String Trimmers

The reviews at ConsumerGuide.com have improved a lot in the last two years, showing signs of expertise and some test results. One review covers the new 36-volt cordless trimmer by Black & Decker. In all, 10… cordless and nine corded electric string trimmers get detailed full reviews and ratings here, along with 19 gas models. Some of the reviews date back to 2006, but many were new in the spring of 2008. We found none dated later than April 2008. The corded Worx WG-103 and Black & Decker Grass Hog GH1000, along with the cordless Black & Decker NST2036 and Ryobi P2000, are recommended. The Craftsman 79197 earns a Best Buy designation.

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The owner-written ratings and reviews of string trimmers are easy to filter and browse here, since the model listings show not only the average rating but also the number of reviews on which the rating is… based. Cordless string trimmers get the highest ratings here. The gas string trimmers sold here are mostly inexpensive models with fewer reviews. Amazon.com does sell the detachable-shaft models of the Lehr Eco Trimmer, but there were few reviews of them posted on the site at the time of this writing

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In the GardenWeb.com forums, people post questions, each of which starts a discussion thread. Once on the lawn care forum site, we found it easiest to use the search box, where we first entered "string… trimmers" and got 316 threads about them, which is a lot to sort through. However, you can also use a search term like "Echo string trimmers" if you want to research a specific model or brand. Using a generic term like "gas string trimmers" is not very useful, since you'll only get threads in which the initial question contained those specific words, and far more of the questions in the forum are about choosing between different brands, or models of a brand. The discussion threads themselves are quite useful since the responses to the initial question are usually from people who have used the model or brand in question for some time. You can also post your own question.

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Walmart.com publishes owner-written ratings and reviews of the electric string trimmers it sells (made by Weed Eater and Black & Decker). A nice feature of these reviews is that they say how long the owner… has actually used the trimmer; some cover more than one year of use. Only two models, both electric, have received enough reviews to make the average rating mean much. The corded Weed Eater RTE115C is rated four out of five, while the cordless Black & Decker 12v CST1200 is rated 3.6 out of five.

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None of the string trimmers sold at AceHardware.com have accumulated enough owner-written reviews and ratings to make the average rating significant, but some of the criticisms are worth noting. The Black &… Decker NST2018 is their best-selling cordless electric model; the Black & Decker ST1000 is the best-selling corded model. Ace puts the new propane-powered Lehr trimmers in the same category as gas trimmers, and the LEHR ST025DS is both their top-selling and top-rated model, although it is rated by only six users.

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Allyn Paul, has worked in the lawn-care and landscaping industry for decades and had his own company at one time. This review is a video posted on Paul's blog. He tests the Lehr Eco Trimmer straight-shaft… model by using it on his own property. He highly recommends it, saying it meets his two criteria for choosing green technology: it doesn't cost more than models with the same power that are more polluting, and its quality is just as high.

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