New Leaf Blower

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CharBaby

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In regards to past thread about my Craftsman leaf blower giving me trouble even after installing a new coil, I have finally purchased a new blower. Yes, it's a Craftsman but, I couldn't pass up the price. With it being on sale as well as all of my SEARS points, coupons and other discounts, I paid $99 new.

I know, I know, I was going to buy an ECHO or STIHL however it was the right price and I have it now!

https://www.amazon.com/Craftsman-27cc-Gas-Blower-Vac/dp/B01HTZAUNK
 
I have a Husky blower that is 19 years old It have never failed to start and had been worked hard long and pit away wet. No market driven fuel stabilizer just put it away after the last leaf blowing at the end of October then fire it up in spring after .the first lawn cutting. some times you get what you pay for.
 
Oh indeed you get what you pay for.
My weedeater is ~24 yrs old and is as reliable as your HUSKY Blower.

Most likely, this new blower will work like the last one(7-8 yrs) w/o issues, maybe even longer, who knows? The other one just quit!

This leaf blower is regularly $199 marked down to $149 and then, marked all the way down to $99. At $199/$149, it's not a deal or even a good unit although I loved my other one...I just loved it!
 
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That looks like a nice unit. My Ryobi was running good, then it suddenly died while running at full throttle. I can't get it running again, and have run out of patience trying to diagnose it. I'm thinking of tossing it and getting something different.
 
That doesn't look like a bad unit.
I had (still have) one that is very similar to it. It died, and I put all new fuel line in it (Disintegrated) and could not get it going again. There is a thread about it somewhere on BITOG.
Went out and bought a new Stihl. It is the hardest starting thing and it has an irritating pause when you pull the throttle. Even when I purchased the thing, they went through two blowers during the prep process to find one that started halfway decent.
Even though you get what you pay for, sometimes the cheaper stuff is so much nicer to use.
 
That's a good price on a large blower. Speed start system? It seems to have a backup start option, using a drill? It has a big wind speed number, but at a price. At 16 lbs, which is double the weight of my 20 year old Echo PB2100, it will get heavy quickly. Sadly Sears seems to be on the way out as far as parts availability goes.
 
I didn't see non-ethanol gas mentioned. If possible, get some for your small engines. www.pure-gas.org will help you find some. Or you can get 100LL at your local airport. That stuff is amazing.........and cheaper than some places charge for eth-free gas.
 
I always drain the leftover gas from my leaf blower back into the gas container after every use.

I also make my own ethanol-free gas at home by using water to wash out the ethanol. Cheap and convenient.
 
Originally Posted by gman2304
It has a big wind speed number, but at a price.

Isn't CFM a better indicator of how "good" a blower is, as opposed to how fast it blows?
 
Originally Posted by Char Baby
In regards to past thread about my Craftsman leaf blower giving me trouble even after installing a new coil, I have finally purchased a new blower. Yes, it's a Craftsman but, I couldn't pass up the price. With it being on sale as well as all of my SEARS points, coupons and other discounts, I paid $99 new.

I know, I know, I was going to buy an ECHO or STIHL however it was the right price and I have it now!

https://www.amazon.com/Craftsman-27cc-Gas-Blower-Vac/dp/B01HTZAUNK

Don't pay attention to the nay sayers. Most of my power equipment is Craftsman, I keep them maintained and get many many years of troublefree service from them. No explanation needed.
 
Originally Posted by rekit
I didn't see non-ethanol gas mentioned. If possible, get some for your small engines. www.pure-gas.org will help you find some. Or you can get 100LL at your local airport. That stuff is amazing.........and cheaper than some places charge for eth-free gas.


In the OM & on th gas cap it states that you can use up to E10. But non-E would be best

Originally Posted by billt460
That looks like a nice unit. My Ryobi was running good, then it suddenly died while running at full throttle. I can't get it running again, and have run out of patience trying to diagnose it. I'm thinking of tossing it and getting something different.


^^^This is what happened to my other blowers.
 
Sometimes the exhaust part of a two cycle engine get plugged up with soot to the point it doesn't run anymore. Check that before tossing the unit.
 
Originally Posted by Lubener

...I keep them maintained and get many many years of troublefree service from them. No explanation needed.


That is the key to OPE that works! Too many bad reviews like "it just quit working one day, after 2-1/2 years." Nevermind that the only maintenance was filling it up with gas, sometimes with the proper oil ratio.

