New Jonsered (Husqvarna) 58 Volt cordless Outdoor Power Equipment

[MowerMike]

Jonsered (Husqvarna) has just announced a lineup of cordless outdoor power equipment based on 58 volt lithium-ion batteries that come in 2.6 Ah and 5.2 Ah capacities. The equipment includes a 21” lawnmower, 16” string trimmer, 16” chainsaw, 750 CFM handheld blower and 750 CFM backpack blower.

I just placed an order with Northern Tool + Equipment for the handheld blower priced at $219.95 + tax, but free shipping to my local store, which is less than a mile’s drive from my house. It will be interesting to see how honest the 750 CFM rating is, which is much higher than its competitors, or how long the battery will last when running at full power. Based on the specs, it is a lot heavier and louder than other cordless blowers too. Anyways, I should have it within a couple of weeks to try out and report back.

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200697132_200697132

There is also a similar lineup branded as Poulan Pro that are being sold online through Home Depot.

 

[MowerMike]

Also, there is a 24” hedge trimmer.

In case you are wondering why I didn’t just edit my first post to add this, this website just shows a blank empty page in the editor ?

 

[MowerMike]

Also, it’s actually a three mile drive to the store from my house, not one mile, but it’s still nearby. The GPS locator for my house is way off.

 

[mcspeed]

Interested in hearing how you like the new blower. I have used gas powered blowers for decades and I'm starting to think about electric.

 

[MowerMike]

So I picked the blower up today from Northern Tool + Equipment. It was actually sitting at the store for four days before they got around to notifying me of its arrival. First impressions are very good. I don’t know if it actually cranks out 750 cfm as they claim, but it is definitely a lot stronger than any gas or electric handheld blower I’ve owned to date. Actual weight with battery is 9.3 lbs, which is not too bad, but I still wish it had a provision for a shoulder strap. Also, not real loud, so definitely no need for ear protection. Controls are 100% electronic, including the cruise control. It has two operating ranges, which they call “standard” and “boost.” I call them “mild” and “strong.” There is a variable speed trigger and no turbo button per se. Not surprisingly, battery run time is very short at full power, probably less than ten minutes. The fan cooled charger is supposed to recharge a fully depleted battery in 30 minutes, but it takes a lot longer although less than one hour. A nice feature is the real time battery charge status display on the control panel in front of the handle. At a cost of $219.95, this is very competitively priced. Also the warranty is very good, 5 years on the blower, 3 years on the battery and charger. So, I’m giving it a thumbs up overall.

 

[MowerMike]

So, Jonsered took this product line off the market over a year ago, but batteries are still available for very low prices, so I bought a larger 5.2 Ah battery to extend the run time. The stock 2.6 Ah battery will only run in boost range for five minutes, after which it drops out of boost into standard wimp mode even though the battery still has 50% of its charge remaining. I've run the big battery for over 15 minutes in boost mode, and it only lost about 25% of its charge. The downside is that it's really heavy, such the the total weight including the battery is now over 11 lbs. The battery that I bought is branded Poulan Pro, but it is the same as the Jonsered battery with a different charge indicator design. I just visited the Lowe's website, and they claim that they are about to reintroduce the Poulan Pro branded blower.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Poulan-Pro-PRB675i-58-Volt-Lithium-Ion-Brushless-Cordless-Electric-Leaf-Blower-1-Battery-Included/1000479241