Thanks for Watching! Find a link to all of my "Must Have", Favorite Tools HERE!! www.amazon.com/shop/chickanic?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_aipsfshop_aipsfchickanic_9ERPFPBNGQ924P8NS63B
"Why am I calling them out when I've been pushing their products for so many years?" Because you are an honest person that calls out what they believe is the truth. Great catch, Bre. And great vid.
IMHO to save the manufacturer money, the Speed Feed 500 is made from the finest "Chinesium" available anywhere !! These big machines produce big torque (and heat). The design does little to mitigate the heat transfer within the head thus "welding" the trimmer line and internals. Junior Engineers. This would've never happened with the original Shindaiwa design and manufacturing group before the merger.
@@robkocol5664The old Shindaiwa North American headquarters was up the road ,we would do some of the service schools their. The testing they did on stuff was amazing. I still have a four mix test Mule. Of course sthil turned that into chineesium garbage.
@@MUUKOW3Shindaiwa's old byline was "First to start, Last to quit." Funny how I see all these Stihl guys, pulling and pulling to get their equipment started. Then there's me with my old school, Japanese made, Shindaiwa equipment, one pull and I'm gone!
@@robkocol5664 Echo acquired & ruined Shindaiwa...😪 Now it's "Last to start First to quit"...😂 Stihl not worth it...🙃Husqvarna acquired Redmax & ruined them, Hitachi acquired Tanaka & ruined them...😪. If buying new Maruyama is currently the best option with a 5 year warranty & Made In Japan.
I am a former employee of The Dow Chemical Company. It could be the type of plastic being used. It needs to be a vulcanizable plastic. Which means the molecules have been cross-linked. You can not melt it. Regular plastic that isn’t cross-linked can be melted and re-used over and over.
I have a tendency to agree.. aluminum does have 3 times the thermal expansion rate of steel thusly creating and dispersing heat quickly (think aluminum radiators) and could add to the melting situation....but... the plastic needs to be of the "thermoset" variety. "Thermo plastic" varieties melt and are not the right stuff to use here. I bought some chinese knockoff trimmer heads for my stihl trimmers and although they do work they do not last due to the thermo plastic properties of the housings.....
You are an amazing person. The time you take putting together this videos and the information you freely share is priceless. I wish I was 60 years younger and could apprenticeship for you. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Honda America always says: "This is the first we have heard of it" eventhough several forum members report having had whatever issue documented into their system. Next thing ya know there is an "improvement campaign", or design chanage, or even a recall.
I bought 2 of these Echo 500 heads from an Echo dealer in June 2023. Put one on Echo trimmer and the other on a Sthil trimmer. I thought "finally" I have heads that work well and easy to load. Huge mistake !! I have the identical problem you show on both heads with the line melting and not feeding. I am not a commercial user just homeowner with a large yard. After 2 months of total frustration I removed the 500 heads and reinstalled old heads on both trimmers. I believe Brie you have solved the great mystery. That aluminum part will conduct the heat rapidly. It is also a substantial chunk of metal that will retain the heat and allow it to build in temperature as additional heat constantly travels down from the hot gearhead through the threads into the aluminum piece. There is no way for the heat to dissipate as there is almost zero air flow in this area. Unfortunately this large aluminum piece is a great idea that does not work. Poor engineering and testing by someone. I enjoy your videos so please keep up the great work !!
Bre, it’s good to have Dealers like you who address these issues directly to the Manufacturers. Your the in field Engineer who sees, diagnoses and addresses issues that come through use. No better testing then actual daily use in the field in actual working conditions.
I have the same problems when using certain brands of trimmer line in my Stihl string trimmers. It seem some trimmer lines have a lower melting temperature.
I worked for Echo up in Canada for almost 10 years, and when I started they were an amazing company to deal with, but over the years, their attitudes towards customer complaints has been just wrong. I was a territory manager, which is basically the rep for an area, and the number of times I would bring a complaint up to the office from a dealer, and they would just tell me that the end user must be using it wrong, or anything along those lines was insane. I had a dealer buy almost 600 SF500's from me when they came out, and as soon as they started selling them, they started coming back. This same dealer sold over a thousand heads every year to they end users, and never had any out of ordinary failures. Once they had the SF500's for more than a couple weeks, failure after failure. Called our tech department, let them know they were having issues, and of course it was just user error. So, I quit.. Lol! Great videos, and info! Love your content!
Thanks for letting me know! Do you think they were melting? They really do make you feel like you're crazy for bringing up an issue, but I am confident with my findings. Your confirmation is icing on the cake.
From what the dealer was saying is yes they were melting. It seemed like they used a different type of plastic on the 500's. Customers were using them the exact same as the 450's, but all sudden the top spacers were melting into the top plate of the head. Plus eating up the bottom cap. Just inferior plastic. I could give you stories upon stories of things that mechanics complained to me about, and I'd bring it up the ladder, and it would go no where. Sad really.
In Echos defense they probably figured the metal part instead of plastic would make it better. Turns out it's transferring the heat and melting the line and head.
