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Good String Trimmer??

#1

P

PyhooyaBooya

The only brand of trimmer I hear to buy is Stihl. They are expensive. Are there any good brands that have commercial trimmers that aren't in the $300 range?


#2

Ric

Ric

PyhooyaBooya said:
The only brand of trimmer I hear to buy is Stihl. They are expensive. Are there any good brands that have commercial trimmers that aren't in the $300 range?
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There's a good reason for that, it's because the Stihl is the commercial operators choice and yes they're expensive but worth every penny IMO. As far as I know you're not going to find any commercial trimmers that are not $300 and up. As I said before Echo makes some good trimmers and there largest motor they have is a 28.1cc model 280T and is priced at $389 and there bottom end commercial models start at I believe $309 but it's only a 25.1 cc motor. The commercial Stihl motors sizes start at 28.1cc for the FS70 and go up to 40.2 cc for the FS 250 so you're getting what you pay for.

Ask yourself a question, Where in the long run am I going to spend the least amount of money. Buying the cheaper stuff and replacing it in a couple of years or buying good equipment that is going to last 5 or 6 years.


#3

JDgreen

JDgreen

I have a huge yard and my trimmers get probably 50 hours of use EACH per year (I have two) and they are models that cost $70 each new. Have NEVER seen the wisdom of buying a heavy, expensive model that costs $300 plus because my cheapos usually last me five to six years before something breaks and then I just keep them for parts. I prefer the MTD Yard Man 28cc model, have found them easy starting, reasonably reliable, and cutting performance is very good for the price.


#4

JDgreen

JDgreen

PyhooyaBooya said:
The only brand of trimmer I hear to buy is Stihl. They are expensive. Are there any good brands that have commercial trimmers that aren't in the $300 range?
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Why do you want to spend money on a heavy duty commercial trimmer when you are considering a $100 push mower to start with....:confused2: put your money into the MOWER first.


#5

Jetblast

Jetblast

That's a tough one. Cheap trimmers don't last as long as expensive ones and they're also a bigger pain to use, especially on heavier jobs like clearing thick ditch grass. Aside from the power differences, a lot of it has to do with the cheaper ones using .080 line and having uncomfortably short shafts, while the better ones use thicker .095 line and can move with you gracefully and reach further without turning you into a hunchback.

Both Ric and JDgreen are right, but maybe there's a compromise for now. I understand that you're getting a landscaping business off the ground with a small budget, so for now I might go for a Stihl FS 45. --> FS 45 Trimmer From STIHL <-- It's an .080 trimmer at around $150 with a longer shaft than many, so it's very well regarded. It's also the number one pick by Consumer Reports.

Once you've had some solid accounts for awhile and your .080 trimmer is piping up and shooting it's mouth off too often, look into a commercial .095 trimmer from Stihl or Echo. I use an Echo .095 trimmer on my hundred yards of crazy ditch grass with a strap and J-bar, and it's been great, but I'm sure I'd use a Stihl just as happily. No smoke and mirrors, these are great brands who deserve their reputations.

At some point you may be confronted with the idea of a 4-stroke string trimmer, and my advice would be to try before you buy. The extra tallness of the engine due to the valves on top of the head gets in the way of my right elbow and makes them virtually unusable. I'm 6'1". If you're less tall it may not be such a problem.


#6

JDgreen

JDgreen

Jetblast said:
That's a tough one. Cheap trimmers don't last as long as expensive ones and they're also a bigger pain to use, especially on heavier jobs like clearing thick ditch grass. Aside from the power differences, a lot of it has to do with the cheaper ones using .080 line and having uncomfortably short shafts, while the better ones use thicker .095 line and can move with you gracefully and reach further without turning you into a hunchback.

Both Ric and JDgreen are right, but maybe there's a compromise for now. I understand that you're getting a landscaping business off the ground with a small budget, so for now I might go for a Stihl FS 45. --> FS 45 Trimmer From STIHL <-- It's an .080 trimmer at around $150 with a longer shaft than many, so it's very well regarded. It's also the number one pick by Consumer Reports.

