going tonight(probably) to either lowes or home despot to pick up a backback leaf blower. i don't know much about them.

 

 anyone have any suggestions on brand/specifications? it's gotta be gas. i am not interested in anything battery operated for this. i've got a 140x120 yard that needs raking/blowing, and don't want to worry bout batteries.

 

thanks!

Echo or Stihl.

Buy once, cry once.

I’ve put a lot of hours over the years on a Husqvarna.  I’ve been very happy with it. 
 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Husqvarna-125B-28-cc-2-Cycle-170-MPH-Handheld-Gas-Leaf-Blower/1000730232

I had a Husqvarna for years that was fantastic. Sold it before I moved. 
 

Bought a Ryobi gas powered model for the ranch, only used it a few times, but it’s been solid so far. 

I don’t use one, I just blow with the lawnmower but I have Husqvarna 2-stroke weed whacker and like it allot. It was my second year for it replacing a HD no frills one.

Husqvarna makes a blower similar to the one my neighbor has:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Husqvarna-150BT-Backpack-Blower/5006015189

 

BTW Husqvarna use to make pretty solid dirt bikes back in the 70’s.

1 minute ago, FXDX said:

I don’t use one, I just blow with the lawnmower but I have Husqvarna 2-stroke weed whacker and like it allot. It was my second year for it replacing a HD no frills one.

Husqvarna makes a blower similar to the one my neighbor has:

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Husqvarna-150BT-Backpack-Blower/5006015189

 

 

 

BTW Husqvarna use to make pretty solid dirt bikes back in the 70’s.

 

I think that’s the one I had. It was awesome. 

I've switched from Stihl to Echo. I had a Stihl chainsaw and trimmer, they both would fight me every time I wanted to use them. Granted the saw did not get used on a regular basis, the trimmer was used weekly. They'd also fight me trying to restart them while still hot; for example after re-stringing the head or adjusting chain tension. 

My Echo products will start on the third pull after sitting, even over the winter. Restarting while hot, they typically start on the first pull. 

2 minutes ago, Displaced Texan said:

I think that’s the one I had. It was awesome. 

if i'd have known ya were sellin one, i'd probably have bought it.

 

  i just don't want to have to fight the battery ones, and don't want to have to rake as much as i normally do. guess i'm getting old or lazy. or old and lazy, lol

5 minutes ago, 1LtCAP said:

if i'd have known ya were sellin one, i'd probably have bought it.

 

  i just don't want to have to fight the battery ones, and don't want to have to rake as much as i normally do. guess i'm getting old or lazy. or old and lazy, lol

I made it a package deal with my snowblower. 
 

I hear the battery powered ones are awesome. 

Here's a pro tip - If you get to it before the surface melts and refreezes and the snow is not the really heavy water laden stuff, you can use your leaf blower instead of a snow blower. I have a gravel driveway so a snow blower is not an option for me, but my backpack leaf blower did the business last winter.

This is the one I have now. Haven’t used it much but pretty happy with it.. 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-175-MPH-760-CFM-38cc-Gas-Backpack-Leaf-Blower-RY38BP/305733386

https://www.acehardware.com/departments/lawn-and-garden/outdoor-power-equipment/leaf-blowers/7000433

 

Stihl for anything gas powered. Milwaukee for electric.

3 hours ago, 10X said:

I’ve put a lot of hours over the years on a Husqvarna.  I’ve been very happy with it. 
 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Husqvarna-125B-28-cc-2-Cycle-170-MPH-Handheld-Gas-Leaf-Blower/1000730232

how's that one to handle when it's running?

Not sure if I'm correct on this but I seem to remember reading somewhere that gas powered leaf blowers will be illegal in NJ starting sometime in 2024.

59 minutes ago, gfl216 said:

Not sure if I'm correct on this but I seem to remember reading somewhere that gas powered leaf blowers will be illegal in NJ starting sometime in 2024.

i think it's gonna be illegal to sell.

