Stihl BG 86 C-E

I found it heavy after a while the strap only takes the weight of the bag. But the exhaust fumes can be overwhelming even when wearing a mask. The change over to vacuum to blower takes time. Show details

Ridiculously loud, heavy & pretty disappointing – I wouldn’t recommend this blower & especially the vacuum option at all. I did a lot of research before I bought so I so disappointed. I wish I bought the Honda one I was going too Show details

Perfect Blower for my usage needs meets my gardening power tool requirements – I love this blower I like it better than my Husqvarna 125BVX Which was very unreliable at certain times the Husqvarna 125BVX Blower quality was crap but if you compare it with my STIHL BG 86 Blower the build quality is fantastic and it is extremely reliable when I got the Husqvarna blower from Macarthur Mowers the bottom base of the blower it has… Read more

scuff marks on it whereas my STIHL BG 86 blower is very well built and it is an excellent value for money there are 2 models the BG56 which I don't like which was $249 and the BG 86 Which was $349 I decided to spent $100 dollars more so then I will get a better blower with trouble free usage and this BG 86 Has an AV Anti Vibration System and it is more easier to use for me whereas the BG 56 Does not have an AV System and is not as easy for me to use I am always reliable in gardening equipment what I mean by this is that I only spend my money on the highest quality brands like STIHL Honda ATOM and Victa being reliable means having reliable gardening equipment simple as that Cheers Juan

Best petrol powered blower around – After wearing out my BG56 blower it was time to upgrade. I did a little homework and was disappointed to see some poor reviews on this commercial model blower. It appears Stihl decided for a short period of time that their gear was that good it did not require 'tuning' and removed the mixture screws from their units. After trying out a few… Read more

blowers such as Atom 2 stroke and Makita 4 stroke I just could not go past the new Stihl BG86C.

Fortunately my 2018 model is now back to the good old days with Hi and Lo mixture adjustment along with idle adjustment.

Moving with the times I have to say the easy start is exactly that. It is easy to start!

I can only add that in cold weather let it run on the choke for at least 8 -10 seconds before applying the throttle (this disengage the choke) and take it easy as this machine does take a good 3 -4 mins to get up to operating temperature.

Light, power full and easy to start. It ticked all the boxes for me.

A Good Blower with a SideStep – I bought the BG86C-EZ to replace an old and extremely high hour use ( and still running ) BG75 ( given to my son ). After six months of use, its well run in and probably giving its best now. The unit is slightly quieter than the old one, and moves about the same amount of air. I like the ergo mounting as it minimises engine vibration, good when… Read more

you are a little arthritic. The easy start function works well, but is it something extra to break down in a few years? The old blower didn't have it, but still started easily. The BG86C-EZ doesn't appear to work as hard, to move the same volume of air as the old blower. Personally, I like the throw away, dry paper air cleaner element, very easy to blow clean or replace. I like that the choke will turn off with a blip of the throttle. In all, a nice blower. For longevity, time will eventually reveal that.

OK, the sidestep('s) now. The ergo mounting is good for less vibration, but when you sit the unit on a flat surface to refuel, it looks like a drunk leaning against a post. I think given my time again, I would have gone for the solid mounting version.

The fast run/stop lever. What on earth was wrong with a simple on/off switch. If you use the fast run position, when returning to idle, the unit shuts off and requires you to restart it. If I want a fast run, I can easily hold it with the trigger.

The blower requires a good 2 - 3 minutes of warmup before it will even think of holding maximum revs. Maybe not a bad thing as it probably helps to minimise wear, but it didn't seem to affect my 18yo BG75!!

As per the number of stars I gave it, generally speaking, a good thing with a couple of little quirks.

Stihl BG 86C blower/vacuum shredder – The anti vibration system of this machine is fabulous - no more numb hands after continuous use. I find it starts easily on 3rd pull mostly. 1st on full choke then select half choke where it will fire up on 2nd or 3rd pull. When warmed up then take choke off. It idles well when properly serviced and tuned The vacuum /shredded is design for… Read more

leaves mostly. Not designed to handle larger twigs / branches . That sort of material is best left to larger chipper shredder machines with much bigger motors and larger heavier duty metal blades. It is not the easiest or quickest of machines to quickly convert from blower to vacuum and back. But when done it does the job as designed for.