True, my first thought when I saw it was 'Cool, an upgrade'. Hope they do the honourable thing and make a part revision, and in the meantime, offer replacements and issue an advisory.
Could be, I need to look at my neighbor and I's 400s though. Why? Seeing the same issue on those. Twisting line, and what may be a melting issue. More investigation needed. They can fix this by adding some glass and they may need to change resin to an ASA or GF Nylon. That has GOT to be getting REALLY hot, because the string we used back when I was a landscaper was nylon, and that some high temp material.
Good stuff. I know I get frustrated when a service department tells me they've never heard of some issue yet there are dozens/hundreds/thousands of reports online about it. Consumers shouldn't know more about problems than the service departments. Has to be even more frustrating for you considering the amount of business you get for them. Keep pushing them.
I think you are spot on. That metal part is acting like a heat sink, but instead of dispersing into the air, it is dispersing into the trimmer head. Plus, all that heat will turn the plastic brittle and could cause a total failure and have the head fly off the trimmer. I'll stick with my 400 and 450 heads. I even have replacement tops for them.
Just a casual obeservation here... Is it me, or are you far more relaxed these days than you were at "the shop"???? "But then, 3 weeks later..." 🤣🤣🤣 Thanks again for all that you do for us out here on the frontier! Living my best La Vida Loca here in south eastern Arizona
Filming at my old shop was terrible. I couldn't do it while we were open, because the phone never stopped ringing. So when I filmed there it was after I had already worked all day. I was tired. LOL!
I new it as soon as i saw that big chunk of aluminum what was happening, the gear heads on these units get extremely hot to the point you can`t touch them so it makes sense that that aluminum hub is transferring the heat right in to the plastic housing and line. what`s the old saying, if it ain`t broke don`t fix it! I have the 400 on my units per you advise thanks no problems yet. Great show, thanks again.
Good job Bre. It's amazing how a little change in a design, causes so many headaches. My wife and I watch engineering catastrophes on TV and one little flaw can bring down a bridge or building. Glad you're using your brain as intended. A big thumbs up
Unrelated to this video, but we were just in Cozumel Mexico and I saw a Chickanic sticker at Coconuts on the east side of the island. I don't think my wife wanted to talk about small engine repair while eating lunch overlooking the ocean 🤣I was super excited to see it!
I went and got my husband to watch your video and he sat on the bed watching it on my pc...LOL now he knows you are the best repair person on the web after watching almost ALL your videos!!!!!!!!!!!🤣🤣🤣🤣PS==I look to see you on=Consumer magazine soon👍👍bet your husband now knows what A gem he got when he married you--ha ha ha ha
You like telling the truth and that’s what’s awesome about you chickanic. Keep up the great work as we all love and enjoy your knowledge, wisdom and inspiration 👍👍👍
Good video tyvm...I run the 400s. The caps I never change out... I pull the spring and drill a hole and put a hardens bolt lockwasher and nut through it.. Of course put the spring back in place. Tap the bolt head on the ground instead of the cap... 20 yrs now.. Not a problem.. Thanks chickie...,.
Here is Australia we have the 375 and 450 speedfeed heads. I’ve found a similar issue with contractors using the 450 head and to much line fed out at a time. I have a couple of contractors who will not use a guard and line trimmer to keep the fed line at a certain length, these couple are always the ones coming back with burnt out clutches and melted line in the 450 heads. I’ve found the issue is worse with ones who use the thicker diamond edge line.
I always thought that the cause for melting trimmer string was that I bought cheap or old string. I got my first speed feed head and have never had that problem again. I do have a second head because I wear out the bottom about once a year. Thanks for setting me straight.
Thank you for taking the time and effort to make your outstanding videos. I am a 79 yoa all thumbs dude who never, ever would do anything mechanically repair wise. However, I have a nearly fourty year old Sachs Dolmar chain saw that I have babied all these years that just would not run anymore. I am way too cheap to just throw it away and after being inspired by your presentation(s) I ordered a carbueretor kit and long story short, I FIXED IT MYSELF!!! Thanks again.
Your a great lady. You let people no what is good and what is not so good. You call the company to tell them about what problems are going on with products which more customers should thank you for. I appreciate what you do and love your video,s. Looking forward to your next one. Cheers.
Hey Ya'll! Some of you that have issues with your trimmer line getting stuck in your other types of heads, may have other issues. Check this video out I made about trimmer line! It will help! ruclips.net/video/irFWBYr_2dA/видео.htmlsi=n5ojLm0ylGoXSPA1
The gray line example was super evident on camera...wow! A completely unnecessary redesign that's going to cost them. Who the hell makes these decisions, lol???
Reminds me of FORDS thick film ignition, caused all kinds of accidents, turns out the guy that designed it forgot it would be in an engine compartment exposed too 300 degrees plus
Amazing. I have welded line together after heavy abuse in the Florida heat. But normal wear and tear? That's a problem. I think you are on the money with this one.
You are spot on! I purchased the head for my Echo 3020 about 10 times within 7 months. I just bought a speedfeed 500 two weeks ago and within 3 days encountered these exact problems! Will never buy the speed feed 500 again! Thank for you insightful posts! I thought it just was my line!
