need hedge trimmer and blower. Stihl Kombi?

[lawnbobby]

Hello

own 2 acres as of last year

Need a decent leaf blower, mostly for fall. Last year I hand-raked - not again!

and a good hedge trimmer. We need to hedge trim about twice per year.

I tried out a Stihl Kombi yesterday and I see the advantages, but:

- the leaf blower is obviously not a backpack unit and even with the shoulder strap, would it get heavy over time?
- the big leaf blower attachment is a little cumbersome
- the angled hedge trimmer attachment is not currently available, and it will weigh more than a comparable dedicated hedge trimmer.

The cost of the Stihl Kombi unit I looked at with those 2 attachments will be $700. A dedicated backpack blower and hedge trimmer will be more like $800.

Help, thoughts, or guidance appreciated.

PS - I already have a weed wacker though it is corded. I already have an edger. I do not have a chainsaw and once in a while feel like one could come in handy, but have really gone a whole year without 'needing' one.

[Riverpilot]

I have the Honda Versattach system with the trimmer, etc... quite frankly it's HEAVY.
I have to use a harness, otherwise it gets too heavy after awhile. My thinking was, hey! I can just attach things as I need them instead of having one of everything. Sounds great when saying it, but when actually using it? Not so much... for me anyways.

In fact last fall I purchased a Ryobi hedge trimmer (battery) that is pretty light weight and lasts long enough to trim everything I need. I'm also looking at purchasing a new battery trimmer. Ryobi or an Ego.
I also see Ego has a backpack blower (battery) and has a new combo unit, much like the Stilh and Kombi.

I'd be mulching the leaves if at all possible. I would look into the battery units, they may not work for you... otherwise I'd get separate, and lighter, individual units.

[STL]

I have the Echo PAS trimmer, edger, and pole saw and like it a lot. I have a dedicated handheld stihl leaf blower and stihl chain saw. I use the leaf blower to spread leaves out for mulching, cleaning up after mowing, and blowing out the gutters. The chain saw and pole saw have been very useful to clean up all the neglected trees on my new property. I probably won't use them too much after I get everything in shape though or if a storm knocks something down.

The kombi units really start to make sense when you get 3+ attachments. If you want to consolidate the edger and trimmer to the kombi, that's when I would start leaning that way. Depending on how much you need to blow, the backpack unit may be very much worth it either way you go, especially with two acres. I think the blowers are generally the weak link with the multi units as far as weight and power.

[ENVY23]

I have the Kombi system. I wouldn't underestimate that little Kombi blower. I thought it looked kinda gimmicky too until I used it. With my KM130R powerhead it moves 603CFM, which puts it between the Stihl BR500(544CFM) and BR600(677CFM) professional backpack blowers. I never use the strap and I don't find it to the be that heavy with extended use. For some reason though the trimmer does get a bit tiring after a while. Maybe the blower is just better balanced with the power head? In any event, I've been very happy with my Kombi system.

[Riverpilot]

The reason why I stated the Honda was heavy to me, it's around 4+ pounds heavier than the other systems out there due to the 4-cycle engine. It's a great system, but carrying it around for awhile and ugh. lol.. of course, I also have had back problems in the past...

If I were to do it over again, which I very well might, I'd go for the Stihl or Echo systems that are much lighter. My only problem with those are the 2-cycle engines. I really get tired of mixing gas/oil for them.

[lawnbobby]

What would be good alternatives if I didn't go Kombi? I'm not excited about mixing gas and oil either, haven't had to do that in 30 years! Is there any quality battery hedge trimmer that performs very well? I'd do that plus a Stihl backpack blower. Are those 2 cycle?

[Riverpilot]

What would be good alternatives if I didn't go Kombi? I'm not excited about mixing gas and oil either, haven't had to do that in 30 years! Is there any quality battery hedge trimmer that performs very well? I'd do that plus a Stihl backpack blower. Are those 2 cycle?

I think the majority, if not all backpack blowers are 2 cycle. I do have a Stihl blower that I use.. I just buy the canned stihl pre-mixed gas/oil. But, that can get expensive if you're going to be using it a lot. I only use it for about an hour a week, so I don't use that much pre-mix.

If you're going to get like a Kombi, then it wouldn't be too bad to mix up a gallon or 5 gallon mix. Depends on how much you're going to use.

As for the hedge trimmer. How much do you have to trim up? I have a Ryobi battery hedge trimmer that works great for me, but I have less than 30 minutes of hedges to trim.

[Swamp_Fox]

I'm a fan of having dedicated units myself. I've got a STIHL HS81 (I think) and it's a great unit. I like the Husky blower a little more, I don't have much use for a blower so I just borrow one once a year. The STIHL Motomix is great, I've been running it for a couple of years. I own several two stroke tools so none of the them get used that much individually, so it's a perfect setup for me. It is more expensive but cheaper than replacing a carb or two every year.

[ENVY23]

What's so hard about mixing gas and oil? Most oil comes in sizes to match most gas can sizes, so there's no measuring anymore. The oil below makes 1 gallon, but is available to make 2gal, 2.5gal, and 5gal. I use the 2.5gal size. I just pour the oil in my gas can, then take it to the station and pump in 2.5gal of gas. Easy peasy.