Introduction: Zip Tie Weed Eater

About: Hi, my name is Ulrich Retief. I am currently working as a junior doctor in South Africa. Although I am very busy with my work and extracurricular activities, I love taking my mind off work and relax by doing …

So here you are, the girl of your dreams will be arriving in about an hour and your yard looks like the Amazon with your grass reaching a hight that passed shameful all the way to impressive.

You head out to your garage to get the weed eater to quickly get things tidied up, but there is one problem: your weed eater is out of plastic wire and you do not have time to run to the shops.

Here is how zip ties will save you this time.

What you need:

  1. Weed eater
  2. Zip ties (2)
  3. Side cutter

Step 1: Remove Cap

Most weed eaters have caps over the bottom to cover the wire storage. It is very simple to remove these, the orange cap on mine had two hooks I had to press in slightly to remove the cap.

Step 2: Getting the First Zip Tie in Place

There are grooves where the wire usually runs, this is where you will tie the cable ties. Mine still has some in there since I purely did this to make an instructable, not because I ran out of wire.

  1. Start by putting the zip tie around the centre. there should be slots around the side to make this easy.
  2. Now start tying the zip tie, but do not pull it tightly yet.
  3. There should be a hole in the side where the wire should run through. On mine it was covered by two silver circles. push the point of the cable tie through this hole.
  4. Tighten the zip tie to keep it neatly in place.

Step 3: Trim the Excess

As you can see in the first picture, the zip tie I used was actually way too long. Use a side cutter to trim it. Make sure the zip tie is short enough to run smoothly without scraping against the sides too much.

Step 4: Repeat

Repeat the same process to get another zip tie on the other side.

Step 5: Return the Cap

Put the cap back in place and you will have a neat looking alternative for the wire in your weed eater.

If you like this instructable and this idea, please go and vote for me in the Zip Tie challenge.

Thank you for reading my work.