I needed a replacement head for my 20+ year old trimmer and took your recommendation and purchased the Speed Feed 400 last fall. I had no issue changing out line on the old head. This new head is stupid easy to replace the line!
Just bought a 3020T w/500 head and having same issue with Echos black diamond and their orange tripper line. I'm a home owner and this happed out the box in the first 30min of running, line stopped feeding, pulled cap and same issue. On RUclips right now to see if anyone else seeing this and found your video! Thanks so much for taking the time to make it and bring this to lite. I'm going to try some bigger string and see if that helps or look for an old 450 head and see if the plastic insert will fit in the 500. If you need anyone to get with you on the issue to bring to Echo reach out.
Love my speed feed 400 ad and will be sure to check the cap before starting up with lawn care this season. I really appreciate all your knowledge and time spent!
Good information Bre. Like the fact that you aren't afraid to let the big guys know of design flaws. I will have to get a speed feed for myself. Stay safe.
I bought a 3020 last year and have had this issue. It was extremely frustrating pulling it apart every few minutes particularly edging. I was trying all kinds of line. Finally has a little better luck with Black diamond and Oregon armid.
Excellent! It's a pro doing the work that companies need to be doing through their quality assurance divisions. Thanks for reporting it to them. Hopefully they will fix the flaws or issue a recall/replacement.
Greg from northern Michigan. Thanks for sharing these personal observations. You are the Voice of Your Customers. Echo should have a (DTAC) Dealer Technical Assistance Center help line to report these types of early failure modes. If they react quickly, the problem can be resolved with minimal cost. If it drags on too long, it becomes allot more expensive to address. Echo needs to wake up here.
Yes! Sometimes I wonder if my friends across the pond will know what I mean. My UK friends make fun of me for using the word "wankered". I guess I'll have to find out what it means over there! 🤣
Whew!! I was worried for a minute there. I just bought a pair of Speed Feed 400's to upgrade a couple of Echo trimmers and I thought at first you were gonna tell me they were junk. Whew!!
If you still have the 500 head, try this: For fun, take a hax saw, cut several slits down through the metal casting, or turn the metal casting on its side and drill a bunch of 1/8 inch holes through the casting, then, put it all together and go out and cut the thickest grass you can find and see of the string melts. I'll bet the string no longer melts together! The heat needs to dissipate out of that big chunk of metal. Try it and let us know if that fixes the problem. I'll bet it does! Lee
With all due respect, I'm sure you are aware that opinions are like a$$h011es? We all have one and they all stink with yours and mine included. This video was all about trimmer heads. so forgive me when I read your random comment about her Corvette and found it slightly odd and very off topic? When the next video is uploaded and the Corvette is red again, we will all know your comment had a major impact and your opinion was well regarded. If not......? If you want to Place any bets? $100 says it's still Aqua without even a red stripe anywhere?
I just purchased the speedfeed 400 a couple days ago,installed it the next day from watching your older videos. I love the ease of rewinding the speedfeed 400. Keep the vids coming to Pittsburgh Pa. Loyal long time subscriber here Chickanic you rock 👩🎤 😊
I have a speed-feed head from a dozen years ago. The line jams up in it too. To keep it working as good as possible, when it starts malfunctioning, I have to disassemble it, soak the parts in hot water with a cleaner solution, and reassemble. Works much better, but NOTHING in in the contemporary world works as advertised.
I had an Echo homeowner grade trimmer a few years ago that was doing the same thing. I thought it was something I was doing wrong when I loaded the trimmer line. I've been slowly transitioning over to Stihl for my power equipment. Unfortunately, built-in obsolescence is the next phase after taxation, inflation, and medication, as a way to continue to bleed us dry.
I had some string issues on a 400 head until I changed the line from some cheep stuff to Maxi-Edge (Arnold). I also upgraded the line from 95 to 105 because I'm mostly chopping brush around wire fences and in the rough where a mower cannot go.. Just got a PAS and the T trimmer attachment has some other head that sucks.. Nice cobwebs in that chop saw carb. Yes, you will stay busy even if you work out of a van.
I remember back in the days it was "If it's not broke, don't fix it". There's no reason for these companies to change designs unless it means more money in someone's pocket. Don't get me wrong I love new and "improved" equipment, but it doesn't always mean it's better.
Love seeing you with the Bug. I've got a '63 in the same color in my garage - it has been in the family since my dad bought it new off the showroom floor. Great video - love the energy!
Thans for the info. I still need to get one for my Ryobi. Best part of this video was around the 10:00 mark with the upside down dog in the background.
4:32 That exactly what my Echo 225 Non Speed Head would do, very frustrating, my unit was built in 2012 isch, just prior to the speed head coming out, old stock, I am still mad that the sales rep could have sold me the newer model with the speed head, but NO old stock for the homeowner. I did finally replace when I started to watch videos to educated myself.
I had this same problem a few years ago and couldn't figure out why it was melted, well now I know!!! Thanks for sharing this with us. Have a good one and May God bless y'all, Bo
Just looking at the new design of the 500 compared to the 450 you know that little square hole on top is going to round out. Thanks for posting this video and contacting Echo about this!
