# Brush cutter for making trails



## liberty (Mar 16, 2021)

Hello, I am looking to purchase a brush cutter for making trails. Most of the cutting will be 1 to 2" beech trees. Please don't recommend a chainsaw. I have done 20 acres of TSI with one and its time for an improvement. I was looking at the Honda HHT35SUKA which is a 35cc 4 stroke or an Echo 43"cc two stroke. Any suggestions between the two?


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## ironman_gq (Mar 16, 2021)

Whichever one has more power and a solid drive shaft. 1-2" isn't much of an issue with a good carbide blade, I regularly cut 3-4" mulberry and wrist poplar, tag alder and whatever else decides to grow where it doesn't belong. I'm using a shindaiwa c344 with a carbide tipped blade, have 3-4 seasons on the same blade and trimmed/reclaimed several miles of trails and roughly a half acre of mulberry several times over.

In my opinion with a brushcutter, more power is better. I've got a stihl fs131 that would run a brush blade very well, my shindy works great and is a little lighter. I'd say both are very capable but if I did it again I'd look at an actual clearing saw, tougher head units, more power, heavier shaft. They cost about twice as much but in the long run they will get more done and last much longer.


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## liberty (Mar 16, 2021)

ironman_gq said:


> Whichever one has more power and a solid drive shaft. 1-2" isn't much of an issue with a good carbide blade, I regularly cut 3-4" mulberry and wrist poplar, tag alder and whatever else decides to grow where it doesn't belong. I'm using a shindaiwa c344 with a carbide tipped blade, have 3-4 seasons on the same blade and trimmed/reclaimed several miles of trails and roughly a half acre of mulberry several times over.
> 
> In my opinion with a brushcutter, more power is better. I've got a stihl fs131 that would run a brush blade very well, my shindy works great and is a little lighter. I'd say both are very capable but if I did it again I'd look at an actual clearing saw, tougher head units, more power, heavier shaft. They cost about twice as much but in the long run they will get more done and last much longer.


The echo probably fits the requirements you state. It has a solid shaft 43cc two stroke engine. It is the largest one they make. https://www.echo-usa.com/Products/Brushcutters/SRM-410U


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## liberty (Mar 16, 2021)

Update: I just ordered the echo. My local dealer has their one day sale event today at %15 off so I just ordered it.


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## John Lyngdal (Mar 16, 2021)

I think you'll be fine with the choice you made.
I run a FS250 with a carbide blade for light brush clearing.
1" maple doesn't have a chance, 2" sometimes takes a couple wacks.


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## Franny K (Mar 17, 2021)

The carbide tipped blades are pretty amazing for what they cost on ebay. All the years I spent with the steel plate saw blades of various types. I ordered a few last year and they were pretty much the same just different holes or slots. The ones that list as thinner are measuring the disc and the ones that claim thicker are measuring the carbide tooth. I have a couple of those Honda ones listed above, they do have a cable instead of a solid shaft but that has not been an issue and the gearbox head is only like $80, Have not needed one yet the harness doesn't breathe but lasts real good. At this point the aircut 3 pointed blade is used a lot, it is kind of thick so takes a bit of improvising to get the splines to engage top and bottom on the arbor. I got a brush blender one lately, the prongs go down if mounted the intended way on my equipment. They use the most power of any blade I have the way I use them. Even still lots of energy in a spinning blade.

You said chainsaw, I have the angle device for the Stihl pole saws on order going to try that out next.


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## southpaw (Mar 17, 2021)

liberty said:


> Update: I just ordered the echo. My local dealer has their one day sale event today at %15 off so I just ordered it.


