Rewinding string trimmer spools

[pop-pop]

I have previously tried rewinding string trimmer spools using my variable speed lathe and also my Nova DP. Neither would rotate slowly enough for good control of the layering. Today, I made an adapter for my old faithful egg-beater drill. The drill’s handle was clamped in my tall vise.

Simply an axle cut from a 5/16-18 bolt, a washer, a wing nut, and a turned maple bushing.

I rewound four spools and it earned my coveted “worth a sh*t” rating.

 

[Sealeveler]

Great idea. I believe I could use my 1/2 inch vs drill
held in a vice would work on the double line Stihl spool.

 

[pop-pop]

Great idea. I believe I could use my 1/2 inch vs drill
held in a vice would work on the double line Stihl spool.

There is a plus for hand cranking. It’s easier to back up a bit or start over when the layering goes awry.

 

[ChemE75]

I have a stupid ryobi I thought would have died before I left FL - it was good enough for the tiny lawn we had and since it’s still going, has worked ok for current needs. It has a good idea but poorly designed thread through/twist in place spool that invariably fails to thread through without disassembly, fiddling around with it to get back together without binding somewhere then twisting to reel in the line. However, I may opt for trying this to better control the layering. Nearly everytime the twisting to pull the line into the spool sight unseen results in overlaps that hinder the auto feed so requires more fiddling to free up the line to feed with the bump head.

 

[Martin Roper]

I had an 18v Ryobi for years and suffered through the rewinding process. It died a couple weeks ago and I was happy to throw it in the trash. I went out and bought a 56v EGO which has an auto winding feature.

 

[ChemE75]

I had an 18v Ryobi for years and suffered through the rewinding process. It died a couple weeks ago and I was happy to throw it in the trash. I went out and bought a 56v EGO which has an auto winding feature.

Ryobi got me by in FL - was renting a house when the owner’s guy got sick and quit the biz. So he asked if I’d do it for rent credit - I said sure. I left my Stihl, Deere and Husky yard equip with my daughter in Maine since house had about an acre to mow. But the FL lots were tiny so figured to avoid the oil and gas and go electric. I only kept the hedge trimmer and string trimmer and figure to use it til it craps out. I got an ego blower first thing since we moved in Nov and the leaves were piling up, got a self propelled mower next and other than a frustrating intermittent drive failure this spring that eventually got repaired under warranty, it’s been a decent machine. When trimmer dies, I’ll probably go with ego.

 

[Dodad]

I had an 18v Ryobi for years and suffered through the rewinding process. It died a couple weeks ago and I was happy to throw it in the trash. I went out and bought a 56v EGO which has an auto winding feature.

I agree with Martin, the EGO autowinding feature is great!

 

[JNCarr]

As an engineer, I find it hard to recommend many products due to engineering flaws ("do these guys ever try to use their own product?").
However - we own the EGO lawn mower, edge trimmer and blower and they are very well designed. I highly recommend this brand.
They're not the cheapest on the market, but as woodworkers we all know that the green plastic costs more .