Dang, girl, you’re a wealth of important info! It’s maddening when even a highly experienced dealer/mechanic can’t get the attention of the engineering department, being shuffled on through without any desire to inquire further. Hopefully this video will “raise awareness” with Echo. There’s obviously a problem with the nee design, and I’m strongly inclined to say you’re explanation is the cause. Keep at ‘em! 👍 Btw, is that a 1973 Beetle I saw? I recognize the round tail lights from the later gen, as I had a 73 which I loved back in the day.
I actually like the 400 I have on my trimmers, I have one for my Honda trimmer that a previous family member had before he died and the OEM Honda one kept breaking on him so I put a speed feed 400 on it, works incredibly well and I have an Echo PAS-2620 that came with one of these heads as well. It's sad to hear they went with a metal piece causing the problems. I would say if you still have the 450s that yeah, hold as much line but doesn't turn the thing into a grilled cheese sandwich then maybe swap them out for the 450s. I mean, you could also let your future customers of the 3020 that this may be an issue and suggest selling them the 450s. I had heard that Echo had a larger engine but they haven't made it to Canada yet. That being said, my 2620 seems to be more than enough power to run a string trimmer.
I'm curious to know where the heat is coming from. If from the bearing housing the smaller 450 brass insert will heat up quicker. If from the head then I would have thought the larger aluminium insert would help conduct it away to the bearing housing.
When I worked as an engineer in another industry, I started inspecting installation of my projects. Found ways my designs could be improved. Process was changed to add an inspector position. Troubles and costs increased. Who would have thought?
Glad my little Echo 225 uses the 400 head, love the speed feed head. By the way my 225 is a little beast for its size. Heck I use it clear ditches full of vines, briars and knee high grass along the road.
Every time you call the manufacturer about a problem, they will say its never been a problem! But if you look at the returns and warranty you will find a bunch with the problem!!!
Fantastic, thank you! You've just sorted my problem with my Bosch home use trimmer, 12yrs old, just replaced the head last summer and having same issues, noticed centre stem holding real is brass where old one was plastic! Line keeps getting stuck, clearly heating up line which is why it's getting stuck. Even thought it was the way I was winding the line on despite having done it for 12yrs without problems so bought a branded pre-wound real, did the same thing, got stuck. As you say, someone has changed the designs not understanding the principles of the original. Great work!! Thank you!
Just got a brand new Shindaiwa C242 brush cutter with the Speed feed head. Haven't used it yet, but we'll see how it goes. I pretty much decided to not bother rebuilding my 25 year old Stihl FS85.
Thanks for Watching! Find a link to all of my "Must Have", Favorite Tools HERE!! www.amazon.com/shop/chickanic?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_aipsfshop_aipsfchickanic_9ERPFPBNGQ924P8NS63B
"Why am I calling them out when I've been pushing their products for so many years?"
Because you are an honest person that calls out what they believe is the truth. Great catch, Bre. And great vid.
She tells it like it is and doesn’t take any shit eather
Chickanic ‘Making Trimmers Great Again”
No pun intended 😂
@@scooter6334 I just picked up a 400 for my Stihl. I may install it this week, so I'll be making my trimmer great again too.
Bree you're the greatest consumer adviser in the country.
Aw! Thanks!
IMHO to save the manufacturer money, the Speed Feed 500 is made from the finest "Chinesium" available anywhere !!
These big machines produce big torque (and heat). The design does little to mitigate the heat transfer within the head thus "welding" the trimmer line and internals. Junior Engineers. This would've never happened with the original Shindaiwa design and manufacturing group before the merger.
@@robkocol5664The old Shindaiwa North American headquarters was up the road ,we would do some of the service schools their. The testing they did on stuff was amazing. I still have a four mix test Mule. Of course sthil turned that into chineesium garbage.
@@MUUKOW3Shindaiwa's old byline was "First to start, Last to quit." Funny how I see all these Stihl guys, pulling and pulling to get their equipment started. Then there's me with my old school, Japanese made, Shindaiwa equipment, one pull and I'm gone!
@@robkocol5664 Echo acquired & ruined Shindaiwa...😪 Now it's "Last to start First to quit"...😂 Stihl not worth it...🙃Husqvarna acquired Redmax & ruined them, Hitachi acquired Tanaka & ruined them...😪. If buying new Maruyama is currently the best option with a 5 year warranty & Made In Japan.
I am a former employee of The Dow Chemical Company. It could be the type of plastic being used. It needs to be a vulcanizable plastic. Which means the molecules have been cross-linked. You can not melt it. Regular plastic that isn’t cross-linked can be melted and re-used over and over.
I have a tendency to agree.. aluminum does have 3 times the thermal expansion rate of steel thusly creating and dispersing heat quickly (think aluminum radiators) and could add to the melting situation....but... the plastic needs to be of the "thermoset" variety. "Thermo plastic" varieties melt and are not the right stuff to use here. I bought some chinese knockoff trimmer heads for my stihl trimmers and although they do work they do not last due to the thermo plastic properties of the housings.....