I would have gone with the echo also


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## southpaw (Mar 17, 2021)

Franny K said:


> The carbide tipped blades are pretty amazing for what they cost on ebay. All the years I spent with the steel plate saw blades of various types. I ordered a few last year and they were pretty much the same just different holes or slots. The ones that list as thinner are measuring the disc and the ones that claim thicker are measuring the carbide tooth. I have a couple of those Honda ones listed above, they do have a cable instead of a solid shaft but that has not been an issue and the gearbox head is only like $80, Have not needed one yet the harness doesn't breathe but lasts real good. At this point the aircut 3 pointed blade is used a lot, it is kind of thick so takes a bit of improvising to get the splines to engage top and bottom on the arbor. I got a brush blender one lately, the prongs go down if mounted the intended way on my equipment. They use the most power of any blade I have the way I use them. Even still lots of energy in a spinning blade.
> 
> You said chainsaw, I have the angle device for the Stihl pole saws on order going to try that out next.


I have the FS110 and never run the carbide teeth yet but they seem like a good choice .....only negative I could see is sharpening them but from what others are posting they seem pretty solid and hold up 
Got lucky last year as a guy brought out brush cutter called the "Whipper " it's got a 8hp Briggs & Stratton engine , 24" cutter ....it's like a Dr. field brush cutter but this thing is old , guessing 90's and built like a tank ....he's has no place to store it and says just use it all you want , I do just that but maintain it real nice for him also


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## SkyP (Nov 3, 2021)

I'm impressed with my SRM-410U. Bought some land in the NC mountains recently- 38 Acres- had a 1 acre homesite on it cleared years ago that I'm clearing out the undergrowth on. Sold the 10acres we had- would have been fine but I discovered just how much I hate unmuffled jake brakes on a nearby interstate. 24x7. 
Had that land 15 years and was glad to find a quieter piece to use as a camping retreat for now.
The 410U is a beast with the chinese carbide blades- discovered they don't much like a hidden concrete block in thick undergrowth- cheap enough though.


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## softdown (Nov 3, 2021)

How wide of a trail are we talking about?


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## ironman_gq (Nov 3, 2021)

southpaw said:


> I have the FS110 and never run the carbide teeth yet but they seem like a good choice .....only negative I could see is sharpening them but from what others are posting they seem pretty solid and hold up
> Got lucky last year as a guy brought out brush cutter called the "Whipper " it's got a 8hp Briggs & Stratton engine , 24" cutter ....it's like a Dr. field brush cutter but this thing is old , guessing 90's and built like a tank ....he's has no place to store it and says just use it all you want , I do just that but maintain it real nice for him also


Don't bother sharpening them, keep them away from rocks and they last a very long time. When they're done it's because the tips of the cutters are all chipped up. Just spend the $20 for a new one. I personally like the Renegade Razor for just about everything.


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## kenmbz (Nov 3, 2021)

I use the renegade hybrid on my FS110- Like it better than the scratch blade from Stihl.
Only have a few hours on it, but the blade is holding up nicely.
Both my stihl blades, the scratch and the chisel, dulled pretty fast. I liked the scratch better.
I have stilt grass in many areas, need string for that so use a BC and a trimmer in tandem to clear and a tractor/flail to maintain.


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## jalopy (Nov 3, 2021)

I have an Echo SRM-410U.
I used it to cut a trail and a clearing through sagebrush ranging from 1/2" up to 4".
It did very well and only bogged down one time in clearing about 2 acres. Next year, I will try a chainsaw tooth blade when I get back out to my property.


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## iowagold (Nov 4, 2021)

we use a rental walk behind unit called a bockhold
it had a honda gx motor on it.
we rented them for clearing for the tree farm.
i think back in the day it was 60 bucks a day for two of them in the early 1980's
the hills were too steep to get a tractor brush cutter in there in spots.
after all of the trash was cleared off the land we were able to have it as state park mowed perfect with a woods mower and an 8 n ford tractor with the under drive trans.

i had a lower cost ryan cutter that worked well.
lots of hours on it.
it ran for 5 seasons till it was tired...
now we use stihl as it works better on power.
and it is at 15 years old.

if you are doing the first cutting and clearing i would rent the gear....
in the big scope of things you can have access to larger super expensive gear that will save time!
after it is all cleared then buy a good unit and keep after the cutting at least 2 times a year.

in reality any thing over 2 inch you need a saw for those....
and a super small 12 bar saw is easy to handle.


