A clean and trimmed greenery garden or lawn always looks attractive. While you might be admiring the beautifully trimmed grasses, do not forget to think about the brush cutter. Yes, tackling heavy shrubs and small trees is not easy and you should not forget the one who has executed the work brilliantly.

Brush cutters are perfect for trimming and shortening thickened grasses, for any season or weather. For gardeners, they are the light machines that are easy to apply on the grass and aids in beautifying the lawn. That’s why maintaining your brush cutter is so important in order to keep achieving fantastic results time and time again. To ensure maximum results, the machine needs to be serviced thoroughly and regularly.

Table of contents

• Introduction
• What is a brush cutter?
• Simple actions to ensure the lifetime of your machine
• Pulling the starter – never release too fast
• Drain the fuel tank
• Inspect the spark plug
• Keep the mowing line moist
• Give your machine proper Inspection and Service
• Air filter maintenance (heat engine shredder)
• Wheel maintenance
• Maintenance of grinding blade
• Engine Oil
• Cables adjustment
• Checking and cleaning
• Lubricating Flexible shaft
• Storage
• Conclusion

What is a brush cutter?

A brush cutter (also called a brush saw or clearing saw) is a powered garden or agricultural tool used to trim weeds, small trees, and other foliage not accessible by a lawnmower or rotary mower. Various blades or trimmer heads can be attached to the machine for specific applications. Our brush cutters consist of a power unit held close to the body, a pole through which the power is transmitted and a rotary cutting head at the opposite end of the pole to the power unit.

Simple actions to ensure the lifetime of your machine

Regular and systematic maintenance after each use of your brush cutter will not take much time and will ensure comfort and security for the next use. For more complex interventions, such as engine or knife maintenance, do not hesitate to contact a professional. Also ensure that you read the machine manual and once the machine is assembled, proceed to the oiling of the engine: oil type and quantity are specified in the manual.

The handlebar: Fix it at the correct height for comfortable and optimized use. Make sure the handlebar fixing lever is well screwed. After these steps, you can fill the fuel tank and start the machine.

Roughly once a week (if you use your brush cutter quite regularly) it is important to clean the harder parts of your brush cutter, such as the cooling fins, the outside carburetor area, and the outside of the spark plug. It is also encouraged to check that the air intake into the starter unit is not blocked and that the angle gear is three-quarters full of grease. If you follow these routines then your brush cutter has more chance of lengthy working life.

• Pulling the starter – never release too fast

The proper way to start is to pull quickly and short pull. Don’t stretch it to the furthest; halfway should be okay. After pulling, NEVER release your hand immediately, slowly let it pull your hand back. If you release it immediately, it will damage the coil spring inside. So go like this, quick pull, drag back, quick pull, drag back…

• Drain the fuel tank

Before putting your brush cutter away, you should clean it thoroughly and completely drain the fuel tank. To empty the carburetor, start the engine with an empty tank and allow it to idle until it runs out of fuel or just release it beneath the carburetor. Inspect the brush cutter for dirt and, if necessary, allow it to dry before putting it away.

Drained fuel is best not to be used again (gas loses), instead fresh fuel should be used to keep your engine healthy. Best drained when you do not use it for around 1 month. Because 2T oil inside the fuel tank will sink in time, and when that happens it will make your engine hard to start, clogging the carburetor. So you need to open it up and clean it.

The Best Practice is to only fill enough fuel you need (normally 600ml – half tank), add more when needed.

• Inspect the spark plug

Remove the spark plug and take a look at its electrodes. If these have a light brown color, the spark plug is OK. A spark plug with electrodes of any other color must be cleaned or replaced. If it blacked out, replace it.

• Keep the mowing line moist

Remove the cutting blade, clean it and inspect it for damage. Apply corrosion protection to the tool like WD-40 spray. If necessary, you can have your cutting blade sharpened by your dealer or yourself using a grinding stone.

• Give your machine proper Inspection and Service

Inspect and service at every 50 hours, including cleaning ignition plug, fuel filter, fuel strainer, carbon removal from muffler, cylinder, cleaning spark arrestor.

Air filter maintenance(heat engine shredder)

A dirty air filter can cause a difficult starting, a loss of power, bad functioning and accelerated wear of the engine. The cleanliness of the air filter must always be guaranteed. Inspect the air filter condition after each use, clean it if needed, or at least every 25 hours. Change the filtering element every 200 hours or if it shows some weaknesses.

Several types of air filters exist according to the engine:

Foam air filter: Remove the element and clean it with gasoline. Dry it in the sun. Saturate with engine oil, then press firmly to spread evenly the oil and remove the excess. Put it back into its place, respecting the fitting orientation.

