Customer Reviews: Read 196 more reviews...
 I'm completely satisfied, and so are my neighbors... April 11, 2005
lee280zx (San Diego, CA)
99 out of 110 found this review helpful
UPDATE: I've owned this set for over 2 1/2 years now, and I only like it more. I've seen no drop off in battery power, and I find more uses for the blower than I would have thought. It's great for blowing sawdust out of my garage and I even use it to help dry my car after I wash it. The weed wacker continues to function like a champ, and the pruner, though rarely used, works great. There's nothing like cordless electric for convenience!
More than a few reviewers have complained about short run times with these tools. I have no such complaints. In fact, I find that one charge on one battery is enough to edge and weed-whack my front and back yards and trim my hedges.
A lot of people don't seem to understand that in places where people want to live yards are getting smaller and smaller. In San Diego, in a subdivision built 25 years ago, my front and back yards combined are about 1500 square feet. My friend just bought a new luxury home in San Diego that has a "postage stamp" front yard. There isn't even enough room to park a Camry on his grass.
Another friend in Tennessee recently purchased a multi-thousand dollar commercial lawn mower with a 52" cutting path to mow the grass on his property. This set is perfect for most San Diego lawns (and even those that are a fair bit larger), but it's not going to be nearly as suitable to a backwoods Tennessee lot.
Before you buy these, think. The larger your yard, the less suitable you'll find these. So if your property is much larger than the average subdivision lot, these probably aren't for you. And it's just common sense that the larger your lot is, the more batteries you'll need. If you have a larger yard, don't buy the set and then whine about having to switch out batteries. These aren't made for your two acre property in the sticks!
As you would expect, the blower does not rival the performance of a corded model. But it blows hard enough for most lawn care needs (it will move grass clippings and loose dirt). The weed whacker (string trimmer) is great. The head pivots for edging and the automatic line feed system works great.
The hedge trimmer is even better. I have a much smaller rechargeable Black and Decker hedge trimmer with an internal battery pack. I use it for most of my shrubs because it is lighter and more maneuverable. I only use the one included with this kit on a few larger hedges, and it performs well.
I had been using corded electric tools, but the cords were always such a hassle that I found myself putting off yard work. Gas tools would be overkill. They require too much maintenance and I don't want to store gasoline. These cordless tools are the perfect compromise. I'm just sorry that I didn't buy them sooner.
There is a noticeable difference in the power between my corded and cordless tools. While operating, the corded tools seem to operate at a higer speed and with more torque.
The most noticeable difference between the corded and cordless tools is the much reduced airflow speed with the cordless blower. As to the other tools, I suspect that if I went to clear some particularly thick weeds the cordless string trimmer might bog down. I similarly suspect that the hedge trimmer might bog down if I was trimming thick branches with it. So I'm keeping my corded tools for those rare occasions that I might need them.
Great Products May 12, 2005
J. S Thomas (Arlington, Texas USA)
43 out of 44 found this review helpful
I was previously using all gas powered yard tools, blower, hedge trimmer, string trimmer, great products but loud, smelly and sometimes difficult to start. I had been looking at electric powered products to get rid of those trips to the gas station, however, pulling an electrical cord around my yard did not appeal to me at all. Then i came across this kit on amazon. The Black & Decker is a good one IMO so i took a chance and ordered from amazon.
I have been highly satisfied the battery power last well enough on my 12,000 square foot lot. The tool are nice and quiet and i can do my yard work early in the morning without disturbing the neighbors. I must say all 3 products work great for their intended purpose. The bonus IMO is the batter charger mount that can charge all three included batteries at the same time. Also, the mountable storage station is great and makes storing the equipment easy. My father came over and was hooked on these and placed an order the next day, great products at a great price from amazon what could be better, lol.......
 Going against the consensus..... May 15, 2007
Promethius (South Florida)
38 out of 41 found this review helpful
I can't agree with the other glowing reviews of these tools that are posted here. As for the tools themselves, the hedge trimmer and weed eater work well (this is the only reason I didn't give this set one star), but the blower is barely powerful enough to get the job done and really more of a toy than a useful yard tool.
