2-cycle engines are the enemy!

[Wingshooter]

...
The reduction in emissions is worth it though, especially on tiny engines that are horribly polluting.

No, sorry, it's not. If I want to go green, I'll use an ax Edited August 5, 2014 by Batman

[Wingshooter]

Hah, yeah. My chainsaw isn't polluting at all sitting in bits in my shed. Meanwhile I have branches hanging down in the yard :rolleyes:
 
How much emissions from the 5 gallons of bad gas I had to get rid of a while back also?
 
How much emissions from the manufacture of the carb cleaner, gasket set and fuel lines I'll need to get it all running again?
 
How much emissions from the long motorcycle ride I'll need to take to clear my head of the anger caused by government stupidity?

Exactly! There's also the Tannerite ignited Bon fire that used to be a weedeater if the thing gets too unruly ;)

[Lowpower]

Who ever heard of bad gas? I thought old gas was used for weed control. Since the money's already spent why waste it?

Edited August 5, 2014 by Lowpower

[Peace]

Who ever heard of bad gas? I thought old gas was used for weed control. Since the money's already spent why waste it?

Some folks say dumping those (refined) hydrocarbons in your soil is a really bad idea.... ...if you ever want your soil to work for you again.

[peejman]

Yeah, wasn't gonna use that term, figured no one would understand it. The reduction in emissions is worth it though, especially on tiny engines that are horribly polluting.

 

 

No, clearly it's not worth it.  Especially not when I think about the hundreds of dollars and many, many hours I've spent trying to fix the damage its caused to my motorcycle.  And now the carb in one of my mowers is dying. 

 

Only the government would be so naive as to think adding some miracle snake oil to fuel (that itself is horribly inefficient to produce) would fix anything. 

[Ugly]

No, sorry, it's not. If I want to go green, I'll use an ax

Not to mention all of the emissions created making ethanol in the USA, it causes more than it saves! Must people add more chemicals to this crap fuel, wonder how good that is for the environment? I've gotta guess that twice as much bad fuel is dumped because of this wonderful gov mandate!

If we had sugar cane it would make sense.

[tnguy]

No, sorry, it's not. If I want to go green, I'll use an ax

 

I actually used one of these on a branch I needed out of the way this weekend.

 

 

I still want my chainsaw working.

Edited August 5, 2014 by tnguy

[Guest ab28]

All these posts make me so glad I'm not a homeowner, all the random crap you guys have to deal with. I'd rather spend my time living and doing what I like, and letting the apartment owners mow the grass and fix anything that goes wrong. It's not worth my time, though I'm very handy with tools and don't mind fixing things.

 

I'm a minimalist nomad, though. Everything I own I can fit in my hiking pack, so I can move out in 10 mins if I wanted. I gotta remain mobile after I graduate, as jobs for my degree might require that I move several states away. I've always felt that owning things chains me down, and I hate spending my life maintaining all the stuff I would own, I'd rather just live.

 

As for other options, there are several good ones. I grew up doing all the yardwork at home, so a lightweight electrical weedeater is good. Reel mowers don't use gas, and there are some pretty good ones out there. A sharp pruning saw with a 10" blade works good for trimming limbs. There are plenty of cheap, good options that aren't finicky like 2 cycle engines.

Edited August 5, 2014 by ab28

[Ugly]

Cutting my own property is therapeutic for me :) I get to see more wildlife too

[Wingshooter]

I actually used one of these on a branch I needed out of the way this weekend.
 

 
I still want my chainsaw working.

That's a serious jump rope, lol.

I actually have on of those in my camping gear. I've never used it though. Does it work pretty good?

[tnguy]

Well, I got it for my camping gear and used it last time out. Works OK, uses some muscles you probably don't use too often so expect some soreness and the straps gave me blisters so gloves are probably a good idea.

 

I was told not to get the shortest one and didn't and got the medium one but I think the longer one might have been even better.

Edited August 5, 2014 by tnguy

[tnguy]

All these posts make me so glad I'm not a homeowner, all the random crap you guys have to deal with. I'd rather spend my time living and doing what I like, and letting the apartment owners mow the grass and fix anything that goes wrong. It's not worth my time, though I'm very handy with tools and don't mind fixing things.

 

I'm a minimalist nomad, though. Everything I own I can fit in my hiking pack, so I can move out in 10 mins if I wanted. I gotta remain mobile after I graduate, as jobs for my degree might require that I move several states away. I've always felt that owning things chains me down, and I hate spending my life maintaining all the stuff I would own, I'd rather just live.

 

As for other options, there are several good ones. I grew up doing all the yardwork at home, so a lightweight electrical weedeater is good. Reel mowers don't use gas, and there are some pretty good ones out there. A sharp pruning saw with a 10" blade works good for trimming limbs. There are plenty of cheap, good options that aren't finicky like 2 cycle engines.

