Whip It Good

I just bought this yesterday after my electric Weedeater's spool mechanism wore out after two years of trimming my 1/3 acre. I previously owned a 4 cycle Craftsman that worked pretty well but had been stolen by my ex, which is another story, and I was tired of schlepping an electric cord around the property. My trimming needs are a combination of weedy patches near a long back fence, garden beds, lawn edging and around ground cover.

My local Sears store was my last stop of a busy day. They were very pleasant and even fun to visit with. I looked at my options one more time and decided that at $70, this trimmer would probably do the job and fit my sense of "cheap enough. There was no way that I'd wait until morning to set it up and try it out. Set-up was nothing, really, except affixing the string guard. I mixed the supplied 3.2 ounce bottle of 2 cycle oil with a gallon of gas (in an approved container), reviewed the Quick Start instructions, followed the steps and it started right up.

This trimmer has PLENTY of power to edge, trim around and under bushes and drive weeds to extinction. I did the entire property on idle except for those moments I felt the need to rev the thing, just to see what it could do. It's easy to handle and surprisingly light with the "D" handle at just the right balance point. The plastic cover on the engine is properly placed so that in normal use, I never once touched the hot engine with my arm, which did happen with my prior 4 cycle model. The supplied starter-amount of dual-spool trim line fed on demand and lasted for my entire trim session. The vibration was about the same as any other trimmer I've ever used. In general, this trimmer felt solid yet quite light and - get this - was less of a strain than my now-dead electric trimmer.

In short, this trimmer is Craftsman quality, works great and is less filling. I highly recommend it.

NOTE: Be sure to wear hearing protection, wrap-around eye protection (not just eyeglasses, if you're a wearer), proper shoes and work clothes when using this or any power tool.