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I am in the market for a new gas handheld leaf blower and I just wanted to see what everyone recommended. I really like the Husqvarna 125BXV. I have also heard Stihl brand is about as good as it gets. What do you guys think?

I have and use a stihl BG55 handheld and I have no issues with it . Ill prob always have one of them

I have a Stihl BG 86 hand held and a Stihl BR 600 back pack blower, the difference in air flow has caused me to retire the BG 86!! I was just at my local Stihl/Scag dealer and I see that Stihl has come out with several new back pack models and improved the BR 600. Pricey but much more effective, so check out the Stihl back packs some of which have 4 stroke engines but still mix fuel/oil. I'm not anti Husqvarna, my chain saws are all Husqvarnas, I like they way they handle compared to Stihl saws and much easier to work on.
Mad Mackie in CT

Kind of like asking which team has the best looking cheerleaders, gonna be a fight !!!!

Actually both are fine, but buy from a dealer, not Lowes.

The Dolmar 4 stroke handheld seem to be a good product. And is quiet compared to 2 stroke blowers. 50 hour oil changes, 200 hour valve adjustments. uses 2.7 ounces of 10w30 oil in the crankcase, and just use straight gas.

Actually my Stihl hand held blower was a SH 86 C-E which is a blower/vac. I seldom used the vac as it would suck up small rocks that could damage the shredder blade so I stopped using the shredder/vac part of it.

I have an Echo PB-255LN blower. It's quite, but power is not small because of the noise level; it is very powerful!

http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/echo-shindawa-forum/13035-detailed-review-my-pb-255ln-blower.html

Yes, most Dolmar dealers post this so that folks have at least heard of the brand "Dolmar"

well if your looking for something cheap and small, i would recommend this: Weed Eater Gas Blower - Walmart.com i have it for just cleaning up wood chips when cutting wood, crass clippings, and also i used it for leaves last fall and it worked pretty well. the thing is also really good on gas. and light too! it could be more powerful, but its just what i want.

appalachianhiker said:

I am in the market for a new gas handheld leaf blower and I just wanted to see what everyone recommended. I really like the Husqvarna 125BXV. I have also heard Stihl brand is about as good as it gets. What do you guys think?

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Actually the best bang for the dollar would be the Stihl BG 55. You get the 27.2 cc engine and it will produce 418 cfm at the nozzle with 140 mph/velocity. That's the round nozzle. The cost on the BG 55 is like 149.95 The 125BVX 28cc engine will give you 425 cfm with 130 mph, there's a little difference in air volume but in my opinion it's not worth the 50.00 difference in price. There both good blowers it just depends on how much money you want to spend.

metz12 said:

well if your looking for something cheap and small, i would recommend this: Weed Eater Gas Blower - Walmart.com i have it for just cleaning up wood chips when cutting wood, crass clippings, and also i used it for leaves last fall and it worked pretty well. the thing is also really good on gas. and light too! it could be more powerful, but its just what i want.

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Lol one should never recommend this machine. I've used it and frankly I put it away and grabbed a broom it was faster

We have a Poulan Pro 200 MPH 430 CFM. We have usd it a year now in our business. Ran many many many tanks of gas through it. Had to adjust the carb on it when we bought it but after that it has not missed a lick. Paid $89 for it on sale new at Tractor Supply last August. If It died tomorrow I would buy another one and not think anything about it.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/sto...-200vs-hand-held-blower-vacuum-carb-compliant

Dollar for dollar it has been a great buy.

Dolmar is probably the best of the lot, but unless you have a dealer in your area, no one has ever looked at them. Many small equipment dealers won't work on them, because they are unfamiliar with them. If you have no Dolmars in your area, I would look at Stihl and Echo as a second choice.

exotion said:

Lol one should never recommend this machine. I've used it and frankly I put it away and grabbed a broom it was faster

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ive used it on plenty of leaf jobs. it blew through easily 10-12 inches of leaves with a little struggle but it got it done. i use it to clean up, and i got the thing cheap. i dont think that a broom would be quicker by all means.

jekjr said:

We have a Poulan Pro 200 MPH 430 CFM. We have used it a year now in our business. Ran many many many tanks of gas through it. Had to adjust the carb on it when we bought it but after that it has not missed a lick. Paid $89 for it on sale new at Tractor Supply last August. If It died tomorrow I would buy another one and not think anything about it.

