Replacing the trimmer line: step-by-step instructions for replacing the trimmer line How do you replace the trimmer line if necessary? Step-by-step instructions for disassembling lawn mower assemblies to replace line on a trimmer
Step 1: remove the trimmer head cover
At the first stage of disassembly, the trimmer head cover is removed. In the example of Black and Decker trimmers and others, to remove the cover, it is usually sufficient to apply some pressure to depress the locking latch located on the side of the head body.
On some models of lawn mowers, it is initially provided for the dismantling of the trimmer head, for which the hex key included in the tool kit is used. The head is usually held in place by two to three screws, which are accessed through the side holes of the rear bezel.
The head cover, where the line spool is installed, is usually held in place by a latch-tongue. It is enough to squeeze the latch tongue with some effort and turn the cover slightly, after which the cover can be easily removed
When squeezing out the locking tab, you need to slightly turn and lift the trimmer head cover to remove the winding drum.
-instruction: replacing the trimmer line
The above explains (using an example of the design of an electric and gasoline lawn mower) how to replace the line in the trimmer. The use of different types of cutting material for cutting grass is noted. The complete process of changing the cutting material in each section of the winding drum is clearly demonstrated.
Step two: winding cutting material in sections
The next step is to wrap the line around the reel, being careful. It is necessary that each half be filled with its own winding, evenly, without intersections. Usually, arrows can be seen on the body of the winding reel indicating the direction of winding. This point should be borne in mind when filling the spool with line.
How to replace line in any trimmer
How to replace line in any trimmer
So, first unscrew the nozzle. This should be done by rotating the drum to the right. Here we have in our hands a drum with the remains of an old fishing line. We open it. Most often, the lid is closed with latches that can be opened with a screwdriver, threading it through the holes and slightly pressing. Or you need to squeeze the lock and turn the cover in the direction of the arrow. In this case, the lid itself must be held, since reels with automatic line feed have a spring that, when straightened, can throw out all the inner parts of the drum. Gently pulling out the reel, remove the scraps of fishing line from it.
Now you need to take 5 meters of new line and fold it in half (to find the middle). In the middle part of the reel there is a notch (in some designs a hole) for which we need to hook our fishing line. There is also an arrow on the spool showing the direction of winding. An important detail if the reel has two compartments, then one half of the line should be wound in one direction, and the other in the other. When finishing winding, you need to leave 15-20 cm of line free. There are also two notches on the top ring of the coil through which these free ends need to be passed. We dealt with the winding itself.
The last step in the line replacement process is to assemble the drum. First you need to install the spring and washers in their place. Then, holding the reel with one hand, with the other you need to thread the ends of the line into the corresponding holes on the sides of the nozzle. After that, install the coil in its place, tightening the line and being careful not to displace the spring. When all the internal elements of the nozzle take their places, you can close the drum with a lid. You just need to make some effort to ensure that the latches fall into place. Voila! The mowing head is ready for use!
When choosing a fishing line for your motor scythe (gasoline or electric), you should dwell on some points, which we will talk about in detail.
Line diameter.
The engine power determines which maximum line diameter can be used for a given braid. For example, the manufacturer of an electric trimmer with a power of up to 1 kW recommends using a line of ø2 mm, and for values of about 500 W only ø1.5 mm. Also, the manufacturer of any heavy duty curved trimmer recommends using ø2mm line.
A gasoline engine is more durable than an electric one, so you can install thicker line there, which means stronger line, which allows you to cut more grass and work longer.
On grass cutters with an even bar, you can select the line according to the following simple algorithm: the diameter in millimeters corresponds to the engine volume in tens of cubic centimeters. For example, for a Husqvarna 128R lawn mower with an engine capacity of about 25 cm3, use a line of ø2.5 ± 0.2 mm. For more powerful hedge trimmers with volumes of more than 40 cm3, the diameter of the line is limited only by the geometric dimensions of the outlet openings of the mowing head no more than 4 mm.
So, a thin line (about 1.5 mm) cuts well cultivated lawn grass, and a thick one (for example, 3.0-3.5 mm) successfully destroys weeds and even young shrubs.
Line shape.
The simplest and cheapest to manufacture is a round line. However, the requirements of ergonomics and environmental protection limit its use due to its physical properties, it creates an unacceptably high noise level (which is comparable to the noise of the engine itself). This is the classic Husqvarna or Oregon RoundLine or Chipmaster.
To reduce line noise, the line is shaped like a spiral line like the Oregon DuoLine Plus (15dB noise reduction) or with special cross-grooves like the Husqvarna Whisper (-8dB).
Following the school laws of physics, the working part of the line during the mowing process is only the end surface, not the side surface. However, to increase the sharpness of the line, i.E. To increase efficiency, the cross section is changed from round to faceted: star, square or square with Oregon StarLine, Nylsaw or Flexiblade teeth.
