Black & Decker LE750 Edge Hog Review

I previously discussed the differences between string trimmers and edgers and some of the various options I was considering. In the past I was able to borrow an edger a few times a year but now I needed to get my own.

I finally decided on the Black & Decker LE750 Edge Hog 2-1/4 HP Electric Landscape Edger because I didn't want to deal with gas and I have less than 200' of edging to do.

The Hound Dog Steppin' Edger #HDP6-4 was a close second. I have other Hound Dog products that I'm happy with and I like to use manual tools when I can. They're cordless, very quiet and using them burns a few calories. I ultimately decided on a powered lawn edger to speed things up.

Since my last post I also found the Factory-ReconditionedHomelite 12 Amp Lawn Edger ZR45100 which is the only other electric grass edger I have seen besides the Electric Mantis Tiller/Cultivator with Border Edger. I like factory reconditionedtools, sometimes I even prefer them because I know they've been individually tested, something about the reconditioned Homelite edger didn't sit well with me. After seeing info on the product I looked on the Homelite website and couldn't find anything on the product. It appears to be discontinued. I couldn't find any place selling it new either.

Buying reconditioned for a popular product is one thing, a reconditioned tool that has been discontinued turns me off because I think they had so many problems they wound up dropping it and are now trying to make some money selling off what they have left.

The Black and Decker Edge Hog also looks like it has more adjustments for depth than the Homelite which will make it better for trenching. Homelite products in general don't seem to get good reviews either.

I really wanted the Electric Mantis Tiller with Edger but didn't want to spend that much and don't plan on using the tiller often enough to justify the cost. To be honest, I also think I'll be too lazy to pull out a larger tool like that frequently.

So I went with the Black and Decker Electric Edger. To save some money I purchased a refurbished Black and Decker Edge Hog from CPO.com's Black and Decker refurbished store. I've been waiting to use it and share my experiences but with all the rain the soil has been too moist to edge. It's really been driving me crazy because it's hard not using a new toy and my lawn had an overgrown edge since it's been a while that I had access to an edger. In some places the lawn was growing a good 3-4" onto the concrete.

Don't Use An Edger On Wet Soil

I've finally used it 2 1/2 times so far. The first 1/2 time was when I first bought it. It had been raining constantly but when the first break in the weather came I rolled it out. While a gas powered edger might have been able to go through the overgrown edge and damp soil, the Edge Hog had problems. It was very slow going and pulling up the cut edge was difficult so I gave up. The moist clay soil also wound up clogging the blade which made it difficult to clean.

Cleaning it was very easy because the blade cavity opens up. Just turn the red plastic knob on the side of the edger, towards the front, and the door opens to give you access to scrape out mud or replace the blade.

After 4 sunny days without rain I had a much easier time. The Edge Hog cut through the lawn and soil without any issues and the cut edge pulled up easily in nice long strips.  The LE750 even handled curved walkways without a a hitch.

LE750 First Use

Since the lawn hadn't been edged in a long time, some spots were difficult to edge. I found that going slow and using a short back and forth motion to slowly cut through the edge got the job done.

The edger has a decent amount of power but it's not a monster and you can't just force it through. You need to take it slow when it's bogging down so you don't burn out the electric motor or wear down the motor brushes. You'll hear it when the motor is working too hard and you should slow down. Remember, this edger is supposed to make things easier, don't try to force it through.

Curb Guard Protects Your Walkways

The Black and Decker Edge Hog has a retractable curb guard, a piece of metal that rides along the edge of the hard surface to make sure you're following the hardscape to get a clean edge while preventing the blade from hitting the concrete.

I still wound up seeing sparks (which indicates the blade was hitting the concrete) but this only happened when I was first inserting the blade or when I made it to a corner. It's important to try to keep the blade from hitting a hard surface. Hitting concrete will wear the blade down faster, hitting asphalt could tear up the driveway.

After using the Edge Hog a few times I was able to better judge how close I could get to the corner and I found that if I didn't try to force the edger through thick overgrowth that I was less likely to angle the edger in a way that would make it hit the walk.

The edge guard pulls up completely into the body of the edger. When you want to edge along a flower bed or use the edger to make a shallow trench to run low voltage cables or drip irrigation you can use the edger with the curb guard in the up position to do so.

Along with the curb guard, the wheeled base makes the edger very easy to use. The LE750 isn't very heavy but having solid contact and smooth rolling over the ground helps keep the edges straight.

The Edge Hog left a clean edge except in the first bit I tried. That was mostly my fault because I missed the edge by an inch where there was so much overgrowth that I couldn't see where the concrete ended. After a couple of weeks the grass filled in and it looks fine now.

Blade depth is up to 1.5" deep and the adjustment is very easy to make without any tools. A cord holder prevents the plug from accidentally being pulled out and with a little care it's easy to make sure the cord isn't in the path of the edger.

This not quiet but it's not loud either. Definitely quieter than a gas powered edger. It is also very light and easy to handle.

LE750 Second Use

The next time I used it went a lot smoother. The electric lawn edger rode along quickly and there was no bending over to pull out the cut edge. It didn't bog down at all. It does blow out a bit of dirt and you should be careful not to have anyone stand in front of it in case it hits a pebble or some other hard object that might get kicked up. Safety glasses should be worn to guard against any flying debris.

After edging, mowing and trimming, a pass with the blower cleaned up all the grass clippings and dirt from the edge, leaving a nice, clean, deep line.

Now that the edge has been established, I plan to only use the edger once or twice a month, every 2-4 mowings, if that much. (Update, I use the edger about once a month and that works best for me.) In between I'll use my Black & Decker NST 2018 18-Volt Cordless Electric 12-Inch Grass Hog String Trimmer to maintain the edge. The two make a very good combo in my opinion.

The string trimmer isn't very powerful but works well to touch up an edge. Being battery operated makes it less of a chore to use than a corded electric trimmer.

Overall I'm very happy with the Black and Decker Edge Hog. It works better than I thought it would and heavy duty replacement blades are affordable and only need to be changed every couple of years. It doesn't have the same performance as a gas powered edger but taking it slow when the edging is thick is a reasonable compromise for the amount of money saved.