Dual-element air filter: Remove the foam filter from the paper filter. Check both elements and replace them if they are damaged.

To clean the paper filter, tap the filter on a hard surface many times to eliminate the dirt or blow compressed air (2Bars max) from the inside. Do not use a brush for this operation.

To clean the foam element, Clean the casing of the air filter. Put the filter and the cover back in place. For more explanations, see the engine instruction manual

Wheel maintenance

Wheels and their mechanisms are exposed and get dirty with dust, brush, and mowing residues. It must be cleaned after each use. For pneumatic wheels, check the pressure and re-inflate if needed.

Maintenance of grinding blade: The blade ensures the cutting, it must be sharp to produce a quality job. It must be sharpened at least once a year. A cracked or blunt blade must be replaced. Check the blade tightening.

Engine Oil

Level checking: it is important to check the engine oil level before each use. To do so, place the machine on even ground. The engine support must be horizontal. The oil cap is located on the front of the engine, it is also the level gauge. Unscrew the cap, take it out and wipe the gauge.

The checking is done by putting the cap in its place without screwing. Read on, gauge the oil level which must be between the low and high level, inside the hatched area. The level must always be correct. If not, add SAE 10W30 oil for a 4-stroke engine.

Draining: The first draining must be done after 10 hours or 1 year, whichever comes first. Then we recommend every 50 hours or 3 years, whichever comes first. For this operation, you must make an appointment at your dealer’s or in a workshop specialized in mechanical garden [...]tools.

Cables adjustment

The machine has one or more cables, depending on the model. They operate the controls. Checking and adjustment are important for the best optimization of the lever’s action. There is an adjusting bolt on each cable. Follow the checking and adjustment instructions indicated in the manual.

Checking and cleaning: After every use of your machine, it is encouraged to clean the outside of it and make sure that the harness is not damaged to keep you (or any other users) safe. You should also clean the air filter and replace it if necessary so that you won’t forget it the next time you want to use it.

Before using your brush cutter it is important to make checks and test if the throttle trigger lock and the throttle function correctly, and whether or not the guard has any cracks or damages. If there are any damages then you must replace or fix these before using or the machine will not be safe to use.

Scrape off the carbon from the spark plug gap

0.6-0.7mm (.023″.028″)

Clean the cylinder exhaust port and muffler.

Remove the grasses or dust

entered in the cylinder cover or fan case cover (otherwise, they may cause trouble such as overheating).

Inspect carefully for any fuel or oil leaks.

Check all nuts, bolts, screws, etc., making sure they are tightened and secured as they should be.

Lubricate gear case, every 25 hours of use.

Lubricating Flexible shaft

Check film of lubricant about every 10 hours of operation.

Remove the flexible shaft from the clutch case.

Pull the shaft (1) out of the protective tube (2) and note the installed position.

lf shaft has turned blue, fit a new one.

Refit flexible shaft (1) in the protective tube (2) — turn it 180° from the original installed position and push it home as far as the stop.

Insert the flexible shaft into the clutch case — turn the shaft back and forth at the

same time.

Storage: First you must drain the fuel tank after cleaning it, and then remove and examine the spark plug if they need cleaning or replacing. It is a good idea to do so before you store the machine. The next job is to remove and clean the metal cutting blade, check for damages, and protect it from any signs of corrosion. It is then a good idea to store your brush cutter hanging up. It saves plenty of space as you can fold the handlebars in so that they will easily hang in the garden shed.

Storage tips

If you know you won’t be using your brush cutter for a while and plan on storing it, there are a few things you must do first, to guarantee that it will still be in good condition next time you want to use it.

• Inspect, clean and repair unit if necessary.
• Start engine- This will consume all fuel in the fuel line and carburetor.
• Remove the spark plug and pour one teaspoon of clean motor oil into the spark plug hole of the cylinder-replace spark plug.
• Inspect the blade, sharpen it or replace it if needed.
• Empty the fuel tank. Let the engine run until it runs out of fuel to drain the whole fuel system. In order to avoid any problem at starting due to the soiling of the carburetor by a deteriorated fuel, you can use a ready for use fuel, available in shops: this alkylated fuel contains less harmful products and avoids the scrubbing of the carburetor.
• Check that every nut and screw are well tightened.
• Grease the swivel wheel axles at the front of the brush cutter.
• The machine must be stored in a dry and ventilated area.

Contact GZ Industrial supplies for the best grass cutters in Nigeria and contact us for more information.