I have an older Echo I am very happy with, it is a good brand. Try a speed feed head, a Shindaiwa design, on the Echo. Loading is a snap, more convenient than constantly stopping and re filling the Kwik Feed. Oregon also offers it with multiple adapters to allow mounting to most brands.

I bought the SRM-225 at Home Depot last year. This is their lowest priced straight shaft trimmer. Mine has the u-turn head. So far the head works well and is extremely easy to reload. I think both the GT-225 and SRM-225 have the same 21.2 cc. engine. It is extremely powerful for it's size and runs well so far. The whole machine seems to be well made. I think I paid around $235 or $240. including tax. I did not have to spend more to get what I needed for my purposes (grass and light weed trimming).

Has to be one of the Best little Trimmers out there for the Buck !

I would recommend ECHO anything to anybody.

I highly recommend the Echo GT 225 Trimmer. I almost bought a 4 cycle trimmer but this trimmer is light & has a lot of power. It is simple to operate and so far, is very reliable. I have a lot of weeds close to a creek & this trimmer plows right through them. I like the trimming head & personally do not like bump & run heads. Follow the directions before starting & you are ready to go. I bought at Home Depot & the machine was already assembled. I liked that a lot. I also notice that you can purchase .085" string & cut to proper length which is a cheaper way to go rather buying pre cut string. This is a solid machine & at $169 it is a very good buy. It even came with safety glasses, 2 cycle oil & extra string. String loading into the head is easy. I like!