"Haven't heard that before." is the standard customer service reply to everything!
And worst part is sometimes it really is the truth as well.
They are great at playing stupid and dumb games
Hate talking to them period 😢
You are an amazing person. The time you take putting together this videos and the information you freely share is priceless.
I wish I was 60 years younger and could apprenticeship for you.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Wow, thank you!
Honda America always says: "This is the first we have heard of it" eventhough several forum members report having had whatever issue documented into their system. Next thing ya know there is an "improvement campaign", or design chanage, or even a recall.
Or even a recall.
I bought 2 of these Echo 500 heads from an Echo dealer in June 2023. Put one on Echo trimmer and the other on a Sthil trimmer. I thought "finally" I have heads that work well and easy to load. Huge mistake !! I have the identical problem you show on both heads with the line melting and not feeding. I am not a commercial user just homeowner with a large yard. After 2 months of total frustration I removed the 500 heads and reinstalled old heads on both trimmers. I believe Brie you have solved the great mystery. That aluminum part will conduct the heat rapidly. It is also a substantial chunk of metal that will retain the heat and allow it to build in temperature as additional heat constantly travels down from the hot gearhead through the threads into the aluminum piece. There is no way for the heat to dissipate as there is almost zero air flow in this area. Unfortunately this large aluminum piece is a great idea that does not work. Poor engineering and testing by someone. I enjoy your videos so please keep up the great work !!
Bre, it’s good to have Dealers like you who address these issues directly to the Manufacturers. Your the in field Engineer who sees, diagnoses and addresses issues that come through use. No better testing then actual daily use in the field in actual working conditions.
I have the same problems when using certain brands of trimmer line in my Stihl string trimmers. It seem some trimmer lines have a lower melting temperature.
Wow what a story. Thanks for posting.
They should be thankful that you bring these issues to them.
I worked for Echo up in Canada for almost 10 years, and when I started they were an amazing company to deal with, but over the years, their attitudes towards customer complaints has been just wrong. I was a territory manager, which is basically the rep for an area, and the number of times I would bring a complaint up to the office from a dealer, and they would just tell me that the end user must be using it wrong, or anything along those lines was insane. I had a dealer buy almost 600 SF500's from me when they came out, and as soon as they started selling them, they started coming back. This same dealer sold over a thousand heads every year to they end users, and never had any out of ordinary failures. Once they had the SF500's for more than a couple weeks, failure after failure. Called our tech department, let them know they were having issues, and of course it was just user error. So, I quit.. Lol! Great videos, and info! Love your content!
Thanks for letting me know! Do you think they were melting? They really do make you feel like you're crazy for bringing up an issue, but I am confident with my findings. Your confirmation is icing on the cake.
From what the dealer was saying is yes they were melting. It seemed like they used a different type of plastic on the 500's. Customers were using them the exact same as the 450's, but all sudden the top spacers were melting into the top plate of the head. Plus eating up the bottom cap. Just inferior plastic.
I could give you stories upon stories of things that mechanics complained to me about, and I'd bring it up the ladder, and it would go no where. Sad really.
I love my 450 heads thanks for the heads up on the 500's.
Thanks for standing up for your customers !
In Echos defense they probably figured the metal part instead of plastic would make it better. Turns out it's transferring the heat and melting the line and head.
Yeah, you can't say they are cheapening out and substituting metal with plastic. Just the opposite.
Although, it makes sense since the head's acting like a heat sink for the hot gearbox.
True, my first thought when I saw it was 'Cool, an upgrade'. Hope they do the honourable thing and make a part revision, and in the meantime, offer replacements and issue an advisory.
That's why product testing is a thing... They didn't run it through proper testing. Or they did and just didn't care...
Could be, I need to look at my neighbor and I's 400s though. Why? Seeing the same issue on those. Twisting line, and what may be a melting issue. More investigation needed.
They can fix this by adding some glass and they may need to change resin to an ASA or GF Nylon. That has GOT to be getting REALLY hot, because the string we used back when I was a landscaper was nylon, and that some high temp material.
Good stuff. I know I get frustrated when a service department tells me they've never heard of some issue yet there are dozens/hundreds/thousands of reports online about it. Consumers shouldn't know more about problems than the service departments. Has to be even more frustrating for you considering the amount of business you get for them. Keep pushing them.
I think you are dead on with your assessment of the trimmer head problem Bre'. You're amazing ❤👍
I think you are spot on. That metal part is acting like a heat sink, but instead of dispersing into the air, it is dispersing into the trimmer head. Plus, all that heat will turn the plastic brittle and could cause a total failure and have the head fly off the trimmer. I'll stick with my 400 and 450 heads. I even have replacement tops for them.
Just a casual obeservation here... Is it me, or are you far more relaxed these days than you were at "the shop"????
"But then, 3 weeks later..." 🤣🤣🤣
Thanks again for all that you do for us out here on the frontier!
Living my best La Vida Loca here in south eastern Arizona
Filming at my old shop was terrible. I couldn't do it while we were open, because the phone never stopped ringing. So when I filmed there it was after I had already worked all day. I was tired. LOL!
