MakitaDUH523Z 18V Li-Ion LXT 52cm Hedge Trimmer - Batteries and Charger Not Included

A few years ago I bought a Bosch battery cutter that now causes problems getting started. Only many many attempts and bashing it get function again.It also blunted quite quickly resulting in branches having the leaves stripped from them but the branches were uncut.I bought this Makita after noticing a neighbor cutting his hedge yet I couldnt hear it and asked what he's using. He said he's had it a year and despite having a very large garden with tall hedges has coped admirably with the 5Ah battery. He no longer uses his petrol cutter.My experience is the same as his, its like a very quiet mains powered cutter.The blades move a lot slower but cut a lot better, it goes through thick stems my previous cutter would quit on. And its so quick!The blades can be replaced without taking it apart, and are actually available for sale!Very well designed and engineered, a surprisingly good product.The only downsides:I find it tricky to push the release button that allows the trigger to be pulled.After the battery has charged, the small noisy battery cooling fan doesnt stop.Small fans wear out quicker because they need to spin faster to have good enough effect, so remember to unplug an hour after putting on charge or set a timer.Be wary:I nearly bought a much cheaper none Makita charger. Dangerous because cheap chargers can cause even the best batteries to damage, fires from li-ion batteries are nasty!Make sure whatever you buy (from Amazon at least) has the word "Makita" on it, otherwise its a cheap replacement. They look identical apart from the missing "Makita".

I am a 62 year old woman with arthritis in both my thumb joints so I was looking for a lightweight but powerful hedge trimmer and this is perfect. I already have a Makita multi-tool head and four batteries so I didn't have to worry about the fact that this was a bare unit only and the price here matched what was on offer from tool suppliers online.When I first ran it I thought that it was not going to be able to tackle the hedges and brambles which have overrun due to neglect around our farmhouse. It sounded quite weak, very quiet. I was totally mistaken. This tool is a joy to use and I haven't yet found anything that it won't cope with and, believe me, I have got through some pretty tough stuff. I have both 4Ah and 5Ah batteries, have used this solely with a 4Ah one and have been very impressed by the battery life.I know that some reviewers have complained about the fact that you need to push a button, pull a trigger and compress the handle in order to get over the safety facilities on this trimmer and start it, but I must point out that once it is going you can remove your finger from the button. This makes it no more fiddly in use than any other corded hedge trimmer I have owned in the past (this is my first cordless one).I am able to use it for quite some time in a session as it is so lightweight so am very, very pleased with this hedge trimmer. I cannot recommend this item highly enough if you're looking to fulfill the criteria I had prior to purchase

Bought these as I already had Makita battery's and wanted to try battery hedgecutters.Run my own gardening business and wanted an alternative to heavy petrol cutters.Been plesently surprised by how good they are are..your not taking down massive hedges with these but for general trimming and shaping up there top draw.Battery life is decent I can do about 6hrs constant on a 6amp battery easily.

I bought this to help me with the relentless cutting back of eucalyptus and bay trees and wisteria.It’s great for quickly trimming off new growth and maintaining a good shape to what’s left.It’s fairly light and a decent length. It feels well made and well designed and up to Makita’s usual standards.Understandably, what it won’t do is cut through branches an inch or more thick - it hasn’t the power or the size and sharpness of teeth for that.

Quieter than both my mains powered models but don't let the quietness fool you. It is equally as powerful as either of them. Long cutting blades, nicely balanced so less fatigue when using and easier to get a neat finish. Very good battery life, I used a Makita 3.0Ah battery to trim a thick hedge that boarders my property and it cut it with ease, even thick branches and used less than 2 bars on the charge meter.Happy with my purchase and would happily recommend.

First important point. This is a"bare" item and as stated on the item page it has no battery or charger. One reviewer could not see the point of this and gave it one star as a result. The point is that if you already have Makita products you already have batteries and charger so you don't need to pay for more when you don't need them. If you have no Makita kit as a general rule expect the cost of battery and charger to be similar to the cost of the product.Now to the review. I don't need a hedge trimmer often but I do have a large garden surrounded by rough hedging. As it is on a hill laying out and packing up cable is a nuisance and means the job gets left so cordless is the way to go. Maybe you lose a little power and by Makita standards this is a budget model but this trimmer has been perfectly capable of gliding through the first cut of the year with no problems at all. It is lightweight (great for my very old body), easy to hold and use and the battery life is great. Being double sided its is also very quick to use at any angle. Once I had finished the job I checked the battery and still had over 50% power. This is using the 5 amp batteries I use for my mower.

I went through the cable on my old hedge trimmer (!!) so thought I would upgrade with this. I already had the makita batteries so made sense. Really easy to use, quieter and much better than my previous one. Batteries last a long time too. Great bit of kit and highly recommend.