On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 07:40:32 -0700 (PDT), jamesgangnc wrote:

I have one of the ones with the swapable attachments.
The little chain saw is also great for pruning trees.

Hi James,
I have (probably) the same weed whacker you have!
Craftsman Model 358.791170 which takes multiple attachments.

Please tell me more about how well/poorly the attachments work because I
only have the weed-wacker attachment.

I never bought the edger or pruner attachments (although I could sorely use
both but I wondered how well/badly they worked).

BTW, be warned, my Craftsman trimmer has the "built with Sim-Pul for smooth
easy starts" (which is a crock because twice I had to replace the entire
starter assembly because the clutch didn't disengage so the weed trimmer
melted the plastic starter assembly).

On Jul 6, 10:52*am, GHenry wrote:
On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 07:40:32 -0700 (PDT), jamesgangnc wrote:
I have one of the ones with the swapable attachments. *
The little chain saw is also great for pruning trees.

Hi James,
I have (probably) the same weed whacker you have!
Craftsman Model 358.791170 which takes multiple attachments.

Please tell me more about how well/poorly the attachments work because I
only have the weed-wacker attachment.

I never bought the edger or pruner attachments (although I could sorely use
both but I wondered how well/badly they worked).

BTW, be warned, my Craftsman trimmer has the "built with Sim-Pul for smooth
easy starts" (which is a crock because twice I had to replace the entire
starter assembly because the clutch didn't disengage so the weed trimmer
melted the plastic starter assembly).

No, I have a ryobi. It's also "easy pull" so I suspect your craftsman
may be a ryobi. Sears doesn't actually make anything. It's worth
keeping up with who is making stuff for them as sometimes you can get
a deal on an item that would be pricier under it's original label. I
still have a big mac chain saw I bought under their label 30 years
back when mac was the name to get.

It ought to start in a couple pulls or maybe you are priming too much
or too little. Usually it's hard starting the results in broken
starters.

They standardized the attachment mounts among most of these. I have
the little chain saw and the pruner but I think they are a different
brand. One of them came with a 2 foot extension pole. I already had
a dedicated stick edger but I'm sure the attachemnt one would be about
the same. I have a number of high trimming and pruning chores that I
have to do a couple times a year so these worked well for my needs
because of the reach. So I'm not really using them enough to tell if
they have wear issues. If I was doing it for a living I would get all
dedicated stuff.but as a homeowner it's just too expensive.

On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 08:28:48 -0700 (PDT), jamesgangnc wrote:

If I was doing it for a living I would get all
dedicated stuff.but as a homeowner it's just too expensive.

Yeah. Even these attachments are $150 dollars or so (just for the
attachment).

I do need a good looooooong hedge trimmer as my 20 inch hedge trimmer is
too short for the tops of a line of very tall bushes that I can't reach
except on a ladder and even then I have to lean halfway over the ledge,
which is dangerous so I don't do it. A longer hedge trimmer (about 40
inches would be nice) is what I really need - but money is always an
object.

Likewise for the edger attachment. I have a few hundred yards of edging
that has been neglected. Sure I have a MANUAL edger, but, I'm getting too
old for that wheel and spring thingey.

If I KNEW the edger and/or hedge trimmer attachments were useful, I'd
likely get them over time though.

Edger ................. 358.79240
Cultivator ............ 358.79241
Blower ................ 358.79242
Brushcutter ........... 358.79244
Pruner ................ 358.79245

On Jul 6, 10:41*am, GHenry wrote:
On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 08:28:48 -0700 (PDT), jamesgangnc wrote:
If I was doing it for a living I would get all
dedicated stuff.but as a homeowner it's just too expensive.

Yeah. Even these attachments are $150 dollars or so (just for the
attachment).

I do need a good looooooong hedge trimmer as my 20 inch hedge trimmer is
too short for the tops of a line of very tall bushes that I can't reach
except on a ladder and even then I have to lean halfway over the ledge,
which is dangerous so I don't do it. A longer hedge trimmer (about 40
inches would be nice) is what I really need - but money is always an
object.

Likewise for the edger attachment. I have a few hundred yards of edging
that has been neglected. Sure I have a MANUAL edger, but, I'm getting too
old for that wheel and spring thingey.

If I KNEW the edger and/or hedge trimmer attachments were useful, I'd
likely get them over time though.

Edger ................. 358.79240
Cultivator ............ 358.79241
Blower ................ 358.79242
Brushcutter ........... 358.79244
Pruner ................ 358.79245

Not sure they're the same units, but I have the Troy-Bilt 4-cycle
trimmer with a leaf blower and edger attachments. They work really
well. The only issue I have with the system is that the nozzle on the
blower is constantly blowing off. I could glue it on but then to get
it off...

I doubt it would have enough power for the cultivator, though (so I
didn't get one).

On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 11:04:17 -0700 (PDT), keith wrote:

I have the Troy-Bilt 4-cycle trimmer with a leaf blower & edger attachments.
They work really well.

Mine is a two stroke so it's probably different. But, it's good to know
that the edger actually works "very well". I might consider getting one.

As for leaf blowers, I ended up with the huge backpack two-stroke 180mph
Echo, which does a decent enough job.

I've had a whole series of two-stroke lawn vacuum/blowers (the type that
has that long nozzle and bag) but almost always:
- The blower is anemic
- The vacuum is pretty good
- But the bag zipper always breaks making the vacuum also useless

Maybe I'll open a separate thread on how to get a better outdoor yard work
vacuum for home.

On Jul 6, 1:52*pm, GHenry wrote:
On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 11:04:17 -0700 (PDT), keith wrote:
I have the Troy-Bilt 4-cycle trimmer with a leaf blower & edger attachments. *
They work really well. *

Mine is a two stroke so it's probably different. But, it's good to know
that the edger actually works "very well". I might consider getting one.

It does the job on my couple of hundred feet of edging each week,
anyway.

As for leaf blowers, I ended up with the huge backpack two-stroke 180mph
Echo, which does a decent enough job.

I've had a whole series of two-stroke lawn vacuum/blowers (the type that
has that long nozzle and bag) but almost always:
- The blower is anemic
- The vacuum is pretty good
- But the bag zipper always breaks making the vacuum also useless

Let me elaborate, a little. I don't use it to blow leaves; got none
(left them behind in Vermont, with the taxes). I use it to blow the
grass clippings off the street and driveway after I do the edging. It
does a nice job of that, and the bark mulch, red sand, and Mica that
inevitably washes out of our flower beds.


Maybe I'll open a separate thread on how to get a better outdoor yard work
vacuum for home.