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Bill Lewis
05-02-2005, 9:37 AM
Well I spent the better part of Sunday trying to get my 12 year old trimmer up an running. It would run, just not very well, or consistant. I went through all the carb adjustments, as I have done in the past. The manual also recomended cleaning the carbon from the exhaust port. To make a long story short I tore the thing apart after noticing significant scoring in the piston/cylinder. I found it also had a collpsed (2nd) ring.

So I go to the web to see what it would cost to do a poor mans rebuild, either some new rings, or new piston and rings, or a piston/cylinder kit. Here's what I found:

A piston/rings kit is $50
A piston/cylinder kit is $127
A complete short block which includes piston/cylinder and bottom end is only $110!

I went to HD, got another F&F 10% coupon and bought a new trimmer. I might get a short block for the old one, then I'll have two trimmers, but that would mean I would have to use one of them.;)

Norman Hitt
05-03-2005, 2:20 AM
Sounds like my lawnmower experience about three yrs ago. My 23 or 24 year old John Deere lawnmower motor finally gave up the Ghost and when I priced out repair parts to rebuild the motor, it was more expensive than buying a new motor, and the "new motor", was almost as expensive as a whole new John Deere lawn mower, so I bought a new lawn mower. I can tell that this mower is not going to last nearly as long as the old one, as the new Non Rust, Plastic gas tank has already developed a crack in it and had to be replaced as well as a new coil.

I hate the new Planned Obsolescence mind set in almost everything manufactured these days. I've had the same experience with a chain saw, and now have the same situation with a line trimmer. The Mark Up on Parts these days has got to be about 1,000%.

Bill Lewis
05-03-2005, 6:14 AM
You're right, the markup on parts is pretty crazy, but what I found even crazier was the fact that the short block was $17 less than just the piston/cylinder kit. The short block is basically the whole engine less the ignition, and carb. Someone wasn't doing their homework.

I'm still debating whether or not I'll fix it. A new one was $270 (minus the 10% F&F coupon). I may try the ultra cheap method of cleaning up the piston and cylinder, and stuffing some new rings in it, and see what happens.

Norman Hitt
05-04-2005, 2:09 AM
You're right, the markup on parts is pretty crazy, but what I found even crazier was the fact that the short block was $17 less than just the piston/cylinder kit. The short block is basically the whole engine less the ignition, and carb. Someone wasn't doing their homework.

I'm still debating whether or not I'll fix it. A new one was $270 (minus the 10% F&F coupon). I may try the ultra cheap method of cleaning up the piston and cylinder, and stuffing some new rings in it, and see what happens.


Bill, does the short block come with a "Head" on it? The head on mine was bad also. I know on car engines, the short block doesn't, (or didn't used to) come with heads. A "Long block" (for automobiles), did come with the head or heads.

Bill Lewis
05-04-2005, 7:38 AM
Norman,

Well since this is a 2 stroke motor, there really isn't a head with valves like you'd find in a 4-cycle motor. The head is integral to the cylinder. So it comes with everything but the ignition, and carburator parts. I suppose a better term would be "long block", but short block is the Echo description.