The benefits of a strimmer with blades: cut thick bramble and brush

You’re searching for a strimmer with blades, not a line because you want to do some heavy duty work like cut brush or bramble. This is in fact called a brushcutter. The most common brushcutter these days would without question be the cordless brushcutter range. This is the gap between heavy duty petrol and the requirement for a power lead. Read on if you would like to learn more about a strimmer with blades (a brushcutter).

Types of brushcutter

Brushcutters fall into three main categories really, much like a strimmer. You have petrol, electric corded, and electric cordless versions. Which one you want to buy will depend on the task in hand, the size of the area, and the budget. It goes without saying smaller work around the home lends itself to cheaper models in the electric corded or cordless range. The other end of the spectrum is a professional ploughing through thick brush and bramble all day would want a heavy duty petrol brushcutter. Let’s look at those models more closely.

The main cordless brushcutter uses

The cordless brushcutter which is essentially a strimmer with blades will handle almost all of the general medium thickness brush and bramble you might like to clear. Let’s assume you wanted to clear a patch of well rooted and aged bramble, this is the tool for the job. In times gone by batteries had one weak link – power. This is no longer the case. It’s no exaggeration to say cordless tools have advanced 50 fold in the last fifteen years. The advance in battery tech has revolutionised how we use tools in the garden today.

There is still the usual drawback of price when compared to a corded version. It’s also arguable that per pound, corded electric will serve you much better. For me though, these are the small prices to pay when considering the ease of use, freedom, and comfort cordless tools provide. If you have a long garden, or you’re clearing the allotment with limited power point access, perhaps around the front of the house where a power lead may be dangerous or awkward. In all these cases cordless is your new best friend. Not to mention, a cordless is way lighter than a petrol model making manoeuvrability all the better too. On the cordless brushcutter page linked you can find the very best on the market. My personal preference is the Makita Brushless Brush Cutter. This has ample power for the average home, is well priced and is the link between high quality professional equipment at DIY prices.

When would you use a power corded strimmer with blades?

After discussing cordless brushcutters and their benefits it’s hard to see why power corded versions aren’t obsolete? Well, there is still the price to power ratio you might consider. Mains electricity tools are still miles cheaper than batteries. The only disadvantage is ease of use really. The main difficulty is a power cable reel needs to be used. If you follow the link you’ll find some excellent quality power reels that can be used in the garden. All of which with built in safety breakers to keep you nice and safe. An important feature when things can turn wet quickly, especially in the UK so should be handy!

If I were to pick one of the better models in this range it would have to be the Bosch Strimmer AFS 23. With a 950 watt motor it carries as much kick as a petrol model and if a power lead doesn’t bother you then you’ll also benefit from just how much quieter this model is than petrol 2 strokes that sound really nasty and loud. I won’t pointlessly go into a full review here because the link provided is a far more in depth look at this super useful tool but here’s a picture too:

Petrol power strimmers

If you want a blade on your strimmer and you’re looking for petrol, it means only one thing. You want to get serious work done and fast. You’ll be able to cut through even the thickest bramble with a petrol brushcutter and the best bit is, they are almost similarly price to cordless options. A really nice bonus if you can put up with the noise! If you’re just looking for the brushcutter itself then the Parker grass trimmer brush cutter is a good move. Price at £73 quid the work it can do is incredible and it’s not an exaggeration to point out there are literally thousands of happy customers who now own this bit of kit.

If however, you can afford the upfront cost, then there’s no doubt in my mind you would take a close look at the BU-KO Long Reach Petrol Multi Functional Garden Tool. It’s a great opportunity to get the strimmer with a huge added bonus of a chainsaw attachment for anything the brushcutter cannot handle. Having a pruner saw blade is just the cherry on top for me. Seeing as you are looking at petrol, there’s every chance this all in one kit will tick all the boxes. The chances of running into something thicker than a brushcutter can handle is very possible….If you take a look at the picture, you can see just how much this set has to offer.

A gentle reminder strimmers with blades need extra care

Using a brushcutter is a little more dangerous than a line strimmer because of the power and the moving blade. Protective equipment such as googles, gloves, and jeans are an absolute must. Bramble spitting out of the blade at your leg is unpleasant to say the least. In my younger, more foolish years I have first hand experience and if you follow the advice, I am certain you’ll thank me for it!

So whatever strimmer you decide on, this article should have left you feeling far more confident about making the choice. Thanks for reading to this point.