OV9

Next you’ll be asking for the best way to join together 2 ends of a power lead together

Hopefully not... though that has needed to be done at least 3 times for my hedge trimmer

I've had a Segway Navimow i205 AWD delivered today. Plan is to use it on the front lawn and if I like it I might consider getting a beefier machine for the rear garden. My wife's odd objection to robot mowers disappeared last week when I saw they were discounted and suggested getting one. I dislike mowing the front lawn because it's about 2-3ft higher than the drive and the only access is a wall or some steps, so I have to carry a ramp to it and mow it with the normal mower rather than the ride-on.

I suspect I shall need to fill in a few divots and I may need to shorten the hanging leaves of the willow tree which reach down to the ground - I am sure it'll avoid those rather than simply pushing them out of the way as I do with the mower. And I'll need to find a way to get power to the base unit. We will see.

Cool - let us know how you get on.

On non-lawnmower (but still plant related topics) - has anyone seen a robotic pollen sweeping/catching machine... its getting a bit ridiculous here...

GG. wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:22 pm
On non-lawnmower (but still plant related topics) - has anyone seen a robotic pollen sweeping/catching machine... its getting a bit ridiculous here...

A little extreme perhaps. I do need to get the 911 in the garage though - it got turd bombed by birds last week and some of it has etched the paint

GG. wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:22 pm Cool - let us know how you get on.

On non-lawnmower (but still plant related topics) - has anyone seen a robotic pollen sweeping/catching machine... its getting a bit ridiculous here...

My hayfever just sneezed looking at that picture.

(Seriously though, former chronic suffer. I thank God each summer I'm nowhere near as bad as I was...

GG. wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:22 pm Cool - let us know how you get on.

On non-lawnmower (but still plant related topics) - has anyone seen a robotic pollen sweeping/catching machine... its getting a bit ridiculous here...

They use car covers round my way.

More serious than my last suggestion : I've seen olive harvesting in the south of France where they use this kinda setup. Extremely efficient, but it's designed for orchards where trees are appropriately spaced, and there is easy access etc.



There are smaller shaker devices however - designed to do the same thing. Could one of these be used to bring down the pollen in a more controlled way (ie when there aren't cars in the way)?

Interesting idea - the trees (oak and lime) are so tall and large though that I think you'd struggle with that approach.

I think part of the solution will be to get smart with where to park - April to June I have to avoid the Oak which showers everything with pollen and then early June once that's finished I need to manoeuvre out the way of the lime tree until mid July. My brother is visiting for the first time this weekend however so the task of ripping out cabinets and moving junk from the garage can commence!

One other, back kind of on topic point, is that my grass is really suffering during this hot weather. I think I need some kind of sprinkler system and have been looking at this Irrisense one. Anyone got anything similar? https://aiper.com/eu/aiper-irrisense

mik wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:53 pm

GG. wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:22 pm
On non-lawnmower (but still plant related topics) - has anyone seen a robotic pollen sweeping/catching machine... its getting a bit ridiculous here...

No one appreciates my chainsaw gushing but we're in the golden era for them. Husqvarna just came out with a fuel injected model and now there's this limited edition Stihl
https://www.stihl.co.uk/en/100-years-ms500i
Mclaren F1 GTR of chainsaws there

I thought they were all going electric... seemingly not.

Mito Man wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2026 1:44 pm

mik wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:53 pm

GG. wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2026 5:22 pm
On non-lawnmower (but still plant related topics) - has anyone seen a robotic pollen sweeping/catching machine... its getting a bit ridiculous here...

No one appreciates my chainsaw gushing but we're in the golden era for them. Husqvarna just came out with a fuel injected model and now there's this limited edition Stihl
https://www.stihl.co.uk/en/100-years-ms500i
Mclaren F1 GTR of chainsaws there

On a serious note, what entry level chainsaw would you recommend? Something with a circa 14" bar. I was thinking along the lines of https://www.husqvarna.com/uk/chainsaws/135-mark-ii/

Cheers

mikeyb wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2026 2:54 pm
On a serious note, what entry level chainsaw would you recommend? Something with a circa 14" bar. I was thinking along the lines of https://www.husqvarna.com/uk/chainsaws/135-mark-ii/

I got the lower model 120Mk2 a couple of years back and it's been great. Doesn't have the guts of the big saws, but for my use it's good (and it's cut big stuff - undoubtedly just a bit slower). Chain oiler provides lube all the time, so if you leave it idling for ages it will over-oil the chain, but generally no complaints.

I broke the starter pawl at the weekend - which was highly inconvenient. First issue with it, but entirely a user-generated problem (I was in a tight (physical) space and decided "yeah I know you can damage the starter pawl doing a drop-start on them, but I'm sure it will be fine just a couple of times"...... it wasn't ).

mik wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2026 3:05 pm

mikeyb wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2026 2:54 pm
On a serious note, what entry level chainsaw would you recommend? Something with a circa 14" bar. I was thinking along the lines of https://www.husqvarna.com/uk/chainsaws/135-mark-ii/

I got the lower model 120Mk2 a couple of years back and it's been great. Doesn't have the guts of the big saws, but for my use it's good (and it's cut big stuff - undoubtedly just a bit slower). Chain oiler provides lube all the time, so if you leave it idling for ages it will over-oil the chain, but generally no complaints.

I broke the starter pawl at the weekend - which was highly inconvenient. First issue with it, but entirely a user-generated problem (I was in a tight (physical) space and decided "yeah I know you can damage the starter pawl doing a drop-start on them, but I'm sure it will be fine just a couple of times"...... it wasn't ).

Thanks Mik! The 120 seems good value for money. The new house has a 1 acre 'mature' garden, so need to have a sort out/keep on top of it. Friends and my F-I-L have bigger saws if needed, so the 120 seems a good compromise.

Need to cut a few trees and bushes down for a shed....

You can't go wrong with Husqvarna or Stihl. My small saw is a Stihl MS 182, despite it not being rated for professional use it's happy doing 6 straight hours of work and must be 10 years old now.
In the same price range and size I bought a Milwaukee M18 saw as I already have the batteries. It's not quite as ergonomic but makes up for it in convenience. Can't comment on long term reliability yet though.

Mito Man wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2026 3:27 pm You can't go wrong with Husqvarna or Stihl. My small saw is a Stihl MS 182, despite it not being rated for professional use it's happy doing 6 straight hours of work and must be 10 years old now.
In the same price range and size I bought a Milwaukee M18 saw as I already have the batteries. It's not quite as ergonomic but makes up for it in convenience. Can't comment on long term reliability yet though.

Thanks Mito, I'll have a look at that Stihl. From research it seems best to stick to either Stihl or Husqvarna.

My original plan was a Stihl 182, but the 120 was so much cheaper that I flipped.

Well I couldn’t wait any longer and bought the Husky. Was looking at it earlier in the year and it was sold out everywhere so not as impulsive as it seems. Just need to pick a few victims to try it out on.