of £20 it always was going to have its limitations. If you do have a bigger budget however, I would suggest you broaden your search.
Read the complete review |
