Weed Trimmer issue

[Motoduc84]

Greetings,

Just found this forum...looks like a great place to get some information and share some ideas! And...I need some advice on an old two stroke Crafstman trimmer. I had to replace the throttle cable and while it was apart, I noticed that the fuel lines were brittle and leaking, so I decided to replace those as well. Now...it won't start! The cable is installed correctly, the fuel lines are fine and I can see the primer line filling up with fuel as I push the button. But...nothing! I did pour a little fuel down the spark plug hole and it fired for a second or two, but it will not stay running. I have spark and it pulls as it always did, so I assume compression is fine.

The other line (the one with the fuel filter) must be my issue. The filter itself is clean. I do not use ethanol. One possible issue...is the length of the line critical? I do have enough inside to allow the fuel filter to lay at the bottom of the tank...and the other end comes out to the carb, with a little to spare! Should I trim that down...should it be as short as possible, with no curves? If that isn't the issue..any insight? Thanks.

Kent

 

[Derson59]

Greetings,

Just found this forum...looks like a great place to get some information and share some ideas! And...I need some advice on an old two stroke Crafstman trimmer. I had to replace the throttle cable and while it was apart, I noticed that the fuel lines were brittle and leaking, so I decided to replace those as well. Now...it won't start! The cable is installed correctly, the fuel lines are fine and I can see the primer line filling up with fuel as I push the button. But...nothing! I did pour a little fuel down the spark plug hole and it fired for a second or two, but it will not stay running. I have spark and it pulls as it always did, so I assume compression is fine.

The other line (the one with the fuel filter) must be my issue. The filter itself is clean. I do not use ethanol. One possible issue...is the length of the line critical? I do have enough inside to allow the fuel filter to lay at the bottom of the tank...and the other end comes out to the carb, with a little to spare! Should I trim that down...should it be as short as possible, with no curves? If that isn't the issue..any insight? Thanks.

Kent

I found that when someone brings in a trimmer I replace the lines and then clean the carb up. It is small but can clog very easy. There is a small screen that can become clogged very easy and if the lines were cracking that is probably the issue there. If you youtube the carb clean you can get very detailed info on the cleaning process.
In regards to the length I just make sure that the line is laying at the bottom of the trimmer when it is sitting on the ground. If the filter comes off the line the trimmer will not work either. Hope this helps!

P.S. I just repaired a 98 craftsman weed trimmer for under 35 bucks, which included a new carb.

 

[motoman]

Took apart my Ryobi which was missing after 10 years. It did not want to be taken apart and I finally realized what has been said here. They are throw aways mostly due to weak design and expensive replacement parts. The coil and flywheel had contact on mine so I tried to look at the crank for wobble. It was repair-proof, which I overcame by destroying the clutch (laugh). Then I read that the cheaper units (? all?) have "half cranks" where there is only one journal cap. So the crank will wobble taking out the coil. The coil is $35-$40, the tank another ?$35. Soon you are at the price of a new (cheap) unit. I bought another Sears weed wacker for $113 with the same 2 stroke engine. Gave it a spark test and it jumped 1/4" easily while my poor ole Ryobi was barely visible. Hope this is not too discouraging for you . Maybe mine was different than yours.