@@ChickanicMakes perfect sense!
I new it as soon as i saw that big chunk of aluminum what was happening, the gear heads on these units get extremely hot to the point you can`t touch them so it makes sense that
that aluminum hub is transferring the heat right in to the plastic housing and line. what`s the old saying, if it ain`t broke don`t fix it! I have the 400 on my units per you advise thanks
no problems yet. Great show, thanks again.
Gosh... So glad Chic offers small machine news to think about. Luv her style..
Good job Bre. It's amazing how a little change in a design, causes so many headaches. My wife and I watch engineering catastrophes on TV and one little flaw can bring down a bridge or building. Glad you're using your brain as intended. A big thumbs up
So "LUCKY" to see this on St. Patricks Day!! Very good info and explained and filmed so well!!! Thank you, again!!! Happy 🍀Day to you, Ron & Family!!
Thanks Darlin'! Hope your day rocks!
Unrelated to this video, but we were just in Cozumel Mexico and I saw a Chickanic sticker at Coconuts on the east side of the island. I don't think my wife wanted to talk about small engine repair while eating lunch overlooking the ocean 🤣I was super excited to see it!
Too cool! I put it there when we went over Thanksgiving! Thanks for letting me know!
This happens with steihl too. Had this issue for years. Just thought it was life. Pain in the ass.
Stihl uses the echo head
You're Awesome.....great information......Why do they redesign something that is already working ...engineers can't leave good stuff alone..
I went and got my husband to watch your video and he sat on the bed watching it on my pc...LOL now he knows you are the best repair person on the web after watching almost ALL your videos!!!!!!!!!!!🤣🤣🤣🤣PS==I look to see you on=Consumer magazine soon👍👍bet your husband now knows what A gem he got when he married you--ha ha ha ha
You like telling the truth and that’s what’s awesome about you chickanic. Keep up the great work as we all love and enjoy your knowledge, wisdom and inspiration 👍👍👍
More people like yourself are needed!
Good video tyvm...I run the 400s. The caps I never change out... I pull the spring and drill a hole and put a hardens bolt lockwasher and nut through it.. Of course put the spring back in place. Tap the bolt head on the ground instead of the cap... 20 yrs now.. Not a problem.. Thanks chickie...,.
Here is Australia we have the 375 and 450 speedfeed heads. I’ve found a similar issue with contractors using the 450 head and to much line fed out at a time. I have a couple of contractors who will not use a guard and line trimmer to keep the fed line at a certain length, these couple are always the ones coming back with burnt out clutches and melted line in the 450 heads. I’ve found the issue is worse with ones who use the thicker diamond edge line.
I always thought that the cause for melting trimmer string was that I bought cheap or old string. I got my first speed feed head and have never had that problem again. I do have a second head because I wear out the bottom about once a year. Thanks for setting me straight.
Thank you for taking the time and effort to make your outstanding videos. I am a 79 yoa all thumbs dude who never, ever would do anything mechanically repair wise. However, I have a nearly fourty year old Sachs Dolmar chain saw that I have babied all these years that just would not run anymore. I am way too cheap to just throw it away and after being inspired by your presentation(s) I ordered a carbueretor kit and long story short, I FIXED IT MYSELF!!! Thanks again.
I like the heads from the early/ mid eighties. Worked flawlessly for me and loading was easy, at least for me.
Your a great lady. You let people no what is good and what is not so good. You call the company to tell them about what problems are going on with products which more customers should thank you for. I appreciate what you do and love your video,s. Looking forward to your next one. Cheers.
Hey Ya'll! Some of you that have issues with your trimmer line getting stuck in your other types of heads, may have other issues. Check this video out I made about trimmer line! It will help! ruclips.net/video/irFWBYr_2dA/видео.htmlsi=n5ojLm0ylGoXSPA1
@ScottRing-lg4sfbraided steel rigging cable works great for that machine gun effect 😂
@ScottRing-lg4sf primacord…to really get a bang out of it.🤪
@ScottRing-lg4sf yeah probably, but wiseguys gotta be wiseguys.
🤣@ScottRing-lg4sf You know I'm the moderator. 😂
The gray line example was super evident on camera...wow! A completely unnecessary redesign that's going to cost them. Who the hell makes these decisions, lol???
Reminds me of FORDS thick film ignition, caused all kinds of accidents, turns out the guy that designed it forgot it would be in an engine compartment exposed too 300 degrees plus
Amazing. I have welded line together after heavy abuse in the Florida heat. But normal wear and tear? That's a problem. I think you are on the money with this one.
You are spot on! I purchased the head for my Echo 3020 about 10 times within 7 months. I just bought a speedfeed 500 two weeks ago and within 3 days encountered these exact problems! Will never buy the speed feed 500 again! Thank for you insightful posts! I thought it just was my line!
I needed a replacement head for my 20+ year old trimmer and took your recommendation and purchased the Speed Feed 400 last fall. I had no issue changing out line on the old head. This new head is stupid easy to replace the line!
Great job girl! I often wonder, how some of these manufacturers stay in business!
