Trimmer head: types and description
One of the common devices for cutting grass is the trimmer. It is very easy to operate and maintain. That is why it has become popular among the population. Its significant advantage is its low weight. Even a child can handle such equipment.
Mowing head for trimmer
It is a special assembled coil, inside of which the cord is located.
The trimmer head is classified by line feed method:
- Manual. In this case, the name speaks for itself, that is, the line is fed mechanically. To make the cord even longer, you must stop the trimmer and manually pull the ends.
- Semi-automatic. If you want to replace the cord, the trimmer head needs to touch the ground. In this case, a special button is pressed and the anchor mechanism opens. Further, the lengthening of the cord occurs due to the centrifugal force. The main feature is that the procedure takes place when the trimmers are on.
- Automatic. To make the cord elongate, the engine speed is reduced. Further, with increasing x, the line is fed automatically.
From the above, it follows that the manual mowing head for the trimmer is inconvenient.
How to choose the right one?
Before purchasing this equipment, you need to understand for what purpose it will be used. For a large area with a flat lawn, it is better to purchase a light model with low power. If you need an accomplishment of a summer cottage, then you need to choose a more powerful model.
Classification by filling method
The trimmer head can have several ways of threading the line:
- Quick Chargers. The new cord is wound without disassembling the coil, that is, it is not necessary to remove it from the device. The end of the new element is pushed into the coil and then wound a certain number of times. When a specific value is reached, the cord is cut. This type of trimmer head is manufactured by Shindaiwa and Speed-Freed.
- Collapsible. Here the name speaks for itself. To replace a new line, you need to remove the spool from the equipment, then unwind the old line and wind up a new one.
Cutting tool
To make the cutting process easy, you need to choose the right cutting element.
What it is?
The trimmer consists of a cutting element, a bar, a motor and a handle with a control mechanism.
Specifications
The main technical characteristics of the trimmer are:
- Power;
- Equipment weight;
- Type of power supply (mains or battery)
- Engine location (top or bottom)
- Type of cutting element;
- Rod type.
All this must be taken into account, buy this or that device.
Design features
It should be noted that the trimmer cutter head contains special arrows. They allow you to rotate the coil in different directions. If it becomes necessary to wind the line in the direction of rotation of the shaft, it turns to a specific position. A large amount of wound cord can damage the equipment. The two arrows are only found on imported models. Single Arrow Heads on the Market Now.
If the cord is NOT wound after the impact of the semi-automatic head, then its previous winding was performed incorrectly. That is, after the trimmer head was installed, the user did NOT pull the ends of the line out of the grooves. Another unpleasant moment when mowing grass can be the sintering of the coil turns.
For various models of trimmers, a semi-automatic head is used, consisting of two parts. a body and a spool. Both elements contain springs. The second part can be performed in several versions:
- Single-section. both parts of the line are wound together;
- Two-section. each end is wound on a specific part; this type is the most effective, as the line does NOT get tangled and does NOT sinter.
There is a simple and cheap way to convert a one-piece spool to a two-piece one. This requires a sturdy plate. From it you need to cut a circle, the diameter of which should be equal to the thickness of the spool. In this case, the thickness is taken near the place where the line is wound. This circle moves freely. Next, a cut is made on the ring, put on a spool and connected with glue or tape.
The advantages of gasoline models
The petrol trimmer start system is simple and reliable. Thanks to the modification of the engine, the use of this product turns into a holiday, and the monotonous work of bringing the site into the required form will only cause pleasure. Low noise and vibration levels ensure that no additional force is required to hold the tool. In addition, this factor is enhanced by the shoulder strap provided in the design. The belt is double, and in places of contact with the body it has additional soft pads. This is especially important, since this technique allows you to use the trimmer for quite a long time and handle large areas. The petrol trimmer “Stihl” has a comfortable bicycle handle, which provides the correct range of motion and quality of the result. Due to its design, its position changes depending on the user’s desire. Almost all control systems, including fuel supply, are located on this structural element, which allows you to use the trimmer, and not be distracted by unnecessary actions. The device of the cutting element facilitates mowing absolutely any length of grass and bushes. The glasses included in the set protect the organs of vision, and the shape of the product contributes to its Convenient carrying and transportation.
Benefits of electrical models
Electric models allow you to quickly eliminate the shortcomings associated with the landscape design of the site. Electric trimmer “Stihl”, thanks to the support wheel installed on the cutting element, will easily remove vegetation near trees, bushes, flower beds and other plantings without the danger of causing harm. The comfortable grip dampens much of the vibrations and contributes to a reliable process. The device of the product ensures reliable fastening of the power source and prevents it from falling into the area of action of the cutting element. Extended cable (15 m) makes it possible to work on large areas without the use of additional equipment.
