My strimmer, like every strimmer I've seen, claims to have 'bump feed'. What exactly does that mean? It always frustrates me that when I'm using the strimmer I have to keep stopping, messing about with the string reel manually to get more string to come out. Then today I was out there and I was getting a bit careless because I was in a hurry. The noise had been getting steadily more high pitched, indicating that the string was wearing away, and I banged the bottom of the strimmer on a rock. It suddenly made a lower pitched sound and started cutting better again. I stopped it and had a look, and the string had come back. So is 'bump feed' a feature that means banging a running strimmer against a hard object makes more string come out?
It is a bit of a nightmare taking out a lenght of string everytime I bump (sorry) into long grass which is very often. So I have a blunt knife which I use to press down some plastic clips in the middle bit. i can then squeeze them and pull the cap out and FINALLY get to the string... Next strimmer is probably going to be an auto fed. But anyway, here I found something about the bump fed strimmers... http://www.ehow.com/how_6026580_replace-string-trimmer-bump-feed.html
try using some fishing steel trace wire of the same diameter .... get the trace that has a plastic coating (steel wire with plastic surround) lasts a lot longer
Don't ever put anything in a strimmer head that wasn't designed to be put in a strimmer head. There's a reason why manufacturers don't use metal line and the reason is very closely related mass, decrease in velocity which in turn maintains your personal safety, the safety of those around you and the fact that they'd like you to use their product more than once. Plastic line = loses velocity very, very quickly when broken. Barely noticable. Metal line = maintains velocity. Takes Fido's eye out. Or your eye. Or your leg etc. It's very, very dangerous putting metal line in a strimmer head. Please don't do it.
Yes! That's how it's supposed to work, they are a bit hit and miss in my experience, but mostly a sharp tap downwards onto a hard lawn surface whilst it's running does the trick. If you have to replace the line make sure it's wound on the correct way round. Wrong way and it won't do the 'bump' feed.
Ruddy things - I must have gone through at least 5, from cheapo to 'top-of-the-range', all of which have finished up in various skips. Give me my Wilkinson's garden shears any day.
my dad done it for years .... never ever broke and never had to feed extra line ... but I suppose you do have a valid point ...
Thanks all. Dim, I kind of like your suggestion, and must admit I'd briefly considered something along those lines, but even with the plastic string I have occasionally launched bits of mud with such force that they sound like a gun shot when they hit the fence, and I've been stung about the face a few times by airborne bits and pieces that have been launched by the strimmer. My approach to health and safety is somewhat lacking to say the least, but I do have some sense of self preservation, and plan to wear my safety goggles when strimmering in future, just because of the number of times I've had things fly up into my face. Its probably not so bad when you exactly what's in the long grass, but I'm still working my way through a neglected garden and as I tackle each bit, I keep finding new lumps of rock, breeze block, house brick, broken bottle in the long grass.
I've always wondered what would happen to wire, being stronger than nylon, should become entangled on something and wound at speed the strimmer head towards an impact with it, and what effect that would have on warranties/guaranties.
I'm a bit slack when it comes to health and safety and always learn the hard way most recent was spraying weeds with weekiller .... result: had a pink eye for 2 days as wind blew weedkiller in my eye .... I am now the proud owner of a pair of Bolle (designer) safety glasses (bought for £1 from a carboot sale)
I thought professional gardeners needed a licence and therefore some training in H&S for garden spraying. You need to check that out dim, I might be wrong.
So did I + a waste carrier's licence + a chainsaw certificate, etc. so that's £1,000 gone before you even start earning.
will check that .... I'm just a guy who never paid VAT when selling stuff on ebay when I started earning big money (£137k in the last 7 months of trading) ... and for that reason was closed down by the tax guys so was skint, could not find a decent job in mechanical engineereing (what I originally studied and practised for more than 25 years), so started doing gardening/landscaping just to survive started small, and business is going ok and growing very fast, taxes are in order and all jobs are properly invoiced ... so will check all the laws etc may even look at taking a part time course in horticulure (as was stongly and sternly recommended by Dai on several occasions) :WINK1:
