Abstract: An energy storing recoil starter includes a buffering component to reduce a pull effort when starting an engine. The energy storing recoil starter includes a starter housing coupled to an engine shaft of the engine and a starter pulley. A clutch assembly is coupled between the starter housing and the starter pulley to effect rotation of an engine shaft. The buffering component is coupled between the starter housing and the engine.

Abstract: A centrifugal clutch for coupling the rotational force of a driving member to a driven member includes a hub that is adapted to be secured at substantially its center to the driving member. The hub has a plurality of arms extending substantially radially from its center. A plurality of clutch shoe means for coupling the driving and driven members are located circumferentially about the center of the hub and are slidably mounted on the arms of the hub for movement independently of one another along the arms inwardly and outwardly of the center of the hub. The clutch includes means for limiting the furthest extent to which the clutch shoe means may move outwardly of the center of the hub along the arms of the hub and means for urging the clutch shoe means inwardly along the arms of the hub toward the center of the hub.

Abstract: A "bump-feed" type line head (108) and replaceable spool (116) for a flexible line trimmer are specially adapted for removing and mounting the spool in a single manual movement to the line head to facilitate spool and line replacement. The line head includes a "U" shaped retention spring (118) mounted within a hub in the line head on with the spool is journalled. The spring includes knob-shaped sections (122) protruding through the hub, beneath the spool, for retaining the spool on the hub without interfering with a bump-feed indexing means. Pulling the spool from or pushing the spool onto the hub tends to deflect the knobs inwardly, allowing axially movement of the spool on the hub. The compression force of the spring is set to be sufficient to retain the spool on the hub during normal operation but not to withstand force manually applied in an axial direction to the reel.

Abstract: A trimmer (10) has a power source (12) and a tabular drive shaft housing (32) for coupling the power source (12) to a rotating working element. The drive shaft housing (32) is rotatable with respect to the power source (12) and a handle (26) which is fixed to the power source, such that rotation of the drive shaft (32) allows the plane of the working element to be re-oriented. Rotation of the drive shaft housing is fixed by a coupling latch (38) disposed within the handle. An external trigger (46) located on the handle is provided for manually decoupling the coupling latch for allowing rotation of the handle.