The electric model will effectively cope with the tasks set, both in combination with gasoline analogues, and independently.
Maintenance of the trimmer “Stihl”. Characteristics of gasoline models
For more convenient and successful maintenance of the required level of landscape design of your site, you need the appropriate equipment. Various lawn mowers, and even more so scythes, do not always cope with the required volume of tasks. The “Stihl” trimmer is a product that will satisfy the needs of any, even the most demanding owners. Ease of handling, quality and guarantee in trouble-free operation, as well as the possibility of influencing Not only the grass cover, but also on various vegetation make this trimmer indispensable in any conditions. To ensure high quality performance in gasoline models, the 4-MIX engine is used, which determines the product as more environmentally friendly and also reduces noise and vibration from the trimmer. The petrol model has the following characteristics:
- Product power is 1.4 kW / hp;
- The working volume is 31.4 cm 3;
- Total length. 1.77 m;
- Cutting tool. fishing line or mowing head;
- Total weight. 5.8 kg.
In addition, this trimmer is equipped with automatic decompression and anti-vibration systems, which increases its service life and greatly facilitates work.
Characteristics of electrical models
Trimmer “Stihl” has the following characteristics:
- Weight is 4 kg
- The power consumed by the product is 540 V;
- Operating voltage is 230 V
- Total length (excluding the cutting product). 1.53 m;
- Cutting tool. mowing head.
It should be noted that this instrument, both gasoline and electric, has many varieties with individual characteristics for each of them. For this reason, the above parameters are presented for the most common trimmers with average performance.
and more often, country houses, as well as summer cottages and household plots from places of an additional source of food are turning into an oasis of prosperity and peace. And this is NOT surprising, because in the era of rapidly human progress associated with the deterioration of the environment and an increase in factors that negatively affect the nervous system, I want to find my own corner where you can achieve harmony with the soul and retire from the worldly bustle. For this reason, most of the plots cease to look like collective farm plantations, and are transformed into pleasing places. A lawn, alpine slides and cute gazebos are now most common in yards. But in order for the aesthetic component to be constant and bring universal pleasure, these elements require constant care and maintenance of a decent level. This is especially necessary for surfaces covered with lawns and various plantings in the form of bushes. Neatly trimmed grass and bushes are a determining factor in the formation of an opinion about the owners of the house and the mood of not only its guests, but also people passing by.
Security measures
Before starting work, you need to rid the area of large elements, check the condition of the product and put on a protective mask. Do NOT use knives that are included with a trimmer of another brand, the cutting tool itself during operation should NOT be parallel to the ground. DO NOT use a mower, especially an electric mower, in wet grass and wet weather. Pay attention to the length of the line. The Stihl trimmer line must be capable of mowing and NOT pose a hazard to areas of the human body, particularly the legs. During work, you must make sure that there are no other people on the site.
Acquisition methods
Features of work
Before starting work on the site, it is necessary to assess the condition of the plant element. These steps will help you make the right choice of accessory in cases where the cutting tool is interchangeable. It is more convenient to mow rare and soft grass with the help of a fishing line, at the same time, a knife is better for abundant and dense grass. Before implementation, it is necessary to fill the tank with gasoline and oil. If the tool is new, it is not recommended to perform work at maximum speed in the 3rd filling, in order to prevent early breakage and the need to grind parts for further high-quality interaction. It is necessary to choose the optimal position of the trimmer, and for convenience and quality of the result, you need to divide the area into sectors. After work, the cutting tool must be cleaned of grass.
TRIMMER HEAD
The trimmer head, often also called the mowing head, is a specially designed reel that contains a cord of a certain length. An 8-15 m piece of cord is wound onto the inner spool, the ends of which are pulled out of the reel to the required length as they wear or break off when they meet a too hard obstacle.
As a rule, for different models of trimmers, certain mowing heads are used, which differ in both the internal structure and the way of attachment. For some trimmer heads, special adapters are available, allowing these heads to be used on trimmers of various models and different manufacturers.
Trimmer heads are subdivided according to the type of line feed for manual, semi-automatic and automatic. In the first, as the name implies, the line is fed from the head manually. To do this, you will have to stop working, turn off the trimmer and manually lengthen the ends of the cord.
