New whacker reco’s

[cub1961]

My faithful husky of 20 years has met its demise. anybody got any recommendations on a good new one? stihl, husky? currently available ones only. i’m not buying a used one

 

[Jay Fetters]

I personally prefer the echo straight shaft. The township around here has 6 of them, the $200 or so ones from home depot. They swear by them. Those guys say they just start and run. Not to mention the speed feed head is the best I've ever used. Literally 2 minutes to reload the line.

The only issue I've had out of mine in 4 years is the exhaust screen plugged up and it wouldn't Rev up. I cleaned the screen, and she was back in action. The lesson I learned is not to use the cheap no name oil. I switched to good oil, and haven't had an issue since.

 

[kzintner]

I have had good success with Red Max. Many pros in my area use them

 

[bmader]

Depending on what all your needs are I would recommend Stihl Combi unit, many different attachments for it.

 

[-CӞ]

I have had a 2-cycle Stihl for 20+ years and can’t imagine anything better.

 

[Curt Doles]

Well, somebody has to be the voice of dissent.

I bought an Echo combo about 5 and 1/2 years ago. It was a chainsaw blower in 58V. My old chainsaw and other two cycle devices blower, string trimmer chainsaw were just too hard on my surgically altered shoulders. I was surprised the Echo battery made it out of the warranty, but it did, barely. I have a lot of Ryobi 18V tools and batteries so that was my choice for a string trimmer. The Ryobi 18V is a nice tool, I can get all my trimming done on one battery but it's no where near the power of a 2 cycle. And of course, it's quiet!

I'm now looking at replacing the chainsaw, string trimmer, blower and edger with Ryobi 40V or some competitors model.

 

[mgonitzke]

I have a 40V Ryobi trimmer. I will.never use a gas one again. Also have the 14" chainsaw too...my Stihl 028 rarely gets used anymore...

Electric stuff is good enough to replace 2-cycle equipment for the average person's usage.

 

[1811Cub]

I have a Ryobi 18V trimmer, and it manages to take care of my trimming needs on a single charge.

 

[Curt Doles]

I have a 40V Ryobi trimmer. I will.never use a gas one again. Also have the 14" chainsaw too...my Stihl 028 rarely gets used anymore...

Electric stuff is good enough to replace 2-cycle equipment for the average person's usage.

Good to hear you're happy with them, which models did you get. Looks like a 10", 14" or 18" with a 5AH battery available on the saw?

 

[kharvey]

I have Worx trimmers and chainsaw all use the same battery and have no problems in the 4 years I have had them. Sold on line or Menards and Fleet Farm in my area.

 

[tkhoffman]

I have had a 2-cycle Stihl for 20+ years and can’t imagine anything better.

I have aquired many whackers over the years. Cleaned the carbs and used them. They are fine. THEN I fixed and used Stihl 85 I think it was. Oh boy, just nice. Balanced better, clutch works nicer, tap feeder works well. Big dollars but it does work nicer.
My one son bought a 4 stroke Stihl.... No torque in heavy stuff. My other son bought electric. A waste of money if you need to trim heavy woodland areas.

 

[mgonitzke]

Good to hear you're happy with them, which models did you get. Looks like a 10", 14" or 18" with a 5AH battery available on the saw?

Trimmer: Slightly older version of this. 4Ah battery. I can go around the house, trees, and perimeter fence on 3/4 acre nearly twice on a full charge. I also have the pole saw attachment that connects to the motor on this.

Chainsaw: I have the 14" version. By the time I have killed the 4Ah battery and a 2Ah battery with this and the pole saw, I am exhausted and have a lot of blocks to pick up and stack. I have cut down and blocked up a couple 8" dia trees at a time. The batteries last longer than my back does.

 

[-CӞ]

I’ll likely go electric when my Stihl dies someday, but for now it’s hard to beat for longevity and nominal cost per use!

 

[dfrisk]

I totally wore out a cheap corded Weed-Eater string trimmers, went into my local yard care equipment dealer to buy a Stihl straight shaft trimmer and the owner asked if I'd like to SAVE $200? I went home with an Echo that had all the features that the Stihl had. I used it for years & years, gave it to SON and he used it another 5-6 years. I got a new one 3-4 years ago, reloading it with string couldn't be quicker or simpler.
I did have a RYAN string trimmer for a few years, really basic, therefore cheap at Blain's Farm&Fleet. Curved shaft, no centrifugal clutch, you pull the starter cord and the string spool spins, Let's you trim at an idle. I had one, my Buddy had one, a coworker at work had one he really beat the daylights out of it till it died and he gave it to me, cheap spare parts! Finally mine died and my Buddy ended up with all 3. Pretty sure they were made in China but parts were avail. From Des Moines. Tough to beat my new Echo.

 

[KAYAKER2]

I have been using my Cub Cadet 4 stroke for years. For the Cub Cadet I have the brush cutter attachment from ryobe, and it works well.
It will start easier than my Stihl. If I am only trimming a little, I grab my Dewalt 20V trimmer.

 

[cub1961]

well as a follow up i ended up buying a stihl fs70R from the local dealer for 350-ish. lot of money for a whacker but i hope it will last at least as good as the husky. i've been using it all summer and it works great. starts quick, runs strong and the string feed is not bad. thats always the weak point in these push to feed heads. my only complaint is that it is a lot heavier than the husky but its not a big deal.

 

[Greg Riutzel]

Stihl has also been my goto. I've cleaned up a lot of overgrowth on my property with a FS85 and the 8 tooth grass blade goes through briars, blackberries and the like with ease. I've even taken down volunteer fruit saplings up to 1 1/2" with it. After 20 years, last month I gave it to my daughter for her to get control of her newly acquired overgrown property and there's plenty of life left in it. I've since replaced it with the 4mix FS91 so I'll see how long that lasts but the wife likes it too. I think the FS70R was a good choice.

 

[cub1961]

Stihl has also been my goto. I've cleaned up a lot of overgrowth on my property with a FS85 and the 8 tooth grass blade goes through briars, blackberries and the like with ease. I've even taken down volunteer fruit saplings up to 1 1/2" with it. After 20 years, last month I gave it to my daughter for her to get control of her newly acquired overgrown property and there's plenty of life left in it. I've since replaced it with the 4mix FS91 so I'll see how long that lasts but the wife likes it too. I think the FS70R was a good choice.

you have a link to the grass blade? i have a bunch of stuff to clean up

 

[Greg Riutzel]

This is the one I like the best over the others: https://www.stihlusa.com/products/trimmers-and-brushcutters/trimmer-heads-and-blades/grassblade/

You'll also need an adapter kit to mount it.

 

[RAllison]

Not sure of the model# but the stihl I have is the best whacker I've ever had!