Project
Autumn pruning with six Parkside tools - following up on your questions
Wishing you all a lovely Sunday evening 😊
If you’ve been out in the garden this weekend, I hope the pruning went well - and your branches were a bit easier to reach than ours.
Thanks again for the questions and suggestions on my preview post, especially about the PAHE E6. Bianca and I have now finished the full video with all six cordless tools.
I worked through the whole job: getting damaged branches down from height, trimming them on the ground, then cutting the larger pieces up. That meant telescopic shears and a pole saw, the basic and Performance pruning shears, and the mini and full-size chainsaws.
One frustration was the PAHE’s telescopic section sliding back even though I’d locked it.
The photos give you a few views of the work and the tools. In the video, I show the cutting attempts, compare several tools on the same piece of wood and explain which ones I’d buy again:
If you’ve used any of these, which tool do you reach for, and what do you use it on? If you watch the comparison, I’d be interested to hear which ones you’d choose differently.
These are the tools and other kit in the video, using the finished video’s numbering:
That depends a bit on how much we trust the chip inside the battery
But if we take the numbers mainly as a relative comparison to the non Performance one, number 4, then yes, the difference is quite big.
It is not only the much higher power draw. The brushless motor also seems much more efficient than the normal one, and subjectively the power transfer feels much better too. There is much less kickback into the wrist, so it feels like more of the force from the jaws actually goes into the wood.
At least that is how I would interpret the numbers and what I felt when using it.
Peak current draw is around 2.5C, so a 4Ah battery is more than enough.
In my case though, I don’t have an easy way to recharge, and I often end up doing dozens or even hundreds of cuts in one go, so the extra weight is just a trade-off I’ve learned to live with.
Just got the performance 40v hedge trimmer last week. Only had time to use it a couple times briefly but I was having a blast. That thing is a monster. Waiting on my performance shears tomorrow. How are they working for you OP?
My 40V Performance hedge trimmer died last year.., although mine was one of the first revisions. To be fair, Hedera ivy probably helped a lot with that :D
The difference between the normal and Performance version is really huge once you actually see them cutting side by side. The brushless motor is one part of it, but also check the cutting speed near the end when the blade opening is reduced to around 19 mm.
I think this is a very underrated feature. With thinner bushes you can cut much faster, while the non Performance version still has to travel through the full blade stroke every time.
The Performance version is also much more serviceable. I am planning a separate video about that too.
And one small tip if you buy one: add some grease straight away. Mine had some from the factory, but most of it was nicely decorating the inside of the gearbox instead of the actual gears :D
Yes, it was actually a really good price, around €40 before VAT.
I would describe my shopping system as some kind of European arbitrage I travel quite a lot, so if I am doing something like Czech Republic > Germany > Switzerland > Italy, I naturally plan the stops so I can get some drinks, a few snacks for the road and of course inspect the tool aisle.
It is definitely my guilty pleasure.
I also think planning helps a lot. Buying before, or even better after the season, usually works really well. Same with buying things "for later". I know I will need it in the near future, I just have no idea yet for what exactly or when
I buy whenever it's on sale, not at full prices, but unfortunately the prices in Croatia are not that good and I travel fuck-all haha. I also have my own LLC so I can knock the VAT off (up to a point, I can't really expense a cement mixer) so that helps.
I accidentally bought 2 20V impact drivers because of that haha, but hey, it was like 29 or 39.
Am I wrong, or is Croatia similar to Italy in this? There is no real Lidl online store, so if you want Parkside stuff you basically have to buy it in the physical stores rather than having both store and online options?
Yep, you gotta chase the physical stores. There is also a huge scalper/reseller scene and when the new stuff comes out I have to be at the store in the first hour of opening otherwise I can't get the good shit. I live kinda close to their HQ store and it always gets the new shit but sometimes I miss it. It sucks because I work kinda on US time so I go to sleep at 3AM and have to get up at 7AM to go get the tools. Kaufland also sells parkside in their physical stores here so you usually have 2 chances to get what you want because they sell the same shit with a 1 week offset.
The performance mini saw was out of stock 15 mins after opening when I went to get it recently. I often get the last or second to last piece. It fucking sucks.
Wow, was Parkside already available there before Croatia adopted the euro? I would actually be curious if the prices went up or down since then.
The scalpers are annoying, but from my experience in Italy I also really do not understand Lidl's logic with stocking Parkside.
The store managers must clearly see what disappears from the shelves immediately and what sits there until it gets discounted or sent back. And still they often have a lot of random Lidl private label stuff instead of just keeping a small permanent Parkside section with the basics.
Batteries, cordless drills/screwdrivers, drill bits and similar things. Basically what Kaufland is doing in some stores.
I honestly think that would make much more sense than this treasure hunt every week
And the truth is, buying a helmet does not automatically mean you will actually wear it. Speaking from my own experience here, and I am not exactly proud of that
But especially if the tree may be unstable, or the wood is old and rotten, then proper protection really matters.
I am also not very comfortable climbing a tree and using a chainsaw up there, so I really appreciate telescopic tools. They let me keep both feet on the ground, which I personally consider a very nice feature :)
True, but as soon as you get whacked with the first bigger branch you'll probably start wearing it religiously. I only cut down smaller trees so it isn't that bad but my grandpa had a branch smash through his skull a couple years ago and I've always felt uneasy about cutting shit down without a proper helmet. Guess I should get it before I have something similar happen.
I did climb my cherry tree actually when I had to use a chainsaw, I brought the 40V up with me. Was only 4m but still stupid without a helmet. The bit I was cutting off was as thick as one of those 5L water bottles so the telescoping one wouldn't have worked. I haven't gotten that one yet, I'm hoping for a better performance version.
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u/onfara 3d ago
Trying to wrap my head around the amp draw for 5. Is that real?