I have had this machine for several years and has provided me great service

Good for old arms – I had a BG85 for many years but the starting was getting too hard for me and the vibrations meant I had to swap hands. The easy start on this is excellent and the anti vibration mounted on rubber motor means I don't have to worry about swapping hands at all. It is also much quieter than the old blower, this makes you think its not as powerful but in fact its slightly better. Show details

Biggest disappointment – I'm a professional roofer by trade, I needed power and reliability to clean off a roof at the end of the day, sadly this item did not produce what I thought it would, after I bragged about it and the quality of it to my fellow workers they also realised it was a over priced big disappointment, a fellow worker has a Ryobi jet power blower I wish I had bought one of those instead, I recommend this blower to female landscapers,

Chinajunk – This thing is an absolute turd, we have an older one at work that says made in Germany and it is a beast, this one says "Made from global components" which means it's built in a sweatshop in china by 10 year olds, it has at best 25% of the power of the older version. Absolute utter and complete junk. Show details

Awesome bit of kit! – Great addition to the garden power tools. Upgraded from an electric blower and I'm happy I did. Way more power and ease of use! I'll be sure to invest in more Stihl gear at this rate Show details

Excellent machine starts easily – This blower vaccum is reccomended for lighter to medium commercial use. It has a lot of blowing power for a handheld and the anti vibration is great. If you are a homeowner this machine has more than enough power to get the job done. I would highly recommend it. Alot better than buying husqvarna a Chinese brand or echo you need to get one of these. Great as a vaccum too Show details

Wow so easy to start! – Strongly agree with scot m 5 star all the way! Never a problem with stihl use blowers and trimmers and have a small HSA 25 which has ample power. Have a 94 RCE and is great. Easy to start..... Super easy to start have to put in no effort at all and like the cruise control and shut off lever. So power full had an older model and I think that one was bit more powerful but this has plenty. Also very quiet don’t even need earmuffs. So good #loveit Show details

I don't care what others say! – I don't care what others say... this is five star all the way, and the gutter kit is totally awesome! Sure you and buy an Asian brand online BUT... service, I read a review that the closest service center was a 400 mile drive for a top selling Asian brand, you can't ship products that you have put gas in. What good is a warranty if the drive is… Read more

800 miles round trip for service :( Gas... why do customers use bad gas then write bad reviews... I use ethanol free True Fuel, it's the best... found out ethanol kills small engines... five star all the way!!!

Rip off – I too was a dealer for stihl for over 25 years and found the same dramatic drop in quality without a drop in the price from stihl, especially since most parts are made in china now. Very disappointing from stihl as they are abusing peoples trust in their quality, which is now no better than all the other chinese equipment you can buy on ebay ( but… Read more

which is much cheaper than stihl equipment). Have shifted to selling Japanese brands which have always been great but not well known due to lack of advertising and promotion which is the only thing that stihl has done well ( but without product quality to back up their quality claims)

Really Stihl..... Really – I've been in business 23 years and I've always used Stihl blowers and trimmers. I'm a one-man operation . You used to be a great company that made things that last now you're lucky if you get one and a half two years out of them. Got a blower in 2016 that froze up and 1 in 2017 that froze up on me today. I always use the same gas oil mixture. I… Read more

still have blowers from 10 or more years ago that still run as long as you play with the choke while running it... But it runs!!!

Stihl BG 86 C-E – Have used the Stihl BG 86 C-E commercially, often up to 8hrs per day without any issues. Suitable for use in very dusty areas, thanks to the HD2 filter. With STIHL anti-vibration, Easy2Start, 2-MIX engine and locking throttle. The BG 86 C-E is the professionals choice for clearing large areas.  Show details

Stihl BG 86 – Just bought a new BG 86 after my old one of about ten years died. Yes the new one is easy to start but has half the power of the old one. I have had it back to the dealer twice and they claim this is the best it will run. And the best part is I have had this blower for a little over a month and the return policy is seven days. So looks like I have to eat the $250.00  Show details

My old one was better – I purchased my second Stihl BG86 about 6 months ago. The biggest problem I've had with it is the muffler screws keep coming loose and snap off, I've taken it back to the Stihl shop to be fixed twice now, but the same problem continues, also it seems a lot harder to start and warm up compared to my other one. I think i'll try Husqvarna next.  Show details

Average – A good lightweight blower I guess. It mostly starts on the first pull. However it warms up like some medievil tractor and the carby fuel adjustments are factory locked. The unit has a high centre of gravity, once placed on unusual terrain it tips over on as little as 5-10 degrees. It struggles to get power. The first top range blowers used to have… Read more

an electric switch. They foolishly did away with that award winning design and replaced it with levers. The throttle set lever is good but when you try to turn that feature off you end up turning the blower off completely. So its a good lightweight blower that doesn't stand upright, with some levers, rest in peace award winning design.

