Brinly Tow-Behind 3.5 cu. ft. Spreader for Lawn Tractors and Zero-Turn Mowers, 175 lb. Capacity

Several parts were missing

Just bought it. Does the job. Hopper completely empties without having to shake it. Has a directional outflow, left, center, or right, which I like. Size is good for my large lawn area. Tow behind my lawn tractor, which sits higher than my zero-turn, and easier to look into hopper. It's built a bit huskier.

Spinner doesn't work very well at all. Unusable unless I can somehow fix it. Also the handle doesn't stay open. I would appreciate being contacted for a solution.

I bought this Brinly tow-behind spreader (BS36BH) to work on our 2-acre yard with my Scag ZTR mower. The fundamentals at first seem to be pretty good. Assembly is greatly facilitated by the organized parts. The bin, wheels, and frame seem to be strong. But I can really only give it two stars because of the following: 1) As other reviewers have commented, the Flow Control Handle will bounce back to closed when in operation. Without constantly monitoring it (meaning, turning around in your seat at least every 10 seconds), you will find that for an unknown amount of time, you haven’t been spreading anything. And yes, everything is as tight as it can get. 2) The Flow Control Handle Stop, which controls the flow amount of product, is made of cheap soft metal that easily bends. I mean, its really pathetic. It will bend and change the amount of flow going out of the spreader. I’m going to have to find something stronger to replace it with. There are far better options that would take me too long to explain here – but they might cost a few extra dollars. 3) The wheels are placed on the solid axel that is held in place to the frame by an Axel Bearing (its not really a bearing, its just a piece of plastic that the axel will rotate inside of – not a good long-term option for something to intended to cover large acreage). The left wheel is held in place by a cotter pin. There are spacers and washers but the right wheel has so much float along the axel that the Axel Bearing almost comes out of the frame. They say to add or subtract washers to close the gap, but they didn’t provide enough – I’ll have to go buy more. 4) The hitch attachment is fixed – no height adjustment is possible. As a result, the spreader tilts slightly backwards such that the last bit product I’m spreading does not get fed into the opening, which is towards the front of the bottom of the bin (see more on this below). 5) The hitch attachment is also of dubious strength. No issues yet, but I don’t think it will last as long as the rest of the spreader. 6) The bottom of the bin is a completely flat 9” x 9” square with the opening offset on the front half of the square. There is no slant to the bottom that will feed the remaining product into the opening. As a result, once you are down to 1” to 2” inches of product left, it will no longer feed into the opening. And – this is a heavy spreader, so when you’re done you have to pick it up and turn it over to get the remaining product out. 7) The flow opening is quite large at 2” x 2”. This is huge! At full open setting, it will allow 40 lbs of granular product to empty within 50 feet. I don’t know of any product (other than Gypsum) that needs to be applied that heavily. 8) The rotating spreader fan is too small for applying heavy applications of a product. I was applying gypsum (intending for 40# per 1000 sq ft) with a setting of 5 (out of 10) on the flow control knob and it was just too much for the fan. It was just dumping out the sides. 9) The directions say to adjust the spreader fan to as close to the flow opening as possible. Unfortunately on mine, the spreader fan tilts on the axis of its drive shaft so one side is much more open than the other, causing an uneven spread. I don’t have experience with other spreaders so I can’t compare – but after spreading 200 lbs of gypsum and 350 lbs of granular fertilizer, I have misgivings about this thing.

Came quickly and packaging was all intact. Assembly wasn't as easy as they say. Enclosed assembly instructions got a little confusing at times and had to watch several videos several times to complete. Did like the fact that all assembly hardware is packaged by itself in order of assembly need. Instead of being all pieces just being thrown in a bag where you have to figure out what you need. First use was with granulated lime to test operation. Broadcasted product as designed in a consistent pattern. After application, about 5 to 10lbs of lime was left in bottom of hopper that had to be removed by hand. Would not flow through to bottom of spreader and spread as designed. Not sure at this time if seed or other fertilizer will have the same results. Possible design issue? Will have to wait and see how spreader stands up over time. Overall satisfied with product.

quality and well made

Excellent quality, easy assembly and easy to adapt to electrically operated for my purposes

I bought this spreader a couple of weeks ago after returning two others from a different manufacturers. My 175LBS spreader worked almost perfectly it held the weight, it opened and stayed open when using it. and most of all it seems to be made with quality parts. I just wish it would completely empty but for the little that stays in the hopper I can live with.

