diff --git a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/rule/strings/ConsecutiveLiteralAppendsRule.java b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/rule/strings/ConsecutiveLiteralAppendsRule.java
index 4ef5922267..2b2af6bd2c 100644
--- a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/rule/strings/ConsecutiveLiteralAppendsRule.java
+++ b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/rule/strings/ConsecutiveLiteralAppendsRule.java
@@ -31,14 +31,14 @@ import net.sourceforge.pmd.lang.java.typeresolution.TypeHelper;
 import net.sourceforge.pmd.lang.rule.properties.IntegerProperty;
 
 /**
- * This rule finds concurrent calls to StringBuffer.append where String literals
+ * This rule finds concurrent calls to StringBuffer/Builder.append where String literals
  * are used It would be much better to make these calls using one call to
  * .append
  * <p/>
  * example:
  * <p/>
  * <pre>
- * StringBuffer buf = new StringBuffer();
+ * StringBuilder buf = new StringBuilder();
  * buf.append(&quot;Hello&quot;);
  * buf.append(&quot; &quot;).append(&quot;World&quot;);
  * </pre>
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ import net.sourceforge.pmd.lang.rule.properties.IntegerProperty;
  * This would be more eloquently put as:
  * <p/>
  * <pre>
- * StringBuffer buf = new StringBuffer();
+ * StringBuilder buf = new StringBuilder();
  * buf.append(&quot;Hello World&quot;);
  * </pre>
  * <p/>
diff --git a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/AbstractScope.java b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/AbstractScope.java
index 743330e6a2..dc0db82ce5 100644
--- a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/AbstractScope.java
+++ b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/AbstractScope.java
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ public abstract class AbstractScope implements Scope {
     protected abstract NameDeclaration findVariableHere(NameOccurrence occurrence);
 
     protected <T> String glomNames(Set<T> s) {
-        StringBuffer result = new StringBuffer();
+    	StringBuilder result = new StringBuilder();
         for (T t: s) {
             result.append(t.toString());
             result.append(',');
diff --git a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/MethodNameDeclaration.java b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/MethodNameDeclaration.java
index ba69da5088..ffac355e29 100644
--- a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/MethodNameDeclaration.java
+++ b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/MethodNameDeclaration.java
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ public class MethodNameDeclaration extends AbstractNameDeclaration {
     }
 
     public String getParameterDisplaySignature() {
-        StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer("(");
+    	StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder("(");
         ASTFormalParameters params = (ASTFormalParameters) node.jjtGetChild(0);
         // TODO - this can be optimized - add [0] then ,[n] in a loop.
         //        no need to trim at the end
diff --git a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/NameFinder.java b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/NameFinder.java
index a2aafc0fc9..93559641f6 100644
--- a/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/NameFinder.java
+++ b/pmd/src/net/sourceforge/pmd/lang/java/symboltable/NameFinder.java
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ public class NameFinder {
 
     @Override
     public String toString() {
-        StringBuffer result = new StringBuffer();
+    	StringBuilder result = new StringBuilder();
         for (NameOccurrence occ: names) {
             result.append(occ.getImage());
         }