Troy Bilt TB590EC fuel issue +review

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Alright, I was wondering how long it would take before I was posting issues about this new trimmer.

Caveat before I begin. I bought this trimmer/brush cutter knowing full well it was cheap, under no illusion it was the end all, be all. I originally was looking at the Husky 525LK powerhead and attachments but after deciding to not sell my vintage sleds, which was to payroll the new Husky. I could go out and just buy a new Husky but I prefer to stick with a budget. I'm half Ukrainian, so that would explain it.

Anyway, I did the initial setup, had the usual Troy Bilt issues of hard to start and taking forever to get it hot enough to actually stay running. Had this issue with a previous Troy Bilt 4 stroke powerhead. Pulled the carb and opened up the main jet in the venturi. Used a sewing needle to ever so slightly open up the plastic slits used to meter fuel. This worked pretty well as it is now easier to start and I can now quickly go full throttle. I upped the idle a bit as well.

But... I had issues from the start with leaving the unit for a week and finding the tank empty. Usually there is raw fuel dribbling from the carb. No external leaks as the carb was in good shape but it is coming from the venturi. Most times it just pours out, soaking the filter and leaving a mess on the ground. Yesterday I found it filled the crank case and hydro locked the piston. It has had this issue prior to me ripping into the carb.

I surmised that maybe the cap vent was not working and pressurizing the tank but I did not have fuel starvation when running and even leaving the cap partially off did not stop the issue. So something is allowing fuel to be syphoned up to the carb. I am not well versed in the world of small diaphragm carbs so I do not know if they have some sort of needle valve that is supposed to be seated or what not. Any info will greatly help!


Now for my review. I was under no illusion this was a high end machine. Bad: Hard to start most times (mostly fixed). Cheap nylon shoulder strap. Needs better vibration dampening on the plastic throttle grip. Always makes a mess draining the engine oil out due to the poorly designed plastic shroud. Poorly designed air filter housing that is easy to knock off when trimming (happened many times thus far). The supplied 4 blade cutter was anemic at best. The cheap metal clip for the strap always gets bumped and unhooked.

Good: She is a beast when running, I can really motor through thick weeds and grass. I can get over an hour on a tank when running it heavy. Many times I have run it almost non stop at part to full throttle for a full tank and it never gave me one issue, she just went to town. The bump head is easy to remove and refill and it has yet to give me any issues. Once the cutter blade was sharpened, it cuts pretty good sized brush and saplings. The cheap nylon shoulder strap actually works well and does not cause me discomfort, its actually well balanced. The shaft length is just about perfect for my 6'1 frame.
 
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