Does anybody else remove the guard from their trimmer?

[RED-85-Z51]

longer lines just overheat engines... on a FS80/85, 4 inches more will raise the engine temps 200F

I leave my guards on. Of the 500 or so weed eaters we service a year, only a handfull have no guards....

Exactly. It's hell on the powerheads.

You are holding the throttle wide open all the time, you are drafting in as much fuel as the motor will allow, creating a very hot combustion, but the cooling fan isnt able to spin up as fast to compensate for the hotter combustion, thus the motor gets hot.

I got a new Echo SRM-210 last month, It has a small guard, about 6" across at the back...it keeps the lines about 7" long, making the total swath about 17" in diameter. I can do fenceposts, fencerows, edging...no problems. And no crap kicked back at me. The motor is tuned at the factory to run at the optimum load and speed with a 17" swath of 0.095" line...dual lines. it's perfectly balanced, no vibes.

We see em, various brands, coming in with no guards...typical complaint is "it wont rev". Usually just cutting the lines back down to 7-8" makes them run fine. Every so often, it's too late, pistons are black, low compression. Most common are Ryobi's. The plastic shields break off if you look at em wrong...and the motors seem to run HOT to begin with.

 

[scotclayshooter]

Run a fs250 with the guard and cutter intact and it just screams!
A little bit of wear and tear from more line out is more than made up by the productivity to us "pro's"

 

[Lakeside53]

I like guys like you -great money from rebuilds..

 

[scotclayshooter]

I like guys like you -great money from rebuilds..

It doesnt seem to hurt the Stihl's!
The Makita rbc420e dont like it, Those bloody POS strimmers seem to need clutches and carbs all the time

 

[Edge & Engine]

We replace several shafts (flex) a year on a trimmer fleet...because they're run without guards. We've never had to replace shafts - on the same models - when they're run with guards.

 

[Mike Van]

Best string I've used is the Husky brand [it's silver] with Titanium - It still wears away, but the best part is it doesn't 'weld' itself together inside the head & snap off.

 

[046]

Guards stays on my trimmers.
have no problems operating with guards on.

length of line with guard on FS80 & FS85 puts just the right load on engine.

with FS250 line seems a bit short as the engine will pull a bigger load. wish there was a way to leave guard on and lengthen string another inch or so.

just finished a roll of echo .95 crossfire. works well but welds inside spool. parts guy recommended Stihl line, so got a new roll of stihl 1.05 line instead.

 

[extraspecialman]

i agree with 046,ive often thot about makin some kind of adapter that will push the gaurd back about 3 inches.Just a flat piece of steel

 

[Lakeside53]

FS250 -put on a 4 line head.

 

[046]

what's the model #? is this a fixed line setup using super thick lines?

FS250 -put on a 4 line head.

 

[RED-85-Z51]

I really like the Stock Head on my SRM-210, and it really does well with the dual 0.95 Echo Cross-Fire line...

I know alot of new users opt to have the rapid-loader put on, and they run dual .105 lines, and it seems to pull it just as easily...

But I prefer a bump line, as the machine works most efficiently when the line is at it's longest, and with a fixed line head, the liens wear down to an inefficient length...With a bump head, when it gets a little short, just give her a tap.

I like the Echo line, as it doesnt seem to weld up as bad as the Magnum Gator line I was so fond of in the past.

4 spool fulls of echo line so far...never had to remove the head due to a weld or jam. And that is doing chainlink fence as well.

 

[lawnmowertech37]

I really like the Stock Head on my SRM-210, and it really does well with the dual 0.95 Echo Cross-Fire line...

I know alot of new users opt to have the rapid-loader put on, and they run dual .105 lines, and it seems to pull it just as easily...

But I prefer a bump line, as the machine works most efficiently when the line is at it's longest, and with a fixed line head, the liens wear down to an inefficient length...With a bump head, when it gets a little short, just give her a tap.

I like the Echo line, as it doesnt seem to weld up as bad as the Magnum Gator line I was so fond of in the past.

4 spool fulls of echo line so far...never had to remove the head due to a weld or jam. And that is doing chainlink fence as well.

hey red is that trimmer line you use orange in color and comes in strips

?

 

[scotclayshooter]

Guards stays on my trimmers.
have no problems operating with guards on.

length of line with guard on FS80 & FS85 puts just the right load on engine.

with FS250 line seems a bit short as the engine will pull a bigger load. wish there was a way to leave guard on and lengthen string another inch or so.

just finished a roll of echo .95 crossfire. works well but welds inside spool. parts guy recommended Stihl line, so got a new roll of stihl 1.05 line instead.

Stihl line is really soft! But it is cheap! The orange square Stihl line is supposed to be 2.4mm but is only 2.2mm the red 2.7mm is only 2.5mm but is better.
Sawtec line seems the best i have tried and is the thickness it says it is, I cant really find any info on the web about the line but it is a Efco brand i think.
I use my strimmers mostly as a lawnmower and not so much for around posts etc. This techneque works best with a couple of inches more line!
The only problems ive had that was heat related was when i got Oregon sparkplugs that were 1mm gapped instead of 0.5mm Grr it just wouldnt start when it was hot!

 

[stihl sawing]

FS250 -put on a 4 line head.

Didn't know they made one, I will check into one of those.

 

[scotclayshooter]

I use a manual universal 2 line head, Its really light compared to a heavy Stihl bump head, So isnt the engine having an easier time with that and a couple of inches more line rather than wasting the power turning that heavy bump head?

 

[Just Mow]

STIHL is the only manufacturer to make their own trimmer line........

The rest are made by Oregon, Desert Extrusion, Shakespere.
Only Desert and Oregon make nylon copolymer line, Shakespere makes monofilament line which is what you usually find at the discount stores offered at a low price.

 

[Edge & Engine]

STIHL is the only manufacturer to make their own trimmer line........

The rest are made by Oregon, Desert Extrusion, Shakespere.
Only Desert and Oregon make nylon copolymer line, Shakespere makes monofilament line which is what you usually find at the discount stores offered at a low price.

Desert Extrusion....they bought some Shindaiwa line from me once. I wonder why

 

[Just Mow]

Desert Extrusion....they bought some Shindaiwa line from me once. I wonder why

The Shiny line is made by Oregon, must have wanted to check it out or replicate it.

 

[CharlieG]

Guard on-I hate getting a picked up rock in the shin . Excessively long line will also overheat an engine, especicially by a crew member who doesnt pay for the equipment :angry2: !

 

[Sprig]

My two Stihl FS36's have guards, they get used more by others than me, my Efco 330 however doesn't (worn 'em out) but only I use it as the harness and controls are set up for me and its a pain to adjust everything alla time
I'm using some el-cheapo .095" red line from HH, its okay, and cheap, but I prefer the old orange square line (forget who makes it) as it seems to cut more aggressively. I also find that I get much less binding issues if I wrap one line upper and the other below (seperately and tightly) rather than just wind both at once. Not overly fond of the bumper heads either as I have worn out/broken several, with the Efco lengthening the line gives me a quick breather
My 0.02$ worth fer the morning.

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