Which do you prefer? Straight or Curve Shaft trimmers

[cronk]

I have used both and much prefer the straight shaft .
Easier to get under things like pine trees and the camper. No bending over, easy on my back.
I have an echo straight shaft that's probably 25 years old and still running great!

 

[dfarr67]

I don't like the hoop either- straight shaft and handle bars= quicker handling.

 

[1 SX]

Straight- all the way. Also the overall weight and how it balanced is a major player for me to prevent fatigue. At "only" 9.4 ish lbs I LOVE this Husqvarna. Full crank engine, fully adjustable carburetor, great torque. its rated at the same 25CC as my "cheap" EPA cranked down, half crank, straight shaft craftsman trimmer I have (and believe it or not have used the craftsman commercially for a little while) but the craftsman is much heaver overall at 13.3 lbs, not balanced very well, engine vibrates at wide-open throttle, and even with the same T25 heads and 0.95 line the craftsman simply doesn't have the torque and "boggs" easily once you hit any real grass, even after the limited carb adjustments. I also do not use the line cutter/guard.

 

[dlundblad]

I can’t say I’ve ever used a curved shaft model.

Why are the “commercial” models more likely to be straight than curved?

 

[ripcord]

I can’t say I’ve ever used a curved shaft model.

Why are the “commercial” models more likely to be straight than curved?

Fundamentally, the straight shafts can have a solid driveshaft and the curved shaft ones have a cable for a driveshaft. The solid drives transfer power more efficiently and are more durable.

 

[UncleDave]

I can’t say I’ve ever used a curved shaft model.

Why are the “commercial” models more likely to be straight than curved?

Like ripcord says shaft vs cable.

Curved shaft trimmers are typically pretty weak shouldn't run a blade as a hard stop of the head will twist the cable.

 

[Dave9]

Straight shaft with a shaft drive rather than wire. I'm a lefty who also needs to get under objects, trees, bushes , benches, etc. but it's more about the total build quality with a full crank commercial engine, easy starts, and not picky about fuel. I'd imagine what's sold today is leaner running so more picky about fuel.

I have a > 20 y/o Redmax BC225, though I won it at a lottery. I don't trim enough hrs/yr to justify paying $300 for a trimmer, but at the same time I have no interest in buying a homeowner grade gas so if the Redmax fails beyond my ability to repair, will end up going cordless. I don't need more than 10-15 minutes runtime at a time so that would work out fine.

Granted the weaker the trimmer, the longer it takes and the less line on the spool so you're changing it out more often. I don't want to switch to a sold blade because of the damage it could cause around areas I'm trimming.

 

[Whimsey]

I have a 40' X 40' front yard that has huge tree roots surfacing over the years. I could not use a lawnmower anymore. I went with a Ryobi, 30cc curved shaft trimmer. It was great at making divots in the lawn. I got a 18V Ryobi straight shaft trimmer. It is so much easier to use and does a real nice job cutting the grass evenly. For the many rough areas I'll use the gas Ryobi curved shaft trimmer. This Ryobi is an expandable version so I got the brush cutter straight shaft attachment for the really rough areas.

 

[paulo57509]

I've never used a curved shaft trimmer.

I use my straight shaft string trimmer primarily as an edger by flipping it 90-degrees. I think a straight shaft trimmer would work better for this.

 

[asker123]

I have Stihl Kombi KM94R with Straight Shaft Line trimmer FS-KM. It works well on tall grass, weed and lilac

 

[nomas]

Straight shaft and I have also started using the shoulder strap . Easier on my back .

 

[jeepman3071]

Straight shaft. Easier on my back, and heavier duty. There are some decent curved shaft trimmers, but it seems most of them are bottom of the barrel box store entry level options. I still have nightmares from people bringing me those throw away cheap Weedeater curved shaft trimmers to fix years ago.

 

[Fordiesel69]

I have both a Echo GT-225 curved shaft, and a SRM-225 straight shaft. I upgraded my curved to the extra long version and it is still extremely uncomfortable. Its a great unit just not ergononic for me to use.

Now because of the gear reduction, I find the SRM-225 and for that matter all straight shaft models to have much more torque.

The way it was explained to me is curved is excellent for grass trimming and especially where you need to be very accurate and cautious, whereas the straight is designed more for brush, weeds, and heavy grass.

 

[repairman54]

None of the trimmers are comfortable for me at 6'1''. Seems they are designed for the average users that are mostly in the 5'4'' range.

 

[Opelman]

I can't stand the curved shaft units. Usually the rotation is wrong for me. Current unit is an older straight shaft Kawasaki, great power with .095 and light.

 

[Exhaustgases]

I've seen old curved ones where the cable ate its way through the curved area, they also have some spring effect in them especially in tall or tough material. Since they have no gear box at the end they are cheap to to make and will not last.

 

[jeepman3071]

I can't stand the curved shaft units. Usually the rotation is wrong for me. Current unit is an older straight shaft Kawasaki, great power with .095 and light.

I never knew Kawasaki made trimmers. That's pretty cool, I've never seen one in the 17 years I've been messing with power equipment repair, but sure enough a quick Google search and apparently they make all kinds of hand held stuff.

 

[Nukeman7]

I never knew Kawasaki made trimmers. That's pretty cool, I've never seen one in the 17 years I've been messing with power equipment repair, but sure enough a quick Google search and apparently they make all kinds of hand held stuff.

Like Opelman, I have been using a Kawasaki trimmer (KGT-27A) with .095 line for over 15 years. It is still running perfect on the original NGK spark plug!

Their lawn equipment is commercial grade and comparable to Echo, Stihl, Husqvarna, Redmax and Shindaiwa. Kawasaki produced pro grade handheld OPE for several years before getting out of that business on 12-31-13. Replacement parts are getting scarce, but I recently purchased a replacement OEM trimmer head, air filter and carburetor on eBay to have them on hand when needed.

 

[JHZR2]

I own both. Ive used curved shaft ones since I ran a Ryan branded one back in the late 80s.

I currently have a husquvarna straight shaft “pro” model, and an echo curved at another property. I also have a stihl stick edger.

Frankly, the concept of a “pro” model trimmer is laughable for trimming grass around posts and walls and foundations. Maybe if I was trying to take down jungle plants or tree saplings in large fields. For the typical home trimming, it’s rare that I need to be much off idle. For home trimming, really I would be smarter to use hand clippers, except that I’m too lazy because it’s a lot of linear distance. There’s nothing challenging to cut…

Having owned the straight shaft husquvarna for over 15 years now, I’ve come to realize that the straight shaft is more cumbersome, more annoying, doesn’t let you get in as close to the work.

Id say that a curved shaft with the better (not necessarily bigger or more powerful) pro engines would be the best bet. I’m 6 ft4, so I get it that the curved shaft can cause some bending of my torso, but a strap makes it moot. My arms are long enough.

 

[Ausfahrt]

The Darwin grip mentioned in this thread is new to me. I'm a tall guy and I have a hard time using my trimmer more than 15 minutes at a time because I'm hunched over with a bad back. I have the bicycle bars but I am intrigued by the Darwin bar.

Are there any tall guys out there that have used both and can provide a comparison?