Sliced through cord on hedgtrimmer, repairable?

[Rob_F]

Just cutting my mums hedge, and just as i've nearly done it i've gone and sliced through the cord of the hedgtrimmer by accident. Can anyone advise is this repairable? The hedge also looks like a right bloody state aswell... and i've missed the DHL man with my new phone.

Awesome day so far :(

Cheers,
Rob.

[minornut]

Where on the cable have you cut it?

[julianhj]

Should be a doddle - buy a new cord if necessary or reuse the old one. Unscrew the relevant screws, open it up, fit and close.

[Rob_F]

About 2 foot away from the hedgetrimmer end, so i can't really just stick the cable on there, it wouldn't be much use anymore!

Cheers,
Rob.

[bga]

course it is!

depends on how you do it.

Bodge #1 trim back outer cable, join together cut ends (matching the colours helps ), tape the lot up, job's a goodun.

Bodge #2 (wot I did with my angle grinder) wire in a cable connector like this:

www.screwfix.com/app/sfd/cat/pro.jsp?ts=57843&id=16262

[Chim_Knee]

Yep - just tie the two ends together in a bow... job's a good'un.

You may need to make the cutting noise yourself, however.

[Incorrigible]

So the options were

a. take it apart and have a look at it

b. post about it on an internet forum

Are you sure you're competant enough with a screw driver to contemplete this

Or you could start another thread "does anyone know of any decent hedge trimmer dealers" or somesuch

[JonRB]

If in the middle (worst case) you can either use a connector (either a joining connector or an inline garden applicance plug & socket connector) or else just replace the entire cable. It isn't hard. If you are capable of re-wiring a plug then you are capable of doing this.

[Rob_F]

Great, tah fellas. That's this afternoons chore sorted then, for a minute i was afraid i was going to be able to sit down and carry on with my book...

Cheers,
Rob.

[BliarOut]

If you are going to put a connector in it.

Make sure you put the female connector on the live end!

[ATG]

Shouldn't be a problem. Three choices:
(1)replace the whole piece of flex
(2) now that you've got two bits of flex, discard the shorter one (i.e. depending on where the cut is you'll unscrew one or other of the plug and trimmer and move it up to the cut in the flex)
(3) get a junction box for and splice the cable back together again (should be a water proof enclosure with clamps for both bits of cable so the electrical contacts aren't holding the whole thing together)

I'd go for option 3 on the basis that it is quick and easy if you've got an appropriate junction box. It's also the most dangerous method if it is botched.

[JonRB]

Actually, bga's "Bodge #2" isn't really a bodge at all - it is a perfectly valid and OK solution.

But as BliarOut says, make sure the plug part (with the exposed prongy bits) is wired to the hedge trimmer end and the socket part (with the recesses) is wired to the main cable.

[driftwood]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

tut tut
lmfao lol

[Rob_F]

Nah, I’m going to unscrew the trimmer and replace the cable as Julian suggested. Should be fun, my dads an electrician so it's going to be really embarrassing if i electrocute myself....

Cheers,
Rob.

[B17NNS]

Rob_F said:

About 2 foot away from the hedgetrimmer end

easy

put a plug on it and then install outside sockets at two foot distances all along the hedge

[Rob_F]

B17NNS said:

Rob_F said: About 2 foot away from the hedgetrimmer end easy put a plug on it and then install outside sockets at two foot distances all along the hedge

You Sir are a genius, why didn't i think of that?

Cheers,
Rob.

[percy]

Chim_Knee said:

Yep - just tie the two ends together in a bow... job's a good'un. You may need to make the cutting noise yourself, however.

New keyboard please.......!

[pdV6]

In a more serious vein,

Last week I did exactly the same thing (rushing to finish before it got dark or started to rain). Anyway, time was short so I did bodge #1.

Thought it was a bit odd that the RCD that the trimmer was plugged into hadn't tripped, nor had the one in the main fuseboard in the house.

Trouble is, the hedge trimmer still doesn't work. Any idea what I can do (other than buy a new one)?

[NikB]

Rob_F said:

About 2 foot away from the hedgetrimmer end

How did you manage to cut it that close? It's a bit like trying to touch your right elbow with your right hand.

[pdV6]

NikB said:

Rob_F said: About 2 foot away from the hedgetrimmer end How did you manage to cut it that close? It's a bit like trying to touch your right elbow with your right hand.

I did exactly the same! Think it was due to trying to get a nice even "face" on the hedge and kind of spinning the trimmer around a static point, jedi style