 

Redmax or Husqvarna.  DO NOT GO CHEAP, get the best one you can barely afford.  Plan on spending about $450 to $500 for anything worthwhile.  Get the kind with a frame mounted throttle, not a throttle on the tube.  They always break or malfunction.  There is noting more annoying than an under powered leaf blower.  Here's a tip, they are ALL under powered because you cannot have too much power in a back pack blower.  Buy ear plugs.

1 hour ago, gfl216 said:

gas powered leaf blowers will be illegal in NJ starting sometime in 2024.

That will never happen.  Do you have any idea how many illegal aliens that would piss off.

7 hours ago, FXDX said:

 

 

BTW Husqvarna use to make pretty solid dirt bikes back in the 70’s.

 

They still do, although one could argue they're basically KTM now. 

Redmax, echo, stihl. 

Their commercial blowers are all really good. Avoid the residential stuff if you can. 

4 hours ago, 1LtCAP said:

how's that one to handle when it's running?

It’s fine, not much different than when it isn’t running.  I switch hands every so often when I’m using it for long periods. 

8 hours ago, kc17 said:

I've switched from Stihl to Echo. I had a Stihl chainsaw and trimmer, they both would fight me every time I wanted to use them. Granted the saw did not get used on a regular basis, the trimmer was used weekly. They'd also fight me trying to restart them while still hot; for example after re-stringing the head or adjusting chain tension. 

My Echo products will start on the third pull after sitting, even over the winter. Restarting while hot, they typically start on the first pull. 

You need to run seafoam in your small engines once a year, especially Stihl stuff. All my yard equipment is Stihl and I never have an issue. 

1 hour ago, Scorpio64 said:

That will never happen.  Do you have any idea how many illegal aliens that would piss off.

This is SO bad….a Mexican friend of mine refers to leaf blowers as ‘Mexican Bagpipes’. 
“Listen to the music of my people!”

1 hour ago, Displaced Texan said:

This is SO bad….a Mexican friend of mine refers to leaf blowers as ‘Mexican Bagpipes’. 
“Listen to the music of my people!”

I always called them Buck Rodriquez in the 24th and 1/2 Century.

2 hours ago, JackDaWack said:

You need to run seafoam in your small engines once a year, especially Stihl stuff. All my yard equipment is Stihl and I never have an issue. 

Seafoam. I put that in every seasonal gas powered device I have/had. Never a fuel issue.

18 hours ago, gfl216 said:

Not sure if I'm correct on this but I seem to remember reading somewhere that gas powered leaf blowers will be illegal in NJ starting sometime in 2024.

"They" are working on it, but it won't pass once "they" realize that their lawn cres will charge more.

I can sell you a little wonder push leaf blower for 100$

Husqvarna 350 BT

Love mine.  Never had an issue starting it and can move small rocks, sticks and of course leaves. 

Had the Echo 755 for about 9-10 years now and never a problem. Always starts on the 3rd pull, always. As noted above, get a frame mounted throttle, not a tube-mounted one; and always wear hearing protection when using.

13 minutes ago, RichP said:

Had the Echo 755 for about 9-10 years now and never a problem. Always starts on the 3rd pull, always. As noted above, get a frame mounted throttle, not a tube-mounted one; and always wear hearing protection when using.

Kinda hard to hold a beer with a frame mounted throttle... 

24 minutes ago, RegRasc1 said:

Husqvarna 350 BT

Love mine.  Never had an issue starting it and can move small rocks, sticks and of course leaves. 

Under powered for serious work.  A sub 500 cfm blower will blow grass clippings and some leaves and a few pebbles, but it does not compare to pro grade equipment. 

We use Husqi 580 series and RedMax EZB 8560 series.  They will strip black walnuts, acorns, twigs up to two inches, pebbles plowed onto grass and make a much bigger pile of leaves.

You can do all that with a smaller blower, but it will take you 5x the time to do it.  There is no replacement for displacement.

1 minute ago, Scorpio64 said:

Under powered for serious work.  A sub 500 cfm blower will blow grass clippings and some leaves and a few pebbles, but it does not compare to pro grade equipment. 

Not everyone is a landscaper, and needs a $1000 backpack tornado! Lol
 

I cut grass at the ranch over the weekend, and used my Ryobi blower to clean up. 
It was more than suitable for the job. 
Always starts on the second pull too.