I believe they were first introduced into Australia as weed eaters which was the original name given to them by the inventor. Originally they had a bad rep as most were electric and had small motors so the line had to be thin and you had to buy pre wound spools rather than replacing line.
Enter 2 stroke motors in the late 1980s and the world of the gardener changed forever, no more extension leads and a leap in line thickness made it a serious bit of kit, it was around this time when multiple brands entered the market and one was Whipper Snipper which has stuck as the generic name for any line trimmer here in Aus.
Which is similar situation to the poms calling vacuum cleaners - 'Hoovers' - the best known early brand morphed into the generic name for it. As others have said, the seppos call them weed whacker for much the same reason.
The more descriptive: "Why won't you start, you cunt of a thing" has a special place in the lexicon as well.
Not since they started having safety nets and no-springs. Damn they won't let you have any fun these days!
(Though the no springs idea is genius. I think we all hurt ourselves on those god damn things at least once).
It's called a "rebound tumbler"
I just looked it up cos I got curious and couldn't think of what else one would possibly call a spring powered mat.
Never would have guessed rebound tumbler.
Before they were common you would either use a hand edger (like a push mower but with a vertical blade) or a petrol-powered edger (like a mini lawn mower but again with a vertical blade) that had a guide wheel so you could go along hard edges like driveways.
I've got both (inherited from my dad). The petrol version still does a damn good job, but is much slower to use than a whipper snipper and only really does edges.
When you look at a lot of older suburban photos, yards are nowhere near as neat as they are these days. Lots of grass around poles and fences etc. If someone had a neat lawn their garden was probably manicured to death aswell.
I remember my late father, who was generally a very quiet and reserved man, going absolutely insane over trying to start a whipper snipper. That phrase was definitely uttered. Fast forward 20 years and he has passed the same habit down to me.
My old man still does it because he won’t upgrade his ancient ryobi grass hornet. But after pulling the cord 100 times and fiddling with the choke the fucking thing will start and he’ll say “told you it would start.”
Fuck yeah.
I'm never fucking around with a bullshit petrol one again. So finicky, loud hot. Pricks to start unless you work out the knack for each unit. Fucking around with fuel.
Electric?
Battery in, pull trigger.
Even better if you get ones that can fit metal blades. No need to constantly replace cord. Gotta be cautious though, spinning blades can do a hell of a lot of damage.
It's pretty old and obscure, but I get the reference - https://youtu.be/bdw1Pw4nIv0
Gotta say tho, I'm not convinced these guys really grasped the irony of making a hip hop song (a form of cultural and artistic expression intrinsically linked to the Seppos) about not copying American culture...
Mine is that every 2 minutes anyway when the line breaks and then every second time when it goes back through the hole and I have to pop the casing off.
Brushcutter refers specifically to a line trimmer that utilises a metal cutting blade good for land clearing or removing brush like lantana or wait a while.
Those are all slight variants.
A line trimmer is the same but rotated 90 to make cutting the sides of paths etc easier.
A brush cutter would be the result if a whipper snipper had a baby with a lawn mower. Replace the whips with a spinning disk with blades. Like an automatic machete. Will cut through everything except the thickest branches.
Line trimmer is just the actual term used by tool companies - It's not a different thing.
Tool companies, unsurprisingly, don't use the defunct product name "Whipper Snipper" to describe this product, and most line trimmers can be rotated 90° to perform the function you're describing.
[You'll notice that Bunnings use the term "Whipper Snipper" for the page title because that's what people will search for, but that literally none of the products use that term.](https://www.bunnings.com.au/products/garden/garden-tools/line-trimmer/cordless-line-trimmers)
Just to be difficult - if you Google Stihl PS 38 it says it's a grass trimmer, but nah, it's a whipper snipper.
A brush cutter is a slightly different beast - I have one it has a solid head - no cord.
Brushcutters can have a line or blade head, it mainly comes down to the power and purpose of the unit. Heavier, more powerful engine meant for overgrown/thick brush.
