Handle types. There are two types of strimmer handles. The most common is a round, circular handle on the shaft of the strimmer, called a loop handle. It makes the strimmer easy and comfortable to control, and on the best models, it can be slid up and down the shaft, so you can adjust it to your height. Alternatively, there are ‘steer’ handles - two handles rather than a loop. These offer more control and let you use a comfortable scything motion when you cut, but they take up room, and can be a little more expensive. They’re also far more common on brushcutters and petrol strimmers than electric or cordless strimmers, so you might not find steer handles on many domestic models. Cutting head. The cutting head is the most important feature on a strimmer. It should be adjustable, so you can change the angle of the cut to cope with inclines and fiddly jobs. In most models, the head turns 90°, so you can trim along the edges of paths and flowerbeds. In the very best models, the cutting head also has wheels to help guide along edges and support the weight of the strimmer.

Bump and Feed cord: This grass line trimmer has a bump and feed chord which uses a feeding system the Nylon cord can be fed from the spool by bumping the bump feed button against the ground. The Makita BL 1840B battery fits into a Makita DC18RC charger. The battery took 36 minutes to charge. It has a fan, so there was a continuous soft hum as it worked. Both charger and battery were easy to use, with the charger featuring a helpful display of indicator lights. They came on in different combinations to show the condition of your battery – fully charged, part-charged, broken. Other lights indicate if your charger is malfunctioning. I was impressed with the efficiency of this system, and the fast charge time.Telescopic pipe shaft: The cordless grass line trimmer can be adjusted thanks to the telescopic pipe shaft. It is adjustable in length from 1,150mm to 1,330mm this allows you to adjust the length for various jobs.

The Makita Cordless String Trimmer’s all-round manoeuvrability is pretty amazing. And, of course, it has a five-angle adjustable pivoting head, which makes it superb for trimming and edging. Petrol strimmers. Powered by petrol these typically have steer handles - explained in more detail below - and a curved, angled shaft. Because they use fuel, they’re often more powerful than corded and cordless strimmers, but petrol is polluting and messy to store and use. They’re also heavy, noisy and need regular servicing. Thanks to the rise of cordless batteries, they’re less common nowadays, particularly for home use. Battery capacity warning lamp: A fitted battery capacity warning light on this LXT cordless grass shear shows clearly when the 18v Li-ion battery is running low - blinking red= battery power has been nearly used up. Solid red- battery power has been used up (Battery protector will shut off the power). position adjustable pivoting head enables user to adjust cutting angle, allowing for trimming in tight spaces

Easy to change spool assembly - Nylon cord can be fed from the spool by bumping the bump feed button against the ground