 

Swings and roundabouts. Having been a renter before, I couldn't do that long term. I actually am not fond of yard work but if it were that much of an issue, I could hire someone to do it for not too much coin (though I think prices are generally high for what is basically walking around a yard).

 

The hobbies I like to do tend to involve owning stuff too. You can't fit a table saw or an engine hoist in a backpack.

Edited August 5, 2014 by tnguy

[Guest ab28]

Swings and roundabouts. Having been a renter before, I couldn't do that long term. I actually am not fond of yard work but if it were that much of an issue, I could hire someone to do it for not too much coin (though I think prices are generally high for what is basically walking around a yard).

 

The hobbies I like to do tend to involve owning stuff too. You can't fit a table saw or an engine hoist in a backpack.

That's true, one reason I have hobbies that don't involve owning much, like hiking, long walks, working out, reading(library, free books), ect.

 

Although, you gotta own a lot of stuff to be a homeowner, and it's justified. Otherwise you go broke paying others to fix stuff you can do yourself. The renting thing doesn't bother me, as you never truly own anything anyways. 

[glowdotGlock]

Shindaiwa backpack blower and Robin trimmer. No problems 7+ years. Love them.

[QuietDan]

You may want to try this starting sequence.......

 

1. Full choke, full throttle. Pull it till it burps. 

2. Immediately go to 1/2 choke, full throttle. Pull it till it starts.

3. Immediately take choke off and rev it and you're good to go.

 

Normally it's about 3-4 pulls before I have to go to 1/2 choke. then a couple a more and it's running and if yours has 

the lil thumb pump on top of the carb I pump mine around 10X before I begin the start sequence.

 

Crazy as it sounds over the past 25 or so years I've had 3 of the things and every single one of them started that way.

 

Hope it helps ya.

Run them till they're out of gas at the end of the season.

 

Ensure you've got fresh gas at the beginning of the season.

 

I also use "Stabil" gas additive in my 5 gallon gas can.

 

Mine  won't start unless I start the whole sequence by pumping the carb's rubber gas bulb ten times. There's a little pictogram on my trimmer calling out the process with the pulls and the choke.

[peejman]

All these posts make me so glad I'm not a homeowner, all the random crap you guys have to deal with. I'd rather spend my time living and doing what I like, and letting the apartment owners mow the grass and fix anything that goes wrong. It's not worth my time, though I'm very handy with tools and don't mind fixing things.

 

I'm a minimalist nomad, though. Everything I own I can fit in my hiking pack, so I can move out in 10 mins if I wanted. I gotta remain mobile after I graduate, as jobs for my degree might require that I move several states away. I've always felt that owning things chains me down, and I hate spending my life maintaining all the stuff I would own, I'd rather just live.

 

As for other options, there are several good ones. I grew up doing all the yardwork at home, so a lightweight electrical weedeater is good. Reel mowers don't use gas, and there are some pretty good ones out there. A sharp pruning saw with a 10" blade works good for trimming limbs. There are plenty of cheap, good options that aren't finicky like 2 cycle engines.

 

 

Having gone from apt to house, back to apt, and back to house again...  Houses are expensive but apt's suck.  The rent in a decent apt is the same or more than my mortgage payment. 

 

And 2 cycle engines weren't nearly so finicky before ethanol.  My chainsaw is 30 years old and still runs fine. 

[tnguy]

That's true, one reason I have hobbies that don't involve owning much, like hiking, long walks, working out, reading(library, free books), ect.
 
Although, you gotta own a lot of stuff to be a homeowner, and it's justified. Otherwise you go broke paying others to fix stuff you can do yourself. The renting thing doesn't bother me, as you never truly own anything anyways.

It's not so much the owning as being able to do what you like with the place you live. If I need an ethernet cable between the bedroom and the spare room, I bust out the drill. I could never live somewhere with a HOA for similar reasons. I understand the mentality that would make renting attractive though, I just don't subscribe to it personally.

[Mike.357]

I see nothing attractive about renting.   Owning ( or paying a mortgage) provides stability. Stability is comforting.

[Guest ab28]

I see nothing attractive about renting.   Owning ( or paying a mortgage) provides stability. Stability is comforting.

There is no stability, it's an illusion. You don't truly "own" a house. Renting provides me a place to sleep at night. To be honest, I've slept under bridges and in my tent, and it really doesn't matter to me, other than a comfort factor and not having to worry about having to kill a crackhead that is trying to rob me while I sleep. 

 

Stability is not comforting to me, mobility is far more important. I like to travel, and wouldn't want to be trapped somewhere, stuck in a house. Most people view it as stability, I view it as being trapped by possessions. Maybe it's my childhood, both my parents were hoarders, and bedrooms were stacked to the ceiling with junk, we had 6 lawnmowers and only 2 ran. 

 

I might meet a great woman one day, settle down, own a house, have kids. I leave this option open, but for now, I prefer keeping my possessions to a minimum.