For example, according to experts, Oregon Nylsaw line, due to its square profile, is 27% sharper than its round counterpart, which clearly affects the increase in mowing speed.
How do I wind the line around the Patriot trimmer reel?
Almost every beginner when using a trimmer is faced with the problem of changing the line. While changing your line is easy, you need to learn how to do it right. Changing the fishing line with the proper skill will take no more than five minutes, it is enough just to constantly practice it. This article will walk you through changing the line using the Patriot trimmers as an example.
Instructions
In order to change the line, you need to remove the old one (if it was).
The reel is the part of the trimmer structure that is located inside the mower head, drum or reel. Heads vary depending on the manufacturer. But this article only covers Patriot, although their mechanism is used by many other companies.
Instructions on how to unscrew the manual head on the trimmer are described below.
- First of all, you need to clean the head from dirt and adhering grass, if it is dirty. To do this, lift the mower with its head up and, grasping the cover, remove the special protective cover on the drum.
- The next step is to remove the spool from the drum. The reel can be easily removed even with one hand, because it is not fixed in any way inside the drum.
- The drum itself is fixed in the trimmer with a bolt. This bolt must be unscrewed, after which you can easily pull out the drum. To do this carefully, you should support the drum with the spool, while unscrewing the screw counterclockwise.
- Now you can pull the coil out. As mentioned above, it is not secured by anything, except for a hook with a metal shaft, so it does not need to be pulled out with force. Carefully, in a circular motion, pull the spool out of the drum.
- Now it remains to remove the old fishing line and follow the next instructions.
The installation of the spool and drum in their original place is performed according to the reverse algorithm.
Before threading the line, make sure you have purchased the correct thread for the trimmer. In the event that the thread is not suitable, the fuel or energy consumption increases, as well as the load on the engine of the lawn mowers.
In order to replace the thread itself directly, you need to prepare a piece of thread of the required size. Most often, this requires about 4 m of line. The specific figure will depend on the parameters of the thread, for example, its thickness, as well as on the parameters of the spool itself. If you cannot accurately determine the length, you can do the following: insert and wind the thread until the coil is fully charged (the line level will be compared with the protrusions on the sides of the coil). Make sure that the line sits flat in the spool.
The instructions for threading the line into the spool are described below.
- The prepared thread must be taken and folded in half. It should be ensured that one edge is 0.1-0.15 m longer than the other.
- Now you need to take the ends in different hands. The one that is smaller must be pulled up to the larger one so that it becomes 2 times shorter. When bending, maintain an offset of 0.15m.
- Find the notch inside the coil baffle. Gently thread the loop you made earlier into this slot.
- To continue working, it is necessary to determine the direction of winding the thread in the bobbin. To do this, it is enough to inspect the coil; there should be an arrow on it.
- If the arrow-pointer could not be found, then it is quite possible that there is a written designation. An example is shown in the photo below. Inspect the coil head. It has a direction indicator. However, this is the direction of travel of the coil. To get the direction of winding, you need to wind in the opposite direction.
- Now you need to load the spool with line. It is worth noting that there are special guide grooves inside the coil. Follow these grooves when winding the thread, otherwise the trimmer may be damaged. At this stage, you need to charge the coil very carefully.
- When the user has wound up almost the entire thread, take the short end (do not forget about the 0.15m protrusion) and pull it into the hole located in the wall of the reel. Now you need to repeat this action in the same way with the other end (on the other side).
- Place the reel itself in the head of the reel, before passing the line through the holes inside the drum.
- Now is the time to put the drum back in place. After that, you need to take the ends of the line with both hands and pull them to the sides. Then you need to put the lid back on (here you can safely make efforts until a characteristic click is heard).
- I just had to do some cosmetic work. We need to see if the thread is too long. You can start the trimmer and check in practice if everything is comfortable. If the thread comes out a little long, you can trim it with scissors.
Frequent mistakes
Although winding the line is very easy, many beginners may wind up the line incorrectly. Below are the most common mistakes.
- Many people, when measuring a thread, think that 4 m is a lot. Because of this, people often measure less and, accordingly, they do not have enough line. Do not be afraid to measure out a lot, because you can always cut off the excess.
- In a rush, some people do not follow the threading grooves inside the spool and wind the thread randomly. This will cause the line to fly out of the reel and may even cripple.
- For winding, use only the appropriate line. This error is the most common. You need to monitor not only the thickness and volume of the line, but also its type. You should not use the first line that comes across for wrapping, which will not meet the goals. For example, you do not need to use a thread on young grass if you need to mow dead wood.
