Garden Groomer 82-90GG Weed Whacker Electric Edger Trimmer

EXCELLENT WORKS WELL!!

IT WAS A GIFT. IT IS NOT WORKING AS EXPECTED FOR ME NOR MY FRIEND. I WILL NOT PURCHASE ANOTHER,GARDEM GRIPPER UNSEEN. I WILL BUY FROM A LOCAL STORE.

I purchased this from Woot, an Amazon subsidiary. Assembly was fast and the sturdy, telescoping handle was a very pleasant surprise. In general, the upper assembly was solid, if not downright impressive. At this point, I felt good about my purchase.The problem is the spool. Like many other trimmers in this price range, it uses centrifugal motion and bumping of the spool head to feed fresh line. Within 5 minutes of light use (trimming around some shrubs), the spool stopped feeding string. I unplugged and removed the spool and re-fed the string back through the outside housing. Within 2 minutes, it stopped again. This time one of the strings was up inside the spool and could not be retrieved. The string spool itself doesn't come apart ... it must be replaced. I assume they did this so consumers could not re-string it themselves.The website suggested in the trimmer manual for replacement spools is a dead link. Reading through the manual, there was absolutely no mention of the size string to use. Even if I wanted to try to replace/repair it myself, I would first have to guess what size string to use. They told me what size extension cord to use, but not trimmer string. :)While looking for details on the spool and string, I noticed the full-page "Arbitration Agreement" in the manual. Long story short, you will pay between $125 and $375 in arbitration administrative expenses should you take issue with the way they handle any warranty claims.

It seems to be a good product, by mine seemed to run out of string very quickly. I could see some still inside the spool, but there is no way to get to the inside. I looked everywhere on the internet - even their website - and you cannot buy any replacement spools and you cannot restring the one that comes with it. Bottom line - don't buy.

I ordered the Garden Groomer 82-90GG this past spring to help with clearing my slope for annual weed abatement. I was basically dealing with tall rain grass, but have a large area to work with. My Black & Decker weed wacker had just died, so this one was reasonably priced for the limited use I intended. It came quickly & WOW! - what a surprise at how well it worked! Exceeded my expectations for an inexpensive unit! The only downside is that I am not able to find a replacement spool anywhere (the original spool lasted a LONG time, but the unit is now useless without a new spool). I will try and contact the company directly, but their website is not helpful. Other than that, the unit was great.

This is my second terrible experience with Woot.com. The first involved a TV that they purchased from Wal-Mart and resold, voiding the manufacturer's warranty. The second is this weed-eater for which no spools can be purchased. Stay far away from Woot.

Great little weed eater for the price.