Trimmer quit working!!!!!

[LoneStarLawn]

Our trimmer broke down on our second job today. It started then it just stopped and it could not be restarted. We took it back to the shop to check it out and could not figure out what was wrong. We took it to the dealer (Great people). He tryed to start it....couldn't. He then removed the spark plug and he said it needed to be changed. He changed it and sure enough it started. I told him that we just changed it just last week (about 30 hrs of use on the plug) and that we were told to change it at about 50 hrs of usage. He then asked if I used the trimmer "wide open" and I said not always, mostly at about 3/4 open. He then said that 2 cycle engines need to be ran at idle or wide open. It confused me since my motorcycle is a 2 cycle engine and I don't run it wide open. Is the guy correct in what he is saying or did he just mean trimmers not 2 cycle engines need to be ran idle or wide open. We have Shindaiwa T260 trimmer.

[Evan528]

lonestar... this exat thing happed to my redmax trimmer about 3 months ago. It would start in 2 pulls then id go to start it at the next job and it wouldt even try to start. I couldnt figure oout what was wrong since i had put a new plug maybe 2 weeks ago and spaced it properly! Just for the hell of it i put a new plug in it again and it worked great for two weeks and then it started all over gain... so i put anohter new spark plug and its been great ever since... my trimmer was eating plugs.... lol

[Stinger]

Yes all 2-stroke equipment is to be run wide open. Also check your gas & oil mix, too much oil fouls out plugs.
Keep an extra plug or two in the toolbox. This will save time and you can clean the dirty ones later. Say Lone Star what part of S.A. you run? I'm just north of you in the N.B. area.

[Edited by Stinger on 08-05-2000 at 01:30 AM]

[Richard Martin]

I have a Shindaiwa T-230 that is doing the same thing. The trimmer started great for the first year and now all of a sudden it'll go about 2 weeks on a plug. I suspect the problem is caused by carbon buildup shrouding the plug. I plan to remove the head/cylinder and clean it up. If you look inside the sparkplug hole you will most likely see large deposits of carbon.

[Cutter1]

I have six T270's. THis has happened to me also. I tell evryone with Shindaiwa trimmers to run wide open all the time!! Another I always recomend is to take the screen out of the exaust pipe. These are not necessary and can make your trimmer run weak. It can also cause the plug to get fouled do to the engine chocking and not running at full potential. Also take a scewdriver and put it in the exaust pipe and scrap and move it around, this may break up some of teh carbon build up inside, this may also help it run better.

[Toroguy]

As stated by many here...my t-230 bogged down and I pulled the arrestor out, all carbon covered. I lost the tiny screw that holds it in, so I have been running without. Works great, LOUD, but effective.

[LoneStarLawn]

The spark arrestor is off and the one that has the trouble was bought in Feb. The plugs are lasting only about a week. Does this occur with other trimmers or is it the plug itself since we can only find champion plugs for the Shidaiwa. I would like run the trimmer for more than a week before changing the plug...it may not be possible.

PS....We work the NE area of San Antonio Stinger.

[trimmasters]

LoneStar, It sounds like it must be the unit because we only have to replace our plugs once a year under vary heavy use

John W Bell
1-888-901-TRIM

[Dave]

As a shindaiwa dealer ,they use ngk BM6A instead of a cj8 Champion,also to get max life out of the machine leave the arestor in and run the machine wide open,as this is best for the clutch also,without the arestor there is a chance for dirt to get into the cylinder,causing future problems,also i have seen people using no smoke two stroke oil,and the screens have not been plug in two years of use, hope this helps,

[Richard Martin]

Split Fire also makes a pluf for Shindaiwas. It's LS25E or something like that.

[Keith]

I have been replacing most of my two cycle equipment with Shindaiwa since buying my first T230 over 2 1/2 years ago.

I have not had the problems you guys are speaking of which leads me to believe that the two cyle oil is behind your problem. I have run Amsoil in all and have only changed the plug in the oldest 230 twice. I also have only had to clean the exhaust port on the oldest machine once. I do take the spark arrestor out as soon as I notice power falling off. When I was using Echo, this was regular maintenance.

[John DiMartino]

If you need to run your 2stroke wide open all the time,you most likely have a rich carburator adjustment.I seldom hold mine wide open for an extended time,usually only a couple of seconds.I run it about 1/2 throttle,or more depending on load,I always blip it wide open every few minutes to keep it cleared out,ive never fouled a plug in 12 yrs on 5 different trimmers,I do clean them twice a year and keep the air filter clean so it doesnt run rich from the restricted filter.I dont like running any engine wide open if there isnt a good load on it,no load rpms are the worst thing for any engine,although it wont hurt these trimmers at all since they have resticted intakes and carbs to keep them from revving high enough to hurt themselves.

[lawnMaster5000]

does anyone uses Tanaka oil in their trimmers. I have for the last year but i believe it is the worst choice i could have made. My relatively new RedMax trimmer is really lacking power. I follow all recomendations yet i cant get the power taht other (older) redMax are producing. As soon as this Gallon is gone i am switching oil brands and really i was wondering what is best.

Also by running a 2-cycle engine at a higher rpm you are reducing the load on the engine. There is no need to run at full speed just fast enough that it is not bogged down. This will prevent the engine from building up carbon deposits

[Dave]

most of the newer trimmers have a non adjustable carb that is set at the factory to meet epa regulations,or let me refrain this,you can dig out the epoxy in the top of the carb and try to turn the screw that is headless,this is on the t230 shindaiwa,i believe the problem with your redmax is the cutdown of power to meet epa rec.and not the oil,unless you have a plug exaust port or screen,tec service from shindaiwa says to run the machines wide open or idle