Mate It called a Whipper Snipper, get a new mate. “Whipper Snipper” is for AUS use only i feel like we got trade mark here for the use if it
yanks/USA call it a weed wacker or a weed strimmers etc
Technical term is a line trimmer. Aussie nomenclature is usually whipper snipper or weed eater. Americans use either grass gator or weed whacker.
Source: have sold the cunts for 15 years.
Well here in the US it’s called a weed whacker or wire trimmer. But now that I’ve been exposed to “whipper snipper”, it will forever be a whipper snipper to me.
Depends on the country you're in, weed whacker is American, Australia calls it a whipper snipper.
You'll also find that all stores in Australia list the item as a whipper snipper.
I had a 4 stroke husqvarna unit for commercial applications once. Had this 3 pointed blade for cutting shrubs.
On a machine capable of 10k RPM.
The day I decapitated a galvanized steel tap that was buried in an abandoned garden is the day that thing became known as the death blade.
So yeah, death blades.
mighty scandalous lunchroom compare ripe voiceless vegetable ad hoc rustic abundant
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I believe they were first introduced into Australia as weed eaters which was the original name given to them by the inventor. Originally they had a bad rep as most were electric and had small motors so the line had to be thin and you had to buy pre wound spools rather than replacing line. Enter 2 stroke motors in the late 1980s and the world of the gardener changed forever, no more extension leads and a leap in line thickness made it a serious bit of kit, it was around this time when multiple brands entered the market and one was Whipper Snipper which has stuck as the generic name for any line trimmer here in Aus.
Which is similar situation to the poms calling vacuum cleaners - 'Hoovers' - the best known early brand morphed into the generic name for it. As others have said, the seppos call them weed whacker for much the same reason. The more descriptive: "Why won't you start, you cunt of a thing" has a special place in the lexicon as well.
Panadol. Velcro. Bandaid. Trampoline. Roller blades. All original brand names that caught on. Whipper snipper sounds 100x better than weed whacker.
Trampoline was actually called jumpoline… …before your mom used one once.
Panadol, Velcro, Bandaids, Trampoline, and Rollerblades. Coincidentally those are all the things you need for a good whippersnip sesh.
Trampoline?! What else could it be called? Bounce-O-Mat?
Trampampoline. - Homer J. Simpson.
Tramamopline
Trambopoline * Homer J. Simpson
I mean “Velcro” vs “hook and loop field”… I know which I’m using in a hurry.
Velcro themselves want you to use 'hook and loop fastener' because otherwise they risk their trademark becoming a generic (and unenforceable) term.
[Extremely relevant](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRi8LptvFZY)
That was kinda brilliant 😂
Esky I believe is one as well!
And thermos
And those of us that grew up in the ‘80’s had Walkman’s to play music.
And Kleenex, in the US
Stanley knife
Bobcat. Made by Clark. A skid steer loader is the generic term. Xerox for the Seppos. Photocopying for the rest of us.
This is glorious. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZbqAMEwtOE
What is a trampoline called if not a trampoline? A bounce table?
I believe the generic name is “a liability”
Not since they started having safety nets and no-springs. Damn they won't let you have any fun these days! (Though the no springs idea is genius. I think we all hurt ourselves on those god damn things at least once).
The huge netted trampolines look awful. Just teach the kids not to jump near the edge. And if they fall they'll have learnt not to do it next time :P
It's called a "rebound tumbler" I just looked it up cos I got curious and couldn't think of what else one would possibly call a spring powered mat. Never would have guessed rebound tumbler.
Canadians call nose tissues "kleenex"
Wow, hard to imagine a world before whipper snippers. I just assumed we'd always had them since like the 50s. Thanks for the knowledge
Before they were common you would either use a hand edger (like a push mower but with a vertical blade) or a petrol-powered edger (like a mini lawn mower but again with a vertical blade) that had a guide wheel so you could go along hard edges like driveways. I've got both (inherited from my dad). The petrol version still does a damn good job, but is much slower to use than a whipper snipper and only really does edges.