However, the big problem is the batteries. These are Ni-cad batteries, and the included charging station does not condition or monitor the them. After nine months of use, all three of my batteries have developed a memory and are unusable. I took reasonable care of the batteries and followed the charging and use instructions, but they have still given up. To me, having to monitor my battery use and charging time negates any benefit of cordless operation. I want tools that make taking care of my yard simpler, not more complex.
To replace the three Ni-cad batteries will cost over $100, and frankly, given the tools mediocre performance, I believe the money would be better spent on getting new and better tools. My recommendation would be to stay away from this product unless you already own a battery conditioner or are willing to spend the extra dollars to buy one.
Pleasantly surprised July 27, 2004
Johnny Boy (Bridgewater, NJ)
17 out of 17 found this review helpful
I have an acre of lawn, and was tired of starting my gas trimmer. I could not use a corded trimmer because I would spend most of my time moving the cord around.
I then stumbled onto this product. I read the reviews and the one I found most useful stated that they bought the trimmer and the blower, and that they use both batteries to trim their lawn.
Well, I found that this combo pack was a good deal, since you basically get a tool and battery for free!
I really like the triple charger! One plug has three charging stations.
It takes almost two entire batteries for me to trim my yard. I have about 400 feet of edging and 18 trees. If I edge my sidewalk (250 feet) I use about a quarter of the third battery.
The AFS string system works well, maybe a little too well. I find that I get about 1.5 trimming session before I need to replace the spool. I bought the 300 foot spool instead of the individual ones.
Please keep in mind, I trim mostly grass. If I trimmed weeds, which are thicker then grass, I do not think that this trimmer would work well.
 Great Idea With The WORST Batteries Known To Man... December 17, 2005
Twins Daddy (Atlanta, GA)
17 out of 22 found this review helpful
We have a fairly low maintenance yard, so I bought this package with a specific purpose in mind. Between our backyard and the fairway, there's a no-man's land that grows seemingly endless amounts of weeds and tall grass, and technically it's our property. I planted dozens of juniper plants 5 years ago, and while they make it look a little bit better, they don't seem to cut down on the knee-high grass and weed problem as I hoped. The fact that it's all on about a 45-50 degree incline makes it even tougher to maintain.
It takes about 1 to 1-1/2 hours with a gas trimmer, being careful enough to limit collateral damage to the juniper. I hoped the cordless trimmer would do the trick, considering it comes with THREE batteries. The cordless does cut down on the amount of plant matter covering me when trimming the same size area as with the gas, and it's also worth it just to avoid breathing the small cc engine fumes...But B&D seriously dropped the ball when they equipped this set with NiCAD batteries. Why 70's technology and not at least NiMH? You'll have to ask B&D...
I haven't had to use the hedge trimmer yet, but each battery lasts about 10-15 minutes in the trimmer...Which means I can get about 1/2 of the weeds/grass area done before having to go back out in another day or 2 to finish it. And that's using ALL 3 fully-charged batteries each time! Fall cleanup of leaves is even more ridiculous. I get about 5 -- yes 5 -- minutes per battery in the hard surface cleaner (blower). Just about the time you start rounding up the leaves and get well into the job, all 3 batteries are D-E-A-D...
So, I give the product 3 stars for the convenience of storing all 3 items together, having interchangeable batteries and the reasonable price when purchasing the set of all 3 together...But I also take away 2 stars for the inconvenience of not being able to finish a job -- either trimming or blowing -- without taking a break of overnight, or at least several hours, for the almost useless batteries to recharge. I still can't believe such inferior batteries were used to power such a promising product...But that's what B&D did.
So if you have a higher maintenance-type yard, I would either look elsewhere or buy at least 2 or 3 more of these batteries if you want to finish what you start with these tools. The sad part is that the performance of the trimmer and blower are actually pretty good...Better in fact than I would've expected from cordless products. But the NiCAD batteries just can't keep up with the power drain and they leave you high and dry in the middle of a job...Even with 3 batteries. Not a good situation no matter how you spin it.
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