Troy-Bilt 5.5 HP Chipper Shredder Vacuum 24B060F-766
by Troy-Bilt
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List Price: Category: Lawn & Patio See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Troy-Bilt 5.5 HP Chipper Shredder Vacuum 24B060F-766
Customer Review: Works fairly
Summary: 3 Stars
I purchased an older model of this Troy Built Chipper Vac about 5 years ago.
THE CHIPPER: will handle limbs up to about 3/4 inch. Feeding limbs in I noticed it usually won't finish pulling the last part of the limb into the chipper. I feed them in from the base of the limb first. This leaves the leaves going in last. So I just use the next limb to finish pushing in the last one this works pretty well.
THE FRONT VACUUM: works fairly well at picking up dry leaves. Once in a while it will leave some leaves behind and you have to go back over it (I admit my grass was a little high when that occured the leaves hung up in the grass so make sure your lawn is cut). My experience is it takes several passes to get pine needles vacuumed up but I admit I had left them on the ground awhile and that may have been a factor. I have never had the wide front vacuum clog. Another note about it is if you are vacuuming leaves off your driveway the vacuum will such up small gravel and you can hear it bashing around in the chipper. I am sure that's not good for it (So I recommed blowing the leaves off the drivway and vacuuming them up).So to sum it up it does not do to bad. The wheels are ajustable in height.
THE VACUUM HOSE: does pretty good at getting in around flower beds and such (If you have a leave blower you could also just blow the leaves out of the flower bed and vacuum them up with the wide front vac). Sometimes when you are vacuuming with the hose it will clog. If a twig gets sucked up or you hit wet leaves it will clog. Usually the clog is where the hose connects to the deck. Just press the release remove the hose and pull the stuff out it is fairly easy.
MY COMPLAINT: The unit is NOT self propelled. This is a heavily constructed machine it has some weight to it. It is a little hard to push around and when that bag is getting full it is more tiring to push around!
OTHER: It does have a somewhat heavy pull start to it I believe it is to the fact that you are spinning the weight of the chipper blade with the engine to start it. But it has always started by the 2nd or 3rd pull for me. So if these problems are not a major drawback to you I would recommed the unit if you have a small area to vac. Me I am considering buying a self propelled.
Customer Review: Junk
Summary: 1 Stars
Upon unpacking the box of the first machine I brought home I found it had been previously filled with oil and then inverted in shipping leaving a rather large mess on my garage floor and hands. I was told this was possibly a test unit. Not a good omen. but my local Sears here in Utah did replace it upon return. I had better luck with the second one and it did a nice job picking up leaves (for a while). After approximately 1 hour of use the coil high tension primary side decided to melt and not supply a spark. Being a Porsche mechanic and not wanting to wait the two weeks I was told for a repair I replaced it myself. This was for the Black and Decker engine. If you live where I do you have a very short window from when the leaves fall and the time they would be covered by a foot of snow! I then finished up the yard work that first season in about another hour. Now it is season two and the machine is off warranty. I started this season to find the plastic leaf bag attachment had become hard and brittle, taken a stretched out set, and immediately broke, bummer. This machine had been stored inside and not out in the weather. I made due by tying it up as best I could with rope and a bungee cord. I then gave it a change of oil and fresh gas only to have it not want to re-start after the first tank of gas. The only way to get it to start was to let it sit for a couple of hours. It's almost like an old vapor lock but is exasperating as one only has so much time during a weekend that one is willing to mess with a product. The next morning the machine started right up and ran for about 30 minutes before oil was spewed all over from what I believe must be the bottom main seal. Enough! With the economy the way it is and the high price of fuel it would be much wiser and cheaper to hire someone at even $50 dollars an hour to do the work all the while doing something more productive with ones time. In a word this machine, if not a lemon, is a poorly designed piece of JUNK, don't waste your time. Help your local economy while saving money, time and trouble. MarkCustomer Review: Getting ready to buy my second machine
Summary: 5 Stars
Originally purchased the 2003 model. It was not self-propelling and did not have the vacuum hose. Decided to have it serviced this spring and low and behold it was stolen from the shop. So now I will be upgrading to the 2010 model that is self propelled. I loved my old vac. Yes, there were problems--the bag is awkward to dump out and I had to wear a dust mask because I am allergic to mold. It was extremely loud and no, it didn't suck up my bushels of acorns.
But considering that I had hand-raked at least 200 yard bags of oak leaves for many years this was an incredible improvement. For me I found that vacuuming frequently made the job much easier. And yes, wet leaves were hard to suck up, but I assume that wouldn't surprise anyone. It seemed hard to get the gas to the engine sometimes with the rubber choke button. Don't know what that gizmo is called. It was sort of scary when it chugged as it started, but once I got it primed the vac always started even when the weather turned cold.
Planning to buy my replacement in the next day or two. Would recommend to anyone who is sick and tired of raking leaves.
Customer Review: CSV 060 - Good ; CSV 070 - Better
Summary: 4 Stars
I've used the manually pushed CSV 060 for a few years now.
If you are no longer as young as you used to be, go for the CSV 070 self-propelled model, this CSV 060 unit will give you a workout. Combined with all the airborne particulates (leaf dust, possibly leaf mold, etc, and engine exhaust), deep breathing exercise around it is less than perfectly healthy. I've taken to wearing a filtration mask, many types of which are available.
My lot gets littered with small sticks and/or some of the leaves are long stemmed - end result is the suction hose gets clogged easily. The hose is pretty hefty and you have to keep moving the unit, so I decided to just remove the hose completely to cut machine weight, and use a hand-held leaf blower (or vac) to clear leaves from areas you can't roll over. Generally I blow lightly covered areas of the lawn, and any of the flower beds/bushes I can't roll over, then use the unit to clean up the rest. This minimizes the time spent pushing the unit, and reduces fuel use.
Other than that I've loved the effectiveness of the unit.
Customer Review: Better Than Using A Rake
Summary: 3 Stars
Purchased the self propelled unit in November 2007. I live in the woods, so the amount of leaves can be staggering. Have been using a rake and leaf blower. Wanted to purchase a machine which would suck up the stuff around the house and bushes so the hose attachment was an important feature. Was looking at much larger units, but also much more expensive. Setteled on this unit for price and features. It works fine...when working. First time I used it, the fastener snap on the bag ripped off. Dealer replaced the bag. Nice of him. Using the hose for the first time, I guess it sucked up too much at once or something, but they got stuck half way into the tube. Had to remove tube and clear out clump of leaves with a long piece of pipe. Also had a difficult time starting the thing. Found out the bag was not on quite right and the safety switch was not activated. Over all, it works fine. Better than raking. Bag could of been larger and constructed a lot better , in my opinion.
Now if I could only get it to pick up the dog poo!