Fair 
The GreenWorks 21212 is a cheap electric weed eater designed for ordinary duties on smaller yards – it’s lightweight, easy to use and has enough power. However, users also mention several problems when working with this tool.
Pros:
- Cheap
- Easy to use, decent power
Cons:
- Not for tall people
- Some users report it stopped working
- Problems with spare spools
Key specifications:
- Edger:
- Weight: 5.2 lbs
Corded
The 21212 shares all the advantages and disadvantages of electric corded tools. It’s cheap, lightweight (and well balanced), not loud, starts easily and doesn’t require maintenance or dealing with fuel or batteries – on the other hand, you are limited by an extension cable so you won’t get the freedom typical for gas or battery powered tools
Also, the assembly is easy, it is well balanced and there is very little vibration.
Power
The necessity to use cord predetermines this weed whacker mainly for smaller yards – and the power is pretty sufficient for that. Don’t expect a gas power, but it gets the jobs done.
On the other hand, some users reported that the tool suddenly stopped working at all and they ran into trouble trying to get a refund/new product.
Line feeding
You can see that Greenworks equips even its cheapest electric trimmers with a dual line – which may be a little exaggerated, but a little more cutting efficiency helps, particularly when dealing with tougher weeds.
It uses autofeed to advance the line – it works well but it seems there is quite a bit of confusion between the users. The line is advanced every time you release the trigger for 2 seconds so if your are trimming non-stop, the line can get short after some time – and on the other hand, if you are constantly starting and stopping, you’ll eat through the line quickly (leaving a lot of blue bits of line on your garden or even entangling the line around the hub). So the best way is to develop some kind of routine how often to release the trigger to have the right length of line and not waste too much of it.
In the past years, some users also complained that there are no spare spools for this trimmer at all. That’s not a problem today, there are packages of one or three spools available – however, they get out of stock quite often 🙁
Various adjustments
Edger and adjustments
21212 offers the traditional edger function – you simply loosen up the middle pole adjustment and turn the head sideways. It works fine and features also a small metal guide.
Other adjustments include setting the shaft height and position of the handle, both tool free. But even when fully extended, the shaft is still quite short – so if you are about 6 feet or taller, using this trimmer is not much comfortable as you have to bend over all the time.
Also, the head is not “tiltable” – so for maintaining hard to reach areas it’s not as convenient as the Greenworks 21272 for example.
Conclusion: If you are looking for a cheap string trimmer / edger for your small or medium sized garden, GreenWorks 21212 is a great candidate – light, easy to handle and with enough power.
However, some users report certain problems (see above) so if the lowest price possible isn’t your main concern, we would rather recommend you the GreenWorks 21272.
>> Read more or buy the GreenWorks 21212 here
Specifications:
- Brand: Greenworks
- Type: Electric, corded
- Edger:
- Tilting head:
- Amp: 4 Amp
- Cord lock:
- Weight: 5.2 lbs
- Cutting swath: 13″
- Line: 0.065 dual line
- Feeding: autofeed
- Warranty: 4-year for non-commercial use
- Includes: line spool
Frequently asked questions:
Are there any accessories I should buy?
We recommend getting the 3 spool replacement package and if you don’t have a long extension cord yet, go with the Coleman 100 feet cable.
Is there any maintenance needed?
No, the motor is an enclosed unit so no maintenance is required. Just clean the machine from dead grass occasionally.
