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Old 30-08-2003, 03:22 PM
Alan
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

I need a new brushcutter for my grassy banks, nettles and banks of
bushy things!

I have been using on Oleo-mac 22 cc 4 stoke which has given up the
ghost. I am intending to buy a slightly more powerfull machine 30cc.

What is the difference between 2 and 4 stroke in terms of usage?

Starting easily is an important consideration for me as is general
longevity.

The guy in the shop recomends 2 stroke "its what the proffessionals
use" but he has Honda and Lawnflite 4 stokes available also.

Which should I go for? Any suggestions or experiences?

Alan
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Old 30-08-2003, 07:02 PM
Iain Miller
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?


"Alan" . wrote in message
...
I need a new brushcutter for my grassy banks, nettles and banks of
bushy things!

I have been using on Oleo-mac 22 cc 4 stoke which has given up the
ghost. I am intending to buy a slightly more powerfull machine 30cc.

What is the difference between 2 and 4 stroke in terms of usage?

Starting easily is an important consideration for me as is general
longevity.

The guy in the shop recomends 2 stroke "its what the proffessionals
use" but he has Honda and Lawnflite 4 stokes available also.

Which should I go for? Any suggestions or experiences?


2 Strokes don't have to worry about lubrication & oil pickup etc & therefore
are, I think, better at dealing with working at funny angles.

I.


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Old 30-08-2003, 08:42 PM
len brauer
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

g'day alan,

are there other shops around that you can get recomendations from?
just to compare. for me my next machine will be a 4 stroke unless
there is some information out there that says i should think totaly
different.

i haven't had a close look at them yet but should imagine they would
work in all the attitudes that a 2 stroke will. the one thing i have
heard is someone reckoned they are slightly heavier than 2 strokes.

for me 4 strokes run cleaner and always remain easier to start.

keep us informed.

len

snipped
--
happy gardening
'it works for me it could work for you,'

"in the end ya' gotta do what ya' gotta do" but consider others and the environment
http://hub.dataline.net.au/~gardnlen/
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Old 30-08-2003, 09:12 PM
Rod
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?


"Alan" . wrote in message ...
I need a new brushcutter for my grassy banks, nettles and banks of
bushy things!

I have been using on Oleo-mac 22 cc 4 stoke which has given up the
ghost. I am intending to buy a slightly more powerfull machine 30cc.

What is the difference between 2 and 4 stroke in terms of usage?

Starting easily is an important consideration for me as is general
longevity.

We like the Stihl 4 stoke machine at work. (FS65-4 -iirc) Just have to be meticulous about oil changes and oil
level. It only holds about 100ml. As Len suggested it is clean, quiet and easy to start. Lighter than the big Husky
we had before.

Rod


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Old 30-08-2003, 11:02 PM
David Harby
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

On Sat, 30 Aug 2003 20:03:53 +0100, "Rod"
wrote:


"Alan" . wrote in message ...
I need a new brushcutter for my grassy banks, nettles and banks of
bushy things!

I have been using on Oleo-mac 22 cc 4 stoke which has given up the
ghost. I am intending to buy a slightly more powerfull machine 30cc.

What is the difference between 2 and 4 stroke in terms of usage?

Starting easily is an important consideration for me as is general
longevity.

We like the Stihl 4 stoke machine at work. (FS65-4 -iirc) Just have to be meticulous about oil changes and oil
level. It only holds about 100ml. As Len suggested it is clean, quiet and easy to start. Lighter than the big Husky
we had before.

Rod

I have used a Honda 4 stroke for about the past 5 years without any
problems. It still starts well.

An important consideration for me is ease of use. Ask the dealer to
let you try handling the machine as some are much more comfortable to
use than others. My Honda has 'cow handles' which I prefer if I am
using a strimmer for long periods but some people tell me they find
them uncomfortable and prefer both hand grips on the shaft.

David


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Old 31-08-2003, 01:02 PM
Simon Avery
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

Alan . wrote:

Hello Alan

A The guy in the shop recomends 2 stroke "its what the
A proffessionals use" but he has Honda and Lawnflite 4 stokes
A available also.

I've not used a modern four-stroke, only the old ones with gimble
mountings and sumps before 2-strokes became effective. (1960's? 70's?
Older 'n me, anyway) and those were ruddy awful. Twice the weight and
you couldn't cut above knee height with 'em.

But to answer the "professional" thing, the trade tends to be mostly
conservative, with a few exceptions, and don't want to potentially
waste money on new bits of kit until they've seen them working well.
Some manufacturers "lend" new kits to some companies to get feedback
and promote the thing amongst the trade, but it's traditionally a
tricky thing to market new kit in the tree and garden industries. With
good reason, some people come up with chocolate teapot type ideas.

So anyway, just because it's not used by professionals doesn't mean
it's not good. It could mean exactly that, too.

OTOH, modern 2-strokes are well known, reliable, light and cheaper
than the new 4-strokes. The economy issue is not worth considering for
home use, only really becomes an issue if you're using it every day
for four months of the year, and even then it'll have to be
significant to make up the 100+ukp price difference.