Once you've had some solid accounts for awhile and your .080 trimmer is piping up and shooting it's mouth off too often, look into a commercial .095 trimmer from Stihl or Echo. I use an Echo .095 trimmer on my hundred yards of crazy ditch grass with a strap and J-bar, and it's been great, but I'm sure I'd use a Stihl just as happily. No smoke and mirrors, these are great brands who deserve their reputations.

At some point you may be confronted with the idea of a 4-stroke string trimmer, and my advice would be to try before you buy. The extra tallness of the engine due to the valves on top of the head gets in the way of my right elbow and makes them virtually unusable. I'm 6'1". If you're less tall it may not be such a problem.
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Well written...I just love my $70-and-tax trimmers. I beat them up by running them 3/4 throttle most of the time and am very abusive with line advancing but they seem almost bulletproof. I would still be using the one that is seven years old but one of the tabs on the flywheel broke off and it would cost more to replace the flywheel than a new trimmer did, so I simply purchased another one.


#7

JDgreen

JDgreen

BTW, Jetblast, WTF is ditch grass? I have never seen anything .080 line could not handle.


#8

Ric

Ric

JD I know you're not real big on buying equipment but I think you have to remember that he is talking about running or using this equipment in business, not around the house. 50 hours of use EACH per year for your Trimmers is fine for around the house but not when you're in business, when you could be using a trimmer or an edged and put that much running time in on one in a week.


#9

JDgreen

JDgreen

Ric said:
JD I know you're not real big on buying equipment but I think you have to remember that he is talking about running or using this equipment in business, not around the house. 50 hours of use EACH per year for your Trimmers is fine for around the house but not when you're in business, when you could be using a trimmer or an edged and put that much running time in on one in a week.
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Um, I guess spending 22 grand for my JD isn't "big on buying equipment".....:laughing:

Well, the man who is asking advice doesn't even have a business yet, no customer base, no mower or other equipment that we know of, so I do not quite understand the purpose of buying a commercial grade trimmer at the current time. Just my nickle's worth. If he buys a $300 trimmer now and gets no business and has to sell it at a loss, well, I guess that is just his loss. Shall we tell him to forget about any customers until he can afford a $3,000 zero turn mower? Sorry, it's just my opinion he should start small and not go all out on fancy equipment.


#10

Jetblast

Jetblast

JDgreen said:
BTW, Jetblast, WTF is ditch grass? I have never seen anything .080 line could not handle.
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It's regular Northern grass that grows in my constantly muddy ditches and gets neglected due to my general aversion toward hard manual labor. I only cut it when my township's crew comes by to mow the county road ditches, which means it gets 3-4 feet tall, woody, and as thick as Tiparillos. Throw in a bunch of hidden foot-tall crayfish towers and it's quite the challenge, but my Echo with .095 MaxiEdge or Crossfire line does a pretty good job. When it dies I will move up to a full blown brush cutter though.


#11

S

SWEET JOHNs Lawn 69

Stihl all the way


#12

Ric

Ric

JDgreen said:
Um, I guess spending 22 grand for my JD isn't "big on buying equipment".....:laughing:

Well, the man who is asking advice doesn't even have a business yet, no customer base, no mower or other equipment that we know of, so I do not quite understand the purpose of buying a commercial grade trimmer at the current time. Just my nickle's worth. If he buys a $300 trimmer now and gets no business and has to sell it at a loss, well, I guess that is just his loss. Shall we tell him to forget about any customers until he can afford a $3,000 zero turn mower? Sorry, it's just my opinion he should start small and not go all out on fancy equipment.
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When I made the reference to equipment I was talking about Trimmers, the subject of the thread.:smile:

You say the man who is asking advice doesn't even have a business yet, no customer base, no mower or other equipment. Researching the business and its cost seems to me a rational thing to do if one is considering getting into the business or any business for that matter.