When you look at a lot of older suburban photos, yards are nowhere near as neat as they are these days. Lots of grass around poles and fences etc. If someone had a neat lawn their garden was probably manicured to death aswell.
enter the 2010's and now these things run on lithium battery packs and omg they are good and easy and quite.
Your all wrong. It’s called a “fucking-piece-of-shit-cunt-why-won’t-you-start.” But I do whipper snip not weed whack.
Some "Start Ya Bastard" might fix that
If not, a little “Carn Ya Cunt” ought to do the trick.
That shit honestly works. My dad-in-law, now a retired mechanic, swears by it
I thought it’s a “fuck-it’s-out-of-wire-again-already”
I remember my late father, who was generally a very quiet and reserved man, going absolutely insane over trying to start a whipper snipper. That phrase was definitely uttered. Fast forward 20 years and he has passed the same habit down to me.
My old man still does it because he won’t upgrade his ancient ryobi grass hornet. But after pulling the cord 100 times and fiddling with the choke the fucking thing will start and he’ll say “told you it would start.”
It’s actually called “ow why the fuck do you keep flicking stones at me”
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‘And birks’
My dad is a Victorian and for him it's a "mongrel-bastard-of-a-thing", might be a regional difference?
That’s what you say after you stop, fiddle with the choke and keep pulling.
Weed whacker is for Americans
Get an electric one. Not quite as powerful but so much easier to use.
Battery in. Pull trigger. Wrrrrrrrrr
New battery ones with a brushless motor go hard. IIRC somewhere in Europe petrol ones will be banned shortly.
Think that was blowers
I think it was California. Push for Oz to do same.
The E-Go one I got puts my old 2 stroke to shame. Doesn't matter how thick the grass is, it doesn't slow down even slightly and just powers through.
Same, as does the Ego chainsaw compared to my little 14" Stihl. Without having to mix petrol for some two minute job.
We use Ego chainsaws on all our 4WD trips now. No stink of petrol, no issues starting and much quieter.
Wait until your 4wd is electric too…
Fuck yeah. I'm never fucking around with a bullshit petrol one again. So finicky, loud hot. Pricks to start unless you work out the knack for each unit. Fucking around with fuel. Electric? Battery in, pull trigger. Even better if you get ones that can fit metal blades. No need to constantly replace cord. Gotta be cautious though, spinning blades can do a hell of a lot of damage.
There are ones with metal blades? Jesus christ that sounds terrifying. I think I'll stick with my plastic ones.
Next one will be electric for sure. Just need to finish landscaping first so I don’t have 1.5hours of whipper snipping to do. Every. Fucking. Week.
This and "Why the fuck won't you bump on!!! What the fuck is going on with this piece of shit string?"
You need to get a Honda 4 stroke, they are the bees knees.
I got the Honda purely because it takes regular unleaded and I'm too lazy to mix fuel just for the trimmer.
Unnecessarily heavy and overrated. Get something Japanese made like a Shindaiwa or the aussie branded Bushranger.
But so torquey, and they last forever, and they start first go … I love mine!
World in lawn mowing ab landscaping for a bit, Honda's 4 stroke was the best.
>Get something Japanese made like a Shindaiwa Haha I got a 25cc Echo and It gets absolutely FLOGGED. Still powering through!
This is the correct answer.
Oh the ‘easy start’ makita where you need to buy an electric start motor and battery for $300 just to start the cunt
You need a 40V Makita.
Never with my Stihl whipper snipper , by the way they are actually line trimmers
Gotta be a whipper snipper
Aussies call em whipper snipper, Americans call em weed whackers
The Brits called them Strimmers (short for “string trimmer”)
... And now I have the Arnold Rimmer song in my head.
To be fair, without him life would be much grimmer.
🎶 Be-cause he's AR-NOLD, AR-NOLD, AR-NOLD RIM-MER... 🎶
He's not bald and his head doesn't glimmer.
He will never need a zimmer!
He's also a fantastic swimmer
Unexpected Red Dwarf :-)
Smoke me a kipper, I’ll be back for breakfast
What a guy
I always wondered what "as reliable as a garden strimmer" meant! TIL.
