Makita XBU04 Blower Offers Three Lawn Tools in One
Makita has one more cordless lawn solution to help you “rule the outdoors” (to use their campaign slogan). The 36V Makita XBU04 cordless blower and vacuum mulcher gives you three tools in one since it easily converts from blower to vacuum and mulcher with the vacuum attachment kit (included with the XBU04ZV and XBU04PTV).
10-Second Summary
- Model: Makita XBU04
- 3 tools in one: vaccum, mulcher, and blower
- Blower delivers 473 CFM and 120MPH
- 10:1 mulch ratio
- Cruise control with variable speed trigger
- Bag holds 1.4 bushels
- Sound pressure level: 61 dBA
- Warranty: 3-year
3 Tools in 1
For yard cleanup, the Makita XBU04 blower presents a great all-around option that centers around convenience. Running off of two of Makita’s 18V batteries, the brushless motor delivers airspeeds up to 120 MPH with air volumes at 473 CFM.
This blower features a unique, almost hybrid, axial/centrifugal design. It looks like Makita mounted the fan in an axial position, but with a surrounding area to increase the air volume. It also provides a nice side-exit to the bag when vacuuming and mulching. We’d like to get our hands on this tool and test the ergonomics of the design.
Quiet for a Blower
Put the Makita XBU04 at full throttle, and it only registers a measly 61 dBA SPL. That number may increase depending upon how you take the measurement, but it’s at least encouraging.
Cruise Control and Telescoping Nozzle
The Makita 18V X2 blower includes a cruise control feature that locks your speed setting in place for continuous operation. It also includes a 3-stage telescoping nozzle that extends 5-inches for vacuuming close to the ground.
At around 11 lbs with the batteries attached, we like the weight of this blower/mulcher/vac combination.
Vacuuming and Mulching
When in vacuum/mulching mode, the Makita XBU04 is designed to pull up leaves without disturbing stone and rock settings in your plant beds. Additionally, the mulcher blade reduces leaves down to a 10:1 ratio, depositing the bits into the 1.4-bushel bag.
Once we get this in we can test run-time, Newton force, and a host of other details to understand how it fares against the competition.
Makita 36V Blower Mulcher Specs
Because you can get the Makita XBU04 as a blower-only and as a vac/mulcher in both bare tool and kit forms, we included this handy table.