Just bought a 3020T w/500 head and having same issue with Echos black diamond and their orange tripper line. I'm a home owner and this happed out the box in the first 30min of running, line stopped feeding, pulled cap and same issue. On RUclips right now to see if anyone else seeing this and found your video! Thanks so much for taking the time to make it and bring this to lite. I'm going to try some bigger string and see if that helps or look for an old 450 head and see if the plastic insert will fit in the 500. If you need anyone to get with you on the issue to bring to Echo reach out.
Same here. 30 minutes into mine. So what's the downside of stepping down to a 450 head, I wonder?
@@stevesnyder6571 I upped my string size to 0.133 plan round string and soaked it in water and haven't had anymore issues...yet
Love my speed feed 400 ad and will be sure to check the cap before starting up with lawn care this season. I really appreciate all your knowledge and time spent!
Nice VW there at the end
Nice catch Bre, fortunately ECHO has Chicanic, to cover their backs.
Have a good week.
Good information Bre. Like the fact that you aren't afraid to let the big guys know of design flaws. I will have to get a speed feed for myself. Stay safe.
Oops ! Thanks for an Excellent video update !! All the best.
Thanks for watching out for us All.. I did buy the 400 late last summer on your advice. Works great. Take care
I bought a 3020 last year and have had this issue. It was extremely frustrating pulling it apart every few minutes particularly edging. I was trying all kinds of line. Finally has a little better luck with Black diamond and Oregon armid.
My commercial guys said they had good results using the 450 on their 3020's.
You are the greatest. I wonder why a few of the big companies did not try to hire you? Or maybe they did.
Excellent! It's a pro doing the work that companies need to be doing through their quality assurance divisions. Thanks for reporting it to them. Hopefully they will fix the flaws or issue a recall/replacement.
Yet again once again true honest advice true honest repairs love it !
Greg from northern Michigan. Thanks for sharing these personal observations. You are the Voice of Your Customers. Echo should have a (DTAC) Dealer Technical Assistance Center help line to report these types of early failure modes. If they react quickly, the problem can be resolved with minimal cost. If it drags on too long, it becomes allot more expensive to address. Echo needs to wake up here.
After watching your video on the speed feed I got one ….ABSOLUTELY WORTH IT!!!! Major thank you for sharing your videos. Always learning from you 👍👍
I've been having the exact same problem with my husqvarna speed feed.
Good Morning Bre !! Woller is southern language LOL Thanks again and Happy St Patricks Day
Yes! Sometimes I wonder if my friends across the pond will know what I mean. My UK friends make fun of me for using the word "wankered". I guess I'll have to find out what it means over there! 🤣
Your a smart lady. I think you are on to something. Good call. I agree with your diagnosis. John in Ohio
Whew!! I was worried for a minute there. I just bought a pair of Speed Feed 400's to upgrade a couple of Echo trimmers and I thought at first you were gonna tell me they were junk. Whew!!
I had the same issue with my speed feed 500 head. I replaced with the 400 head and had no issues.
If you still have the 500 head, try this: For fun, take a hax saw, cut several slits down through the metal casting, or turn the metal casting on its side and drill a bunch of 1/8 inch holes through the casting, then, put it all together and go out and cut the thickest grass you can find and see of the string melts. I'll bet the string no longer melts together! The heat needs to dissipate out of that big chunk of metal. Try it and let us know if that fixes the problem. I'll bet it does! Lee
I liked the red that you had your Vet painted before. That pastel Aqua(?) you have it painted now (@15:25) makes it look like a real dog.
With all due respect, I'm sure you are aware that opinions are like a$$h011es? We all have one and they all stink with yours and mine included.
This video was all about trimmer heads. so forgive me when I read your random comment about her Corvette and found it slightly odd and very off topic?
When the next video is uploaded and the Corvette is red again, we will all know your comment had a major impact and your opinion was well regarded.
If not......? If you want to Place any bets? $100 says it's still Aqua without even a red stripe anywhere?
I just purchased the speedfeed 400 a couple days ago,installed it the next day from watching your older videos.
I love the ease of rewinding the speedfeed 400.
Keep the vids coming to Pittsburgh Pa.
Loyal long time subscriber here
Chickanic you rock 👩🎤 😊
400&450 very good but the other one can’t take the heat from contentious use
You are Correct about the Heat transfer
I have a speed-feed head from a dozen years ago. The line jams up in it too. To keep it working as good as possible, when it starts malfunctioning, I have to disassemble it, soak the parts in hot water with a cleaner solution, and reassemble. Works much better, but NOTHING in in the contemporary world works as advertised.
Bree gives great advice AND she is easy on the eyes. What's not to like?
Thanks for your help
Nice thanks for explaining
You are always honest
Thankfully Echo isn't Boeing with killing the whistleblower.
thanks for another great video because i have 2 450's i purchased over 4 years ago but haven't put on yet (old man)
I had an Echo homeowner grade trimmer a few years ago that was doing the same thing. I thought it was something I was doing wrong when I loaded the trimmer line. I've been slowly transitioning over to Stihl for my power equipment. Unfortunately, built-in obsolescence is the next phase after taxation, inflation, and medication, as a way to continue to bleed us dry.
