Weed wackers? What to get

[never_retreat]

I need to buy a weed wacker, any suggestions?
Nothing industrial grade but better that HD junk. Home use not a lawn service.
What brand etc..

[Perd Hapley]

[mtnbkr]

some call that a kaiser blade.

Chris

[Azrael256]

Well, if fisty's bad idea doesn't work for you..

I've become a surprisingly big fan of Black and Decker's lawn stuff.  I'm still afraid of their cordless gear, but all of their plug-in electric stuff that I have (mower, blower, hedge trimmer) has been good stuff.  Not good enough to run a lawn service, but plenty of power for home use and no breakdowns at all over a number of years.

For gas, watch the timber games on ESPN The Ocho, and buy those brands.  Stihl, Husqvarna, etc.  I am consistently underwhelmed by Poulan.  I think they must have been sold or something because their equipment was pretty good when I bought a mower about ten years ago, but I don't see the same quality today.

I have a Craftsman Weed Whacker that is going on 20.  It's pretty beat up, but it hasn't quit yet.  It does have a tendency to recoil inside the casing for some reason.  It seems to be a common problem with electrics.  The motor will twist inside the case and pull the wiring loose.  It's not difficult to fix, but it is damned annoying when you're trying to get the lawn done on a weeknight before the sun goes down.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

sadly a lot of weed whackers are designed for real low run time numbers.  like one seasons worth.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2010/may/home-garden/string-trimmers/overview/index.htm

[never_retreat]

Ah I should have mentioned no electric. I'm not dragging around 400' of cord.

[zxcvbob]

Ah I should have mentioned no electric. I'm not dragging around 400' of cord.

Either get some kind of a sickle (like Fistful mentioned) or a gas-powered Echo -- the ones at HD are just fine.  I have a Echo SRM-2200 that's about 25 years old and it still works great.  That's one of the smaller straight-shaft models that actually has a solid driveshaft and can use metal blades.  I did have to replace the carb a couple of years ago (stupid E10 gasoline.) 

[TechMan]

I have a Honda string trimmer and it is solid.  It is also a 4 stroke, so no gas/oil mixture.

[Bigjake]

Sthil. 

They run forever.

[Tallpine]

Those actually work pretty good if you don't have to get close to fences or buildings.

Sthil. 

They run forever.

+1  I've got one that I bought for a brush saw.  It was the commercial model with the handlebars.  It's a little much for string trimming, which I only do about once a year.

[charby]

I have a black and decker cordless one, had it for several years. I am going to half to buy new batteries this spring. When the batteries were good I could trim my yard with both batteries. I probably trimmed 600 linear feet.

[dogmush]

I just bought a Troy built HD 4 stroke from Lowe's, and its been running real well.

[geronimotwo]

Sthil. 

They run forever.

what he said.  we bought the smallest stihl over 12 years ago, and it is still running like new.  my advice would be to get the one with the larger size string, as it does go through it more than i would like.  

[never_retreat]

No sickle, I need to do around the house and stuff. Somewhere I actually have a sickle somewhere.

I was leaning towards the stihl and they are not that badly priced. If they run anything like the chain saws I should be happy with it.

[Tallpine]

No sickle, I need to do around the house and stuff. Somewhere I actually have a sickle somewhere.

I was leaning towards the stihl and they are not that badly priced. If they run anything like the chain saws I should be happy with it.

Years from now, it will stihl be running 

[Bigjake]

No sickle, I need to do around the house and stuff. Somewhere I actually have a sickle somewhere.

I was leaning towards the stihl and they are not that badly priced. If they run anything like the chain saws I should be happy with it.

I'm to Sthil what some fanboys are to Glocks.  They're just hard to beat.  we've got 3 weedwhackers and 4 chainsaws ( family farm pieces) from the past 30 ish years,  and they've all earned their keep.

  Spend the bit more and buy quality once.

Years from now, it will stihl be running 

Persactly!

[Boomhauer]

I run a Stihl at home

Echos and Huskys at work...and we weedeat a LOT at work, easily equal to a commercial lawncare service

All good.

[Tallpine]

I run a Stihl at home

Echos and Huskys at work...and we weedeat a LOT at work, easily equal to a commercial lawncare service

All good.

I have only a little experience with Echo and it was not too good.

Went to work as a contractor for an LA/AR logging outfit in Colorado one time.  They had a bunch of Echos and when I got into camp not a one was running.  I got them all going for them and basically ran the cutting operation the short time that I was there.  The bastards ran out and didn't even pay me for a couple weeks work. 

[slingshot]

Skil brand are just about the best for a gasoline weedeater.

I went the gasoline powered route for a while and got tired of messing with the engine as I really didn't use it that much.  I use a battery powered weedeater now and can pretty much do my light trimming with one battery.  It just depends on how much you have to do whether it is practical.  You aren't going to clear brush with a battery powered one.

[BryanP]

I have a black and decker cordless one, had it for several years. I am going to half to buy new batteries this spring. When the batteries were good I could trim my yard with both batteries. I probably trimmed 600 linear feet.

I have the Black & Decker 18V cordless.  It does surprisingly well.  I have a lot of weed eating to do against the house, around the fence, and around the base of the rocks lining my wife's flower beds.  I've bought two more batteries for it since I bought it in 2010 (I mark the batteries so I know what year they were acquired) and I've been impressed with how well it does.  It's nowhere near the power of even the least powerful gas powered trimmers, but it's zero maintenance, and it's very easy for my wife to use.  She HATES gas powered trimmers.

I see they now make 24V and 36V models that use lithium battery packs. Based on my experience with the 18V model I'd be fine with buying one.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

got a big bull handled stihl  18 inch cut  won't die

[bedlamite]

I picked up a Weed Eater brand gas trimmer about 10 years ago at one of those traveling tool sales for $20. It hasn't missed a beat since.

[Tallpine]

got a big bull handled stihl  18 inch cut  won't die

Probably the same one I have.  I got three cutters for it: the standard string head, a circular blade that cuts trees up to about 2.5", and a three bladed plastic cutter for whacking big patches of weeds.

I don't do much string trimming anymore.  Since last summer, I take a flat shovel and dig down to dirt about six to twelve inches out from all the buildings.  I don't want anything flamable up against the siding.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

yea its a beat  i need the harness with it  but i swing it back and forth  cut about an 8 foot swath. got a reel of that square sharp cornered string.

[Northwoods]

Sthil. 

They run forever.

Maybe the old ones.  The new ones, pr at least my FS-250 weed whacker amd my leaf blower, do not tolerate the crappy gas (i.e. polluted with EtOH) anywhere near as well as my chainsaw (Husq) or other weedwhacker (Echo).  My ancient Honda 21" mower and 4 year old Craftsman rider (Kohler engine) also tolerate that gas better.