Patent ID: 7174639

Claim:
A vegetation cutting machine comprising: a pipe-shaped operation rod; a motor mounted to a proximal end of the operation rod; a drive shaft extending through the operation rod and driven by the motor; a cutting tool provided at a distal end of the operation rod to undergo rotation with the drive shaft; a handle comprised of a bar mounted at a fixing point to the operation rod between the motor and the cutting tool; right and left handgrips provided on distal ends of the bar; and a pair of fastener members each traversing the bar and a respective one of the handgrips for fixedly mounting the respective handgrip to the bar at a point located substantially at a center of gravity of a sum of a mass of the respective handgrip and a mass of a portion of the bar extending between the fixing point and a respective one of the distal ends of the bar, such that the fastener members of the respective handgrips are located at positions of the bar at which vibrations transmitted to the bar from the motor through the operation rod are minimized; wherein each of the handgrips comprises an elongated hollow body composed of two grip halves connected together, a respective one of the distal end portions of the bar being held between the grip halves, the grip halves having inner peripheral surface portions forming a mounting portion of the handgrip that is held in direct contact with an outer circumferential surface of the bar substantially at the center of gravity; and wherein each handgrip has escape portions that are not in contact with the bar, the escape portions having a plurality of annular ribs projecting from inner peripheral surfaces of the grip halves and spaced from one another in a longitudinal direction of the elongated body of the handgrip, the annular ribs having distal ends spaced from the outer circumferential surface of the bar by gaps forming the escape portions of the handgrip.