Kitchen Garden Forum

Evening all,

I finally nabbed a bit of time away from work & revising to get to the lottie today and do a few jobs. I have a McCulloch petrol strimmer which does a good job generally. However, I did notice that it seems to throw a lot of line away. It automatically feeds more line through, but I noticed roughly 6 inch lengths cast off wherever I had strimmed. I'm wondering whether I wound the line too loosely/tightly or if there is a way of adjusting this. It's not so much the cost of the line (irksome though this is), but that I ran out of line halfway through the job!
Can anyone offer any advice?
Vivien

ive not used a mcculloch but most of these strimmers feed line out when you touch the spinning head on the ground (bump feed). if this is whats happening try and avoid bumping the centre of the head on the ground. other than that make sure its all clean, nothing worn and no bits missing.
i needed a new head for a castor strimmer and got a metal one which takes cut lengths of line about a foot long, once an inch or two has worn off the ends you have to fit a new bit which wastes 3/4 of the line.. a total pain in the whatsit

Hi Richard,
Unfortunately, my strimmer seems to throw out line even when I don't hit the ground, which is why I wondered if it's to do with how tight I wind on the line. Thinking about it logically, though, it could be the spring that holds the line spool in place, perhaps, being defective since this is what gets compressed when hitting the centre of the stimmer head on the ground to feed more through.
Any more thoughts, anyone?
Vivien

Hi Vivien

I have a McCulloch petrol strimmer and it doesn't behave like that. I have to bump the head as Richard says and I think one spoolful lasted me all last summer!

Blimey! I get through a spool every month or so during the summer, so I think I will check out that spring.
Thanks Chantal.
Vivien

Only one a month, Vivienz? My McCulloch eats a spool every time I strim the lottie - unless I've wound it really badly and then it welds itself together.
Yet mine only throws out waste at the end of the spool. Confusing, isn't it?
Are those of you who are getting longer out of a spool winding your own, or buying pre-wound ones?

Hi Caz,
In the true spirit of KG forum members, I wouldn't dream of buying a pre-wound spool when I can wind it up myself & save money! But I get the same problem of the line welding to itself - probably the only time it can't throw out too much line!
On Friday I got through about half the strimming (really long pathway with a large grassy patch either end) on about 1/3 spool before it ran out. That was after I'd unpicked it where it had welded itself together! It seems that I'm aiming for the elusive middle ground where it doesn't weld and doesn't get too generous. I shall practice!
Thanks, Caz.
Vivien

I eschew the bump feed and use a manual feed.
Unscrew the base and the spool opens op a bit on a spring, disengaging a multi-point lock between the two halves.
Pull out line and re-tighten.

If the line gets cut off you have to open it up completely and push the line out through the two holes and re-assemble.

Essentially seven parts, base, spring, bobbin, cover, screw-on retainer and two metal inserts the line exits through. The whole assembly screws ond a threaded bolt on the driveshaft.

Well, Vivienz, if you find that elusive middle ground, please let me know, because I can't seem to find it, and like you I don't like to waste money if I can avoid it!
My Yorkshire blood means it really hurts me to keep forking out good money on plastic string. As my dad says, a Yorkshireman (or woman in my case) is a Scotsman with the generosity taken out. I should add here that he is half Scottish too. Need I say any more - there's no hope for me!

I wind my own too. I'll be strimming again in a few weeks and I'll take more note of what's happening.

I was going to start a new thread but think my query follow on naturally, I have a petrol JVC line strimmer which I think may be a bump feeder, but my question is this...Can I put a blade of some sort on it?, can it be convutted, obviously I realise they are more dangerous, and it is then caled a brush cutter?

Compo

My Stihl has a head that takes three swinging nylon blades. These are very effective and last a long time - do McCulloch do something similar. The only problem with them is that if you hit something solid they are likely to break.

John

Compo wrote:I was going to start a new thread but think my query follow on naturally, I have a petrol JVC line strimmer which I think may be a bump feeder, but my question is this...Can I put a blade of some sort on it?, can it be convutted, obviously I realise they are more dangerous, and it is then caled a brush cutter?

Compo

My PaiceSetter strimmer, circa 1980, has such options.

First literaly a circular saw blade for "harvesting christmas trees".
Second a disc with four blades let into the edge, so it is four arcs each arc starting at the outside of a blade and finishing at the inside, for brush cutting.

Both are of little use for brush clearance as they blunt incredibly fast, especially if you hit any soil. Look at the blades of a hayterette used for rough mowing.

A thicker nylon lead is the best option, throttled down for grass and revved up for tougher stuff, though an end of season dock will defeat it.
For brush the manual method is best especially long handled pruners or loppers.

hi compo, if the string head is held on by a bolt up the centre its just a case of undoing the bolt and fitting a blade with a suitable sized hole, you may need some suitable sized penny washers as spacers to take up some of the bolt length as the blade will be a lot thinner than the plastic head. ive only ever used my blade once , i wasnt impressed. a far better option is the strimmers that allow you to swap ends , the hedge cutter attachment does a far better job on tough stuff.

I like the metal disc. Used it for initial clearance of rushes and brambles then prevented regrowth with nylon line so grass has gradually taken over.