Battery powered chainsaw recommendations? (2017)

[Gale Hawkins]

The 18" bar 80 volt Atlas from HF got my attention.

We have 5 of the 40 volt Lynxx powertools that are awesome except they can't seem to find their way home from the son's place 25 miles away especially the leaf blower that I like for cleaning off the mower and Bushhog. Well the chainsaw which I need up and down the road after storm is 25 miles out of reach as well.

 

[shooterdon]

I got the 40V HF Lynnx saw a few months ago and it sure is handy. The main reason I bought it was that one of guys who vacations up here works for a power company trimming and felling trees, and he recommended it. I wanted a saw for small jobs that I tend to put off if I need to gas up the Husqvarna 455.

I carry it in the back of the Mule and scrounge campfire wood and/or clear a fallen tree or limb when riding the two tracks. Great for dealing with limbs that fall in the yard after a storm. For just over $150 on sale it is a handy tool and so far I am pleased with it.

 

[bcp]

I am satisfied with my 40V Lynxx chainsaw except for the weight of 13.3 pounds. Probably 2/3 of my sawing is below 4 inches.

Has anyone used the Bauer 20V chainsaw? It is only 5.7 pounds.



Bruce

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Shopping for lithium ion power tools can be confusing based on battery options alone even with the same brand.

The wife and daughter have put in an order for an electric lawn mower so I am now focusing my chainsaw research in the direction of going with the 80v Kobalt so I have battery compatibility and a local store option. I am finding Lowes often offers the same price but different AH rated batteries for the Kobalt line of saws, mowers, etc.


Same mower 15 miles away comes with a 5 AH battery but 25 miles away comes with a 6 AH battery for the same price. Singly the 5 AH battery is $300 and the $360 for the 6 AH. On their chain saws I have found the same 80v saw for the same price but batteries ranged from 2 AH to 5 AH which is huge difference in run time with some weight difference.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I have found a 20-volt reciprocating saw, equipped with Milwaukee's "THE AXE" highly satisfactory for your task.

"Pruning" blades less satisfactory. Too thin.

Thanks for that info. I never heard of them before.

https://www.milwaukeetool.com/Products-old/The-AX-Nail-Embedded-Wood-Straight-Cutting-Sawzall-Blades/48-00-5026

 

[beowulf]

My Husqvarna Rancher does not get used so much anymore. My Echo 58V chainsaw is now my go-to saw - just need a second battery.
And my Craftsman v20 pole saw with 14' reach paid for itself the first hour - and has been used many hours since. To get a second battery for my pole saw I bought a compatible weed eater - so far that is also great.

I would not even consider these kinds of battery powered tools for a long time but now they are my best friends.

 

[Kavic]

I am sold on my Ego 56v 14” chainsaw. Just happened into HD one day and they had it on clearance for $149 with battery and charger. 11.4 pounds, plenty of juice to do minor road cleanups, take out unwanted locusts with just a squeeze of the trigger. No more fighting with the farm boss to keep it running or pulling out the heavy MS661.

Liked it so much I bought an Ego trimmer with battery and charger for $149 on sale. Now I have a second battery in case I need to do a lot of trimming.

 

[two_bit_score]

Shopping for lithium ion power tools can be confusing based on battery options alone even with the same brand.

The wife and daughter have put in an order for an electric lawn mower so I am now focusing my chainsaw research in the direction of going with the 80v Kobalt so I have battery compatibility and a local store option. I am finding Lowes often offers the same price but different AH rated batteries for the Kobalt line of saws, mowers, etc.


Same mower 15 miles away comes with a 5 AH battery but 25 miles away comes with a 6 AH battery for the same price. Singly the 5 AH battery is $300 and the $360 for the 6 AH. On their chain saws I have found the same 80v saw for the same price but batteries ranged from 2 AH to 5 AH which is huge difference in run time with some weight difference.

My brother bought the Kobalt 80 V mower. It’s impressive.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Late yesterday I broke out the new Kobalt 80v mower. Indeed it is impressive. I was working on the roadside where it has not been mowed this year when the security light above me came on so I kept going. Due to my physical limitations I am glad I got the self propelled model. It does not bog down like the gas mower in that environment. I was shocked but I still got the rated 60 minutes of run time mowing non stop. From no lights to full charge took 90 minutes just as the manual stated. Going forward I do not plan to mow such overgrowth with this mower but I wanted to give it a shakedown run during the 30 days I have to return it for a refund or replacement at the store. The first battery was dead and would not take a charge so they opened a new one and exchanged it for the new dead one.

Buying the second tool to get another battery makes sense with battery powered tools I found as well. I have two 2.5 Ah batteries by getting both the leaf blower and weed eater and a 6 Ah battery with the mower and a 5 Ah battery with the 18" chainsaw. Lowes would have sold me a spare 5 Ah battery for $300 but I got the 18" saw with a 5 Ah battery and heavier fast charger on clearance for $339. So a new 18" chainsaw and the heavy duty charger cost $39 more than just a spare battery purchase from Lowes website. It is amazing how far lithium ion powered tools have come performance and cost wise.

 

[Grumpycat]

Shopping for lithium ion power tools can be confusing based on battery options alone even with the same brand.

Marketing would like to have you think voltage is all you have to know to separate the men from the boys. Voltage means less than the number of cylinders in your tractor engine. Just as you want HP for tractor, you want Wh (Watt-hours) for battery. Multiply volts times Amp-hours for Watt-hours. Watt-hours is not HP, it is closer to comparing the size of the gas tank.

The wife and daughter have put in an order for an electric lawn mower so I am now focusing my chainsaw research in the direction of going with the 80v Kobalt so I have battery compatibility and a local store option. I am finding Lowes often offers the same price but different AH rated batteries for the Kobalt line of saws, mowers, etc.

Same mower 15 miles away comes with a 5 AH battery but 25 miles away comes with a 6 AH battery for the same price. Singly the 5 AH battery is $300 and the $360 for the 6 AH. On their chain saws I have found the same 80v saw for the same price but batteries ranged from 2 AH to 5 AH which is huge difference in run time with some weight difference.

I have been using a 21" self-propelled Ego for 4 years, I believe. All Ego are 56V using interchangeable battery. Mower came with a 7.5Ah. Lately have noticed some new Ego mowers come with (2) 5.0Ah batteries. Two batteries is a good idea as 5.0Ah will mow 30-45 minutes while the other charges.

Bought a 15" Ego string trimmer which included a 2.0Ah battery. When new if I didn't let the grass get too tall the 7.5Ah would mow about an hour then the 2.0Ah would finish up the last few minutes.

A bit after getting the mower and trimmer had an opportunity to get the backpack blower with 7.5Ah battery on closeout for less than a new 7.5Ah battery cost. Ever since I have been lazy and rarely mow the front and back lawns the same day but when I do I just swap the battery.

The original backpack blower battery was replaced under warranty. Not for lack of capacity but for outright stopping in the middle of mowing. 10 minutes and suddenly the mower shut down. No low battery warning. Take battery out, cuss at it, put it back in and resume mowing. Sometimes no trouble until I'm finished, sometimes it happened again.

String trimmer is full size as gas. Its great but its big. Find myself using my old Worx 48V. Worry about finding a battery for it if needed because Worx only did 48V for a few months before upping the voltage so as not to be thought of as a lesser weaker product against 56V competitors.

I really really don't use my EGo 7.5Ah batteries in the trimmer. The 7.5's are heavy.