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Weed wacker: Echo 210,, Stihl, Husky, or....?

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Old 06-09-2007, 04:37 PM
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Weed wacker: Echo 210,, Stihl, Husky, or....?

need a new weed wacker.

long story.

Echo SRM-210 Trimmer
Internet Price: $199.99


Echo SRM-230 Trimmer
Internet Price: $269.99


which is better, 210 or 230?
i have 2 houses to do now, big ditches at both (neighbor, 'nother long story...)

best discussion i could GOOGLE
http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/...443220434.html

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/...082916240.html
Old 06-09-2007, 06:20 PM
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Get a Husqvarna. That is all my family uses and all I have for cahinsaws. LOve them very powerful and light.
Old 06-10-2007, 01:41 AM
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I have an echo srm-210. Seems to work great for me. I bought mine at Home depot for the same price you have listed....$199 back in 2002. Never have done anything to it except run it and add line as needed.

I also bought the same echo but with an edger blade. So I really have 2 of them. No problems from either.
Old 06-10-2007, 02:21 AM
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I cut grass and landscape for a living and I was once a die hard echo person but in my opinion the new stuff is junk. Very poor quality control I would buy a used 1980 echo trimmer before I would buy a new one. Find a place around you that sells commercial grade equiptment Look into redmax robin and some shindawia is good If you buy one of the listed It will most likely be the last you ever buy if you are just using around the house
Old 06-10-2007, 04:26 AM
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I have an Echo that I have had for about 20 years.
Old 06-10-2007, 09:00 AM
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Stihl then Echo get my vote.
Old 06-10-2007, 10:44 AM
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Go with this andnever look back. I have owned all the rest. The next closest thing to this one was my Echo, but this bad boy blows it out of the water any day!


http://catalog.redmax.com/MyCart/Pro..._Trrimmer.aspx
Old 06-10-2007, 12:01 PM
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dmax

it can't be THAT good...

they spelled TRIMMER wrong on their website..

BC250S Line Trrimmer

my spell checker caught it when i e-mailed them about where to buy one.


Old 06-10-2007, 12:45 PM
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I have an older Husqvarna I can't remember the model. It has been a real good trimmer and gets lots of use since I use it to keep the ditches and electric fences clear around my pastures along with the basic yard work. BUT....The newer ones are junk! and so is the Echo brand stuff. I think they started catering to the big box stores and comprimised quality for price. (They are also a lot cheaper than when I bought mine) I do not know about Stihl brand trimmers- I will not have any other brand of chainsaw than Stihl. If you want a very good commercial grade trimmer, talk to some professional landscapers about brand. I have a few friends in the business, I'll ask them if you want. Let me know.
Old 06-10-2007, 06:10 PM
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Go with Stihl and you will not regret it! When my parents started farming in '82 my dad and my granddad each bought a Stihl trimmer/brushcutter. My dad got an FS80 and my granddad got an FS65. After 25 years of farm use (read abuse) both of them still run like champs. My dad recently traded his FS80 on a smaller Stihl trimmer since we no longer farm. My granddad's trimmer was in storage for about 2 years up until yesterday. Fixed the broken pull cord and changed the plug and it started right up. Used it for a good 5 hours straight today without a problem. But I'm probably going to take it in to the dealer this week for a good maintenance/tune up. I swear by Stihl power equipment and refuse to own anything else...
Old 06-10-2007, 07:52 PM
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I went from a 2 stroke to a 4 cycle and the difference is great. Runs so much smoother, cleaner, quieter. I thought 2 strokes were supposed to be outlawed one day?
Old 06-10-2007, 10:28 PM
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4 cycle engine technology is getting much better and if they keep going, you can expect to see a lot of stuff changing over from 2 stroke. The problem in the past has been the power to weight ratio in the 4 stroke. Generally, the 2 strokes have much less moving parts and very simple in design and function. The downside is they are a little noisy and messy. I personally hope they don't outlaw them because I don't think they will ever be able to make a lightweight, 4 cycle engine that is fairly simple to work on that will make more power than a lightweight 2 stroke.
Old 06-10-2007, 10:43 PM
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I have a 15 year old HomeLite that weeds 550ft of fence (both sides for 1100 ft), 75ft driveway (150ft), 4 dozen or so trees (13 of which have "mulch circles" without mulch (PITA), two houses, playground, eight culverts and whatever else cant be reached with a mower on 2 acres. If I keep up with it (once a week) its about a 1 1/2 - 2 hour job. If I let it all go, it has taken about 4 hours just to weedeat the place. Did I mention this is done with a 15 year old Homelite?
Old 06-10-2007, 10:55 PM
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Originally Posted by Rough-n-Ready
I don't think they will ever be able to make a lightweight, 4 cycle engine that is fairly simple to work on that will make more power than a lightweight 2 stroke.
That may be true, but I bet you probably didn't think 10 or so years ago that we would have diesel engines running 7 seconds in the quarter mile, eh?
I like my 4 cycle, and I plan to take very good care of it and hope that it lasts a long time. I'll gladly take it over a 2 stroke weed eater....
Originally Posted by SolarExpress
I have a 15 year old HomeLite that weeds 550ft of fence (both sides for 1100 ft), 75ft driveway (150ft), 4 dozen or so trees (13 of which have "mulch circles" without mulch (PITA), two houses, playground, eight culverts and whatever else cant be reached with a mower on 2 acres. If I keep up with it (once a week) its about a 1 1/2 - 2 hour job. If I let it all go, it has taken about 4 hours just to weedeat the place. Did I mention this is done with a 15 year old Homelite?
My homelite that I had was pretty decent, but after 5 years of having it it barely runs. I probably could have maintained it a little better but still....
Old 06-10-2007, 11:04 PM
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I believe it. I have a buddy with an old, and I mean old Homelite chainsaw. That saw has cut a lot of firewood and still runs pretty good. The old Homelite stuff is pretty good, a lot of the old stuff was much better than some of the junk made nowadays.


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