BLACK+DECKER18-Inch Electric Hedge Trimmer (BEHT200)

This Black and Decker Trimmer replaced my 40-year-old Black and Decker Trimmer. I use this for 5 to 10 hours every season, so that is a dependable tool! The motor and the blades still worked on my old tool, but the washer that converts circular motion from the motor to back and forth motion for the blades had worn too thin to work properly.This trimmer is lightweight (4 & 1/2 pounds) and easily cuts through most shrubbery like butter. I was able to cut twigs up to 3/8" diameter with no problem. The cord retainer is a cleaver and effective design that makes it near impossible to pull the trimmer away from the cord. I appreciate the convenience of a cordless tool (battery tool) but fell like that convenience will fall victim to fatigue due to the extra battery weight in this case. I generally trim for over an hour each time I use the tool. A 20V battery will not last that long. A larger battery might, but that adds extra weight to the trimmer. The more weight, the more fatigue you will feel while using the tool A 20V battery weighs about 1 pound, a 40V battery generally weighs more than twice that amount, a larger battery likely weighs more than the trimmer! It may not sound like much, but when you use the tool for extended periods, you will appreciate not having the added weight of batteries.What will trimmers look like 40 years from now? Who knows, but that is the next time I suspect I will need a new one!

Good value

So far it works great - just want others to be aware that a cord is not included!!

great tool

Bought this a couple months back, works awesome, the only problem is it's difficult finding replacement blades for it. Apparently 18" are not that common, 24" are very easy to come by but not in 18.

arrived on time

Bought this as my previous 15+ year old trimmer finally bit the dust. I have a larger trimmer that I also use, but I like this 18" one as it's pretty light and maneuverable. No issues with the cord staying properly connected during use. Blades are sharp, plenty of power, and fairly ergonomic. I actually cut down my overall cutting time by about 20% using this newer trimmer. Hope to get another 10+ years out of this one.

I recently moved into a neighborhood with and HOA. Within a few weeks I received a letter that I needed to trim the plants in my front yard so they are clear of the sidewalk and my driveway. So as a good homeowner I pulled out me hedge shears and went to work. After a good three hours I had all of my plants trimmed, the yard raked and felt like a responsibly HOA member. What I would soon learn is that the four plants I have in my front yard are the infamous Red Bird of Paradise native to AZ- these plants grow fast....FAST. After some monsoon rain, I came back from a 4 day vacation and found these suckers to be twice as big as before I had even trimmed them. So once again I pulled out my handy hedge shears and spend another 3 hours trimming and cleaning. Another few days of rain and BAM the darn bushed are even bigger now, completely blocking the sidewalk taking over my driveway, trying to come in the house and to make matters worse I get another letter from my HOA telling me to trim the plants! In my moment of rage as I was reaching for my hedge shears to spend yet another 3 hours on these darn plants I had a realization. Since I couldn't burn them down as I wanted to do, because of my HOA rules, and I was most likely going to have to trim them again in a week, I was going to spend 12 hours in a month trimming these bushes. 144 hours a year, 4320 hours in the life of my 30 year mortgage... over 25 weeks of my life trimming these bushes. In shock of the direction my life was heading towards I hoped on Amazon purchased these bad boys and went HAM on the stupid bushes. These things cut through 1/2 inch twigs, I trimmed these things down to the ground. I was done within the hour. Now I cant wait until the bushes grow so I can take all of my anger out on them with these awesome hedge trimmers.