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## Sandhill Crane (Nov 4, 2021)

liberty said:


> Update: I just ordered the echo. My local dealer has their one day sale event today at %15 off so I just ordered it.


Please update:
Considering a brush cutter for 2,100' of road frontage, to keep small stuff back from the road edge six to eight feet. Mostly sassafras shoots up to 1", maybe some bigger stuff on initial pass.
I'm thinking dedicated brush cutter , not a multipurpose unit.
We have Echo, Stihl and Husky dealers locally. 
Watched YouTube, Project Farm, on blade comparison.
The Forrester with saw chain teeth that can be sharpened looked impressive if kept away from hard stuff. Which shouldn't be an issue here with our sandy soil.


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## kenmbz (Nov 4, 2021)

Before/after- Renegade hybrid-FS110 handlebar- some vines and brush to 3" (more than one hit for those).
Used the Stihl scratch blade to push back both sides from 700' of private road. 
I think the saw chain type blade would have not done well with the grasses and thinner vines.


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## Sandhill Crane (Nov 4, 2021)

kenmbz said:


> I think the saw chain type blade would have not done well with the grasses and thinner vines.


Wow! That cleaned up nice.
Many of the circular blades did poorly in mulching or dispersing tall grasses in Project Farm testing. The three bladed ones did great in grasses, and not so good on saplings. Kind of expected. I will be doing some smaller vines, so good point. I would probably use a Stihl 021 for 3" stuff for sure. Primarily finger to thumb size as bi-annual shoulder of the road maintenance. 
Ha! I spelled maintenance right. I always seem to stumble on that one.
I have not been out to look at brush cutters yet, so not sure whats available, or wait times. The right tool just makes it so much easier and enjoyable. The 021 has worked okay, with the smaller tooth chain, but it's a more of a chore than needs be. 
May get out tomorrow and see what's available locally.


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## Brufab (Nov 5, 2021)

Not sure if this helps any but the dr brush mower works great. Says up to 3" but you really can't climb a 3" tree with it. But if it can bend it over it will cut it. Got the 1st generation one a long time ago off of CL.


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## Brufab (Nov 5, 2021)

Also got a 30 year old echo srm2100 and that thing did a great job fkr a real long time till we got the dr mower. Sometimes we still use it to trim the stumps down to ground level since the dr mower leaves them about 3" tall.


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## oaksnacorns (Nov 10, 2021)

liberty said:


> Hello, I am looking to purchase a brush cutter for making trails. Most of the cutting will be 1 to 2" beech trees. Please don't recommend a chainsaw. I have done 20 acres of TSI with one and its time for an improvement. I was looking at the Honda HHT35SUKA which is a 35cc 4 stroke or an Echo 43"cc two stroke. Any suggestions between the two?


