While string trimmers are a great way to clear thick overgrown grasses and weeds, they just don't have the power and resilience to handle larger tasks like clearing thick brush, saplings, and hearty reeds. 

If you're struggling to cut through thick overgrowth with your string trimmer, you may just need to step up to a brush cutter. They're the big brother of string trimmers, offering more power, thicker more resilient line, and even blades capable of cutting through saplings and hearty reed patches.

Brush cutters come in a few styles:

• Handheld brush cutters
• Walk-behind brush cutters
• Tow-behind brush cutters

So whether you're tackling a small patch of overgrowth along the back of your property, or you're faced with managing a larger field of heavy brush, there's a tool to meet your needs.

Handheld Brush Cutters

Sporting larger engines and thicker line, handheld brush cutters work like string trimmers with extra muscle.

They're ideal for thick brush and overgrown weeds, grass, and even saplings because they have the strength to power metal trimmer & brush cutter blades.

Handheld brush cutters are available with either 2-cycle or 4-cycle engines, depending on whether or not you're comfortable with mixing gas and oil.

 

Walk-Behind Brush Cutters

Walk-behind brush cutters, also known as brush mowers, help to complete larger projects more quickly.

Whereas handheld brush cutters are great for small patches of thick vegetation, walk-behind brush cutters are ideal for larger areas of overgrown brush. A vacant lot or an unused area of your property that you don't regularly maintain are good candidates for a walk-behind brush cutter.

 

Tow-Behind Brush Cutters

Tow-behind brush cutters may often be sought out by those who have an entire field to cut.

Whether it be an abandoned field, a section of prairie that you want to clear out, or a wild area of brush and weeds along the edge of a very large piece of property, tow-behind brush cutters take the place of hard labor and get the job done quicker.

These kinds of brush cutters attach off-center to the back of a garden tractor or ATV, they're easy to operate, and they're very effective at cutting through thick weeds and brush.

 

NEXT: Best-Selling and Top-Rated Brush Cutters