 

My statement wasn't a judgement on homeowners, just showing why I preferred to rent. I've always found rent to be excessively high wherever I lived. I'd prefer to pay no more than about $350 a month for rent, harder to find places at that reasonable level any more.

[tnguy]

That's one thing about the housing market shakeout. Suddenly a lot of people are renters who weren't planning on it. That drives rental costs up while the banks are keeping a bunch of houses sitting empty. Your tax dollars at work...

 

Y'know, not trying to convince you or anything but a lot of home chores are not as bad as all that. When I've heard of the trauma and time some people have gone through to get their landlord to, say, fix a water heater, it sounds like a lot of bother. When mine went out, it was 30 minutes of trying to fix it then down to Lowes, new water heater in within the hour, hot water 15 minutes later. And it was one I picked out to suit my needs, not the cheapest one on the rack.

 

I've even heard of people who'll wait for the landlord to turn up to replace a 20c washer to fix a leaking faucet. Just seems odd to me. Though obviously there are a range of mentalities and landlords range from good to bad.

 

If anything, the vehicles are more of a time killer than the house is.

Edited August 6, 2014 by tnguy

[btq96r]

I see nothing attractive about renting.   Owning ( or paying a mortgage) provides stability. Stability is comforting.

 

I've rented all my life.  I've never been anywhere in the U.S. for longer than a year and a half my adult life.  I was coming and going a lot on deployments, then doing contract work overseas, now I'm a college student and who knows where I'll be after I finish.  I never had a good situation to buy a house, so renting works for me perfectly.

 

It's also refreshing to not be tied to a property financially.  I had the option to rent a place, or just buy a small apartment/townhouse outright when I moved here.  I chose to rent, so I can not be locked into an area and also to have that money on hand for if/when there is an emergency or it's time to go.  I wouldn't have that flexibility with a mortgage or having paid cash for a place and decimated my savings.

 

 

When I have some certainty I'll be in an area for a good bit, I'll buy.  But until then, renting is the way to go for flexibility.

 

 

Y'know, not trying to convince you or anything but a lot of home chores are not as bad as all that. When I've heard of the trauma and time some people have gone through to get their landlord to, say, fix a water heater, it sounds like a lot of bother. When mine went out, it was 30 minutes of trying to fix it then down to Lowes, new water heater in within the hour, hot water 15 minutes later. And it was one I picked out to suit my needs, not the cheapest one on the rack.

 

I've even heard of people who'll wait for the landlord to turn up to replace a 20c washer to fix a leaking faucet. Just seems odd to me. Though obviously there are a range of mentalities and landlords range from good to bad.

 

 

For small stuff like the leaky faucet, I'll handle it.  But big items that have a hefty price tag or are in areas I'm not damn sure I can handle, like a water heater or any electrical work, I make the landlord take care of it.  I don't want to be liable for anything and I know enough to know what I don't know about home repair and upkeep.  If they take care of it and screw up, I won't get a bill, but if I try it and screw up, that's coming out of my pocket.

 

There is also the principle about them earn the overhead costs they build into my rent.  If I'm paying for the on-call services of the landlord's repairman, I'm going to use him when needs arise.

[tnguy]

You should, of course. I'm just saying that often it's just easier to take care of something and that wanting to get value from the overhead is a trap in itself.

Course, I'm always the one puzzled when people think I'm brave to do my own brakes. They'd rather trust the minimum wage meth-head with a hangover they don't from Adam at their local place I guess :)

[Mike.357]

boy did this get off topic, LOL

 

 Not two cycle, but rather four.  I needed to use the Scrambler yesterday to move OS's little boat.  Have not run it since April or May I guess.   I have let it sit longer than that before and it will start easy enough.  But not yesterday.   Grrrr.....

 

Ended up pulling the body off of it to make access to the spark plug easier.  Pulled the plug and wire brushed it to like new again.  Wish I had an extra on hand to just swap out.  Making a mental note to pick one up for next time.   But cleaning it up seemed to do the trick as I got it started  Took a lot of cranking but it ran fine.

 

Kinda funny, but the Polaris method of removing the plug does not involve removing the body.  You supposedly can stick the plug socket and a bar from their tool kit through this little opening above the frame and below the gas tank and remove the plug.  I dunno how that is supposed to work.  I can't get my hand in there without scrapping skin off then I find there is not enough space to move the tool enough to start unthreading the plug.   It must be possible but no way for me.  Much easier to spend ten minutes removing the body and un-bolting the gas tank.  Do that and the plug is there for the taking.

 

Took the opportunity to change the oil and filter too.  Now I am out of excuses to not take a ride on it.

Edited August 7, 2014 by Mike.357

[Guest Broomhead]

I am NOT trying to sell it here and circumvent the Benefactor rules, but I am thinking of giving my non-working 31cc heavy-duty Poulon Pro trimmer away if some here wants to try to fix it or use it for parts.