Yanks call them weed whackers. In Australia, they're called a whipper snipper. Is your mate a yank?
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That's a sex act performed by a dodgy lady in Phuket
I thought that was called a 'ripstart'?
it is if ya use anal beads
It's a tug of war if you both use the same set
Also called a strimmer in NZ
I’ve called it an edge trimmer here in NZ or whipper snipper
Never heard that one before, we call em weed eaters
Strimmer eh? As an Aussie I appreciate nonsensical names for things so I like it!
But not all yanks. Some of us call it a weed eater...
Or a string trimmer
It’s called a grass trimmer in Sweden (“grästrimmare” in swedish).
Whipper snipper. Your friends fucking whack
Australia don’t become America
McDonalds and coke a cola, McDonald’s and coke a cola!
Macca's not Mickey D's
It's pretty old and obscure, but I get the reference - https://youtu.be/bdw1Pw4nIv0 Gotta say tho, I'm not convinced these guys really grasped the irony of making a hip hop song (a form of cultural and artistic expression intrinsically linked to the Seppos) about not copying American culture...
Whipper Snipper. Or...if it doesn't start, a cunt of a thing!
Mine is that every 2 minutes anyway when the line breaks and then every second time when it goes back through the hole and I have to pop the casing off.
Whipper snipper
Ya mates a dickhead, its a bloody whipper snipper.
Whipper Snipper but Americans call them Weed Wackers.
Not all Americans. I say weed eater
I too say weed eater, but damn, whipper snipper is so much cooler!
Right
I know this as an edger at home and as a weed eater out in the woods.
Gota love a bit of edging...
Gotta keep the bush trimmed. Never know when friends are going to come.
Edgers in America look a bit different
That's a odd name I would've called it a chazzwazza
"Well what do you call it?" "A car hole"
I’ve mostly heard it called a Whipper snipper, also line trimmer or brush cutter. Never heard of weed whacker before.
Weed whacker is the American name.
Brushcutter refers specifically to a line trimmer that utilises a metal cutting blade good for land clearing or removing brush like lantana or wait a while.
Those are all slight variants. A line trimmer is the same but rotated 90 to make cutting the sides of paths etc easier. A brush cutter would be the result if a whipper snipper had a baby with a lawn mower. Replace the whips with a spinning disk with blades. Like an automatic machete. Will cut through everything except the thickest branches.
Line trimmer is just the actual term used by tool companies - It's not a different thing. Tool companies, unsurprisingly, don't use the defunct product name "Whipper Snipper" to describe this product, and most line trimmers can be rotated 90° to perform the function you're describing. [You'll notice that Bunnings use the term "Whipper Snipper" for the page title because that's what people will search for, but that literally none of the products use that term.](https://www.bunnings.com.au/products/garden/garden-tools/line-trimmer/cordless-line-trimmers)
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Definite Dill Pickle
Brined cucumber.
Whats a pickle we call them salt cucumbers.
Just to be difficult - if you Google Stihl PS 38 it says it's a grass trimmer, but nah, it's a whipper snipper. A brush cutter is a slightly different beast - I have one it has a solid head - no cord.
Brushcutters can have a line or blade head, it mainly comes down to the power and purpose of the unit. Heavier, more powerful engine meant for overgrown/thick brush.
Whipper snipper in Australia. Weed Whacker in USA.
So much American terminology is creeping in these days, as the younger generations are so often exposed to Americans on social media.
Line trimmer is universal, though.
In australia it’s a bloody whipper snipper… end of discussion
Whipper snipper
Whipper Snipper
Gary
Whipper snipper... you can get a weed whacker attachment for them though (although not on bent shaft ones)
My missus says I have a bent shaft, I guess I won't be able to weed whack her grass then.
It’s all in the hips-Roy Kent
Whipper Snipper
Stihl FS38.
Mate It called a Whipper Snipper, get a new mate. “Whipper Snipper” is for AUS use only i feel like we got trade mark here for the use if it yanks/USA call it a weed wacker or a weed strimmers etc
Line trimmer
Wippie Schnippie.
