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never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2016 10:17 am
by wastrel
came across this, this morning & like all genius ideas it`s mind blowing simple, ->

just so happens I pulled my strimmer out last week & the spool had disintegrated internally for some reason, £8 for a new spool has now been saved, I`ve dozens of these cable ties lying around & they`re tough little buggers too, I think it`s a great idea, hope this helps some of you guys too.
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2016 11:31 am
by Timmytree
Try a bit of steel fishing trace or bicycle brake cable.
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2016 4:22 pm
by wastrel
Timmytree wrote:Try a bit of steel fishing trace or bicycle brake cable.
brilliant TT, the options are endless I suppose, but the cable tie idea is (I think) good cos most of us will have some or be able to get some quickly & they lock in with minimal fuss!
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2016 6:47 pm
by Raj
Ingenious Scottish solution !!!
The only question my engineering brain would ask is ... you are tying the cable tie (i think) to a piece of plastic that was not designed to take the beating it will with this idea. Sooner or later it might give up by sacrificing itself instead of that yellow nylon wire that is designed to break off .... the correct term being 'friable'. The set-up you have seems a bit more 'indurate'. Take care !

Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2016 10:20 pm
by neil
Raj wrote:Ingenious Scottish solution !!!
The only question my engineering brain would ask is ... you are tying the cable tie (i think) to a piece of plastic that was not designed to take the beating it will with this idea. Sooner or later it might give up by sacrificing itself instead of that yellow nylon wire that is designed to break off .... the correct term being 'friable'. The set-up you have seems a bit more 'indurate'. Take care !

too much engineering brain on you Raj, try calculating the centrifugal force generated by a 8" cable tie @ 10,000 max RPM and work out the life of a plastic drum with probably a max thickness of 4mm, get that answer correct and i`ll stick a fag in the post for you (only kidding, just finished week 3 of giving up the ciggies)
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2016 12:29 pm
by wastrel
Raj wrote:Ingenious Scottish solution !!!
The only question my engineering brain would ask is ... you are tying the cable tie (i think) to a piece of plastic that was not designed to take the beating it will with this idea. Sooner or later it might give up by sacrificing itself instead of that yellow nylon wire that is designed to break off .... the correct term being 'friable'. The set-up you have seems a bit more 'indurate'. Take care !

great point Raj, I think looping the ties around the centre post first would eliminate the problem you`ve posed,
man, I`m wasted on here, telling you!
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2016 9:10 pm
by gary martin
Timmytree wrote:Try a bit of steel fishing trace or bicycle brake cable.
Tim I did try the bike brake cable, it broke on start up, did not even touch one blade of grass.
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2016 9:44 pm
by Timmytree
gary martin wrote:Timmytree wrote:Try a bit of steel fishing trace or bicycle brake cable.
Tim I did try the bike brake cable, it broke on start up, did not even touch one blade of grass.
The plastic spool is the problem, I replaced mine with a steel disc drilled to take the cables.
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 6:59 pm
by Outandabout
Ingenious wastrel, I wonder if this could be applied to a hover lawn mower using heavier cable ties or as Tim said part of a brake cable.
Kevin.
Re: never buy a strimmer spool again
Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 3:09 pm
by wastrel
me being me (eternal tinkerer usually leading to things not working & placed in back of cupboard-for ever) wondered if I drilled two more additional holes, loop the ends round center post, then thread `em through in a sort of cross, but then I think, how many holes could I safely drill in that plastic shell, OH no, here we go again! this is exactly why I haven`t touched my airguns.
someone stop me!