Best trimmer lines for 2022 with pros and cons

Electric and gasoline trimmers are designed for cutting grass, for which a fishing line (string or cord) is used in the design. Due to the fishing line, the grass is cut and, it would seem, it could be difficult to choose this consumable. One has only to come to the store to buy cord to discover a wide variety of them. You can find out how to choose a line for a trimmer and lawn mower from the seller or from the publication. In this material you will learn about what types of consumables in question there are, how they differ, and what you need to know to choose them correctly.

Technical properties of the cord and choice of diameter based on trimmer power

If you pick up a package of fishing line, then only two main parameters are indicated on it - the total length and cross-section. Instructions on how to choose a line for a trimmer are not included, so you have to find out from specialists. Finding a good specialist is not so easy, especially since not only new fishing lines are produced every year, but also reels.

The first thing to decide is the diameter, thickness or cross-section of the cord. All this is one parameter that characterizes the performance of work by trimmers, lawn mowers, brush cutters and lawn mowers. What size line should you buy for your trimmer? To avoid mistakes, you should take a piece of old cord with you and provide it to the seller. Based on the length you provide, the seller will issue a cord of a similar cross-section.

This option is certainly reliable, but it cannot be called correct. Why? After all, the choice of fishing line depends not only on the head used, but also on the power of the tool used. To begin with, it is recommended to decide what diameter of fishing line can be used on trimmers and lawn mowers, depending on their power parameters:

Electric trimmers with a power rating of up to 500 W - cords with a cross-section of up to 1.6 mm are used.
Such tools are designed for cutting young grass in garden areas
Gasoline and electric type units with power ratings from 500 to 1000 W imply the use of cords with a thickness of 2 to 2.4 mm.
Such units with consumables are used for cutting thin and thick grass, as well as weeds. In trimmers with a power of up to 1 kW, you can install a fishing line with a diameter of 1-1.6 mm, but it will wear out quickly
Trimmers and brush cutters with power ratings over 1 kW allow the use of cord with a thickness of 2.4 to 3.3 mm.
This line can be used to cut thick and dried stems, as well as dense thickets. If consumables with a thickness of more than 3 mm cannot cope with the task of cutting grass, then metal discs with blades, teeth and knives are used

This is interesting!
Manufacturers produce trimmer line with a diameter of more than 3.3 mm, but it is used extremely rarely, and exclusively on powerful gasoline units.

Why brush cutters?

This type of gardening equipment is designed for not too large areas, where maneuverability is more important than productivity. If we are talking about the same flower bed, then cutting the grass in close proximity to the flowers using a wheeled lawn mower is unrealistic. A trimmer, electric or gasoline, will do the job perfectly.

The essence of its work is this: the fishing line or knife rotates at a fairly high speed and cuts the stems. A string or cord is used specifically for cutting grass. Which trimmer line is best depends on the task. For soft and hard grass, respectively, you need cord with different technical characteristics.

Large and small fishing line and when to use steel discs

If the fishing line does not match the power of the power unit, then this is fraught with the development of the following consequences:

If you use a thin cord on a powerful gasoline trimmer, the material will wear out quickly, reducing the productivity and efficiency of the tool.
If you put a fishing line with a cross-section of 2.6-3 mm on a low-power electric trimmer, the performance will decrease, you will experience constant winding of the cord on the reel, and the load on the motor will also increase, which will cause its accelerated wear

A material such as nylon is used to make fishing line. It provides high reliability and also has good cutting properties. Why use fishing line on a trimmer if there are metal discs? Many masters ask this question.

A cord or fishing line on a tool is used when cutting vegetation in an area where there are various obstacles - stones, poles, benches, trees, etc. Flexible equipment only wears out faster when colliding with these obstacles, but the tool motor is not overloaded
Metal discs are designed to cope with a wide variety of difficulties in the field. They effectively mow down dense and thick-stemmed vegetation. When colliding with obstacles, the teeth quickly become dull and the power unit is overloaded

Knowing the difference between steel wheels and cord, it is not difficult to decide which one is better to purchase. Fishing line in stores is sold in skeins of 15 meters each. You can wind 4-5 meters of fishing line on a trimmer reel, which depends on its diameter. To save money, you can buy trimmer line in a bay, where its length is 250 meters or more.

This is interesting!
When choosing a cord for a lawn mower, you need to check the date of its manufacture. This is done to eliminate the possibility of purchasing outdated material. After all, nylon tends to shrink and lose its original parameters. If the fishing line is stored for a long time, then you should not dispose of it, and soaking it in water or fat will help restore its previous technical properties.

What size bay should I take?

