Need a new weedwacker (opinions?)

[Unclez]

I'm tired of going through the Weedeater and Ryobi brands every 2 or 3 years. I'm in the market for a decent string trimmer now. I don't need top of the line as it's not gonna be comercialy used, just around the house. Mostly to be used as just trimming grass with the occasional tall weeds such as seige grass, etc...

The current trimmer I have now is the Weedeater brand. It runs ok but when I get through I can't hardly even drink a glass of water from shakeing so bad. It vibrates that bad.

Any suggestions? BTW, Just to give an idea of the amount of trimming I do it normally takes me about 45 minutes to do all the trimming, every week.

I've heard good and bad of the Home Depot Echo's so thought I would ask here.

Thanks

 

[pmuscato]

IMO Home Depot 's Echo are a very good choice

 

[rb_in_va]

IMO Home Depot 's Echo are a very good choice

Yep, I asked the same question over at lawnsite and they said the Echo 210 was great for homeowners. Been waiting for my weedeater brand trimmer to die, but it's hard to kill it since I have to replace the .065 string every 15 seconds!:angry2:

 

[sawinredneck]

Have a Shindawia dealer close buy? IMHO best string trimmers on the market!! Easy to work on as well, used to work for a dealer. I love mine, dad loves his, all the comercial guys came back for more! The only time I have heard complaints about them was when people took of the gaurds, they have enough power to run way too much line and will eat the shaft bearings out fast if you do this!

 

[rb_in_va]

Have a Shindawia dealer close buy? IMHO best string trimmers on the market!! Easy to work on as well, used to work for a dealer. I love mine, dad loves his, all the comercial guys came back for more! The only time I have heard complaints about them was when people took of the gaurds, they have enough power to run way too much line and will eat the shaft bearings out fast if you do this!

How much do the Shindawias cost? I remember seeing refurb Echos for $199 at HD.

 

[sawinredneck]

The homepro models start a around $189 then all the way up to the stupid beast I have, close to $1000 with all the atachments:jester:

 

[rb_in_va]

The homepro models start a around $189 then all the way up to the stupid beast I have, close to $1000 with all the atachments:jester:

Really?!? Wish I could check them out side by side.

I could just dump straight gas in my current weadeater. My wife would never know. Hmm...

 

[sawinredneck]

Thats what sucks, unles you can find a dealer that cries them all, you have to drive like a feind and handle/take notes on all of them, go home and compare! I'd call around and find out what is in stock and compare price to power, same as a chainsaw!

 

[gasman]

rb. I gotta 210 you can borrow if you want to try one.


Excellent IMO for light to mid size work. You'll want more prolly if you got lots of heavy stuff you want to haul through.

 

[rb_in_va]

rb. I gotta 210 you can borrow if you want to try one.


Excellent IMO for light to mid size work. You'll want more prolly if you got lots of heavy stuff you want to haul through.

Nope, nothing heavy here. Just trimming around the edges of my city lot. Bring it on over!

 

[A. Stanton]

I like the Echo weed wackers also. I had for about 18 years, when it worn out I bought another. I also started buying their brush cutters. Took me 10 ten years to wear one of those out. I went to Echo in the brush cutter after my Stihl brush cutter seized. However, don't get me wrong, I still buy Stihl chain saws. Just my experience.

 

[windthrown]

Get a Stihl...

I have had Ryobis, Echos and GreenMachines, and several other brands of weedeaters. Then I moved here and my girlfriend had a Stihl FS 85 pro model weedeater/brushwhacker. It takes line in a dual head trimmer, a 4 headed blade, or a full-on saw blade. That thing is bulletproof. I think it is dead, my girlfriend takes it down to the Stihl shop, and back it comes running as good as new. We use it for hundreds of hours here a year and it runs and runs and runs. Tree releasing, road trimming, lawn mowing, orchard weeding, vineyard clearing, blackberry vine clearing, brush cutting, it goes and goes. You have to make some odd adjustments to the handles on slopes and belt adjustments, but that's about it. Fill it with gas and go.

I think this one is over 5 years old now. I swear it must be near its death... but it keeps going and going and going...

 

[Unclez]

Don't have a Shindawia dealer anywhere close by.

Those with the Echo's, how are they on vibration and ease of starting?

Any comments on the Husky's?

Zack

 

[stihl 440]

stihl?

What about stihl?
I have a FS 80 stihl weedwacker. I can mow over weeds and grass as tall as me or grass that is 2 in tall and it is a lot faster and does not vibrate. Not too expensive, $200 vs $300. Plus the stihl will last a long time. Can't say for husky.

 

[gasman]

My 210 has been good for the one season I've had it. That's all I can really say. More than enough for grass trimming, adequate for some overgrown patches. But I wouldn't want to do more than that with it. Pulls over with little effort. Vibration. Well I'm not sure. After cutting my 2.5 acres of grass my nerves are a little jangly. But it seems okay.

I would say it is a good quality product but I can't compare it with the others mentioned.

 

[Korn]

I have an old Red Max trimmer. Cant complain about this one, starts right up, has good power, etc.

 

[046]

got two Stihl FS 85. they are real work horses!

 

[Fumbler]

The big question here is...
How much do you want to spend?

If you're looking at $200 trimmers then I think the Echo SRM-210 is the way to go. It's at the top of Consumer Report's list of trimmers at that price.
Home depot has them, but better yet buy it at an Echo dealer. The 210 usually costs the same at dealers and dealers are easier to deal with than Home Depot in case you have a problem.

As far as vibration goes, my SRM-210 feels smoother than my friend's Stihl FS 55 or the Husqvarna 323 we have at work. It feels more powerful and is quieter too.
I haven't used any other trimmers except for your cheap Toros and Ryobis.

The 210 is about like any other trimmer when it comes to starting.
The pull is light and it fires up with 5 or 6 pulls.

The only thing I'd like to change about the 210 is the front handle. I'd like one that wrapped around a little bit more to make edging a little easier.

 

[Unclez]

Yea, $200. is about what I had in mind on spending. The 210 has great reviews so far here and a couple other sites I looked at. The 210 is $199. locally at HD, I'll call my dealer and see what his is.

 

[Cam501]

Yea, $200. is about what I had in mind on spending. The 210 has great reviews so far here and a couple other sites I looked at. The 210 is $199. locally at HD, I'll call my dealer and see what his is.

echo's aren't bad but buy it from a DEALER and not home depot. you will pay about the same and get better warranty service from your local dealer if you buy from them instead of home depot. the husky 223L isn't a bad choice either, same goes for the stihl FS80 if you can swing a little bit more money.