Consensus on battery powered OPE

[supton]

More dangerous for homeowners / casual users though, they will cut through safety chaps as no clutch to slip like a gas saw has when chain gets caught in the chap's fibers. Learnt that in a chainsaw safety class.

Interesting! did not know what. Sounds like a safety feature that is worth those manufacturers to try to figure out. Like how auto up windows in cars can detect overload and auto reverse, to prevent injury to people.

But IMO, it’s not really a problem. How many casual homeowners have chaps? How many have chaps but “it’s 30 seconds of work, I don’t need no stinkin’ safety equipment”. [Like I’ve never said that before…]

 

[supton]

No battery powered stuff here, I think last time I was shopping was 4 years ago and back then I didn’t think it was developed enough, and still pricey. But I wish I had, as my chainsaw and weedwacker get light enough use that it would have been fine. And less upkeep (although they have been lightly used enough that the upkeep has been short of zero so far).

But I have close to 2 acres to mow. Over the last 15+ years I’ve spent maybe $120 buying mowers, but have had most given to me (running or otherwise). Couple times that in replacement parts / repairs of course.

My 2 acres is surrounded by trees and right now my yard is blanketed in pine cones (well 18” of snow on top of that). I rake by hand and fill my 4x8 utility trailer to 3’ depth multiple times over the spring/summer/fall months. For that I use a 4 wheeler to pull said trailer around. Which also does double duty pushing snow with its itty bitty plow. No snowblower at the moment, but unless if they make 2 stage snowblowers with the equivalent of 8+ hp of power, I’m just going to laugh at the poor thing…

Even though I do think the future is electric, and rather dislike the smell of 2 strokes.

 

[Cujet]

Interesting! did not know what. Sounds like a safety feature that is worth those manufacturers to try to figure out. Like how auto up windows in cars can detect overload and auto reverse, to prevent injury to people.

But IMO, it’s not really a problem. How many casual homeowners have chaps? How many have chaps but “it’s 30 seconds of work, I don’t need no stinkin’ safety equipment”. [Like I’ve never said that before…]

There is at least one electric chainsaw with a conventional clutch.

Another game-changing chainsaw innovation.

Introducing the world’s first battery chainsaw with a clutch: the T542i XP® and 542i XP®. Stay in the cut longer thanks to the added torque and exceptional cutting performance. Designed for arborists and tree climbers, these saws feel like gas, perform like gas, but give you all the benefits of...

www.husqvarna.com

 

[Exhaustgases]

There is at least one electric chainsaw with a conventional clutch.

Another game-changing chainsaw innovation.

Introducing the world’s first battery chainsaw with a clutch: the T542i XP® and 542i XP®. Stay in the cut longer thanks to the added torque and exceptional cutting performance. Designed for arborists and tree climbers, these saws feel like gas, perform like gas, but give you all the benefits of...

www.husqvarna.com

Nice, now if they add some fake engine noise.

 

[ARB1977]

Ryobi 40V Brushless AWD 21"
Up to 70 min runtime with 2 40V 6 Ah batteries
So that works out to 40V X 12 Ah = 480 Wh
(480 Wh / 70 min) X 60 min = 411 watts/hr
411 Wh = 0.55 HP

Am I calculating this properly as a comparison to gas HP?

I wish I had 70 mins of run time. I don’t know if I was the tall grass or the heat of the day. Either way a week later it went back.

 

[bchannell]

I was a complete "againster" when it came to electric. Then when started mowing a LOT of ground around the house, it became a chore to keep everything maintained. Soooo, on a whim, I went to HD with the intent to buy a new Ego mower. I ended up buying a returned Ryobi mower. That was almost 4 years ago now and it's still going strong, and it will mow with a 3.5hp gas mower. Later I bought the 40V Ryobi blower to use the same batteries as the mower, and it's a gem too. Then I opted for a Ryobi 40v trimmer, and it is a beast, easily matching the power of the Husqvarna I was using. All of this is no maintenance, just charge batteries and go. I have 5 40v batteries and get by just fine. I still haven't gone electric on my tractor, (John Deere 425) and likely will not anytime soon as it would take a stack of batteries to mow 5+ acres. It's a lot less work to keep everyting running, when you don't have to mix oil, change oil, etc. I'm looking at a Ryobi chainsaw this year and if it cuts good enough to keep the downed trees removed I'll be happy.
I'm not a greed new deal guy, I hate the idea, but I have to admit, electric OPE has it's place. We don't need to ban gas, let the consumer decide for himself which he chooses, but don't rule out electric.

 

[jeepman3071]

We don't need to ban gas, let the consumer decide for himself which he chooses, but don't rule out electric.

100%.

I love small engines, but even I can't deny the huge advantages of battery powered tools for certain applications. For homeowner grade weed wackers, chain saws, and blowers they make perfect sense. Most of those cheap box store 2-cycle tools are throw-away anyway, cost more to repair than replace, and they end up sitting more than they are used which causes huge headaches. Many of my small engine customers will own a larger piece of gas OPE (like a snowblower or lawn mower) but the smaller hand held stuff is battery.

For me, the battery stuff doesn't quite cut it just because of the amount of work I do both on and off my property, but I do love my battery power tools for working on cars and equipment, they are a game changer. Right tool for the job, and the more options the better. Limiting options by banning stuff is going the opposite way.

 

[RazorsEdge]

I'm getting my Ego 56v push mower on Thursday. I already own their 2- stage snowblower and weed trimmer.

 

[jkasch]

Got a good deal on this sweetheart.

 

[tbm5690]

I have gas everything minus my pole saw. I had an electric trimmer and ended up buying a gas...for my trimming needs I didn't want to have to drain 2 batteries every use, and I use an edger attachment on the trimmer too which I use every bit of that gas power for and for an extended period. I could get away with an electric mower but wanted a 30" deck, and the electric Timemaster is the most overpriced item for sale in the entire world so that wasn't an option. There is no way I could go electric on the snow blower where I am. Lastly, I'm not a fan of more li-ion batteries laying around on chargers in the garage than I need to have.

 

[nthach]

I’m happy with an EGo 56V chainsaw. It’s not as fast as the Echo it replaced but one less carb and less gas to worry about going bad.

 

[RazorsEdge]

Brand new 56v Ego lawn mower now keeping the Ego 56v 2-stage snow blower company

 

[Cherrybomb]

Understand Honda is out of the gas lawn mowers.Have they stayed in the market by making battery operated and if so ,are they a reasonable purchase?

 

[skyactiv]

Understand Honda is out of the gas lawn mowers.Have they stayed in the market by making battery operated and if so ,are they a reasonable purchase?

Check Home Depots stock near you if anyone is interested in one. The Home Depot near me has 90 in stock as of 4/19/24. The self propelled 170cc OHV version.Some think all modern Honda mowers have a OHC engine, they don't. The Home Depot has 1263 total in the DC's when I pinged other far away zip codes.