Fishing line can be sold in coils ranging from 15 to 450 m long. Which length should I choose? There are several factors to consider:

Mowing frequency . If you come to your summer cottage twice a year (in autumn and spring), then one bay, and the smallest one at that, will be enough for you. For regular mowing (every two weeks) of a plot of 10 acres for 7 months (April-October), you will need at least 20 m of cord. If the consumables are needed for a utility company or for “gangs,” then you will need a large bay of 50 m or more.
Plot size. Small areas in front of the house can be mowed using one spool at a time (up to 5 acres), but for large areas you need more consumables. By the way, about 4 - 6 meters of fishing line fit into one reel.
The thickness of the grass and the “cleanliness” of the area. If there are a lot of stones and structures on the site that need to be trimmed around the perimeter, then the cord can disperse very quickly. The same will happen with a thin string if you use it for thick weeds.

If you decide to purchase a string that you have never used, take a cut or small coil. For example, if you want to try Bosch cords, you can buy pre-cut Bosch 016800174 - there are 10 pieces, 23 cm each.

If possible, get a branded attachment for your trimmer, such as Husqvarna, Bosch, Oregon or DeWALT. If you want to save money, we can recommend Denzel, Huter, Elitech or Skrab among good and relatively inexpensive ones.

Types of fishing line by shape - what does it affect and why are they different?

Initially, the fishing line was produced only in a round shape, but soon other modifications began to appear - square, hexagonal, star-shaped and others. They also differ in color, but the color does not affect anything except the visibility of the cutting equipment during operation.

The shape of the string affects the type of grass cut. The shapes of the cords are:

Round is a common shape that is also considered universal. The round shape of the string is divided into smooth and with coils. If a smooth string is noisy, then a twisted string, on the contrary, is quieter, but its consumption is accelerated
Square and hexagonal - the presence of sharp corners provides a more efficient cutting of vegetation, which must be taken into account when processing large areas
Ribbed and star-shaped - cut different types of stems even more efficiently and reduce the load on the engine

Some craftsmen, when the fishing line is used up, replace it with steel wire or metal string, which is unacceptable. Not only can the wire cut through the mower's thick shoes, but it can also wrap around the head, causing it to jam along with the shaft. A jammed head will cause wear on the transmission mechanism and power unit.

Section shape	Purpose	Advantages	Flaws
Round	Only for young and green grass	Cheap, resistant to heavy loads, smooth cutting and low consumption	Noisy when running and not suitable for dry and thick-stemmed grass
Square	Tall green and dried grass	Smooth grass cut, no crushing of stems	High consumption, rapid wear, fragility and can only be used on powerful trimmers
Star	Dry grass and bushes	High-quality and efficient cutting due to the large number of angular edges	Expensive, can be used on appropriate heads
Twisted round	Any grass from young green to dried	Efficient cutting of stems, high speed and productivity, noiselessness	Wears out quickly and is difficult to unwind from the reel during operation

Recommendations from experienced summer residents

The device will last a long time, maintaining its operating functions, if you listen to the recommendations of experienced owners. They advise carefully studying the technical document to select the cord of the desired section and diameter.

Use different strings for different types of grass. You should not choose a very thin fishing line. Such a cord will constantly break, which will ultimately lead to rapid breakdown of the trimmer. A string that is too thick is also ineffective. It increases the load on the electric motor, which can burn out.

What materials are used to produce fishing line and how does this affect their reliability?

For the manufacture of trimmer fishing line, nylon is used, which is based on polypropylene with polyamide. A distinctive feature of nylon is its following advantages:

Durability under proper storage conditions. Do not store the material for long periods of time in the sun or at low temperatures.
Lightweight, allowing high speeds due to the inertia of the head rotation
Wear resistance - the material is resistant to wear, and damage to the cord occurs only when colliding with hard obstacles
Low cost - this is convenient, since the material is consumable and requires constant use of new fishing line

This is interesting!
When cutting grass, the nylon line breaks into pieces that remain in the cut grass. These pieces are harmful to animals, so cutting grass with a fishing line for the purpose of making hay is not recommended.

Sometimes cheaper polyethylene is added to the material, which reduces the reliability of cutting equipment. Polyethylene cord wears out faster, so experience proves that it is more profitable to buy fishing line made of natural nylon (more expensive) than to save money and purchase polyethylene cord.

Fishing lines with a thickness of 2.6-3.3 mm consist, in addition to nylon, of graphite or steel rods - a two-component cord. The presence of rods not only increases the efficiency of grass cutting, but also reduces the rapid wear of the fishing line. As a result, it turns out that a string with a large cross-section lasts longer than a thin fishing line. There are also cords with the addition of metal particles to the composition. These additives are also designed to increase the efficiency of grass cutting and increase the strength and wear-resistant parameters of the material.

This is interesting!
When choosing fishing line for your trimmer, you need to pay attention to the head or reel. These parts indicate the parameters of the cord cross-section acceptable for use.

What you need to know

The life of the trimmer will increase significantly if, during the operation and preservation of the tool, the owner remembers the following important features:

During operation, the head of the brush cutter should be kept parallel to the ground. The string should not touch crushed stone or soil. It is not recommended for the string to come into contact with fences, curbs and other hard objects.
To avoid unpleasant consequences, using an electric trimmer in wet and rainy weather is prohibited.

