Need a weedeater trimmer

[sherpa]

Need a new weedeater!
I am looking to get a new weedeater.
I need a light weight gas trimmer.
It does not need to be the biggest or most expensive.

What do you suggest?
sherpa

 

[JDgreen227]

Need a new weedeater!
I am looking to get a new weedeater.
I need a light weight gas trimmer.
It does not need to be the biggest or most expensive.

What do you suggest?
sherpa

I have purchased several of the Yard Machines Y28 15 inch 2-cycle trimmers and they cost about $75 plus tax. Very reliable (except for one where the flywheel tab that engages the starter broke off) and they have ample power, are lightweight, and easy to start. I used to buy the more costly and heavier 31cc Craftsman trimmers but they were not as reliable.

 

[jinman]

I have three of the[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Weed-Eater-FLSST25-FeatherLite-Straight/dp/B00080MHVC"] Weedeater FLSST25 Featherlite [/ame]models. You can buy them almost anywhere. I bought one for my wife over 8 years ago because she could not handle the heavier models and wanted something lightweight. We used the heck out of that little machine and it finally started needing attention (new hoses and carb kit). However, when my SIL left for Washington State, he left one in his storage shed that had a broken trigger. A simple replacement had that machine working like new. It still runs and works fine, but is a little harder to start. Just because I'm lazy and they are so cheap to buy (less than getting them serviced) I bought her a brand new one on sale at TSC at the end of the year last year for $90. We started using it this year and have put about 5 spools of twine through it with no problems. I'm sure the two older models have very minor issues, but I have lots of things to do that take priority and the new ones are cheap and work great. They really are lightweight and pack a punch for cutting weeds. The snap-in spools are also easy to load and we keep extras for quick change.

The ST25 has no clutch and there is the curved shaft model for even less, but I really like the straight shaft model.

 

[Eyewater]

After a two stroke Craftsman that broke the drive cable twice and was tricky to start and a two stroke Homelite that was heavy, vibrated and was hard to start I got a Honda four stroke that I've had for four years and haven't looked back. Never had a problem, starts first pull 8 out of ten times - the other two times it starts on the second pull when I see the kill switch was on!

It's light, quiet, doesn't smoke or stink, easy to add new line, no mixing gas. If it ever dies I'll buy another.

 

[boggen]

if your in town, trimming around house and like a "curved shaft" trimmer more likely good enough and easier for you. and small engine size most likely ok for you as well.

if your living out of town on a farm or on a few acres. were every now and then, you need to weed whack a few tall weeds. then you will want a "straight shaft" and you may want a bigger engine, more so for cutting larger weeds

if you need to use a "brush cutter" metal saw blade vs string. to cut weeds up. you will want a straight shaft trimmer

straight shaft trimmers = solid rod inside of them
curved shaft trimmers = a flex shaft inside of them. and those flex shafts do not hold up to the abuse of trying to weed eat tall thick weeds.

===============
buy the "drill starter kit" = something you place into a battery operated or corded drill. and then place into trimmer engine. and you just pull trigger on drill to get things started. other words the drill bit = slip clutch, so once trimmer gets started the drill nor the trimmer engine gets messed up.

ya on a new trimmer they should be pretty easy to start. but when your rear is dragging across the dirt, and you pull and pull and nothing happens. it is nice to just use the "drill starter kit" and within a few moments voom voom voom, and away you go. ya it may take a few seconds for drill starter kit to get trimmer engine going. but sure beats pulling the rope till ya dead tired and need a break before you start trimming.

=================
make sure it is easy to fill with fuel errr gas/oil mixture
make sure it is easy to clean air filter.
make sure it comes with a tool or easy way to stick screw driver into "bump head" and shield. so you can easily remove bump head, and add more string, or get things unstuck inside the bump head.

==================
ma bought her self a "wead eater on wheels" looks kinda like a push mower, but the front of the deck was chopped off, and instead of a metal blade a push mower would have, it is weed eater string. that thing rolls "extremely easy" up and down and across hills. and very light and easy on the neck, shoulder, back, arms. has large wheels on it. vs a push mower, so going over bumps or ruts in the mud is easier.

the only down sides of weed eater on wheels.
--is it can take longer if you have to weed eat large "wide areas" were the riding lawn mower or zero turn mower not able to cut, a regular weed eater / trimmer you can more quickly move left to right fairly quickly, unlike weed eater on wheels were you have to pull back and forth like a push mower.
--and you may not be able to get into some tight areas, due to size of it like a push mower.

but over all, weed eater on wheels is a nice machine.

