weed eater advice.

dodge man · Sep 14, 2015

I have a Stihl FS 50 CE model (I think) weed eater. It generally works well but I've had problems with the head. Its the style where you don't have to take the head apart to load the string. You line up a couple of arrows, jam in about 6 1/2 feet of string, and wind it up to get the string to go into the head. The problem is the head doesn't hold much string and when winding the string in, it jams sometimes and I have to use channel locks to get it started winding again. I'm also not sure but I think the string is feeding sometimes on its own, either way it seems like it goes through string too quickly.

So should I try a different kind of string? I think it takes the 0.080 size and I was using Stihl string but I think its junk, it breaks to easily. Is it fairly easy to put a different head on the thing that would hold more string? Thanks in advance.

Fossil Farm · Sep 14, 2015

I had a weed eater head like that a few years ago. Sometimes it worked, sometimes not, just like you mentioned. Changed the head out and it worked much better. Have an extra one in the barn for the FS-90 if you need the model number, I can run out there. I think that head was designed to appease the weekend warriors who are too lazy to do anything. Opening up the head and winding string around the center is too much work for some. The same ones I see spraying the dandelions in their sandals and their 5 year old tagging along behind them. Guess reading the herbicide label is too much work too.