I had a chance to put my hands on about every new trimmer there is a a home and garden show last weekend. The Echo and Stihl are both solid units. I had never seen a "pro" electric trimmer, but got a chance to run a CORE trimmer. The owner was at the show and was from Montana. A product made in the good old USA - that's a change! I was really impressed with the power and it is priced comparably with gas products. It is worth a look if you have a local dealer. Here is a link that might be useful: CORE Trimmer

First, let me say that I am a "wheeled, walk behind edger" kind of guy. If you're looking for a "stick edger", look at some other posts. The two best professional quality edgers are the Power Trim and Little Wonder. Both start around $500 for a basic model with Briggs & Stratton engine, and go to nearly $900 for the top-of-the-line with Honda GX engine. Both entry level machines (Power Trim 150 or 200, and Little Wonder 6001) are excellent homeowner machines, even if a little expensive. Both are sold by dealers, which also handle the warranty. Little Wonder is also sold on the internet for less, but then you've got to go to a dealer for warranty. While a dealer won't refuse to do warranty work if purchased elsewhere, during busy season you will go to the back of the line, in preference to his regular customers. McLane, as previous poster mentions, is an excellent "home-owner" machine. List pricing starts about $425 for the entry level with Briggs engine to $650 for their best with Honda GX engine. I don't recommend the low-end model 137. For a few $$ more, I'd get the 101 or the 801, which have four wheels and a few other features. The Briggs powered machines are widely available on the internet as low as $300, but then you have to go to an independent shop for warranty work. In all cases, the engine is warrantied separately by the manufacturer, although the same shop that handles any of the three edger lines can usually handle Briggs or Honda. Even the low end machines with a Briggs should be good for 10 years homeowner if you maintain it properly. This means regular oil changes, filter changes, greasing fittings, and oiling wheel bearings, etc. Also important to either drain gas for the off-season or use a fuel stabilizer such as Sta-Bil. With the same type of care, the Power Trim or Little Wonder machines with the Honda GX140 should last 20 years or more.

You really do not need the Honda powered commercial model for one yard. The Briggs will last a long time with reasonable care, you will likely put few hours on the machine.The four wheel model is more stable, less prone to tipping and making a mess of the border, but the three wheel works just fine.

According to user manual in my collection, for the SE101 and ET101 you simply loosen nut and remove washer to replace blade. It then says to reinstall washer and tighten nut. I'm sure you figured that much out yourself. If you remove the front belt guard and the belt itself, you may be able to grab the pulley on the hub with a pair of channellocks or vise grips. Do not grab the sheaves themselves or the teethmarks you leave will chew up belts. Another trick is to get an old belt and a piece of pipe about 6" shorter. Thread the belt thru the pipe, one around around the pulley and put a bar thru the other end. When you twist up on the pipe, it will grab the pulley, allowing you to tighten the nut. Basically the belt and pulley are functioning like a home-made strap wrench.