purchased two trimmers, homelite and mcculloch

[justin22885]

i purchased two trimmers from a yard sale today for about $5 each, neither of them were running

the mcculloch is a MAC 2818 that i managed to get running once after cleaning the spark plug and it took a REALLY hard pull to get it to finally start.. the fuel lines then fell apart and leaked gas.. so i know this trimmer works, itll just need new fuel lines, but any idea why its so hard to start? is there a bad spark? dying spark plug?.. i have to yank as hard as i possibly can to get it to fire up.. and even then ONLY on full choke, it will never start even on half choke

second trimmer i got is a homebilt ST-185, i cant get it to run at all, i cant prime the carburetor because the primer bulb is busted.. since both trimmers use the same carburetor, i will switch the carburetor from the mcculloch to the homebilt tomorrow and try to get the homebilt started

any ideas as to what could be wrong with either of these? and if i did manage to get both of them running well, which one is the better trimmer to keep? also, any ideas which engines are on these trimmers, and where the product was manufactured?.. the homelite has a much longer, angled lower half on it that is so much more comfortable than the one on the mcculloch, but if the mcculloch turns out to be the better trimmer i may just swap the longer end onto it

another note, sort of off topic for this post i did get a really old snapper mower, appears to be 1960s or so, however unlike my nearly brand new mower which developed a major malfunction, this ancient snapper still works, furthermore, i can start it from a cold start without priming the carburetor on the first pull.. no problems with this purchase, though i will be making an effort to restore and repaint

 

[justin22885]

anyone familiar with either of these trimmers at all?

 

[ILENGINE]

I have worked on both models. They were both decent models for there time, but at this time and ago the parts are limited to non available. Homelite parts are limited, and getting harder to find. Since McCulloch was purchased by Husqvarna, they have killed the parts supply.

 

[justin22885]

so, do you know which engines are on them?.. and which one would be the better trimmer to keep?

 

[ILENGINE]

I don't know about the homelite, but if I remember correctly the McCullough uses the Kio somthing, I can't remember the rest right off the top of my head. I believe it is the same as the Echo engine.

 

[justin22885]

well, at any rate i got the mculloch to work. when i tried starting it yesterday the primer button had no pressure and i spilled gasoline on me.. then i noticed the line that feeds fuel from the bulb to the carburetor was cracked along 85% of its length.. it even snapped off thats how brittle the fuel line was, so i got some new fuel line and replaced it all, now it seems i can get the thing started on the third or fourth pull

i just need to get some 2-stroke oil, more gasoline, and some more string for it and this trimmers ready to go

for the other trimmer, i think i only have to replace the bulb, fuel lines look good, it turn, but wont start, if i replace the bulb on this one im sure i can get it to work too.. i see bulbs sold for this still, its just a simple walbro carburetor

 

[justin22885]

umm, ended up having huge problems with the mcculloch, the one fuel line i thought was ok (the one that goes from the fuel tank directly to the carb) was cracked beneath the surface, i replaced it and it managed to start up, however, it kept dying whenever id apply throttle, so i screwed in the carburetor needles then backed them out one turn each and slowly started backing them out until i could get it to idle really well, and now it doesnt bog down.. furthermore, i grabbed the trimmer yesterday and from a cold start, didnt prime it, didnt even apply any choke, i just grabbed it, pulled, and it started right up on the first pull, so this trimmer is working 100%

as for the other one.. are there any sure signs of compression issues? i do not have a compression tester yet but the cord on the homelite is MUCH easier to pull than on the mcculloch, so im thinking maybe theres bad compression, but it could just be these trimmers are just easier to pull, the primer bulb is still busted, sure but there are other ways to prime it besides the bulb.. this one uses a walbro WT 191 carburetor which has the primer bulb directly on the carburetor and the fuel line seems good, the fuel remains pressurized so its not that, ill adjust the spark gap and double check for a spark, i will also disassemble and clean the carburetor too but it would be nice to have some sign that compression is either suitable or too low without a compression tester?

 

[ILENGINE]

A quick test but not accurate, with the trimmer sitting on the ground pick it up by the pull rope. if the trimmer comes up with the rope, and stays there you are probably fine. if it stays on the ground, or keeps dropping then you are in trouble.

 

[justin22885]

A quick test but not accurate, with the trimmer sitting on the ground pick it up by the pull rope. if the trimmer comes up with the rope, and stays there you are probably fine. if it stays on the ground, or keeps dropping then you are in trouble.

ill try that out soon, but the other trimmer to me seemed VERY easy to pull so im thinking either worn rings or the head gasket is gone.. i could probably get some material and cut my a new gasket using the cylinder head or old gasket as a template if thats the problem

 

[justin22885]

i think my next purchase is going to be a compression tester, but is there any sure fire way to make sure this homelite engine is actually getting fuel into the cylinder?.. it has VERY strong, and very bright spark, so evidently this is either a fuel or compression issue.. its a heavy trimmer, long arm on it, another big long arm sticking out the side, weighs a lot more than the mcculloch.. i can pick up the engine side of it off the table by the pull cord but not the entire trimmer without it dropping.. im not sure if this is sufficient enough but im starting to suspect either fuel isnt getting into the engine (i did clean the carburetor) or the head gasket is gone... do the carburetors with the primer bulb on the body of the carb itself rely on a working primer bulb to function, even if the bulb isnt used?.. i never use the primer bulb anymore when starting the mcculloch.. but would a lack of a bulb on the homelite cause a vacuum leak?