This is a review of the Hitachi RB24EAP Leaf Blower. I bought it six months ago and now feel I have enough time using it to give my views. I bought it off Amazon Hitachi RB24EAP 23.9cc 2 Stroke 170 MPH Gas Powered Handheld Blower (CARB Compliant)
and received it promptly. I read the reviews and knowing Hitachi to make good products I took the chance. I am happy I did. (NOTE: I did have to do a simple repair on this unit after 6 months. See it here). Update: I have now owned 1.5 years and it is still running great. It gets used once a week, 52 times a year as we do not get winter in Southern California.
Un-boxing it I noticed it was nicely made. With high quality looks and nice plastics used. It came boxed in 3 pieces. It was a very tight fit attaching the blower tube to the main body. I thought it was defective, but it was just tight. Putting the blower on its back and forcing the tube on worked. The nozzle attached easily. There is only one. A fan one would be a nice addition.
After filling the gas tank part way with premix (it does not come with premix oil), I put the choke on and attempted to start it. I say attempted, because it would not start. With “Damn I am going to have to send it back” going through my head, I did some trouble shooting. In the end- I could see the intake hose for the fuel had shifted in transit and wasn’t sitting at the low point in the gas tank. It wasn’t getting fuel. Using a pencil I pushed it down to where it needed to be. this time it started after several pulls. It is an easy pull starter cord and doesn’t kick back like my old blower.
After starting I noticed it was quite at idle. Even after increasing the speed it is not that loud. It puts out a large amount of air. I am just using it to clean off walkways and driveways around the home. I can get most of it done just at idle speed. Revving it up increases the amount of air moved, not necessarily the velocity. I don’t know how good it would be on wet heavy leaves. I will find out soon enough. It works good for my needs.
Some of the cons- It is a bit heavy (8.5 pounds), bulky and gets tiring. But the work goes quickly. I use it on a quarter acre yard. If I had more, I would get a backpack blower. The choke and stop switch are reversed to what I am used to. The choke is on when it is down. Pushing up on the rocker switch turns it off. Turn the choke on to start and when it does back it off quickly as the engine will sputter until you do.
These cons are more annoyances. The pros are-It does start easily. When it is warm, it starts real easy with a quick tug. It is quite, well made. it even has a keeper for the gas cap. I can cleanup the yard quickly. That is what I bought it for and I would buy it again.