Early days, but plenty of grunt – This is my first Stihl product. On acreage and didn't want to mess around with cheaper blowers. Came at a good price with bag and tubes. First time started no problem. Gave it a solid 45 minutes workout front he get go. Found it clears out heavy gum leaves, sticks, stones no problem. Then used vac to clean up. We have lots of gravel / decorative… Read more

stones with gum leaves covering them. I found the BG 86C on idle is perfect for sucking up and mulching gum leaves off these areas without sucking up stones / gravel. This is absolutely perfect and such a major time saver. Stopped it for 5 minutes, then starting again took a fair bit of fiddling around which was frustrating. It did start again and continued the job. The mulcher tore small sticks / gum leaves etc to shreds and am overall happy with the product and would recommend.

much better than the Ryobi petrol I owned for 2 months then returned – Initially I was going to purchase the BG56 with Vacuum kit,on special, after speaking to the mechanic at the Stihl shop and because I'd sooner have over engineered equipment and still within my budget. The BG 86 has spring loaded handles for comfort and rubber inside the fan chamber for better comfort and vibration control. Initial use I thought… Read more

the unit was way under powered than the Ryobi I owned, until I clicked, it was the springs on the handles that made it feel under-powered and my body was not fighting the machine. After assembling all the leafs in the corner by the fence with the blower, I proceeded to use the vacuum, well more comfort the bag sits well, it is bigger and better built than the Ryobi bags and after use I don't have an sore back like I did with the Ryobi. Assembly and removal of the tubes for conversion is easier while they say use a screw driver should be used, I used a spare key on my keys to push in the tabs. It is better design. This blower is powerful. I had a metal mulching blade installed on purchase for an extra $10.

In the picture above and on the Instructions the blower 86 is shown the front cover with a round nozzle, the above picture shows the blower with items #20 the fan nozzle and #19 the round nozzle because it is not boxed from the shop I'm not 100% sure if both should be included with purchase, the instructions don't have a comes list, but has Main Parts list with a * next to #20 which is depends on version - special accessory, I take that as you get both parts. but I didn't, just hope the shop isn't keeping them to sell for a extra $30ish dollars because that would mount up after a while.

Stihl product problems – Had a BG-85 for nine plus years until the piston rod snapped. Bought a BG-86 model in 2013. From the start the Muffler bolts kept coming loose. I used locktite on the bolts but they still kept coming loose. Constantly tightening. In this past year I have noticed black residue seeping from the bottom of the blower. I suspect it is coming from the… Read more

muffler exhaust. I use only 89 Oct. gas and Stihl Ultra oil mixture. The other day the engine slowed and locked up. I was able to free up the piston, restarted and after a few moments the engine seized again. I am going investigate by tearing down the engine. Have noticed so many complaints about STIHL equipment on line especially the BG-86 model I don't feel comfortable purchasing a new unit. But what else is there that's better? Stihl doesn't want to acknowledge any problems with their products!

A step up from my last Sthil Blower – I decided to pass on my previous Sthil blower the BG 56 which provided 7 years of service never missing a beat to a relative and upgrade to the next model up the BG 86 for the suspension handle. As i had read previously the new blower does run at less RPMs but still seems to put out the same amount or slightly more volume of air. It is more… Read more

comfortable with the suspension on the handle and the other good feature is the ability to lock the throttle on so you do not have to keep your finger on the throttle and frees up your hand to move the blower around at different angles which is good in tight places or corners. Overall very happy so far with the new blower but really the lesser model will do the job just as well just without a few creature comforts.

Early days but worth every cent – The BG 86 C-E starts easily every time, revs easily, but still moves small sticks and leaves easily. We have a large cement driveway and heaps of eucalypts and it moves the twigs and wet leaves easily. Have owned less than a week but very happy. After slaving away trying to start and use a 5 in 1 slasher/trimmer from Yukon, the BG86 is a dream.  Show details

Cadillac of Leaf Blowers – Over the years I have had a number of great blowers including: Echo, Huskvarna and Makita/Tanaka. Each had its good points as well as bad. My last unit (the Echo) was a Dual purpose Shred and Vac 230 which was 9 years old. Without a doubt my favorite. When it finally died (due to a cracked flywheel) I decided to check out the Stihl BG86 and the… Read more

86C. My Friend has been using the 86 for some time now. First was not impressed with the 86C with the "Easy2Start" feature. Small engines like the ones used on leaf blowers don't need the extra parts and spring the 86C uses and just adds another thing to break. I also did not like the feel when pull starting. Anyway, I purchased the BG86 and have been using it for a number of months now. Even though it does not seem to rev as high as the other units mentioned it easily produced as much if not more air flow and easily moves wet leaves, rocks and small branches. My opinion is that Stihl lowered the operating RPM of the unit (in comparison to older units) but changed the flywheel to produce a larger air volume at lower RPM. This coupled with the spring mounting creates a unit that can be operated for hours with little or no fatigue. In comparison to my friends older 86 it is true my unit does not seem to rev as high nor is it as loud. BUT there appears to be no difference in air volume and mine seems be be more fuel efficient. I do believe the newer units have a screen cat in the exhaust which as I understand it can easily be removed and left out. Bottom line, I am very pleased with it and would buy it again.

