BLACK+DECKER 40V MAX String Trimmer and Lawn Edger, 13 Inch Weed Eater, Far Reach, Battery and Charger Not Included (LST136B)

I had already bought the 40v hedge trimmer and light/medium duty patio blower with lithium batteries and been extremely happy with both. So when I saw the 40v strimmer without a battery for half the price on amazon I jumped on it as the trimmer takes the same kind of battery as the other tools. Our small house is on a 7,000 square foot plot of land. The house itself is about 1,000 square feet so most of that land is yard space and some of the grass areas get overgrown quickly. To make it easier to deal with those areas, we got this strimmer. Out of the box, it requires some basic assembly. It’s fairly light weight; only the shaft is made of metal. It’s mostly plastic including the silver motor housing that looks like metal in the photos. A simple clasp on the main shaft allows for some length adjustment. And the loop handle slides up and down the shaft with a similar clasp to adjust for a comfortable reach. Other than that, the strimmer has a simple dial to set the power/speed of the motor and a trigger that works in two stages to activate for safety. The battery is quite large but because it’s a lithium battery it isn’t that heavy. It slides into the base of the handle on tracks which are sprung. I used some dry ptfe spray to lubricate the slide because it can be quite stiff and hard to push the battery in far enough for the catch to activate. The battery has a small button and a row of LEDs that that light up to show to what extent the battery is charged when you turn the trimmer on. The battery charger is a largish cradle you drop the battery into. The battery charges in less than two hours and keeps its charge for a long time (weeks if you don’t use it). You can leave the battery in the charger since it does revert to a slow top up charge once full. The head of the strimmer rotates 90 degrees so you can do vertical or horizontal edging. There is a simple metal fence/guard that can be flipped out to help your measure the distance of the radius and more easily do lawn edging along paths and driveways. I tend to leave it out because it makes it much easier to gauge where the string reaches so you don’t waste as much of the reel needlessly. The reels are readily available at all my local hardware stores. The feed is automatic so you do not have to fiddle with the tool at all. Just plug in the battery, dial in the power you want to use and put it to work. Pull the trigger and off it goes. The strimmer has a lot of power and has no problems with thick overgrown Bermuda grass. It cuts through thick clumps between 1-2 feet tall with ease even on a lower setting. I’ve never had to turn it above 4 (the power range is 1 – 6). Because of the other tools I own in the same series I have two batteries. The strimmer lasts a long time. I’ve never used up more than half a charge and a battery lasts a long time even when the battery is also used in other tools like the hedge trimmer. I like all these 40v tools and highly recommend them.

We have the whole set of Black and Decker items that work with the 40 volt system and they are all excellent. We purchased this as a replacement to the one that had been in the original set. I had been a little too tough on it and managed to break the internal parts that control the spool feeder. So this time and plan on being a little nicer. That is not to say this is a flimsy item; quite the contrary. It put up with a lot of abuse before giving up the ghost. I really like the power of these items that the 40 volt batteries give. It powers through almost all tasks with ease and the batteries last through the whole yard. Being able to dial up or down the speed increases or decreases your run time based on what you're trying to accomplish. Need light yard work done, lower the speed and get more life. Cutting down your wife's "garden of Eden", then dial up the speed just plan on being done sooner (unless you have additional batteries) The head pivots to allow for edging as well as normal grass trimming. Changing spools is simple, and it is simple to reload your own (should you choose). It uses .065 filament which is good for not too heavy yard work. The only on-going issue was the bottom plastic part of the spooler tends to get worn out quickly so we had to order replacements after several months of use. The Black and Decker line of 40 volt yard tools is highly recommended.

This trimmer has plenty of power for regular yard work. It’s lightweight, easy to maneuver, and the battery life exceeded my expectations. Assembly was simple, and it works exactly as advertised.

Honestly, I really enjoy using the B&D LST136B 40V trimmer. From its lightweight..to ease of switching from trimmer to edger...to how long the battery keeps its charge...it is an overall good tool to have in one's tool shed. Unfortunately, the issue that I appear to be having is that the motor and/or gear spindle die off after 2 years. I have read from other users online that the teeth on the plastic gear deteriorate over time due to it coming into direct contact with the metal gear on the motor. While that difference in materials used makes sense...the strange thing is when I opened up my second purchased unit to replace the plastic gear-- the teeth on it appear to be normal. What I did notice was that the motor was in fact wobbling when the power was engaged. Perhaps the heat from the motor, over time, has caused the plastic housing around it to expand and thus compromise a snug fit. Anyway, I will probably bite the bullet a 3rd time and purchase another unit, but would just wish B&D might consider using a thicker/stronger grade of plastic housing so that such a good tool would last longer in the future for their dedicated loyal customers.