All equipment needs periodic maintenance like cleaning the air filter, changing spark plug, cleaning the carb, etc. Most of all, just follow the care recommendations in the manual!

There...rant finished.
 
^^^Ya see, I always keep my OPE maintained as I did with my previous leaf blower.
Changed the plug, cleaned out any debris, cleaned carb, used good gas/oil mix, and new air filter(s) regularly.

As I was running my blower at full throttle, the coil wire atop the plug(I didn't know this at the time), BROKE and the unit just STOPPED and hydrolocked the engine. I was able to free up the piston and fix the wire(temporarily) and restart the engine. But, it took waaaaay tooooo many pulls to restart the engine.

After this last usage/restart(it ran GREAT & STRONG) but, it never started again. I did some checking/testing(not getting spark) and ultimately changed out the coil. It still won't start. Long story short, I bought a new blower!
 
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Originally Posted by billt460
That looks like a nice unit. My Ryobi was running good, then it suddenly died while running at full throttle. I can't get it running again, and have run out of patience trying to diagnose it. I'm thinking of tossing it and getting something different.

^^^This is what happened to my other blowers.

Originally Posted by Char Baby
As I was running my blower at full throttle, the coil wire atop the plug(I didn't know this at the time), BROKE and the unit just STOPPED and hydrolocked the engine. I was able to free up the piston and fix the wire(temporarily) and restart the engine. But, it took waaaaay tooooo many pulls to restart the engine.

After this last usage/restart(it ran GREAT & STRONG) but, it never started again. I did some checking/testing(not getting spark) and ultimately changed out the coil. It still won't start. Long story short, I bought a new blower!

This is always such a PITA with 2-stroke engines. They are simply not dependable. My Ryobi didn't have 3 hours on it before it died. I get sick and tired of constantly having to play mechanic with most every 2-stroke engine I have ever owned. I want another blower. The problem is I don't want to buy into another big problem. Have it run for a while, then take what amounts to an un diagnosable dump. And I'm not interested in battery powered blowers.

I hope you have good luck with your new purchase. Please keep us posted on how it runs. I'm going to get another one. It is just going to take me a while before I can B.S. myself into thinking that not all 2-strokes are undependable, aggravating, POS's..... When in the back of my mind, I KNOW they all are.
 
billt460 thank you. I hope I have good luck with it as well and I will certainly keep the board posted on its progress. However, it'll take several years before I most likely develop any issues as my other blower was fine right up till this recent issue. With only a couple of loose bolt issues, the previous blower was reliable even if hard to restart when hot. It always started time after time during my weekly lawn maintenance and Autumn leaf maintenance. And if I caught it just right, it did in fact restart when the engine was hot, just not reliably.

I can see that you feel the same as I do. In over 45 years, I have always hated my small handheld OPE. Most lawnmowers were hmmm, OK(some not so much) but, weed eaters/leaf blowers have left a lot to be desired. WHY are they so difficult to start or I should say, restart when hot.

I have watched a lot of Youtube videos of professionals(who fix this stuff) complaining as well. They're fine when new but then require some type of special magic potion, secret words and the twirl of a wand to start reliably.

Maybe we should always buy the professional products(Stihl, H-varna, Echo, Kaw etc.) even for us normal home users. Or we should stop buying from the BIG BOX stores. We can see what the lawn care professionals use as they stop & restart their equipment all day long with excellent success, time after time!

I mean, I have a 24 yr old John Deere(w/Mitsubishi engine) weed wacker/trimmer that has never given me any problems and I have ONLY used E10 w/32:1 in it and always have/will.
smile.gif
 
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My landscaper has a $400.00 Echo backpack model power blower that has enough power to blow gravel. It always seems to run good, and no doubt receives hours of use on a constant basis. I just don't feel like spending $400.00 on a blower. But if it prevents constant aggravation, I have to admit, I'm tempted.
 
My wife owned a landscaping company here in Las Vegas. I would guess 90% of the professionals here use Echo blowers. We ended up with all Echo string trimmers, bush trimmers, and blowers, and Exmark lawn mowers as equipment broke and was replaced.

She bought a Stihl blower once (I think you can't beat their chain saws). The crews did not like it, and it was forced upon either the new guy, or the crewmember who had ticked off the foreman. Once it broke, it was replaced by an Echo and all was well.
 
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