Blow hard – Have always been a fan of Tanaka and Shindaiwa gear and thought Stihl had been living of it's reputation until I happened to land one of these by accident. Already owned a Tanaka 2510 blower which is Japanese made and after 10 years of trouble free duty still goes hard with never a problem. However my daughter recently purchased a home and said as… Read more

a house warming gift a petrol blower was number one on the wish list. Was all set to head down to the local dealer but when checking prices on the net ,happened to come across a twelve month old BG86C-E for sale at $200. Thought as where it was for sale was on the way to the dealer anyway so dropped in to check it out as the RRP for a new one was $579.00. Without a doubt and as much as I hate to say it , this is one impressive bit of gear and being honest - definitely leaves the Tanaka in the shade. Switch gear appears to be better made and operates more smoothly and plastic / poly housings also seems to be better quality. Stihl motor is rubber mounted so vibration is also negligible when compare to the Tanaka. Not quite sure why but although the Tanaka seems to go / rev harder , the Stihl seems to produce a stronger air flow . Stihl handle is rubber while Tanaka's is hard plastic and the Stihl simply feels better balanced and nicer to use. Not sure as to whether this is a plus or a minus but while the majority of Stihl gear is now made in Brazil - these are put together in the U.S. and while a lot of contractors have gone away from their chainsaws and brushcutters their hand held and back pack blowers still seem popular. Dawt,for now at least, will have to live with the Tanaka. Will see in ten years time if this new found faith in Stihl is still warranted.

Hopeless – I had a BG86C for several years which was powerful until it finally gave up, so I bought another, this time a BG86C E. It would seem that this machine has lost its power all in the name of emissions. It is hopeless compared to the older model. I took it back to the dealership who told me that they are now made with very little adjustment so it… Read more

simply won't do what the old one did. Don't buy one, this is a premium over priced product with cheap product output. Stihl seem to be loosing the plot in their complacency.

Gr8 Blower – Been using this model for a year now and I'm very happy with it. I upgraded from the BG 56 as the BG 86 specs stated lower vibration levels. The vibration is much lower (hard to gauge from the specs alone). If vibration is a concern for you, then this machine is a definite option. Handy for right handers as your clothes don't get sucked against… Read more

the air intake (which is on the right hand side of the machine). There's a handle on the base of the frame which allows two handed operation. A flat nozzle comes standard. Takes 3 - 4 pulls to start the machine and all the controls/primer are easy to access.

The start/stop switch automatically goes to the 'start' position when you turn it off so the machine is always ready to go - no pulling of the cord only to realise that the switch is 'off'.

Very glad I upgraded as for me it's been money well spent. Very low vibration, comes with flat nozzle, easy to start and use Didn't get my round nozzle

very good, and they've improved on their old modal – i owned the old BG 85 for 12 years as a contractor, and in the last months it was still powerful, but sometimes not a reliable starter, so i gave it to my brother in-law, bought the new Stihl BG86, and it seems a little quieter and to run more smoothly, you have to get used to starting it, but once you get used to the choke and when you should… Read more

use it, it's very good, and even starts when pulled straight out of my hot tool box on the back of my ute, like the new controls, how the choke automatically switches off, on starting, and how the stop lever works, so you don't have to switch the blower back on, just pull the start rope.

I'm impressed and recently went and purchased the Stihl SH 86 blower/vacuum

Cheap brands are just as powerful – Bought stihl bg 86 after my old blower is starting to get abit old ( 10 yrs ) i had a GMC and it worked great, was just alittle loud and sometimes didn't like me. had a test with this model bg 86 in the shop, and thought was way more powerful than the gmc, got it home and it's no better at all and for $400 VS $90 i am very shocked! Works and blows Bogs down, expensive, doesn't have as much power as it says!

Problems with product – Nothing but trouble,have bg85 as well and never had a problem.have spoken to dealer and they guietly admit they have a lot of the same problems i experienced from day one.this new model is a disaster,have given up constantly working on it,and continue to use my other 2 bg85,s which are 5 years older and have never been worked on except for… Read more

replacing starter rope Is guiet and smooth Rxhaust constantly falls off,snapping bolts off in the cylinder more than once,recoil unit falls to pieces,bolts in housing always coming loose jaming blower fan.should never of changed them from thebg85which i have never had trouble with in over 5yrs commercial