MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Two cheapo Titan kits.
One with a straight shaft but a pruning chain saw attachment I don't need. £170
And one with just the tools I need, strimmer and a long reach hedge cutter and caheper to boot but a bent shaft strimmer.£125
https://www.screwfix.com/p/titan-ttl488gdo-25cc-bent-shaft-petrol-2-in-1-grass-hedge-trimmer/63778
Is the bent shaft really that bad?
My head says it's a worse design, but my head also says that I am paying a lot more to have the straight shaft and am buying a bits I don't need with the pruning attachment.
Yes, the bent shaft is cr@p. Effectively the head is driven by a piece of string that is unreliable as hell. Cheap, yes, but for a reason.
The straight shafted ones are driven by a solid rod, and will give no trouble.
Buy cheap, buy twice.
There are other places than Screwfix to buy tools. Don't dismiss the chain saw attachment. They do come in very handy.
Effectively the head is driven by a piece of string that is unreliable as hell.
That is what I thought but good to have a confirmation. I actually spent two summer seasons strumming for a LA contractor and have probably walked more miles than most with a strimmer but never needed my own until now.
There are other places than Screwfix
Yeah but it's very convenient!
The first link looks almost identical to a Garden Care one I bought about 4 years ago. Bought mostly for the hedge trimmer but thought the strimmer and chain saw attachments would be useful. They are.
Its been very good so far and cant really fault it. A little rust is showing on some bolt heads and the prime button gets a little oily but it runs perfectly. For the price its a great deal. I think I paid about 250 for mine and really value it.
I've got the bent shaft one from screwfix. Bought it a couple of months ago and had 3 or 4 sessions with it strimming and cutting shrubs with the hedge trimmer. So far i'm impressed with it.
Only annoyance to date has been the strimmer wire bump feature not working which means when the wire/string breaks you need to stop, power down, unscrew the end and manually feed the line through. I've read that better quality strimmer line might resolve it so i keep meaning to pop down to the local garden machinery place and get their advice/preferred line.
I bought it as a tester since we moved to a place with a bigger garden with a few hedges, lots of large shrubs and areas of nettles etc. Depending on how much I use it I may replace it with a stihl when it breaks but so far it's been good. If i get a couple of years out of it at this price it will owe me nothing.