Trimmer & Brushcutter Features Explained

High Torque? Speed Feed? Solid drive shaft? This handy guide will explain the key features of Shindaiwa trimmers and brushcutters.

Soft Start is a spring assisted starting system, designed to reduce the force needed on the starter rope. A secondary spring stores energy as you pull the rope and releases it to rotate the engine at a high enough speed to enable starting. This means you can start the engine with a much slower, easier pull on the starter rope. Shindaiwa ignition coils are designed and built to release a stronger spark at lower RPM. In conjunction with Soft Start, this allows for nearly effortless starting.

High Torque Gearbox A high torque gearbox is specially geared and matched to the engine on the trimmer or brushcutter. The cutting head spins slightly slower at wide open throttle, allowing for more effective torque at the head. This keeps the engine in the ideal rev range for improved power delivery, keeping the engine speed more stable under heavy loads. Users will experience an equivalent performance of a 5-10cc larger engine.

With High Torque, the cutting swath is also increased, allowing you to do more work in less time.

Hybrid 4 Technology A Hybrid 4 engine runs on the same 2 stroke fuel as your other Shindaiwa tools, with no oil changes and easy starting, however they contain a cam gear with inlet and exhaust valves like a 4 stroke engine. This gives greater torque, lower emissions, and a more pleasant sound tone than an equivalent conventional 2 stroke engine. To assist with easy starting, a decompressor is included on the Shindaiwa Hybrid 4 engine. The Shindaiwa 361T brushcutter uses Hybrid 4 Technology.

Speed Feed Head Speed Feed heads are the easiest loading trimnmer heads on the market. Reload trimmer line in as little as 30 seconds with no disassembly. Speed Feed is built for low vibration and reliable bump feeding with a range of line thicknesses. standard on many Shindaiwa trimmers and brushcutters and available as an optional attachment for many others.

Solid Drive Shaft An invisible feature, the inner drive shaft from the engine to the trimmer head is made from solid material, rather than a flexible shaft. This offers greater durability in tough conditions or when using a metal brushcutter blade. All Shindaiwa straight shaft trimmers and brushcutters with the exception of T226S and C226S include include a solid drive shaft.

Loop Handle Included on trimmers and commonly used for trimming against obstacles, and vertical edging in residential or commercial applications. A loop handle is more manoeuvrable and lighter than a U handle. Many loop handle trimmers are compatible with cutting blades as well as nylon heads.

U Handle Fitted to brushcutters, the U handle is combined with a dual shoulder harness to distribute weight more evenly, increasing comfort. For clearing larger areas, including highway embankments and light scrub, a brushcutter fitted with a U handle is ideal.

Metal Cutting Blade Can be fitted to many trimmers and brushcutters and put less load on the engine than a nylon line head when trimming very long thick grass or scrub like small saplings and lantana. A Metal blade does not yield like nylon line, so it performs very well in brushcutting applications, but is less suitable for edging against obstacles like tress, fences and retaining walls.

You can view the full Shindaiwa range of professional trimmers and brushcutters here.