handheld life expectancy

[tranum]

do i expect too much??????? or am i not getting enough????? (trimmer life!!)
echo 2401, 2601, & 260. all purchased new in the last 16 months. when new, i get about 3-4 months of trouble free use. then they start loosing power. into the shop for a carb cleaning. then i get about 30 days & i have the same problem again. back to the shop. got all 3 out of the shop right after labor day. not one will run half decent today.
got 2 2100's (w/adjustable carbs)that are 4 yrs old & run much better than the newer ones. have 1 fs120 stihl (3 yrs old) that runs like a champ.
use premium gas plus a stabilizer. keep filters clean & don't abuse the trimmers.
what kind of life do you expect from a trimmer? is there a problem with the brand i'm unaware of? i've got to find a cure b4 spring. change brands, add nitro, pray, something...i've tried 3 different dealers so i can't blame a mechanic. i'm trimmer poor & the downtime really ticks me off.

[ksland]

I use echos and once the muffler screen is removed they run for 3 years plus.

[Lawn Specialties]

Ive had my 2400 for 4 years and never done any thing but change the plug once a year gas it up and use it . I do use Opti 2 oil but I can't imagine even cheap oil gumming the carb or exhaust after a few months. At least it's better than the stihl equipment Ive used. It hardly ran when it was new.

[Mowing Freak]

Try using the low grade gas. Echo in their owners manual says to use 87 octane gas. The higher the octane, the hotter it runs. The hotter it runs, the shorter the engine life. Use a good 2 cycle mix too. About any name brand or synthetics are good. Take the screen out too as said earlier. Also, use NGK or ENSO brand plugs for your trimmer as the hold their life better than champ. Yes, you will have to pay a little more, but it is worth it. Hope this helps!

[We do 4 U]

Easy fix- STHIL!!!

[SLS]

tranum:

I believe that you are suffering from CARB syndrome.

When California forced the latest emissions regulations (CARB) down the throats of the 2-stroke manufacturers (with the non-adjustable carburators/ventless fuel caps) things went rapidly downhill.

I have read several horror stories here recently at Lawnsite about these same problems that you are have...and with Echo stuff in particular. Everyone blames the carburators.

Do a "search" on Echo trimmers and CARB and you'll find the threads.....:cry:

[Envy Lawn Service]

Buy yourself some Stihl FS 85 R's and never look back!!!!

Otherwise, pull the muffler and look things over yourself for gunk/buildup, remove spark arrestor screen and install a quality plug that's gapped correctly. If this doesn't help you are probably just kicking a dead horse trying to keep them up and running. I been there!

[Tony Harrell]

Maybe someone should send an email to Mikuni, see if they could help us get around the forthcoming carb changes. Here's a cool thought. What if a California company manufactured aftermarket replacement carbs. Oh yeah, they're sticking us already. DOH!

[Tvov]

Not that I would ever recommend doing anything not recommended, but... I have heard, somewhere, that after the warranty runs out on your equipment, remove the plastic caps on the adjustment screws on the carb. This will now allow you to adjust the equipment to run smoothly.

[tranum]

spark arrestors are removed when new. i do use NGK plugs also. as for the fs85, i purchased one in sept. does a great job but really hasn't had that much use yet. i'll do the search & some more reading. i hate to discard these 3 "fairly new" trimmers, but somethings gotta change.

[bubble boy]

ebay them.

[Envy Lawn Service]

tranum,

I can see your point about canning 3 at once. Tvov brought up a good point. That can be done and it might work.

[kjfaulk]

:D STIHL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FIXES ALL PROBLEMS:D

[Andrew S]

SORRY GUYS!!!!

The best is actually "Shindawa"

I've heard that their handheld blowers actually have 33% more power than an echo.

My oldest shindawa is three years old and still going strong,We run 8 different units from shindawa from brushcutters to hedgetrimmers and have had trouble free use from them

:) :) :) :D

[Envy Lawn Service]

Originally posted by kjfaulk
:D STIHL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FIXES ALL PROBLEMS:D

While I agree with that totally. :D
He will have to fork out $1,000 +/- to replace all 3 with Stihl :(

[lawncare3]

Easy fix- STHIL!!!
STIHL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I would say stihl all the way all the guys around me use stihl and never have a problem.

[AL Inc]

I run Shindaiwa and Red Max trimmers and Echo Backpacks. I have found we can get 3 to 4 seasons out of most of them. The only one that didn't last was the Echo PB 650. I used it for three months and traded it back to my dealer for a new Redmax. Went through 4 recoils in three months and my dealer couldn't get parts right away. I don't want to start an argument on which are better, but that was the worst piece of equipment I have ever owned, and I've been doing this since 1982. Mike

[baddboygeorge]

if you want a bad *** trimmer buy a vandermolen windmill 34 cc. an it will walk a stihl.shindiawa,redmax etc. i have some shindiawa 350,s which are very powerful an the vandermolen blow them away an they last a long time i have two i have been using for 7 years an they still start every time i guess thats the type of service ya get when ya put your trust an money into kawasaki engines any questions feel free

[Envy Lawn Service]

Originally posted by baddboygeorge
if you want a bad *** trimmer buy a vandermolen windmill 34 cc. an it will walk a stihl.shindiawa,redmax etc. i have some shindiawa 350,s which are very powerful an the vandermolen blow them away an they last a long time i have two i have been using for 7 years an they still start every time i guess thats the type of service ya get when ya put your trust an money into kawasaki engines any questions feel free

Never heard of those. I love this site! I learn something new pretty regularly. So I take it they are a 34cc Kawi powered unit then?

