String trimmer Acting strange

[grass-scapes]

Ok, I have a JD XT120 String trimmer. Third year of service. No problems....Till now. The engine is making a noise like a car engine low on oil. I have also lost power, most noticably when I turn it sideways to trim a bed edge. Am I about to lose this trimmer? Should I get another one right away? My backup trimmer is damaged and Im waiting on parts. May be a while on it. the engine gets extremely hot, too. It sounds a lot like there is string tangled in the head, but I checked...its all free.

anyone else had that same problem?

[grassmanvt]

Hard to tell but, check the easy things. Air cleaner, or loss of power often comes from a plugged exhaust port. Pull the exhaust can and take a peak.

[mkwl]

Make sure your mix is at least 50:1. If it isn't you will fry the engine.

[grass-scapes]

come on dude, IM not perfect, but I didn't start mowing yesterday. LOL. I use the same mix in all my 2 stroke equipment. gas is 50:1 I took off filter and muffler and muffler has air flow. Filter is fairly clean. It might be time to replace the trimmer.

[Turf Technologies]

Sprak plugs ok? Any seals gone bad in it?

[imograss]

Clean the carbon out of the muffler and cylinder, another possibility is a bad clutch if you run your line out alot more than its suppose to have this will burn up the clutch. Both will make the trimmer sound differently.

[Jeff@SGLC.ca]

Does it have a spark ******er on the exhaust port? It's a small screen. If it does, they get fouled up with carbon deposits. I just pull them out lol and leave them out. Our grass doesn't get dry enough to worry about sparks catching fire.

[lawn gonzo]

Get a shindaiwa!!!! I tell ya, either I got a good batch, or they just plain kick azz, cuz just today I was marveling to myself how good this schit is, once warm, one pull starts, etc. don't think I'll ever buy anything else until I get a lemon or something, gotta give up up Stihl, except for my chainsaws, cause I've had way too much trouble with'em considering all I've heard. later

[pjslawncare/landscap]

3 seasons on 1 trimmer? yea, Id say its time for a new one. We go thru trimmers every season or two. I have around 7 or 8 trimmers at last count. Always have backups. If u dont have a whole lot of accounts, Im sure u can get several years out of a good trimmer, but ours rack up a lot of hours fast.

[STAN1366]

Like the others said, check the exhaust screen. Had one clog up on me and until I was made aware of it I went nuts trying to figure out why my trimmer wouldn't run right. Good luck!

[grass-scapes]

I took off the muffler, and couldn't find a screen. I checked for flow and there is. I cleaned the filter too. slight improvement, but not much. I think its just about to "break"

[grassmanvt]

Sometimes the exhaust port itself clogs up, did you take the whole exhaust can completely off and look at the port in the cylinder? Also, some filters don't cleanup real well. Some you can wash with degreaser or soap and water and air dry.Others you can blow out with air to a certain extent but might need replacement to get performance back. You probably know all this stuff anyway but not knowing you or your're mechanical ability I figured it was worth mentioning. As stated before though, if you do a lot of places and this being on its third year, it may be ready to calf, my echo's go about 2-3 years under heavy use before grenading.Goodluck. Oh yeah, like someone else said, a new plug may be a good idea.