UPDATED AT THE BOTTOM OF MY REVIEW: This is my second string trimmer purchased. Both trimmers burned out in less than a year. I used it for one Summer just simply trimming around edges in my yard. I started to use it the next Summer and the plastic gear literally melts. Just ridiculous! You smell burning, I stop using it immediately and then the same part of the unit has melted. I’m just using it for my single yard. I’m not a landscape business. Very dissatisfied with this trimmer. UPDATE: Giving 5 stars to Black and Deckers service department. Even though both weed trimmer gears failed their service department did not. Their service department was awesome and because of their service department, I’m still loyal to Black and Deckers products.

This thing is a beast!! We had one of the previous models, and after that motor gave out last year, after 6-8 years, I've felt lost without my Black and Decker weed whacker best friend..my lawn was falling into chaos, and an absolute mess..I used the neighbor's, I bought another model...but they just didn't stand up to the B&D!! We'd just replaced the battery a couple years ago, so I didn't need a unit with one. I couldn't find a replacement until a few weeks ago. But then this showed up in my feed, and Bamm!!! Got it!! It was super easy to assemble. The noise is as to be expected with a battery powered piece of equipment. It doesn't drain the battery, and with the size of my yard, that's a necessity. I love the variable speeds on this updated unit as I can adjust it depending on what I'm cutting. I'm an ambidextrous user, and I find it's easy to use with either hand. I live in Florida, so, things grow bigger. With the regular wire trimmer, you can expect it to cut through up to a 1/3 of inch thick vegetacian.

GARBAGE! DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT! IF I COULD GIVE THIS TRIMMER NEGATIVE STARS, I WOULD! I had previously purchased this model, and the trimmer lasted about 3-4 years before it stopped feeding line. I figured that the trimmer had simply worn out, so I replaced the old one with a new trimmer of the same model. THE NEW BLACK & DECKER FED THE LINE FOR A SINGLE TRIMMING AND EDGING! No matter what suggested solutions that I tried - ensuring that the spool was perfectly wound and tight, keeping the spool head clean, replacing the lever arm, and lubricating the lever arm and central axle with silicone - the head simply NEVER FED THE LINE more than about 20-25 linear feet of edging or trimming. I ALWAYS USED PRE-WOUND BLACK & DECKER SPOOLS, TOO! Every episode was TRIM 20 FEET - STOP - REMOVE THE SPOOL - CLEAN THE HEAD - ADD MORE LUBRICANT - TRIM AGAIN FOR 20 FEET. If the angels were helping me on any particular day, I might have gotten 40 feet of trimming before it stopped! ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS! The feed mechanism is a crude centrifugal force lever arm that just DOES NOT WORK! BAD ENGINEERING, BAD EXECUTION. Sadly, the power of the trimmer head and longevity of the batteries are good, but those do not matter when the trimmer itself is TOTAL JUNK. After nearly a season of diligence and perseverance with this trimmer, it is now awaiting disposal in the next community yard waste program. Even Job would have lost patience with this item and have chucked it into the air like a spear, just to watch it fall and break apart like the piece of refuse that it is! DO NOT BUY!

Was hesitant after reading the reviews on all the things that went wrong for those users. I have the 40v hedge trimmer for three years or so and liked it so when our Worx string trimmer died I was shopping around. Was going back and forth Worx and this. I've used this for 3 or 4 times so far and here's my take on it. What I like: - Feels substantial in my hands but not too heavy to use for an extended period. - It's powerful on the first level, sometimes I would bump that up to 2 or 3 for thicker grass clumps or weeds. - The head rotates easily back and forth from trimming to edging. - One full battery charge lasts 45 minutes or so. Most of the time that's enough for me to complete all the trimming. If I don't keep up with the trimming and let it go a little wild, I will need the second battery pack. Bought a second one figuring that might happen occasionally. Something to look it for: I've also read a lot of reviews for bad line feed. Luckily I've not experienced it thus far so I'll be paying attention to it.

A replacement for my original. Just right.

Have had several of these LST 136 model trimmers. Durable and easy to work with. This is just the trimmer, no battery or charger as already had these.

This is a good deal! I had worn out my previous lawn trimmer, same model-- the plastic which holds in place the gears meshing as one trims had melted, meaning "this trimmer is toast"-- so needed a replacement, and was not keen to buy unnecessary extra charger and battery. Perfect solution!

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This is my second Black & Decker trimmer and it has not disappointed. I had the black and decker 40 V lawnmower as well, I suggest getting the 60 V or 80 V green works if you’re in the market for a lawnmower.