At the end of the work, you should thoroughly wipe the device components from any remaining grass and dirt. To ensure that until the next time you start the trimmer, it remains in working order and starts with a half-turn, you need to wipe the wires and fishing line from dust.

How to properly store fishing line or increase service life

Many people give advice on how to choose a line for a trimmer, but almost no one tells you how to store this material. Improper storage leads to the fact that the equipment quickly wears out when cutting grass. When you buy a 15-meter skein, only a few people ask the question of how to store the trimmer line. When you buy a bay of 250-500 meters, it is very important to understand compliance with the conditions for its storage.

What happens if you do not comply with the storage conditions for nylon trimmer fishing line? The consequences are:

Loss of its properties, so equipment made from high-strength material becomes brittle and wears out quickly
Work productivity decreases
Accelerated wear leads to the need to buy and refill strings in the trimmer more often

The loss of the original properties of the fishing line is definitely an unpleasant phenomenon, so let’s find out what needs to be done to increase the service life of the material during storage. Most of all, nylon material is afraid of exposure to ultraviolet radiation. The longer the cord is stored in the open sun, the faster its technical properties are lost. Instructions on how to extend the life of the trimmer line are as follows:

At the end of the season, when there is a long break, you should pack the equipment in polyethylene, having previously soaked it with fat (glycerin). Fishing line that is tightly packed and soaked in fat must be stored in a dark place maintaining the temperature between +5 and +20 degrees (best in the refrigerator)
The cord should not be stored on radiators and batteries, as excessive exposure to heat leads to a violation of technical properties
To prevent complete light from entering the fishing line, it should be packaged not in transparent, but in black polyethylene. Instead of a bag, you can use special plastic sealed containers

When the season comes, you need to take out the bay, and unwinding the required amount of material, wipe it from grease, and load it into the trimmer coil.

Material of manufacture

The fishing line is made from nylon - polyamide, or polypropylene. Cheap products may contain polyethylene additives. It significantly reduces resistance to temperature and wear.

Polypropylene trimmer line that has been stored for a long time may become brittle. It is recommended to soak it in water for 30 minutes before use.

Strings with a large diameter of 4 mm have aluminum particles added to increase strength.

Do not use cables or wires in brush cutters: pieces of wire broken off at such a high speed can easily pierce leather shoes.

Cord reels: characteristics

The trimmer head is, in fact, a special spool of line for the trimmer. Inside it, on a spool, a cord is wound - usually up to 15 m. A thread of the required length is pulled out of it when it breaks or wears out. When the string runs out, a new thread is inserted into the bobbin.

According to the type of cord feeding, drums are divided into:

manual - to lengthen the string, turn off the device and manually pull out the fishing line;
semi-automatic - activated by a favorite folk technique: you need to hit the mowing head on the ground. Upon impact, the anchor mechanism is released and the cord automatically lengthens;
automatic - here you need to reduce the speed, and then increase it again to the maximum: the reel will feed the thread as the speed increases.

The trimmer line reel is also threaded differently. In fast-charging ones, there is no need to disassemble the reel for refilling; in regular ones, you need to remove it and wind the cord manually. The video shows different ways to replace the string.

Criteria and conclusions about the correct selection of cord or which line to choose for the trimmer

If you are going to make hay or mow meadow grass for cattle, then you will need not only a gasoline trimmer, but also metal discs. Heads with fishing line are not suitable for such purposes, since they are intended for the following purposes:

Mowing grass on the lawn and garden paths
Cleaning the garden area
Cutting weeds, dry grass and thickets at the dacha

Depending on the type of work planned to be performed, it is necessary to select a tool and line for it that are appropriate in terms of power. To cut young, short and thin-stemmed grass, a round-shaped cord is used, and if you are going to deal with thickets in the country, then it is better to use an angular type of string - square or in the shape of a star.

If, when using an electric trimmer, the sound of a round fishing line rustling is heard, then when using a lawn mower, such noises are not terrible. To reduce noise, you need to buy a fishing line with coils. Nylon string with a square or hexagonal shape is able to cope with thick-stemmed vegetation such as raspberry, ragweed and other weeds. If a regular round string is inexpensive, then models of different shapes will cost a little more. The most expensive cords are two-component ones, which consist of several materials.

Conclusion

To summarize the above, we note the main factors influencing the choice of fishing line for a lawn mower:

when choosing a fishing line, pay attention to the cross-sectional shape and thickness of the product;
buy only those models that fit the lawn mower;
give preference to manufacturers who have proven themselves in the market with quality products;
Wipe the fishing line thoroughly after use so that no grass or dirt remains on it.

Remember that the hardworking nature of the owner of the site will become clear from the well-groomed lawn in front of the house. When choosing a fishing line, listen to the recommendations of experienced summer residents.