T230 problem

[nriddle77]

I use a t-230 trimmer that is about 3 years old. Lately, it has started to vibrate more than normal. It seems to be the worst at around half throttle. It vibrates so much that it makes my hands start to go numb. Any ideas as to the problem here?

[dutch1]

If nothing is broken off of the head itself, I would suspect (1) a broken centrifigal clutch spring, (2) deteriorated bearings in the clutch drum assembly, (3) wear in the bevel gears in the gear head or(4) worn bearings in the gear head. Inspection will be necessary to determine the source. Judging from what you have indicated I would first inspect drum and clutch assembly. Just a couple of questions for you. Do you run the unit with the shroud to control string length? Do you keep the gear head lubed on a regular schedule?

[PLM-1]

Or the shaft could be bent.

[nriddle77]

I do have the guards on which control the string length. As for keeping it lubed properly, that is something I've not keep up with very well.

[Jason Pallas]

My vote is a broken clutch spring. Does the trimmer head turn when the unit is at idle? Test it by seeing if you can stop the head from spinning on the lawn - without stalling the engine. If the head won't stop without stalling out the engine, your clutch spring(s) are broken.

[nriddle77]

My vote is a broken clutch spring. Does the trimmer head turn when the unit is at idle? Test it by seeing if you can stop the head from spinning on the lawn - without stalling the engine. If the head won't stop without stalling out the engine, your clutch spring(s) are broken.

It does not spin during idle.
I've seen others trimmers do that, and now I know why.
Thanks for your reply.