For the second, it is enough to hit the ground with the mowing coil. In this case, by pressing upon impact on a special button, the anchor mechanism is released and the cord is fed due to centrifugal force. Line lengthening is carried out with trimmers working.
In the third option, to lengthen the cutting line, simply lower the engine speed, then with a subsequent increase in speed, the trimmer line is automatically fed.
As follows from the above description, the most inconvenient is the mowing reel with manual cord feed, and the most optimal is the mowing head with automatic feed. However, She did not win a lot of love among users due to the increased, in comparison with other types, line consumption. Therefore, the most popular and demanded today are semi-automatic trimmer heads.
Also, different models of trimmer heads differ in the way the line is threaded. They can be quick-charging (for example, Shindaiwa Speed-Feed), when it is necessary to disassemble the reel to wind a new portion of the cord, and collapsible.
In the first version, you do not have to remove the mowing wheel from the trimmer. The end of the cord is threaded through both ears in the spool, then the required amount of line is wound and cut off. Or both ends of a pre-cut piece of cord of the required length are tucked into the corresponding holes and screwed.
In the second option, to charge a new portion of the cord, the trimmer coil will need to be removed, disassembled and wound on the spool inside. In different models of reels, the disassembly and winding of the fishing line are carried out in different ways. But in all cases, the line must be wound in the direction indicated by the arrow on the body (both ends in one direction).
On cheap Chinese mowing heads, the so-called “no-name”, such an arrow is often absent. Also, branded models may have two arrows in different directions (when it is possible to use them on a trimmer with a different direction of rotation of the head). In this case, the cord must be wound in the direction of rotation of the shaft (that is, the engine must wind it). If the cord is wound in the wrong direction, then when the button hits the ground, it will fly out too much.
The opposite option is also possible. when, upon impact, the semi-automatic mowing head does NOT feed the line into the ground. This can be caused both by improper winding of the line, or by the fact that after installation on the trimmer, they simply forgot to pull the ends of the cord out of the retaining grooves on the spool.
Another nuisance when mowing vegetation with a trimmer line is the sintering of the turns inside the coil. This happens because, when meeting with an obstacle that is too hard, the cord is braked sharply. With such a jerk, it is pulled inward and sticks to the part wound on the spool. As a result, it is necessary to interrupt work, disassemble the coil and tear the stuck together turns of the cord. To avoid this in some cases, spraying the line wound on the spool with silicone spray before installing it into the spool helps.
The most common used for trimmers is a Semi-automatic head made of two spring-loaded parts (body and spool). Structurally, the spool can be in two versions. Two-section, where each end of the cord is wound into its own section, which reduces tangling and sintering. Or one-piece, when both ends of the line are wound together.
Our craftsman came up with a simple, cheap and elegant way to turn a one-section spool into a two-section spool, the essence of which can be understood from the above photos.
To do this, a ring is cut out of a strong and thin plastic plate, the inner diameter of which corresponds to the thickness of the spool in the winding zone of the fishing line, and the outer diameter corresponds to the diameter to the protrusions. That is, such a ring should move freely along the spool. Then a cut is made for the cord, the ring is cut, put on the spool and the cut is glued with tape. Now each end of the line can be wound into the section intended for it.
The prewound mowing head has two or four opposed holes from which the mowing ends protrude. In addition to line feed spools, there are also trimmer heads with plug-in fixed lengths (e.G. Oregon Jet-FIT).
In this case, the number of working “whiskers” can reach twelve. Some users consider such a design to be quite convenient, but another part is unhappy, because they believe that this increases the consumption of the cord and it is necessary to stop working to replace it. In such heads, as a rule, a fishing line with a transverse notch is used.
Trimmer. we make the best choice. Part 3 (trimmer line, trimmer head, trimmer knife)
The optimal choice of trimmer characteristics will not be enough for comfortable cutting of vegetation in the garden. For both the electric trimmer and the petrol lawn mower, you need the right cutting tool. As such, a trimmer line (cord) or a special knife is used.
The type of vegetation is fundamental when choosing what to mow. For the convenience of work, the user can choose the type of cord, the type of trimmer head, the method of threading the cord into it, choose a knife of a certain shape. Therefore, you should familiarize yourself with these characteristics in more detail.
TRIMMER LINE (CORD)
The classic cutting tool for all types of tools is a special trimmer line or line, also sometimes called a string. Its thickness (diameter) ranges from 1.2 to 4 mm. For each trimmer, the maximum cord thickness is indicated, which can be used without overheating the engine and accelerated wear of the bushings.
