I could not believe how great this product is. This lopper saved me from having to pay a pro for removal of branches on my trees. This works on branches up to a 4" width and cuts them very cleanly. Once the branch is cut you then can cut them into smaller pieces for thrash pick up. It works exactly like it says it does. The safety issue was very important to me because I was afraid to use a regular chainsaw for fear of kick back. With this little saw you will never worry about causing any bodily damage. Keep your blades oiled and follow all directions for use and you will have no problems using the saw. There is really not much to put together, just pull it out of the box and make sure you read all directions for safety. You can tighten the blades periodically for best performance. Why pay for a pro when you can do it yourself? Great little product and well worth the money.

france54

USA

Manual loppers are pain to use on more than thin stems, and chainsaws cut a wide path through foliage besides being more hazardous. This chainsaw-lopper hybrid is thus a revolution in cutting tasks. You need to remember to cut at an angle so at not to get the chain pinched and jammed by the falling branch, but otherwise the cutter is quite easy to operate. It is unfortunate that it is only designed to cut branches up to 4 inches, though it is possible to cut larger trees with multiple angles. I'm not sure if this is a limitation of technology, or whether Black & Decker is just trying to protect itself from lawsuits of crushed people. The battery-life is adequate for medium-size jobs, though you'll wish you had a spare for larger ones because recharging time is at least 4 hours. The frequency of re-oiling every 15 minutes is also rather annoying--as is the absence of any included starter oil. Durability is yet to be determined, but I doubt you will be disappointed with the purchase.

Frauenzimmer

North Adams, MA