 

[boggen]

a couple last min thoughts for weed eater on wheels. they are nice and light! and your body does not feel you been on a riding lawn mower and you get off and body still feels like it is shaking afterwards.

the weed eater on wheels ma has, uses large thick weed eater string. i think i picked up more string at menards, and the string came with a "cutter" to cut the thicker string. you just bend the thicker string were you want to cut it. and at the bend you just place the cutter (little razer blade in it) on the bend and string effortless breaks / cuts in half. the cutter lets me cut up 100 foot of string into lengths, within 10 minutes or so. vs trying to use heavy duty scissors, that may take 30 minutes to an hour (may need to take some breaks cutting for hands wearing out)

if you buy a heavy duty string, that comes in a hard plastic container, you can re-use the container, for the cut lengths, and use a zip tie or wire, the container right to the weed eater on wheels handle. so all you have to do, is pull a couple pieces out, and slip new string on as needed. this comes in extremely handy here on the farm. when dealing with the fence line. were the fence line just eats up any type of weed eater string regardless of weed eater you use.

the heavy duty string used for weed eater on wheels, is strong enough take on taller / thicker weeds. it will not replace a walk behind bush hog/rotatory cutter or walk behind sickle bar mower. but it works fairly good. and for small jobs is worth while.

 

[bilrus61]

Ok look at the Sachs Dolmar MC22. VERY light and we have two that have given great service.DOLMAR Power Products

 

[rekees4300]

What do you suggest?

Can't go wrong with Stihl

Trimmers Occasional Use Consumer Grass Trimmers | STIHL

 

[jymbee]

I'd suggest avoid the big box stores at all costs. Find a local dealer who handles any of the national brands, talk to them about your needs and buy from them. Even if you might be able to save a few bucks at big box you'd be much better off down the road if your trimmer ever needed service or parts.

Need a new weedeater!
I am looking to get a new weedeater.
I need a light weight gas trimmer.
It does not need to be the biggest or most expensive.

What do you suggest?
sherpa

 

[JDgreen227]

I'd suggest avoid the big box stores at all costs. Find a local dealer who handles any of the national brands, talk to them about your needs and buy from them. Even if you might be able to save a few bucks at big box you'd be much better off down the road if your trimmer ever needed service or parts.

You can get parts for just about any type or brand of power equipment online without resorting to a dealer. But many times the parts are so overpriced you are better off just buying a new item. An example is the oldest model of my Yard Machines $75 trimmer. For some reason one of the metal tabs broke off the aluminum flyweel, the tabs engage the crankshaft when you pull start the engine. A replacement flywheel was something like $47 with shipping, the two plastic tabs on the engine cover that the broken tab shredded were about $4 each plus shipping. Something like a total of near $60 when I could just buy the entire new trimmer for $80 with tax. I am not bashing those who buy from dealers but to me odds are they will be in the same situation I was, it will probably cost more to fix most trimmers than it is worth. As for service...do you consider cleaning or replacing the air filter and spark plug and line spool to be service? Those are the only things I have ever had to do to my trimmers.

Not sure just how handy the OP is but if you can change the oil on a push mower, maintaining a gas trimmer is even less difficult.

 

[jymbee]

Not sure just how handy the OP is but if you can change the oil on a push mower, maintaining a gas trimmer is even less difficult.

You make some good points. It's just that given the amount of grass I trim around here, I'd consider any sub $100 trimmer as "disposable". Doubt it would last a single season.

I recently bought a Stihl FS 130 R (4 stroke) to handle some of the tougher spots my trusty Husky 325L couldn't handle as well. It's simply amazing how well the Husky runs as I work the crap out of it year after year. This spring I finally wore out a mechanism in the head which my dealer replaced and it's back on the job.

The Stihl is another ball game altogether. I have to be careful trimming around large sugar maples for fear I'd chop on of those off at ground level! :laughing:

 

[gerford]

Get a Honda 4 stroke weed trimmer. At the store I bought it they recommended a different head that's easy load, just cut off 10' of line thread it through to the halfway point and wind it up. Fill it with Gator Line and your wife can use it for hours and hours without a problem. I had a Stihl and it was constantly needing attention almost always line problems. The 4 stroke starts and anybody who has used it is amazed. You will need heavy pants and goggles because it cuts stuff! I bought a straight shaft model so you can put a cutting head on it for small bushes. It was more expensive, and worth it.