I had some string issues on a 400 head until I changed the line from some cheep stuff to Maxi-Edge (Arnold). I also upgraded the line from 95 to 105 because I'm mostly chopping brush around wire fences and in the rough where a mower cannot go.. Just got a PAS and the T trimmer attachment has some other head that sucks.. Nice cobwebs in that chop saw carb. Yes, you will stay busy even if you work out of a van.
Certainly, appreciate the heads-up, on the "improved" head. I just happen to need a head and that's how I found this video so timely.
I remember back in the days it was "If it's not broke, don't fix it". There's no reason for these companies to change designs unless it means more money in someone's pocket. Don't get me wrong I love new and "improved" equipment, but it doesn't always mean it's better.
Love seeing you with the Bug. I've got a '63 in the same color in my garage - it has been in the family since my dad bought it new off the showroom floor. Great video - love the energy!
No problem with my 500 at all, pretty sure I do not have that large alloy block though. I have got through around 8 caps in the time I have had it.
Thans for the info. I still need to get one for my Ryobi. Best part of this video was around the 10:00 mark with the upside down dog in the background.
4:32 That exactly what my Echo 225 Non Speed Head would do, very frustrating, my unit was built in 2012 isch, just prior to the speed head coming out, old stock, I am still mad that the sales rep could have sold me the newer model with the speed head, but NO old stock for the homeowner. I did finally replace when I started to watch videos to educated myself.
I had this same problem a few years ago and couldn't figure out why it was melted, well now I know!!! Thanks for sharing this with us. Have a good one and May God bless y'all, Bo
Just looking at the new design of the 500 compared to the 450 you know that little square hole on top is going to round out. Thanks for posting this video and contacting Echo about this!
Dang, girl, you’re a wealth of important info! It’s maddening when even a highly experienced dealer/mechanic can’t get the attention of the engineering department, being shuffled on through without any desire to inquire further.
Hopefully this video will “raise awareness” with Echo. There’s obviously a problem with the nee design, and I’m strongly inclined to say you’re explanation is the cause.
Keep at ‘em! 👍
Btw, is that a 1973 Beetle I saw? I recognize the round tail lights from the later gen, as I had a 73 which I loved back in the day.
When I saw the headline I thought - uh-oh - I bought two on your recommendation. Lucky they were the 400 model. Great video! Thanks!
I actually like the 400 I have on my trimmers, I have one for my Honda trimmer that a previous family member had before he died and the OEM Honda one kept breaking on him so I put a speed feed 400 on it, works incredibly well and I have an Echo PAS-2620 that came with one of these heads as well. It's sad to hear they went with a metal piece causing the problems. I would say if you still have the 450s that yeah, hold as much line but doesn't turn the thing into a grilled cheese sandwich then maybe swap them out for the 450s. I mean, you could also let your future customers of the 3020 that this may be an issue and suggest selling them the 450s.
I had heard that Echo had a larger engine but they haven't made it to Canada yet. That being said, my 2620 seems to be more than enough power to run a string trimmer.
I'm curious to know where the heat is coming from. If from the bearing housing the smaller 450 brass insert will heat up quicker. If from the head then I would have thought the larger aluminium insert would help conduct it away to the bearing housing.
When I worked as an engineer in another industry, I started inspecting installation of my projects. Found ways my designs could be improved. Process was changed to add an inspector position. Troubles and costs increased. Who would have thought?
I like the new loft going up in the background. It looks like you’re getting a lot more space..
Glad my little Echo 225 uses the 400 head, love the speed feed head. By the way my 225 is a little beast for its size. Heck I use it clear ditches full of vines, briars and knee high grass along the road.
Every time you call the manufacturer about a problem, they will say its never been a problem! But if you look at the returns and warranty you will find a bunch with the problem!!!
The metal on the Speed feed 500 looks like aluminum which acts as a heat sink 7:14 @Chickanic
Keep them on their toes!! You go Girl!!
Fantastic, thank you! You've just sorted my problem with my Bosch home use trimmer, 12yrs old, just replaced the head last summer and having same issues, noticed centre stem holding real is brass where old one was plastic! Line keeps getting stuck, clearly heating up line which is why it's getting stuck. Even thought it was the way I was winding the line on despite having done it for 12yrs without problems so bought a branded pre-wound real, did the same thing, got stuck. As you say, someone has changed the designs not understanding the principles of the original. Great work!! Thank you!
Two of our 500 heads have been doing this since the first use… thanks for the video, thought it was our loading procedure.
Have the same problem on my new craftsman trimmer, lucky enough to have 3 others to use. Thanks Bree!
You are right about the heat, first thing I thought it was
Phew! I almost bought one…thank goodness I saw this…keep rocking and thank you chickanic!
Very good entrance to all your confrontations with various products.
That's good to know thanks
Thanks for the info on replacing just the cap on the 400. I was about to buy a full replacement.
Just got a brand new Shindaiwa C242 brush cutter with the Speed feed head. Haven't used it yet, but we'll see how it goes. I pretty much decided to not bother rebuilding my 25 year old Stihl FS85.