Genuine question.. is this even a thing or do I just have a shite strimmer? The old lady over the road from my Dad said her strimmer was too powerful so I ended up buying it off her.

Anyhow, when I use it in a comfortable manner (right handed I guess..) all of the cuttings go outboard into the border.. I realised recently if I use it in a very uncomfortable (left handed) way or walk in the border (as opposed to the lawn) to cut then all the cuttings go inboard and I then pick them all up with the mower. Much cleaner but I’m taking chunks out the grass as it’s not comfortable!

So, are strimmers left or right handed?! I think if the head rotated in the other direction it would become right-handed.. maybe…

You know you can turn round and face the other way right?

Sounds like a left handed one to me.

Try swapping the live and neutral round in the plug.

😉

Why not walk the other way up the lawn?
Edit- beaten to the idea while I tried to get my head round the OP

Maybe you have a left handed garden?

All sounds a bit sinister to me.

Are you sure you have it the right way up? Assuming yes, are you south of the equator? If so, you’ll be impacted by the coriolis effect which will explain the issue.

Whats happening here is that while you are right handed, you have a dominant left strimming eye. It’s a bit like in shooting or archery, you need to go with your eye not hand.
You can get left handed strimmers, but they are expensive. I’d just convert what you have, Just pop to a decent garden machinery supplier and ask them for some left handed string.

LOL @ all of that lot ^^^! It’s not symetrical (the strimmer) if you know what I mean.. so not just a case of walking the other direction as the guard catches as you move the head.

I’m going to need to post a photo or video or something as you lot clearly think I’m mad as a hatter! 😆

All sounds a bit sinister to me.

micro applaud there

I’m going to need to post a photo or video or something as you lot clearly think I’m mad as a hatter!

I think you might have to, cos I’m struggling to envisage what you’re talking about. HowTF does changing hands affect the direction of the cuttings, and how come walking in the opposite direction doesn’t fix it?

Does it have a guard over the strimmer head? Is that on straight?

Or just take the guard off, and let the grass go in all directions.

Because a strimmer is asymetrical. The motor sits under your arm and is angled so the head is roughly in front of you.

One direction partially obscures your sweep path?

On a serious note, it’s just because they turn clockwise isn’t it, so it pushes the clippings away from you in conventional right handed use. Use it as a lefty and it will fire the clippings in towards you, along with any crap which you might not want flying at your legs. I know I fling plenty of stones and twigs up strimming, but I’m pretty slapdash with it…

It’s only a motor, can you take it apart and reverse the polarity? Guard will probably still get in the way, but could you move it round and re screw it in place?

Walking in the border fixes it but then I get my trainers all muddy and leave footprints in the soil..

It does have a guard yes and one direction partially obscures the sweep path (don’t think you can move it but will have a look).

I’m starting to question my own sanity sat here at the moment!

Next time y’all strimmer the borders can you all make note of where the thing spits the cutting and if it’s comfortable or not please? I can’t be alone here..

it’s just because they turn clockwise isn’t it, so it pushes the clippings away from you in conventional right handed use. Use it as a lefty and it will fire the clippings in towards you, along with any crap which you might not want flying at your legs.

Speaking as a leftie and thus had to deal with this shit all my life, I still can’t picture it I’m afraid.

Wait… are you turning it through 90′ in use? So a side guard would twist away from you one way and towards you the other?

It’s not one of those ones you can swivel the head into different positions on, is it? We had one of those.

Just to be clear I can walk the other way but I have to swap arms (the one on the trigger at the top and the handle in the middle) but it’s not comfortable as a righty.. (and the guard gets in the way)

Cougar – you wanna buy a left handed strimmer? Two careful owners..

Ed – the head swivels a bit (maybe 30-45 degrees worth of range) so aye it’s one of them.. I take it you didn’t get on with yours?!

Really what throws the grass in a particular direction is the angle of the head to the ground- left side low, clippings go forward, nose down clippings go right etc. Perfectly level and it will go in all directions, but the guard will stop it going in your direction (to a degree)
So really, if I understand what you are getting at, the grass is going where it should. Either walk along the edge the other way, or face the edge and angle the head slightly right hand down.

This probably looks like it makes as much sense as the last load of tripe I posted, but I’m being serious this time.

Get a right handed leaf blower to even it out.

Ha! I should probably just get a gardener (left of right handed) and let them sort it out..

Sweepy – that makes sense aye. Same logic as them floor buffers.. twist the left down and it pulls you forward and right down it pushes you back (or vice versa).. maybe.

I’m gonna have to get a pic or something as this has got me heed well and truly pickled!

I certainly understand the issue, but I can’t picture your strimmer from your description at all.

I have a Stihl brushcutter which spins anticlockwise. I strim with the border on my right hand side so the grass is cut by the leading edge of the cutter head and thrown away from the border and onto the grass.

You’ll definitely have to post a pic!

Is it a Flymo Widdershins 1200?

Australian model?

Cougar – you wanna buy a left handed strimmer? Two careful owners..

I have nothing to strim I’m afraid. If you’ve got a heavy-duty hedge cutter I’m all ears.

Australian model?

Elle MacPherson? Change of plan, I’ll take it.

If you’ve got a heavy-duty hedge cutter I’m all ears.

Ooof that’s gonna hurt… 🙂

Reet – I think we’re getting somewhere now after you’ve said that Si. I would also usually strim with the border to my right so the leading edge cuts but I think the head spins clockwise thus throwing the clippings into the border not away from it.

Ooof that’s gonna hurt…

*snort*

Although it’s still not completely outside the realms of possibility that I’m using this tool in a totally inappropriate and nonsensical manner. I’m due a good owld strimming sesh at the wknd so will report back..

I would also usually strim with the border to my right

I hate to be the beginning of this conversation but, what if you strim with the border to your left?

Or, face-on and crab-walk across even?

Thinking about it, whenever I’ve strimmed grass, I’ve done it from the vantage of standing on the grass rather than outside it.

It just doesn’t feel right when it’s to my left and the guard catches (maybe I can adjust the guard though). I’ll give the crab a blast though. Also going to borrow another strimmer from someone and see if that helps with my analysis of WTF is going on..

thread of the day 😆 😆

One direction partially obscures your sweep path?

I thought they’d split up

have you tried turning it the other way up?

(maybe I can adjust the guard though)

I think the one certainty we can all take from this is that nick shouldn’t go within a country mile of a chainsaw 🙂