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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 19,202
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 19,202 |
My brother passed 4 years ago and I inherited his Stihl string trimmer. I abuse the crap out of it and ignore it like a big dog. It stays at the farm all winter with whatever gas is in it. It runs like a champ. The only thing I did was put a spark plug in it that is supposed to help it start better and I avoid ethanol fuel.. Pump the primer bulb 5 or 6 times and put it on full choke. It will attempt to run but quickly dies. I pump the primer bulb 3 or 4 more times and take the choke off and it starts. I mix my own 2 stroke gas with what ever I can find for oil and it still runs.
kwg
For liberals and anarchists, power and control is opium, selling envy is the fastest and easiest way to get it. TRR. American conservative. Never trust a white liberal. Malcom X Current NRA member.
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 14,316
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 14,316 |
Up until last month I was using a Troybuilt 4 cycle. Had it for more than 10 years. Engine starts 1st pull every time and runs great. But the rotary shaft inside the tube finally gave out. And of course parts are more expensive than a new trimmer, if you can find them. All the rock here I gave that trimmer a hard run.
Phil
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 17,816
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 17,816 |
I too found the Stihl to be a POS, hard to start, horrible ergonomics. Got rid of it and bought a Ryobi LIthium Ion battery model and have been very pleased with it. I bought the combo deal with the blower, it is a great little unit compact and light weight.
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Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 6,077 Likes: 1
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 6,077 Likes: 1 |
I buy the premixed fuel, my troubles ended when I did that. Yep. I used to have an issue spending that much on “premix”, but then decided it was worth the $$ to avoid the frustration and anger. Those things are easy to fix with $15 carbs off of eBay. Doesn’t require any special skill. Then, start using the premix. A gallon ($20) will last you the year, and it sure beats having a mental breakdown in front of others....
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Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 242
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 242 |
Weed eaters are a “disposable” tool. Can’t justify buying an expensive “reputable” name brand trimmer and servicing it for a 2-3 year problem. Bought a cheap Ryobi over 15 years ago, about $120 at a big box store...motor and shaft units completely separate. When the motor craps out every 3-4 years, go buy a new one for $60 and keep the lower unit. Ain’t worth my time or effort for $60 every few years to fix a problem motor. Now, my chainsaw is a several year old Stihl and still runs well.
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Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 29,786
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 29,786 |
I've got a couple of these trimmers that I depend on a lot through the summer. I seem to have trouble getting them fired up and running worth a darn EVERY year!
I only run non-ethanol fuel through them and use Stihl 2 cycle oil. I've run them dry at the end of the year as well as stored "preserved/treated" fuel in them as well based on other's recommendations. This year the Stihl fired after choking and priming but then died and I can't get it to fire up again at all... flooded? The ECHO will fire and run as long as I keep cycling between choke and open but dies when I try to rev the throttle a little. Temp. is 70 degrees outside. The ECHO has warmed enough running it the way that I have that it is certainly not "cold".
Back in my youger years I would have already (1 or 2 years ago) taken them out and dispatched them with a shotgun or rifle sprinkled with some foul language on top. Now I have older kids that pay attention to what I say as well as younger neighbors and my own grandkids that are paying attention to me more than I care to admit!
I am getting tired of the every other year $125 repair bill to clean and adjust the carbs on these POS! I have a Stihl chainsaw, multiple 2 stroke trolling motors, Lawnboy 2 stroke mower and a Ariens 4 stroke snowblower... NEVER a problem with any of those, just these POS trimmers!!!
Am I missing something? Fresh mixed gas, plugs, and clean air filters are easy and routine. Which is somewhat odd as the Stihl whipper-snippers we have at work are excellent...absolutely trouble free. To the point that when the department updates I shall put in for one for use at home, as they are much better to use than my Honda.
These are my opinions, feel free to disagree.
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Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 14,065
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 14,065 |
I had an ECHO trimmer for ~10 years and it was great but we ended up switching to a Dewalt 60V trimmer and it sure is nice being done with gas. We also use a Dewalt 60V blower and hedge-trimmer now as well so we can use the same batteries for everything.
Biden's most truthful quote ever came during his first press conference, 03/25/21.
Drum roll please...... "I don't know, to be clear." and THAT is one promise he's kept!!!
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 1,110
Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 1,110 |
Update:
Did the Seafoam "soak" on the ECHO and it fired up and seems to run fine now after blowing out the smoke. Don't have to cycle the choke any longer to keep it running and it responds to the throttle like it should.
The Stihl is still (no pun intended!) Probably flooded. I will pull the plug and try again in the morning. I'm not optimistic on the Stihl unfortunately... it has let me down too many times. Will look at new carbs as well.
Thanks for the help guys!!! May have to consider going green as well!
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Joined: Dec 2018
Posts: 1,377
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2018
Posts: 1,377 |
My Stihl hand held blower gave me fits this spring. Would not start / run. Found out there is screen that gets clogged. Some kind of anti-pollution thing (or some such BS). Clean it out and no further problems.
