Electric over Gas? – The biggest concern most people have over making the switch from electric to gas is power. With today’s advanced battery technology, power is not really an issue. And as batteries get better and come down in price, reliability increases and having a spare becomes less of an issue. The real benefit to switching to an electric powerplant over a fossil fuel power plant comes down to the fuel. Keep your battery charged (ideally indoors, your hot garage is not doing any favors to keeping a big battery charged), and that’s pretty much it. With a 2 stroke or a 4stroke engine, you have to buy proper gasoline, stabilize that gasoline in the gas canister, mix motor oil with the fuel, make sure that the fuel lines do not rut, nor befoul the carburetor. And that’s even before you get it started. That can be a hassle, and keeping it running in the heat is another problem. Finally the vibration, noise, and fumes aren’t much fun to deal with either.
The Oregon ST275 AX eliminates all of that fuss and still gets the job done.
But how well?
Specs – Right out of the box, you get a shaft, plastic guard, and a handle. The 4.0 Ah model comes in around ~300, the smaller battery 2.4 Ah is around 250, and without a battery is close to 180. By simple subtraction the batteries are not cheap. This 4.0 should run for 45 minutes, which is enough for most lawns. The line is a nice .08″ with the bump head able to run up to a .095″ line.
Assembly – Putting the Oregon ST275 AX is very simple. Connect the handle to shaft and then plastic guard to the lower mount and you’re done. With a bit of charge you’re ready to go.
Operation
Starting and Power Control – It’s a button. It starts when you press it. That’s the power of going electric.
Vegetation Strength – We got differing reports. The Oregon could take down horehound weeds but struggled with tall St. Augustine grass.
Generally, most users said the unit had plenty of power. So much so that a couple of users wanted a larger debris guard.
Bump Head – There are two sorts of line feeds in string trimmers, an automatic feed and a bump head feed. The ST-275 uses a bump head. By all accounts the bump head works well and delivers additional line on demand as the job progresses. As we discussed in our buying guide to string trimmers, bump heads typically are better than automatic feeds.
Ergonomics – A typical complaint for most electric weed eaters is that they are heavy and unbalanced. That is not the case case with the Oregon unit. It’s been reported as well balanced. With a straight shaft and loop handle it should be easy to manage.
Edging – The ST-275 has a nifty U-shaped feature that makes it very easy to edge. We hope that more trimmers adopt this.
Run Time – The company advertises 45 minutes and most users find that under normal conditions the 4.0 AH battery keeps the trimmer running for 45 minutes. That’s pretty good battery life. And if your yard or job is big, the battery reportedly charges quickly, sometimes in only 2 hours to recharge.
Another good sign about this unit is that like a gas tank, the battery tells you how much charge you have left. That’s very useful.
After Market Care – With respect to what happens after the purchase and you actually try it yourself, the warranty is a decent 1 year. But there are mixed reports on initial support.
Conclusion – Overall we definitely like the Oregon ST275-A6. Definitely a good replacement for an aging gas unit, or a great addition to a person new to lawn care.