Actually $1000 investment in three pieces of equipment, a trimmer, edger, blower and $3000 in a ztr isn't a bad investment to break into the lawn care business. Trying to do it cheaper, the way you and some would suggest with $60 and $70 hand held equipment and a $100 push mowers only defeats the purpose because two or three month down the road you'll end up with more investment to either replace the equipment or get the stuff fixed which intern creates you down time which cost you money, and possibly cost you clients because you can't deliver on what you said.

Starting out small is one thing and $4000 or $5000 is a small investment when you consider most small businesses end up with 20k or better. If you can't make some type of investment say 3 to 4 thousand I would suggest you stay at home.


#13

P

PyhooyaBooya

3 or 4 grand is a ton of money in my eyes at the moment. Especially since I don't have a customer base yet. My pocketbook would choke me to death if I were to go that big. I think that I am going to buy a commercial grade self propelled mower, a semi-inexpensive trimmer. When I get my feet wet I will by a blower and a trailer. Then in time a zero turn. I have a john deere 68 riding mower with a 30 deck and no brakes that I don't even think I will use for the business. I may just give that to my mom.


#14

Jetblast

Jetblast

Good luck to you. The most important piece of equipment you can have is a good head on your shoulders. I watched my landscaper at my old rental house go from a single man outfit with a beat up pickup and a push mower, to a huge trailer full of mowers and half a dozen guys. Hard work and adequate equipment got him going, but strong ethics and great salesmanship made him a lasting success.


#15

BKBrown

BKBrown

Adjust trim.gif I have this for the Sthil Kombi - I got it for my pond bank and it will handle some tough stuff plus it lays the cuttings down instead of throwing them all over you (and for me, into the pond).
STIHL KombiSystem and KombiMotor - Professional Multi-task Tools | STIHL USA
KombiMotor Accessories - Interchangeable KombiSystem Attachments | STIHL USA

Check out the other attachments too - one power head and attachments for quite a few jobs. :biggrin: :thumbsup:


#16

Ric

Ric

PyhooyaBooya said:
3 or 4 grand is a ton of money in my eyes at the moment. Especially since I don't have a customer base yet. My pocketbook would choke me to death if I were to go that big. I think that I am going to buy a commercial grade self propelled mower, a semi-inexpensive trimmer. When I get my feet wet I will by a blower and a trailer. Then in time a zero turn. I have a john deere 68 riding mower with a 30 deck and no brakes that I don't even think I will use for the business. I may just give that to my mom.
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Don't get me wrong, I'm not telling you to go out and spend 3 or 4 grand. I simply stated that it wasn't a bad investment to break into the business. In fact it's pretty cheap. A good ZTR alone can cost that much and more You say I think that I am going to buy a commercial grade self propelled mower. Have you check the price on a 21" self propelled mower, talk about choking your pocketbook :eek: Honda Power Equipment - HRC216K3HXA
I wouldn't be so quick to give that john deere 68 riding mower away if I were you. After looking at the price of this Honda a 3K Big Box store ZTR doesn't look so bad.
I do have a question though, how much are you going to charge a cut or per month for your services??


#17

BKBrown

BKBrown

Hope you fix the brakes FIRST ! :biggrin: :rolleyes:
PyhooyaBooya said:
I have a john deere 68 riding mower with a 30 deck and no brakes -- I may just give that to my mom.
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#18

P

PyhooyaBooya

I haven't made any pricing rules for myself yet, I figure I will not sell myself short, yet not feel like its not worth it to mow. I will also start at a number I know that I am ok with being talked down from. The lawns around my immediate area are small, and I'll probably base it off of my own lawn. (Maybe a half acre)


#19

Z

zsqure

I have a Stihl that I got for christmas in 1996. Have never had it in the shop for anything. I have a Homelight blower that I got for christmas in 1997, never in the shop either. Both still run well and are used every week. Take care of your equipment and it will last. My neighbor goes through either a string trimmer or blower every year. He buys the cheapest thing at the time cause it usually breaks on him or he doesn't maintain it, I have always ran premium gas in all my toys.


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