--
Simon Avery, Dartmoor, UK Ý http://www.digdilem.org/

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Old 31-08-2003, 02:42 PM
Rod
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?


"David Harby" wrote in message ...
I have used a Honda 4 stroke for about the past 5 years without any problems. It still starts well.
An important consideration for me is ease of use. Ask the dealer to let you try handling the machine as some
are much more comfortable to use than others. My Honda has 'cow handles' which I prefer if I am using a strimmer

for long periods but some people tell me they find them uncomfortable and prefer both hand grips on the shaft.

I was told that the Stihl is a Honda engine so not much to choose between the 2. Looking at the new Stihl catalogue
after I posted here last night it seems Stihl are going over to a strange hybrid called '4mix' - 4 stroke engine
running on a petrol/oil mix like a 2 stroke. I think I'd like to hear more experiences of those before I bought
one. Most of the main makers of serious strimmers include both kinds of handles in most sizes so get a demo.
Type of engine is not really a major consideration for most people, much more important is how it feels in use and
how well it does the job. If it comes from one of the major makers like Stihl or Husqvarna you don't need to worry
about durability.

Rod


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Old 31-08-2003, 08:02 PM
Simon Avery
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

"Rod" wrote:

Hello Rod

R I was told that the Stihl is a Honda engine so not much to
R choose between the 2. Looking at the new Stihl
R catalogue after I posted here last night it seems Stihl are
R going over to a strange hybrid called '4mix' - 4 stroke
R engine running on a petrol/oil mix like a 2 stroke. I think

Weird! So you have none of the benefits of 2-stroke (twice the power,
twice the revs) but you do get the major disadvantage (need to mix
fuel)?

R bought one. Most of the main makers of serious strimmers
R include both kinds of handles in most sizes so get a
R demo.

IME, although cow horns are sometimes available for smaller petrol
strimmers, they're not as well balanced nor placed as the larger
strimmers and are harder to use.

R Type of engine is not really a major consideration for
R most people, much more important is how it feels in use and
R how well it does the job. If it comes from one of the major
R makers like Stihl or Husqvarna you don't need to worry about
R durability.

Unfortunately this isn't strictly true. Husqvarna/Jonsered and Stihl
have all made complete turkeys in their lower priced non-professional
ranges for strimmers, mowers, hedgecutters and chainsaws. With badly
designed parts, bad ergonomics and very bad durability. Some of the
small (25cc) Husqy's in particular are a nightmare to use for any
length of time.

I suspect, cynic that I am, that this is deliberate to steer everyone
but the occasional user to the higher quality and pricier models, but
if that's the case it's a very dodgy strategy to weaken the brand with
inferior models.

I've returned a Husqy and got a refund because I didn't think it was
fit for the purpose. OTOH, I've now got two Husqy 240Rs and I think
they're wonderful, probably the best heavy duty grass strimmers I've
ever used. So while I like a lot of their stuff, I don't think it's
true to say that you can buy solely by brand.

--
Simon Avery, Dartmoor, UK Ý http://www.digdilem.org/

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Old 31-08-2003, 09:32 PM
len brauer
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

On Sun, 31 Aug 2003 11:10:32 GMT, (Simon
Avery) wrote:

Alan . wrote:

Hello Alan

A The guy in the shop recomends 2 stroke "its what the
A proffessionals use" but he has Honda and Lawnflite 4 stokes
A available also.

I've not used a modern four-stroke, only the old ones with gimble
mountings and sumps before 2-strokes became effective. (1960's? 70's?
Older 'n me, anyway) and those were ruddy awful. Twice the weight and
you couldn't cut above knee height with 'em.

But to answer the "professional" thing, the trade tends to be mostly
conservative, with a few exceptions, and don't want to potentially
waste money on new bits of kit until they've seen them working well.
Some manufacturers "lend" new kits to some companies to get feedback
and promote the thing amongst the trade, but it's traditionally a
tricky thing to market new kit in the tree and garden industries. With
good reason, some people come up with chocolate teapot type ideas.

So anyway, just because it's not used by professionals doesn't mean
it's not good. It could mean exactly that, too.

OTOH, modern 2-strokes are well known, reliable, light and cheaper
than the new 4-strokes. The economy issue is not worth considering for
home use, only really becomes an issue if you're using it every day
for four months of the year, and even then it'll have to be
significant to make up the 100+ukp price difference.


--
happy gardening
'it works for me it could work for you,'

"in the end ya' gotta do what ya' gotta do" but consider others and the environment
http://hub.dataline.net.au/~gardnlen/
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Old 31-08-2003, 09:32 PM
len brauer
 
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Default Brushcutter - 2 or 4 stroke?

good point dave, alan will need to get a feel for the set up that will
suit him be it 2 or 4 stroke.

for me i preffer the loop handle as i never wear the harness, this
allows me to use the machine at any angle very easily. i found the
motor bike handle (what we call them over here) to be a bit
restrictive at times.

just a bit more from

len

snipped
--
happy gardening
'it works for me it could work for you,'

"in the end ya' gotta do what ya' gotta do" but consider others and the environment
http://hub.dataline.net.au/~gardnlen/
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