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,370 Likes: 1
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,370 Likes: 1 |
My Stihl is a cutting fool but it's sure cold blooded. Once I get it going, it runs great.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 23,034 Likes: 6
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 23,034 Likes: 6 |
Lundtroller: DUH.... HONDA!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
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Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 6,077 Likes: 1
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 6,077 Likes: 1 |
My Stihl hand held blower gave me fits this spring. Would not start / run. Found out there is screen that gets clogged. Some kind of anti-pollution thing (or some such BS). Clean it out and no further problems. Likely the spark arrestor screen. Dip it in B12 and light with a propane torch a few times to clean it. Usually when they get clogged, the machine will run but refuse to accelerate off idle. You can toss’em if you’re just working in a nice green yard, but if you’re in a dry area, it’s definitely a fire hazard to not have it in the muffler.
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Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 5,181
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 5,181 |
My Stihl hand held blower gave me fits this spring. Would not start / run. Found out there is screen that gets clogged. Some kind of anti-pollution thing (or some such BS). Clean it out and no further problems. Probably carbon on the spark arrestor screen. That problem can probably be eliminated using synthetic 2 cycle oil (and also your spark plug will never need to be replaced). There is a catalytic converter screen that can get clogged. I will remove the catalytic converter on my new weed eater as soon as the warranty expires.
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 16,076
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 16,076 |
Weed eaters are a “disposable” tool. Can’t justify buying an expensive “reputable” name brand trimmer and servicing it for a 2-3 year problem. Bought a cheap Ryobi over 15 years ago, about $120 at a big box store...motor and shaft units completely separate. When the motor craps out every 3-4 years, go buy a new one for $60 and keep the lower unit. Ain’t worth my time or effort for $60 every few years to fix a problem motor. Now, my chainsaw is a several year old Stihl and still runs well. I've had one of those Ryobi outfits for years. I have a weedeater head, pole saw attachment, and a hedge trimmer for it. Last year the motor crapped out. Just bought another power head for it at Lowes for about $60. I always wanted Stihl stuff, but as good as this thing works, I can't justify the cost. I do have a Stihl blower. It is great.
Last edited by gregintenn; 05/02/20.
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Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 5,181
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 5,181 |
"I am getting tired of the every other year $125 repair bill to clean and adjust the carbs on these POS!"
Every problem I've had with 2 cycle engines was usually caused by ethanol. I had a leaf blower that wouldn't start so I took it to the local repair shop. He said it just needed new gas lines and a starting bulb. I told him to replace them (he charged $45 labor) and after that it would start but not keep running unless the choke was partially closed. I took it back and he told me "it couldn't be fixed" and offered to sell me another one at wholesale price. I was about to throw it away but decided to check Youtube to see if others had the same problems with their leaf blowers and found that a lot of people did. The fix was to replace or rebuild the carb, buy a carb adjusting tool and remove the catalytic converter (a small screen). I found an exact fit carb ($25) and the adjustment tool (cheap) on Ebay. After replacing the carb it started right up after getting it adjusted it ran better than when new. It has started right up ever since then.
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 16,076
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 16,076 |
Ethanol gas is the devil!!!!
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Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 2,653
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 2,653 |
All of my OPE is Echo with the exception of my lawn mower. I run rec gas (no eth) in everything and none of it has ever flinched. Echo equipment is the best in the buiz imho. All of mine is made in Japan
GOD Bless America
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Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 942
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 942 |
Store them full of fuel with no ethanol and a double dose of stabil. Seafoam doesn’t hurt. Run that mix 100% of the time. 17 years on the same trimmer without a service call. That is very good advice. I don't tell my to customers to go overboard on stabil, but you got it covered. Don't mess around changing oil brands or ratios. Also most quality 2 cycle oil already has stabilizers formulated in it.
Last edited by ST50; 05/02/20.
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Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 505
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 505 |
I'm still using an ancient Echo SRM200BE trimmer. I've always used either Stabil or Seafoam in the gas with Stihl oil, but it's used a lot of ethanol gas over the years. Of course I've had to tinker with the carburetor hi and lo speed and idle adjustments, but I've never rebuilt the carb or had it in the shop for someone else to do it. It has always started though. Maybe because it's always been stored in the garage rather than a barn or outdoor shed. Might be worth storing in a semi-climate controlled place over this winter to see if that helps.
Increasing my post count so people will buy stuff from me
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Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 14,222 Likes: 1
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 14,222 Likes: 1 |
![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/uwsTNq0l.jpg) We bought the Kobalt electric string trimmer six weeks ago. Came with a leaf blower for $350. This is the expensive one, 80 volts. ![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/66gPxial.jpg) Bought it at Lowes. So far I am very impressed. We also bought the lawnmower for $525. The batteries are interchangable. The lawn mower will run an hour and a half on a charge, the leaf blower battery is smaller it runs about one hour on a charge. The lawn mower battery will probably run 2 hours in that weed eater. Check back with me in two years, lets see how the batteries hold up. It is a delight, I see a little spot that I missed with the lawn mower, grab that weed eater and pull the trigger it lights right up. No hearing protection needed it is quiet. No carb to adjust, no non ethanol gas to fool with, no air filter to clean. I love that lawn mower too.
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