I have used blades that were essentially circular saw blades with many teeth. Some were carbide tipped and some were not. I have used blades with three tips (Husqvarna 12" dia https://www.husqvarna.com/us/trimmer-blades/grass-knife-3-tooth/) as well as two tips. I have used trimmer line (Oregon Flexiblade .158" line https://www.oregonproducts.com/en/flexiblade,-serrated,-158",-350-ft-/p/21-609). 
But the best by far, has been the Champion Brush Blender (https://www.championcutter.com/blades.html) All the other blades mentioned above are flat, but the Champion has downward pointing ends that are MUCH more effective because they seem to catch and cut what you're working in, whether it is grass or material that grows in all directions like blackberry vines. At first I powered the Champion blade with the HHT31SUNBA brush cutter with a GX 31 Honda 4 cycle engine, but that did not have enough power for me, so I got the Echo SRM 410 U, and it works pretty well- I wouldn't want any less power. 
The Flexiblade trimmer line, I put in an Oregon Gator head that needed the holes enlarged for the line, so the metal sleeve got removed. I haven't used it much because of having the line break too often to suit me. 
So I use the Echo with the Champion for tall field grass, blackberry, just whatever needs to be cut. No other blade compares as far as I am concerned. I see some similar appearing blades on Amazon, but I haven't tried them. It will cut growth up to about 1", but I might need to take several whacks at it. Once, I hit a rock and it caused one of the blades to deflect upward toward the blade guard, and it cut through the metal shield more than half way (see image). So I run it without a shield, and it doesn't get clogged in really heavy field grass, though it does slow down some. I wear goggles plus metal mesh face shield and ear plugs. Gloves would be good also. Still, I have been hit by small wood chunks, one that left a bruise on my leg. 
One person wrote in reply to my setup, that his Stihl brush blender tubing got torqued too hard and broke at the head. So far mine has held up after 5 years of seasonal cutting. Note that the OD of the main tubing is 1.1" for my Echo, but 1.0" for my Honda. Don't know what his Stihl was. 
This past year being out of work due to Covid, I finally had the time and did several acres, mostly grass but some blackberry. Have not gotten all my 4.5 acres or so cleaned up to a mowable condition. would eventually like to get a flail mower (https://www.singlecylinderstore.com...5I5ObPrTls7MkMcs85HjrjGHWRRowigwaAtv9EALw_wcB). Youtube videos show that flail mowers mulch well and leave a good finish. Personally I would use the brush cutter to gain access to an area, then a chainsaw to help clear the rest, and haul that large stuff to the burn pile. I would not expect a flail mower to mulch up large stuff and leave behind so much excess material, even if it was broken up. But for heavy field grass and a reasonably good cut on my rural property, the flail mower looks ideal. Cannot afford a tractor with flail mower.
I would like to go to an electric mower for the sake of the environment, and this Mean Green mower looked good (https://meangreenproducts.com/wbx-33hd/) but a distributor quoted a price of more than $12,000 for that (ouch). And it's questionable how well it would handle tall field grass. 






liberty said:


> Hello, I am looking to purchase a brush cutter for making trails. Most of the cutting will be 1 to 2" beech trees. Please don't recommend a chainsaw. I have done 20 acres of TSI with one and its time for an improvement. I was looking at the Honda HHT35SUKA which is a 35cc 4 stroke or an Echo 43"cc two stroke. Any suggestions between the two?


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## Brufab (Nov 10, 2021)

I have a 30 year old echo srm straitshaft trimmer cable drive used the echo brush blade and guard kit. Did some pretty good damage to 3" and under trees. Bigger trees will take a few attempts. But wow that blade sings when you wind it up to make a cut anything under 1" it was like I was trimming grass.


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## Brufab (Nov 10, 2021)

Dr brushmower has been my go to. Have cleared acres of brush and tall grass and use it to cut my clover in food plots. It also has attachments like finish mower and snowblower you can buy. I have 2nd gen one and hasn't let me down once. Has a kawasaki motor on it.


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## Brufab (Nov 10, 2021)

If you can climb it with the mower it will cut it. Says 3" but unless it's a real flexible tree it won't do it but it's bad ass for shooting lanes and trails.


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## GrizG (Nov 10, 2021)

I've got an FS130R and put a Limit Stop on it when I use Stihl chisel blades. To date it has served me well for cutting woody brush and saplings. When I have another big job I'm going to try a carbide blade.... this as while sharpening the chisel blade is not difficult it does take time away from cutting to either swap out or sharpen the blade in the field. I also have a large deflector that I use with a Stihl Brush Knife that works great for thorn canes, heavy grass, grape vines, etc. I've got Stihl pro chain saws and an HT131 pole pruner for bigger stuff... That said, when I had 1.7 miles of trail upon which I needed to mow the shoulders back 4' on each side, I rented a Billy Goat Brush Mower. It has hydrostatic drive and nothing I mowed stopped it.

P.S. From previous discussions on this web site it became abundantly clear that different regions of the country present different brush challenges. What works great for me may not do so for you!


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