Almost since electric golf trolleys started to become fashionable in the early 1990s, Hill Billy has been one of the main brands and brought an image of quality and no-nonsense models to the market.
Owned by the shareholders of PowaKaddy, it continues this philosophy with the Hill Billy 2015 trolley. My father had one of those early Hill Billy trolleys and you can see echoes of the past where the two parts of the frame meet in the middle.
However his did not go up and down as smoothly as this version, which just requires you to stand it vertically, which it will do buy itself for storage anyway. Then push the small white lever to release the front wheel and then the large white lever on the battery tray to release the handle and the frame quickly and easily clicks into place as you expand it.
One thing you should look out for is that the Hill Billy is quite a long trolley, especially when folded down. It is 7cm longer than a PowaKaddy at 92 cm, so if you are tight on boot space in your car then please check the Hill Billy will fit.
The battery tray sits at an angle towards you and features three connectors that are waiting for you to click in the battery that is enclosed in its own plastic case complete with handle.
This is one of the best battery insertion systems I have tried as the handle is rigid and there are no cables to connect. Just place the battery in the tray and push to click it tightly in place. Removing it is just as easy as all you do is push the white lever and it releases the battery to lift it away.
As you can see I have the lithium version here, which costs £100 more than the standard lead acid battery, but is faster charging and 4.5kg lighter. Just for the ease of taking the battery on and off and into the house to charge, I reckon this is a worthwhile investment and Hill Billy say 70% of customers in the last year think the same.
The Hill Billy will fit most standard cart bags easily and uses a couple of robust bungee straps to quickly fasten the bag around the top and the base. The style of the frame will not suit a tour bag if you want to put it on forwards rather than sideways.
Controlling the Hill Billy 2015 trolley could not be simpler. You just have a single goat motif dial on top of the handle which you click to start and stop and turn to increase or decrease the power.
Compared to others on the market it was a touch on the small side, especially if you have big mitts like mine, but it did the job. That is your lot as the KISS philosophy means there is no distance functions or other gimmicks to think about.
I do like an automatic distance function to send the trolley off to the next tee, but to be honest, it felt calmer using a trolley where I had less options to think about, even if it meant a slightly longer walk here and there.
Handles are always a big deal and I love the sweeping style of the Hill Billy handle as it was very comfortable and the extra leverage from the wider than usual design made it very easy to change direction.
There is also the option to adjust the height of the handle, which is good to see, but you will need to get the screwdriver out to adjust the fitting in the centre joint.
The 200W motor was powerful enough to get my kit up some pretty steep hills and was one of the quieter models I have tried recently.
And that is pretty much that. You can have the Hill Billy in any frame colour you want as long as it is black, but there are a choice of six trims for the goat button, logo and bungee cords if you want to stand out a little more.
However the main reason you will probably want this trolley is the price. The RRP for the lead acid version is £259 complete with a two year warranty and you can only buy direct from the Hill Billy website. This makes it one of the most competitively priced electric trolleys in the market and even with the lithium battery option, it still leads the field.
I think it looks stylish, is well made and easy to put up and down, so if all you want is a 'point and shoot' electric trolley that won't get your goat then the Hill Billy 2015 is one of the best value for money trolleys on the market.