are you donating time to help those in need...of yard work labor?

No, I work as a salesman for a large food company. She is one of my customers. Her husband broke his back a few years back and he can walk thank goodness but is not capable of doing a whole lot of physical labor. But, like most men, he would try and then end up being "down" for quite a while. I volunteered to help and my 17 y.o. step son helped out for a little extra money.

Ya done good. It is one of our most popular trimmers. Reliable, lots of power, and the head is easy to load.

I hope so. I didn't have the dealer show me how to load it. In the manual it shows 2 different style heads. I think I've got the second one but don't know for sure. Any tips on making it easier? Also, what line do you find most durable in the .08 size? Thanks again, Greg

Typically the thicker the line the more durable it is (if it isn't old and brittle). However you should run the line size recommended for the trimmer. The extra weight of a thicker line can make a trimmer perform worse if the trimmer is not rated for that size line. From the Stihl site it looks like your AutoCut C5-2/5-2 head is rated for a .080 line. The manual refers to that size line also but does not appear to say that is the limit of the size line you should use for that trimmer. Maybe canguy, nevada_walrus or others can say if you would be able to get a different head and be able to use a thicker line. I think all the heavier/commercial models run at least .095.

You could run a different head and thicker line but that will put serious strain on the driveshaft and clutch. The line will last longer if you store the roll in water, it will stay soft and pliable.
Strip off about four arm lengths of line then cut it off. Then cut into two equal lengths. With the marks on the spool and head aligned, feed one end of each piece into the grommet and push firmly until it seats. Holding the head, rotate the spool counter clockwise, it will only turn one way. Voila!! Leave a short tail exposed, start the trimmer, and advance the line until it hits the knife.

Sure sounds easy, hehehe. Lets see what happens once I actually have to replace it. Thanks, Greg

See if you can get a Shindaiwa Speed-Feed head for it. It's the best bump feed head in the industry, period.

I'll try it with the head its got on it now but if I have problems I'll consider the shindaiwa head. I found one on ebay with the adaptor and everything for around 35 buck delivered. Is that a good price?

That is very close to the retail price from a dealer. Make sure it is the correct one for a curved shaft trimmer, the straight shaft units rotate in the opposite direction.

The STIHL adapter for the Shindaiwa Speed-Feed converts it to a 10mm LH threaded socket. I very highly doubt that is what you need! Canguy, do you know what thread size the output shaft on the FS45 is? Or is it a female gearcase? I'm guessing it's also RH thread, not LH. The Shindaiwa model for the curved shaft has a 8mm RH MALE arbor bolt, so unless the gearcase on the FS45 is a FEMALE, that head will not work.

The FS45 uses a R.H.T. male arbor so unless Shindaiwa makes an adapter, the Speed Feed will not fit up. I agree, it is a very slick system. One tip, do not get in a hurry and forget to put the cap on before installing the Speed Feed head. Once it is tightened, it will be a bugger to remove as there is no way to hold the arbor. Trust me on this.

No more than I use the trimmer, I'll probably stay with the standard head. I'm sure once i conquer putting line on it the 1st time that my fears will be lessened. Thanks, Greg

Line re-spooled, no concerns. It was a little tough at first until I read the manual that tells you to clip the ends of the line into the clips on the side of the spool once the new line is wound. This made it simple. I've done 2 days (about 7 hrs total actually) of yard work with help from my step sons and almost have this thing paid off. It's great! Hmm, wonder which Stihl product I'll buy next....

The worst part of this is having to adjust the carb, why won't stihl do this at the factory, would hate to do this on a new car