Stihl FSA 70 R

Design and features

• Impressive mix of power and comfort
• Brush cutting blades available
• Shaft doesn’t fold or come apart

Setting up the FSA 70 for first use is relatively straightforward. The cutting head guard is attached with three simple screws, but the front handle requires a fair bit of concentration.

I took my time and followed the instructions in the manual but still managed to get the different length screws on the wrong side. It feels a touch complicated compared with the single wing nut on the Ryobi Whisper trimmer.

Once assembled, the Stihl FSA 70 R is brilliantly made, with its ergonomically designed handle and fully adjustable front D handle. Built with rubberised grips and large, easy-to-spot safety switches, it’s easy to handle even with gloves on.

Incredibly well balanced and comfortable, the FSA 70 oozes the confidence I expected from a brand like Stihl. For safety, there’s a multi-part switch on the handle, which requires a button to be pressed and then the two triggers held in.

The comfort handle really helps when using the brushcutter, pushing against your forearm for easy use. This handle works as well here as it does on the FSA 57 cordless trimmer and the Stihl HLA 56 long-reach hedge trimmer.

With the AK 20 battery in place, it didn’t feel like it weighed much at all, thanks to clever ergonomics and the right length for a tall user like me. Weighing 3.2kg without a battery, it seems to hit the sweet spot between solid build construction and ease of use.

As with Stihl’s other tools, the battery can lock in two positions: one with the battery live, and a secondary position for storage and transport where the battery doesn’t make contact with the connectors, cutting power to the tool.

Storing the FSA 70 R isn’t quite as easy as with some other grass trimmers because the shaft is a single piece with no breaks. It’s reliably sturdy, but you can’t reduce the length for transport or storage. There is, however, a hanging eyelet on the underside of the handle for storing on the wall.

The FAS 70 R comes with 2mm mowing line, which is thicker than you get with most trimmers, and it can take line up to 2.4mm. This attachment gives you a wide 38cm cutting width.

Changing line in the Autocut mowing head is simple. The advanced easy spool feature is tool-free and pretty fast too. When the line has run out, feed a new length through the holes in the head, then wind up the orange disc by hand. You can do it with the head removed from the tool or left on.

Something that this trimmer has is interchangeable cutting heads. If the garden has turned into a jungle and you need something a bit stronger, a change of head is all that’s required. The Rapid Click System is very quick and intuitive to use.

Swapping out the AutoCut C 12-2 string line head for the plastic blades takes seconds. A single press of the orange lock button and the spinning section comes away neatly. It’s an easy solution and obvious upgrade from fiddly buttons on either side of the head.

The Polycut 12-2 mowing head, sold separately, employs a pair of pivoting plastic blades to slash through heavy weeds and brush. The cutting width is reduced by 5cm to 33cm, but it’s a small price to pay for the extra cutting ability. Using these blades also extends the runtime by almost 50%.

Replacing Polycut blades is easy. I removed the cutting head by pressing the lock button. The two halves of the cutting head now come apart. Attaching the blades to the plastic pins, I pushed the two halves back together. It’s a simple yet robust-feeling system.

Powered by the tried and tested AK 20 battery system, you have 36V of power to play with. To get the most out of each battery, there are two speeds available. Low power, or eco mode, will stretch the battery life, while full speed will make short work of heavy grass and brush.

For even greater control over the speed of the blade or string line, the variable speed trigger has six settings. Low speed is recommended for light work and edging, while clearing brush and heavy grasses requires high speed trimming.

Performance

• Effortless, comfortable cutting
• Swapping cutting heads is easy
• Trigger is intuitive and easy to control

Once set up, the brush cutter showed why it’s worth the price. There’s negligible vibration and it feels like it could be run all day, with the comfort level that would make this practical.

The variable speed trigger was easy to control and made delicate brush cutting quite entertaining. After engaging the safety switch, the trigger is responsive and can be run at surprisingly low volume. Rather like the Ryobi Whisper, it’s quite possible to trim grass without making too much noise.

The safety switch is ambidextrous, unlike the tiny button found on the Gtech SLM50, so you can be a lefty and still get the gardening done.

With the standard trimmer line, the Stihl FSA 70 R will easily cut through regular grass, dealing well with thicker growth and large areas. The lack of a flower guard at the front does mean you need to be careful around your prized plants.

When changing cutting heads from the string line to the Polycut blades, it’s easy thanks to the Rapid click system. Push the lock button, pull it off. It’s as simple as that.

With the plastic blades, the FSA 70 R makes it easy to slice through tougher growth, such as brambles and thick weeds.

Battery life is around 25-to-45 minutes with line, and 50-to-90 minutes with the Polycut blades, depending on how tough the job is that you’re doing and the mode you need to use. For very long growth and large areas, you may want a second battery, as recharging the AK 20 battery via the standard AL 101 charger will take a couple of hours (there’s a faster charger available if requried).

Should you buy it?