 

[tractorski]

Get an Echo SRM 225, they are around $200. It is the smallest of their commercial trimmers. They are almost bullet proof. More than likely it would be the last trimmer you would need to buy.

 

[foreman Etexas]

I got a Troy-Bilt (TB32 EC) it was $129.95 has interchangable attachments its worked everytime I needed it to and my parents use it all the time also(chainsaw attach:thumbsup.

 

[whistlepig]

Need a new weedeater!
I am looking to get a new weedeater.
I need a light weight gas trimmer.
It does not need to be the biggest or most expensive.

What do you suggest?
sherpa

Need a little bit more information than this. This description would indicate the lightest and cheapest weedeater that is made. Is that truly what you are looking for?

 

[JDgreen227]

You make some good points. It's just that given the amount of grass I trim around here, I'd consider any sub $100 trimmer as "disposable". Doubt it would last a single season.

I recently bought a Stihl FS 130 R (4 stroke) to handle some of the tougher spots my trusty Husky 325L couldn't handle as well. It's simply amazing how well the Husky runs as I work the crap out of it year after year. This spring I finally wore out a mechanism in the head which my dealer replaced and it's back on the job.

The Stihl is another ball game altogether. I have to be careful trimming around large sugar maples for fear I'd chop on of those off at ground level! :laughing:

About my $75 trimmers....I have a 5 acre yard with many dozens of trees and numerous outbuildings and I do not baby my trimmers, I run them almost full throttle much of the time and the oldest one is going on 5 years now and still works great. The 6 year old one lasted 4 years of hard use before that d*** flywheel tab broke and ruined it beyond cost effective repair. I do a great deal of scalping on our long driveway edges and sometimes tackle 18 inch high grass and weeds in the back field....and I am truthfully amazed at how well my trimmers hold up to hard use.

 

[Bird]

I had a Stihl and it was constantly needing attention almost always line problems.

I guess you could get a bad one in any brand. I put a new spark plug in my Stihl FS 55 RC after the first year, but when I saw the old one, I knew I had wasted time and money. So I haven't done that again in the last 6 years. It was 7 years old in March, and I did replace the air filter for the first time this spring, and I do add a little grease to gears once or twice a year. Of course, I paid $239.99 plus tax for it, but after 7 years without a failure, I've gotten my money's worth from it if it dies tomorrow. In fact, I worked it hard for about 2 hours today.

Needless to say, if something happens to this one, I'll be going right down to my Stihl/Toro dealer to buy another one.

 

[jymbee]

Amazing how long these small engines can last considering so much heavy use...

About my $75 trimmers....I have a 5 acre yard with many dozens of trees and numerous outbuildings and I do not baby my trimmers, I run them almost full throttle much of the time and the oldest one is going on 5 years now and still works great. The 6 year old one lasted 4 years of hard use before that d*** flywheel tab broke and ruined it beyond cost effective repair. I do a great deal of scalping on our long driveway edges and sometimes tackle 18 inch high grass and weeds in the back field....and I am truthfully amazed at how well my trimmers hold up to hard use.

 

[The kid]

Get an Echo SRM 225, they are around $200. It is the smallest of their commercial trimmers. They are almost bullet proof. More than likely it would be the last trimmer you would need to buy.

You are correct. Echo is the best. Bump head is easy to load string. Just line up the arrows and use a 10-15 ft of line each end in each hole and wind it into the bump head. Mine was hard to start. Trimmed out the mixture and it runs great. I use a can of starting fluid and shoot a small shot into the air breather cover and it fires up on the first or second pull. Not enough starting fluid to damage the engine but makes it fire up without choking it. Straight shaft is the only type to buy. There are so many different heads to put on it making it a invaluable yard tool. - Robert

 

[Pete Judd]

I have a 5+ year old Stihl bent shaft, goes like heck, I use the nylon "wing blades" on a special head. Only thing that will cut the canary grass that grows around here. Not the cheapest, but fairly light, and takes the abuse. Went through to many of the cheap ones over the years.