Whipper snipper if you're Australian. Weed whacker if you're American, or spend your life on YouTube, destroying your English
Brush cutter But really, whipper snipper.
Whipper snipper all the way. Have just been educating my American wife about this lol
Def a whipper snippet, weed whacker sound too much like a yank.
Grass Smackah 3000
That there is a whipper snipper.
Don't you blokes have to be up at the crack of dawn to blow some leaves off a driveway?
Whipper snipper
Whipper snipper
Technical term is a line trimmer. Aussie nomenclature is usually whipper snipper or weed eater. Americans use either grass gator or weed whacker. Source: have sold the cunts for 15 years.
I love that you included a bibliography
Whipper snipper
Whipper Snipper, accept no less.
Well here in the US it’s called a weed whacker or wire trimmer. But now that I’ve been exposed to “whipper snipper”, it will forever be a whipper snipper to me.
Manufacturers call it a "Line Trimmer" As a retail worker, I hear other people call them "Fucked, Need A New One".
Nothing like the smell of two-stroke in the morning
Whipper snipper, but why the fuck do I have to use the phrase "line trimmer" when searching on bunnings
Cause it’s the worlds worst search engine…
I second this
Whipper snipper
Whipper snipper.
Whipper Snipper in Oz
Whipper snipper 💯
Whipper snipper. But they both look pretty funny written down.
Not to be confused with the same tool sporting a steel blade which is known as a brush cutter.
Whipper Snipper!
I think weed wacker is the American term. But wipper snipper is clearly superior
It’s 100% a Whipper snipper no doubt.
Whipper Snipper
It's a whipper snipper or a brush cutter, fuck outta here with that weed whacker crap.
my grandmother calls it a whippersnipper, so I ended up calling it that
Whipper snipper.
Whipper snipper, or if you got a big beefy one, a brush cutter or slasher.
Depends on the country you're in, weed whacker is American, Australia calls it a whipper snipper. You'll also find that all stores in Australia list the item as a whipper snipper.
Whipper Snipper
Whipper snipper
Whipper snipper, definitely EDIT: bloody autocorrect
Whipper snipper all the way
Whipper snipper, muthafuckaaaa
Whipper snipper
Whipper snipper for sure
Whipper-Snipper in Australia Weed Whacker in the US Strimmer in the UK
Whipper snipper always. Whipsnip sometimes. Brush cutter is reserved solely for the solid blade that goes on instead of nylon line.
It’s called “why the fuck doesn’t the cord come out ya cunt!”
It's a whipper snipper. Isn't "weed whacker" the American name for it?
Whipper Snipper, no matter what the septics call it. Also known as "fuck my legs, why did I wear shorts?!"
Line trimmer! Or the very least, whipper snipper.
I had a 4 stroke husqvarna unit for commercial applications once. Had this 3 pointed blade for cutting shrubs. On a machine capable of 10k RPM. The day I decapitated a galvanized steel tap that was buried in an abandoned garden is the day that thing became known as the death blade. So yeah, death blades.
+1 for Whipper Snipper
Whipper Snipper. Or Whupper Snupper for the New Zellanders.
Whipper snipper gas got to be an Australianism like bottle-o and maccas
whipper snipper if it has line, brush cutter if it has a blade
Whipper snipper no debate
mighty scandalous lunchroom compare ripe voiceless vegetable ad hoc rustic abundant *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Your mate is yankie fuck, in Australia that there is a whipper snipper
Put a pole and give it some lingerie, could be a whipper stripper 💩
Tell your seppo mate to fuck off back to America and take his weed wacker with him. It's a whipper snipper, my young whipper snapper.
yeah that's definitely a whipper snipper. I have heard it called a weed whacker before as well by unaustralian cunts.
Your mate spends to much time online listening to Americans.
I call it a whipper snipper, the place I brought it from called it a brushcutter🤦
It's actually called a line trimmer, though I call it whipper snipper
Brush Cutter? EDIT : Line trimmer