Poulan PRO® BVM 200VS Hand Held Blower/Vacuum, CARB Compliant - Tractor Supply Online Store

Dollar for dollar it has been a great buy.

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Homeowner here:

I had a Poulan Pro ( handheld blower) for about thirteen years. It ran, and started well for a long time. My drive way, patios, and parking area are almost 5,000 square feet of cement area. I have blown every time I cut grass, so that Poulan Pro was started often and used a lot. That job is now done by Echo (another great unit).




:smile: :smile: :smile:

Rivets said:

Dolmar is probably the best of the lot, but unless you have a dealer in your area, no one has ever looked at them. Many small equipment dealers won't work on them, because they are unfamiliar with them. If you have no Dolmars in your area, I would look at Stihl and Echo as a second choice.

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I like Dolmar equipment as well. I totally wish we had a reputable Dolmar dealer close by. We had a guy here who owned a rental business that got a dealership and started selling Dolmar. I was going to buy a trimmer from him. I never could catch him at the shop long enough to buy the trimmer so I figured it would be that hard to catch him if I needed service as well.

I am also looking to retire my 22 year old Echo trimmer and was shopping the other day and found that the "new" Echo trimmer have NO adjustments... When it breaks down replace the carb... Bummer!

Looked at a Dolmar which has only 2 years vs 5 years on the Echo. 4 cycle so it's quitter and no mixing of fuel. Can't find much in reviews on the Dolmar... No longer looking. Bought the Dolmar today.

I got a Hitachi handheld I use most of the time. Starts easy and blows hard. Paid $100 new.

Husqvarna 125BXV is good but in terms of cost-efficiency, Stihl is simply the best choice among leaf blower prospects at home.

IMO, Husqvarna 125B is the best handheld blower. Over 200 hours on mine and still running strong.

I have a 130bt and a 150bt both with over 500 hours. Never a problem.

Sent from my iPhone using LMF

Good to hear. I'm planning on buying one of the bigger Husqys later this year. Probably the 580BTS. I am sick of raking leaves :laughing:

ILENGINE said:

The Dolmar 4 stroke handheld seem to be a good product. And is quiet compared to 2 stroke blowers. 50 hour oil changes, 200 hour valve adjustments. uses 2.7 ounces of 10w30 oil in the crankcase, and just use straight gas.

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I have one and its a wonderful machine. Love the sound too

appalachianhiker said:

I am in the market for a new gas handheld leaf blower and I just wanted to see what everyone recommended. I really like the Husqvarna 125BXV. I have also heard Stihl brand is about as good as it gets. What do you guys think?

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Hi. Have you thought about buying a blower/shredder/vac instead of just a straight blower? The Echo ES-250 is a nice unit and along with being a handheld blower it also converts into a shredder vac. The vac is handy for detail work such as shrub beds, ground cover, building corners, windows wells, picking up hedge clippings etc. It's a little bit less powerful than the Husqvarna 125BVX but for about the same price ($20 more based on retail prices online) you get the extra versatility of the vac. I have an older unit and the only problem I've had with is it that I now have to mash the on/off switch up hard to start it. Well, the bag was defective and split wide open on it's first use, but that was covered under warranty and the replacement has never had a problem. http://www.echo-usa.com/Products/Shred-N-Vacs/ES-250

appalachianhiker said:

I am in the market for a new gas handheld leaf blower and I just wanted to see what everyone recommended. I really like the Husqvarna 125BXV. I have also heard Stihl brand is about as good as it gets. What do you guys think?

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I have the 125B as well as a powerful backpack blower, which I bought first. I use the 125B for many jobs like clearing the driveway, walkway and deck. For clearing leaves from my lawn (over an acre) I use the backpack but could use the handheld if I didn't have the larger blower.

The only negative I've found is that vibration on my hand is greater than I would like. I'd like to hear comments from owners of other brands because I think that could be an issue if I used the 125B for an hour. BTW, torque is fine.

I love my Greenworks leaf blower . It has variable speeds and even a vacuum mode!! Its the BEST!

Fish said:

Yes, most Dolmar dealers post this so that folks have at least heard of the brand "Dolmar"

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LOL, well I am not a dealer but I do own both a hand held blower and string trimmer from Dolmar. I love the fact that I no longer have to mix gas, run everything on 93 octane. Chnaging oil is a bit of a hassel but 2 years now and the only thing I had to do was adjust the idle up on the string trimmer.