- Do not turn on the device until fully wound and collected. While this is obvious, some people do it in order to check if everything is done correctly.
- In no case should you confuse the direction of refueling, as this will overload the engine, and it will soon come out of working condition.
It is quite common for beginners to make mistakes, so you must follow the tips in this article.
See below for how to replace the line on the Patriot trimmer.
The cord lengthens spontaneously
There are times when the trimmer user notices a very fast line flow. At the same time, he never hit the button on the ground to lengthen the line. The reason for the fact that the line spontaneously lengthens, being cut on a special knife on the casing of the device, may be the absence of a spring in the mowing head. Often novice users of mowers, trying to load the line into the reel, forget to install the pressure spring in the head, or even lose it when opening the lid, and in the future, do not even know about its existence.
Line does not lengthen automatically
If the line does not lengthen when you lightly hit the trimmer button on the ground, then the reasons for this may be the following.
Option 1 a bite occurred, i.E. Clamping the cord between turns. This problem usually appears if the user has been winding the line on the reel unevenly, with intersecting turns, or winding it with insufficient tension. In the latter case, when the mowing head rotates at high speeds under the influence of centrifugal force, the cord begins to tighten, as a result of which inter-turn clamping of the fishing line is possible. To fix the problem, you will have to disassemble the coil on the trimmer and rewind the cord correctly, that is, in even turns with good tension.
Option 2 too short ends protrude from the head. The line may not come out when hitting the ground if the ends sticking out of the head are not long enough (short). In this case, the centrifugal force is not enough to stretch the line. Therefore, it is required to stop the unit (turn off the engine or disconnect the trimmer from the mains) and pull the line manually, after pressing the button.
Option 3 the line is brazed inside the mowing head. This causes the coil to lock and not spin when the button is pressed. Basically, this happens for several reasons: poor quality of the cord, overheating of the coil during prolonged operation of the unit, line hitting hard objects.
- In the first case, third-party cord can be made of low-quality and low-melting materials that cannot withstand mechanical and temperature stress. Therefore, you should give preference to "branded" lines.
- But, if you nevertheless purchased a fishing line of unknown quality, and it is often soldered during operation, then you can follow the example of some users who, after filling the cord into the reel, wet it with either silicone grease (from a can) or mineral oil. This procedure greatly reduces the likelihood of the coils of the fishing line being soldered together.
- Also, the line can be soldered if it hits a hard object (stone, fence, dry branch, etc.) during mowing. As a result, it stretches slightly and is pulled back into the head at high speed. From friction, the cord heats up, and its turns stick together. The only thing that can be done to eliminate this problem is to open the trimmer spool and rewind the line.
How to remove the spool and replace the line
Trimmer owners, mostly beginners, find themselves in confusion, bordering on panic, when they need to change the cutting tool or line in the reel. Very often, when trying to unscrew the mowing head, users simply render it unusable, not suspecting that it is unscrewing in the opposite direction. To prevent this from happening, if you need to replace the tool, we recommend that you read the step-by-step instructions below.
- Stop the mowers engine or power off the trimmer before threading the spool to avoid injury from accidental starting rotation of the cutter.
- Unscrew the nozzle attached to the gearbox shaft. To do this, the shaft must be fixed by aligning the holes on the washer and on the axle, and inserting a metal rod or screwdriver into them.
- Unscrew the nozzle. Be aware that the thread on the shaft is left-handed. Therefore, turn the trimmer coil to the right, that is, clockwise.
- Disassemble the mowing head. Most often, the head cover is attached with clips. To remove it, you will need to sink these latches into the case, pressing the edges of the cover. If your trimmer has a semi-automatic mowing head with a button on the bottom, then the disassembly of the attachment should be done carefully, since you can lose the spring, which sometimes flies out when the cover is removed.
- Cut off the required amount of line. Usually its length is 5 meters. Use a cord of the same diameter as indicated in the instructions for the tool. It is not recommended to exceed the maximum line diameter as this will result in increased engine stress and higher gas mileage.
- Find the midpoint of the line by folding it in half. You will have a loop.
- Special grooves are cut inside the coil (there may be holes). Insert a loop of line into this slot.
- Wind the line around the spool by turning it counterclockwise. It is necessary to fill in the cord as evenly as possible, the turns should lie down without overlapping and with good tension. When the winding is complete, leave the free ends of the line about 20 cm long and fix them in the grooves on the sides of the reel.
- Assemble the mowing head. Remember to insert the spring and washer (if equipped) before final assembly of the accessory. Place the spool in the body and thread the ends of the cord through the holes or eyelets.
- Put on the cover and secure it with the latches.
- Screw the adapter back onto the gearbox shaft, also securing it with a screwdriver. You will need to twist the trimmer coil to the left (counter-clockwise).