McLain Edger

[DTM65]

I have been reading the posts over the past couple of months regarding edgers and have decided to get a push behind. I was in Home Depot this evening and to my suprise they had a McLain edger for $327. It had the 3.5 HP Industrial B&S, on/off switch, dual adjustable front wheels, and the blade would adjust from a -20 degree camber to a +90 degree camber.<p>McLain. Good machine?<br>$327. Good price?<p>Thanks,<p>----------<br>D. Tom<br>

[Evan528]

edgers are very simple machines..... most have the sAME dam briggs i/c engine. there is not much to break on them other than the engine so i would just buy the cheapest mtd you can find. i bought a 400 dollar little wander last spring and have maybe put a total of 20 hours on it at most.....i only use it for the first edge of the spring for all my lawns. the rest of the year i use my string trimmer to edge! i really regret spending 400 bucks on a edger that i use the last week in march than not again till the next march. like i said.... i could of gotten a cheapo with the same engine as my expensive one and it probly would last me just as long!

[MowerUp]

You might want to look at Sears. They have good push behind edgers.<br>I believe some of theirs is cheaper than that.<br>

[cjcland]

is there an economical advantage to owning a machine you will use only 1 time per property?<p>----------<br>CJC Landscape Management<br>Winter Haven, Florida

[Finecut]

DTM65<p>Ask them if they will match prices? 1-877-367-8776 (Russo Power Equipment) will give you a price of $249.99 for 3.5 HP B&S McLane edger. Won't cost a dime to ask. Good Luck!

[Keith]

One of my customers gave me one of those Craftsman edgers about six months ago. He had used it about 3 hours total over two years. I tried to use it when we had a stick edger down, kinda hard to get used to after the stick edger.

[Lazer]

Why would you want a McLane Edger?<p>3.5 hp - power the belt takes = 2.5 hp. A stick edger has 1.5-2.0 hp. Is lighter, more versatile and costs less.<p>A McLane or any wheeled edger is like a push reel mower: Had is value and now belongs in a museum.

[DMC300]

I'VE GOT A MCLANE,I THINK THE ENGINE WILL BE BETTER ON MY KIDS GO-CART.IT'LL GET MORE USE!(NO KIDDING)<p>----------<br>DON<br>LIANNES' MOWING

[DTM65]

OK guy, thanks for the feedback. Sounds like maybe I'm headin' the wrong direction with a walk-behind edger. I'm gonna go look at some stick edgers today. <p>I have not edged at all as of yet. Will a stick edger have the power to get through the first time?<p>Thanks,<p>----------<br>D. Tom<br>

[Keith]

They have enough power, but it will take a little while to do. Look to the bigger engine machines, not the entry level.

[MRPLOW]

I've had a few McLane edgers over the years. They always went aftre about 2 years due to engine failure. The last McLane I got had the 3.5 Briggs Industrial/commercial, with on/off swith, over sized fuel tank, and larger muffler. This machine has over 3 years on it and starts on the first pull every single day, I highly recommend it. I can edge very good with a string trimmer but it becomes very tiresome to edge with a string trimmer all day, and I can edge at power walking speed with my McLane, which I believe is faster for me.

[Gus]

I don`t know what part of the country you guys are in but we use wheeled edgers more than<br>once a year. A stick eder is great for maintenance edging but worthless for establishing a new edge. A Mclane edger is good for homeowner use but every one I ever had usually fell apart either in use or on the trailer. I finally broke down a bought a Tanaka. Great machine and will cut through the most overgrown edge with ease. Personally <br>I use the wheeled edger year round. Its as fast as a stick edger and does a better job.<br>Sorry guys, but edging with a trimmer is like driving a nail with a skill saw and it usually looks like amatuer hour.

[Keith]

gus wrote:<p>&gt;Personally <br>I use the wheeled edger year round. Its as fast as a stick edger and does a better job.<br>Sorry guys, but edging with a trimmer is like driving a nail with a skill saw and it usually looks like amatuer hour. <br> <p>Damn, you must not have to edge beds out in the lawn or anything. Because rolling a heavy wheeled edger through a thick lawn would seem rather difficult and time consuming. As far as doing a better job....uhhhh I disagree.<br>

[thelawnguy]

Hey gus, may I suggest you take your line trimmer out to a public park or somewhere so you can practice using it to edge, I can get a line along a sidewalk as good as, if not better than, a blade edger.<p>Around here, the sidewalks are made up of 3x5 slate or concrete slabs which shift over the eons and they rarely line up so you need a fudge factor which you can get with the trimmer that a wheeled edger could never do.<p>Bill

[Gus]

Uneven walks aren`t a problem for me I just follow the countour of the cement or paver or whatever but then we each have our ways of doing things and carrying and using a wheeled edger works for me.

[Evan528]

if you have xperience with a trimmer you can edge with it and make it look just as nice if not better than using a edger, i use a edger the first cut them string trimmer for the rest of the year. my edging is perfectly straight and even and i do it as fsat as i can walk... unlike a edger, a trimmer can acomadate for high edges and edges thata re far in from the cement... all the way areound string trimmers are much beter to egde with as long as you have the grove established

[grasscapeinc]

To answer your original question, the McMalne edger with the 3.5Briggs IP is<br>a excellent edger. It is McClanes top of the line, and sell for about $380 at the dealers. I actually got mine at the Home Depot like you were talking about. Great price. It is a very quiet, and sturdy machine. If it is what yoiu are looking for, then Get it!

[ChrisYanik]

I've got a McClain Edger. It's a real piece. It's about 15 years old but the design is the same as the newer machines. My edger is on it's second engine. I bought the machine used for 40 bucks. I HATE THIS MACHINE. The bolts are always rattleing loose and the gaurd never wants to stay on. It's a very dangerous machine. I think I'm gonna throw this piece of junk against a wall and go buy a stick edger.

[tom]

I agree with Gus! We use walk behind edgers everyday on most every property. On our bigger properties, the man that does the edging can complete it faster and better than trying a stick edger. We have tried stick edgers and have not had the guality edge we get with a walk behind. You guys might not agree, but I too can operate a string trimmer upside down and sideways but if you want a perfect edge use a walk behind. It works every time. My crews each carry one. when other cutters finally discovered my secret, the dealer said edger sales went up drasticly. <br>

[Toroguy]

Chris,<br>You should make a cheap documentary of the thrashing of your edger against a wall. Sign me up for a copy of the tape.

[DTM65]

Well, this turned into one heck of a debate, but you folks have alot of great info. <p>As I mentioned in an earlier post, you've swayed me towards a stick edger and I went and bought one last weekend. Pretty cool.<p>Did around 800 foot of edge that had never been cut before, so it went kinda slow but looked great after I was done. Ate up a couple of blades in the process.<p>----------<br>D. Tom<br>