Looking for a string trimmer. Any opinions?

[hosspuller]

A point to consider... I've had & used trimmers for 20 years. The 2 stroke are stinky and use a lot of fuel. The 4 strokes are much better on fuel & torque.

 

[lennyzx11]

Stihl km90 here. Never looked back. Just flat works. All the time. Every time. Also have the polesaw and brushcutter attachments.

 

[RollingsFarms]

I have a Stihl fs90 that I run the "brush knife" on most of the time and weed eat with it some too (just switch out the blade to the trimmer head....easy to do). It's slightly underpowered when running the blade but not enough where I want to step up to the next model. I hate heavy trimmers and the fs90 is one of the best power to weight ratio out there. I held an Echo (forgot the model number but it was a commercial grade). Love the ergonomics but was a little heavy for my tastes.

 

[EddieWalker]

I have 3 Stihl chainsaws and one Echo chainsaw. The echo is far easier to start. When I decided to buy a quality weed eater, I went to the same dealer that sells Stihl and Echo. He told me that for the same amount of money, I could get an Echo with a bigger motor and gear box when compared to Stihl. He also said that he personally uses Echo over Stihl. I bought the Echo and love it.

One other thing he told me was to use square string. It cuts better and last longer. I've seen the difference and would never buy round string a gain!!!

 

[2LaneCruzer]

I have an Echo that does not use the reel of string; it uses two pieces of string that have to be inserted every time you trim. I love that feature, because it eliminates the pain of messing with the reel, but it does require that you insert new pieces at least once, at least in my yard. I also love it's light weight, although I do get the "String Trimmer Shakes" occasionally. It normally starts really well, but have taken it in for service after about 4 years. Apparently the carburetor on this model is not up to snuff; man said it would just about as cheap to buy a new one than it would be to replace the carburetor.

 

[teejk]

I think all blade units require the straight shaft for safety reasons. According to the both Stihl and Echo they also require the handle-bar set-up as opposed to the loop handle but my Echo dealer says he ignores that. I have an older Stihl that I never particularly liked because it is hard starting and the string never seemed to feed properly. I also have an Echo with the curved handle and the insert strings as opposed to the spool. My wife uses that one and loves it because it is well balanced and starts easy. I have another Echo set up with a blade. That is awkward because of the handle-bar and harness but it works. I think the Echo uses a "purge" button as opposed to the typical primer...they look the same but my dealer was very quick to tell me they operate differently.

 

[DK35vince]

I have an Echo that does not use the reel of string; it uses two pieces of string that have to be inserted every time you trim. I love that feature, because it eliminates the pain of messing with the reel, but it does require that you insert new pieces at least once, at least in my yard. I also love it's light weight, although I do get the "String Trimmer Shakes" occasionally.

The echo trimmer I have , has the U turn trimmer head.
Cut 20' or line, push an equal amount through the holes in the trimmer head, wind the trimmer head to wind the cord in. Done
Very fast, easy setup for reloading trimmer cord

 

[Carl_NH]

I have several - Echo 210 works fine but the spool to body clearance means tall stringy plant material (like day lilies, and tall grass) wraps around the spool shaft area and I was looking for a brush cutter too and a solid shaft unit as well and not wrap itself up every few minutes of trimming.

I found a Tanaka TCG22EASSLP with a solid steel splined shaft and 10 Lbs is very light -and very powerful - much more torque than the Echo and it runs a 10" blade no problem. This is a commercial unit or close to it and the head doesnt wrap the strands of tall grass and weeds due to the design of the head.

The Hitachi is also the same as Tanaka - heres a link $179 Tanaka TCG22EASSLP 21.1 CC 1.2HP 2 Stroke Grass Trimmer with S-Start

IMO its a very good unit for the $.

 

[4570Man]

I used to have a head that you inserted string into. I hated it. I like to bump my bump head pretty often to keep the string as long as possible. With those heads you are forced to run your string down to a nub and then stop to change it. I also hated my old curved shaft trimmer. Straight shafts are way better IMO.

 

[RobertN]

I'm a big Stihl fan. Husky is nice too.

But when I bought a new trimmer for my property, I went with a 4-stroke Honda. That thing has been awesome!

FWIW though, I still like the Husky shoulder harness rig best. So I use my Husky harness with my Honda trimmer.

This is the latest version of my trimmer
Honda HHT35SUKAT String Trimmer and Brushcutter Model Info | Honda Trimmers