In addition to differences in thickness, the trim cord also has a different cross-sectional shape: a circle, a polygon (from three to hexagon), an asterisk, rounded protrusions, etc. In addition, it can be twisted along the longitudinal axis in the form of a twisted square or a spiral round string, and have various notches and notches. All these tricks are designed to increase efficiency when cutting vegetation.
The most versatile is the round cross-section trimmer line, which can be used to cut both fresh grass and dead wood. In addition to this versatile cord, manufacturers also produce more specialized lines.
Taking into account that the smaller the contact area of the cord with the stem, the greater the force of its impact, a figured cord with a cross-section in the form of a polygon or an asterisk with sharp corners appeared. Later, for strength, they began to add aluminum particles to it.
Square fishing line with a thickness of 2.4 mm will allow you to easily cope with thickets of dry weeds and even the stem of raspberry bushes. The star, on the other hand, is designed for gentle mowing of fresh grass. Due to the profile, it cuts vegetation cleaner, the grass leaves faster after cutting and does not dry out as often as after using a round fishing line.
Spiral-shaped round fishing line is considered Low Noise, but this parameter is only relevant for electric trimmers, since the sound of a running gasoline engine blocks the whistle from any fishing line.
When using a trimmer line with a curly section, its thickness should be taken less than the maximum for this trimmer. this will avoid problems with the supply of line from the mowing head. Fill such a cord into the spool with gloves.
The trimmer line comes in a variety of colors and in most cases it has no functional value. But for some manufacturers, the color determines the diameter of the cord (for example, Stihl) or the properties of the material used (for example, Oregon).
For the manufacture of trimmer lines use nylon (polyamide) or polypropylene. Leading manufacturers use PP6 polypropylene for cord production. Various low-quality polyethylene is often added to the fishing line of Chinese origin to reduce the cost. But in any case, after long-term storage, the polypropylene cord becomes brittle. To increase the elasticity, such a fishing line should be soaked in water for half an hour before use.
Under no circumstances should thin wire or stranded wire be used as a trim cord. Thinking in this case in the strength and durability of the fishing line, they forget that the trimmer string is specially made in such a way as to break off to soften the dynamic impact on the transmission and engine of the tool. In addition, the cable and wire still break off. At the same time, broken off pieces accelerated to high speed easily pierce leather shoes.
Trimmer KNIFE
When mowing tall grass with the trimmer line, it will wrap around the spindle where the mowing head is attached. How often this will happen depends largely on the design of the head and the properties of the mowed grass, but it is practically impossible to completely avoid this. The optimal way out will be Mowing NOT with a cord, but with a trimmer knife specially designed for such cases.
A trimmer knife used as a cutting tool can be made of plastic or metal and have a different number of blades (teeth) of various shapes.
On curved bar trimmer models, only plastic blades should be used (for safety reasons, the mower should be commensurate with the flexibility of the flexible shaft). In addition, they often come with electric trimmers.
This can be either a special mowing head with replaceable removable plastic knives, or a one-piece design in the form of a circular knife with a different number of blades. Tough vegetation (dry grass, burdocks, nettles, etc.) is in the teeth of such trimmer knives.
For processing large areas and mowing Not only grass, but also cutting shrubs or even young trees, metal knives are used. The only thing that such trimmer knives are “afraid” is collisions with objects that are too hard for them (for example, stones).
Metal knives can only be used on a straight bar trimmer. They cannot be mounted on tools with a curved shaft. This is due primarily to safety technology. If, when mowing vegetation, the disc hits a solid obstacle, then it is thrown back. With straight bar trimmers, the distance to the user’s feet is much further.
Plus, the T (U) or J-shaped handle helps to hold the tool, and a special protruding limit bar is added to the D (O) shaped handle, which rests on the leg and does not let the cutting tool approach it. Curved bar trimmers are usually equipped with a D (O) handle without stopper.
Second, the high torque metal disc coulter puts a lot of stress on the flex shaft and motor, resulting in quick tool breakage.
As the experience of users shows, the shape of the blades (triangular, rectangular, etc.) practically does NOT affect the quality and speed of mowing. But their quantity becomes important when using a hay trimmer. Three or four blade knives chop the grass too much when mowing.
Almost round eight-tooth knives or with four large and additional smaller teeth between them are considered the most optimal for haymaking. Also popular are Perforated discs with a large number of teeth. this Lightweight trimmer cutter can be installed on low-power tools.
Using a trimmer cutter, that is, a circular knife with a large number of teeth, you can not only clean the area without problems from luxurious perennial weeds, raspberries, etc., but also cut trees with a trunk diameter of several centimeters.