I have a hand-me-down Ryobi trimmer that I think I've reached a crossroads at.
I don't have the exact model in front of me, but it has a 2013 build date on it and is one of the 26?cc 2-strokes. It came to me with a hedge trimmer attachment in addition to the straight shaft trimmer, and I have since added a pole saw that I use fairly often. The pole saw at least claims to work with about a half dozen different brands, so if I buy a replacement I'm not locked into buying another Ryobi.
In any case, it seems to have the typical symptoms that these show after a few years of use. It can be difficult to start, sometimes revs sluggishly, sometimes dies when I rev it or when I let off the throttle, and sometimes will only run on choke or at least half choke.
It has a new spark plug, fresh fuel lines, a new fuel frit and a new gas cap. The engine has good compression(~110psi cold) so seems to have life left in it. A lot of people seem to like tossing $10 Chinese carb replacements, but this one has a Walbro carb on it and I'm hesitant to toss it-I took it apart and cleaned it to the extent I felt I could without damaging gaskets, and am considering getting a full gasket set(about $8) so that I can really go through the carb(any thoughts on that vs. outright replacement?). These Ryobis use something like Chore Boy or some other metal gauze in the muffler, so I did what I've seen in a couple of Youtube videos which is heat the whole muffler with a torch until cherry red and it stops smoking. There wasn't a ton of carbon in the exhaust port when I did this(and the piston didn't have any visible scuffing) but I still got it as clear as I could.
Each repair I've done seems to get it running a little better, but at the end of the day it's sometimes just not cutting it and is very inconsistent. I usually run it with .095 line and some days it will seem like nothing can stop it while other days I end up swapping out to .080 just so that I can get it to stick with me long enough to finish the yard(or throw in the towel, call my FIL, and ask if I can borrow his battery Roybi that at least always works even if it's not that powerful).
First of all, before I give up, is there anything else I should be trying with this? A carb kit and maybe a complete replacement muffler(or just hacking a bunch of gauze out of the old one) seem like possibilities.
Barring that, what would you all suggest buying to replace it? I've heard enough mixed bad stuff about Ryobi that I'm not sure I want to go that route, and Echo, Poulan, Weed-Eater, and a few other brands are all claimed to be compatible with the other attachments I have(which I don't want to give up). I've even run across references to there being a couple of Stihl models that will work with them, although I don't know if I want to go there or, for that matter, spend that kind of money if I don't know for sure they'll work.
I don't have the exact model in front of me, but it has a 2013 build date on it and is one of the 26?cc 2-strokes. It came to me with a hedge trimmer attachment in addition to the straight shaft trimmer, and I have since added a pole saw that I use fairly often. The pole saw at least claims to work with about a half dozen different brands, so if I buy a replacement I'm not locked into buying another Ryobi.
In any case, it seems to have the typical symptoms that these show after a few years of use. It can be difficult to start, sometimes revs sluggishly, sometimes dies when I rev it or when I let off the throttle, and sometimes will only run on choke or at least half choke.
It has a new spark plug, fresh fuel lines, a new fuel frit and a new gas cap. The engine has good compression(~110psi cold) so seems to have life left in it. A lot of people seem to like tossing $10 Chinese carb replacements, but this one has a Walbro carb on it and I'm hesitant to toss it-I took it apart and cleaned it to the extent I felt I could without damaging gaskets, and am considering getting a full gasket set(about $8) so that I can really go through the carb(any thoughts on that vs. outright replacement?). These Ryobis use something like Chore Boy or some other metal gauze in the muffler, so I did what I've seen in a couple of Youtube videos which is heat the whole muffler with a torch until cherry red and it stops smoking. There wasn't a ton of carbon in the exhaust port when I did this(and the piston didn't have any visible scuffing) but I still got it as clear as I could.
Each repair I've done seems to get it running a little better, but at the end of the day it's sometimes just not cutting it and is very inconsistent. I usually run it with .095 line and some days it will seem like nothing can stop it while other days I end up swapping out to .080 just so that I can get it to stick with me long enough to finish the yard(or throw in the towel, call my FIL, and ask if I can borrow his battery Roybi that at least always works even if it's not that powerful).
First of all, before I give up, is there anything else I should be trying with this? A carb kit and maybe a complete replacement muffler(or just hacking a bunch of gauze out of the old one) seem like possibilities.
Barring that, what would you all suggest buying to replace it? I've heard enough mixed bad stuff about Ryobi that I'm not sure I want to go that route, and Echo, Poulan, Weed-Eater, and a few other brands are all claimed to be compatible with the other attachments I have(which I don't want to give up). I've even run across references to there being a couple of Stihl models that will work with them, although I don't know if I want to go there or, for that matter, spend that kind of money if I don't know for sure they'll work.