I didn't even consider anything Kwai when I bought the Stihl. Heard a lot of good about the Kawi on here. I only ever saw one locally. It was a closeout because they dropped the line. I asked why, they said parts availability sucked a biggin' so they dropped it.

[2tall]

Echo recommends using 89 octane. With 87 octane the handhelds vibrate to much.

[lawncare3]

SORRY GUYS!!!!
The best is actually "Shindawa"
It's spelled shindaiwa :D

[polecat63]

I use echo and stihl handhelds as well as echo back packs. I f you arfe loosing power on your handhelds that fast then you must be using the hell out of them, or you mechanic is no good. The carbs should run faily trouble free for a season or two and the need periodic adjustments. I would check to see if the exhaust port is clogged, but you mechanic should be cleaning that at the tune up. Even a slight clog will bob you of power and handhelds can't usual afford much loss.

[Dennis E.]

Shindaiwa stick edger bought in 95. Still running like the day I bought it.Runs 6 days per week during the busy season.
Shindaiwa BP blower that I bought at the same time. Just sold it.
Bought a new Redmax BP.Was still running great.
Sold it because it was hard to get parts!
Old redmax BP blower that I got from a buyout is still running great. It's at least 5 years old.
I can make stuff last a long time....
:D

[ULTIMATE LAWN]

I have had nothing but problems with Stihl FS 85's. I loved the FS 76 but the 85's have been one problem after another. I bought 4 over a six month period to replace my 76's & all of them had carb problems & poor starting especially when the weather was extremely hot..

I would stay far away from the new Stihl trimmers. My dealer (NOW!) tells me that he has been getting alot of complaints & carb problems with the FS85's.

Anyway I bought a Kaw. trimmer I was getting so frustrated & it has been perfect. No more Sthil for me.

[Envy Lawn Service]

ULTIMATE LAWN,

Dang, that don't sound good! I bought a new one several months ago and I've had zero problems so far. It's a brand spankin' new one too. I know this because I had to wait for it to come in on order.

If you still have one of them, look and see what brand of carb is on it for me and let me know. So far mine starts and runs perfectly. My only complaint is the start lock on the throttle doesn't produce enough RPM's to use as a throttle lock while trimming.

:alien: I hope I haven't just jinxed myself :alien:

[ULTIMATE LAWN]

Mabe they fixed the problems for this years models but after the nighmare I had with the 85's over the last couple years I'll never buy Stihl again. Everytime I brought them to the dealer of course they would fire right up but in the field we were having all kinds of starting & maintaining consistant power problems. Very frustrating. I loved the 76's but the 85's really turned me off Stihl.

I now have one Kaw, & 4 Stihl & it's always a fight for the Kaw. That is one fine trimmer. Nice balance, light, easy starts.

Hope you have better luck.

[Gravely_Man]

That is awful and should not be happening but I am telling you what you already know. Are you running them full out of just above idle? What brand of oil & gas are you using?

Gravely_Man

[bubble boy]

i find with the FS85 they love to be primed. and hate the spark arrester screen

ours run great , as long as you don't run the line insanely long. then the clutch will give probs, but i'd argue thats true on all trimmers.

[Grass Master]

Problems with Echo trimmers?? Something is wrong! Most of the "scapers in my area use Echo (including myself) and we have VERY few to NO problems at all. Getting 4 to 5 seasons out of my 260 trimmers is no problem. My guys can't kill the backpack blowers and the power is awesome!

I think that your problem is bad carbs and if they are not adjustable you need to replace them and the units will run fine. (By the way, Echo has always stood behind their product through my local dealer. Get the factory involved if necessary)

[Cutter1]

Stihl FS250!!! Baddest trimmer out there. Does circles around Shindaiwa's. I have owned probably 10-15 t270's over the years. Then I tried the 250 Stihl!!!!

[Detailed LawnService]

most all Redmax equipment usally start on second pull every no questions asked even cold
:blob3:

[Detailed LawnService]

although sthil is also very reliable....86 the echos
:blob2:

[Toroguy]

Shindaiwa has been good to me so far. 3 years on a t230 and 2 years on a eb630.

Posts on super powered blowers, etc:

Power can be to much, I find realiability/consistency in starting, and durability a more attractive performance standard. 95% of the season I blow grass clipping, the other 5% is the Fall leaves. Im not saying switch to an electric homeowner model, just a balanced hand tool with Toyota like reliability is what I seek.