I have only used this spreader twice. I purchased it already assembled from a local feed store. My initial thoughts are: 1) It appears well built. My main focus was on the gear housing. I like that it is enclosed and keeps the dust out. I do wonder why it doesn't seem to need to be in an oil bath. The tires seem to be of the right size for the application. 2) It toppled over the first use when I had it nearly full of fertilizer. I take the blame for this, however, as I was going on the side of an embankment and should have known better. 3) The bottom of the tub is relatively flat and this has caused a few problems so far with the moist fertilizer and 2nd use of dry grass seed. While this lets you get out large volumes of product when you get down to the last little bit you have to do the ol' tug and shake method to get all the product to come out. 4) I've already had the impeller pull away from the impeller drive pins. No big deal as I just pushed it back down to re-seat it but this interface seems under designed for longevity of the product. Time will tell. Overall I think this is a good product. I saw some upgrade videos of this spreader on youtube I may implement, like drilling holes in the bottom of the steel pipes to let water drain, and making a skid cover to cover up the bottom gear box plug to keep debris from knocking it off.

I’ve had one opportunity to try this tow-behind spreader and I found it doesn’t empty well and the setting adjustment wants to return to zero. I fixed the second problem and have tried something I hope will work. I’ve coated the inside of the bin with a ceramic polish used on cars hoping the reduced friction will help it settle to the bottom better. Wish me luck.

The bottom of the container is flat, so the last of the fertilizer does not flow out. The mechanism to restrict spreading from one side or the other does not work consistently. Does not spread evenly on both sides at the same time. Pretty frustrating.

Fantastic performance ! Perfect spread pattern and the extended control handle makes operation a breeze !

Just got done spreading 1200# of 10-10-10 fertilizer with it behind my 4 wheeler. Was stable and spread well. I took my time and only put in a 120# a time.

Pretty nice spreader. The only complaint is the material flow is somewhere between not enough and too much and no in between.

Used this twice and it seems to be a decent spreader, but the directional control plate does not (work) spread as it should. Blew it out repeatedly with the air compressor and still having problems with getting it to spread evenly or just to one side of the unit evenly. Will give it another go this Spring.

Bought for my larger yard. Spreads great, pulls nice even on the side hills. Had an issue for Brinly customer service near the end of my warranty period and they were quick to respond.

This is a good little spreader that could be better with some improvements. The hopper will not empty of material. This could be resolved by incorporating a 40 degree slope in the hopper walls. If towing with a 4 wheeler that has a cargo basket, the basket will hit the flow control lever and change the flow rate. This needs to be addressed.

used for various types of spread. still working at proper hopper opening vs speed of run

Works as it should, good capacity and best of all MADE IN NORTH AMERICA.

I am getting too old to push a spreader around my yard so I bought the Brinly 175-lb Tow-Behind Spreader. Not only was it easy to use but it also spread the weed and feed more equally resulting in my using less product.

It checked all the shopping points: auto flow control* for ZTR mower, large capacity, ships unassembled**, photo looks similar to John Deere. * No way my normal arms can reach back over a ZTR engine to reach the on/off stick. ** I would not accept anyone else's assembly. The only complaint is the on/off stick wouldn't stay in place while driving, so I added a bungy to hold it.

It definitely distributes what is being sown more/further to the right. Not an issue to me once I got that figured that out. I’m pulling it behind my side by side. I tied a piece of parachute cord to the lever so that I could open it up without getting off the side by side. Going to figure out how to shut it off while staying on the side by side.

This is a well made spreader with protection to the gears to prevent corrosion. It also allows spreading on one side only. It is great spreader. The only issue for me is that the last quart to half gallon of product is difficult to get out.

Had 3 other items from Brinly-Hardy I bought several years ago and didn’t hesitate to purchase this, works great and operates smoothly. Very happy with this, does the job with no issues

Don't buy Brinly, they pester you continuously for a review.

I bought this fertilizer spreader b4 spring and it spreads fertilizer evenly. I discovered the one- direction feature so I could run it close to my front decorations but not spread on them. Very nice to not need to estimate the distance I needed to be away from front decorations. Oh yes, the lever to open and close the pathway to drop the chemicals really works. It has a thick sheet strongly tied to the lever. Other makes only worked a short time before there was "play" between the level and thin plastic material closing the drop shute.

I have about 3 acres of grass to mow and maintain in this house I purchased. The lawn needed a refurbishment after neglect for 20 years and I began searching for a quality large spreader . After much research the 175 lb capacity Brinly tow behind spreader was my choice and am very glad it was . Very clear and extremely simple picture assembly instructions were nice and it went together very fast . It spreads product amazingly well and it very stable with a heavy load . A great choice for someone needing a large spreader .

I haven’t got to use my spreader yet, but I have assembled it I really like the way the hardware package is put together. It makes the assembly real easy.

Instructions were good and assembly is very sturdy. The spreader mechanism and opening control are well designed and easy to use from the seat of the lawn tractor. I spread fertilizer and then grass seed over a half acre front year easily with great distribution control. I highly recommend this unit as much better value that the similar JD (green) unit.

I am generally happy with this spreader. Mostly good assembly instructions: Some parts were a little difficult to follow, but we figured it out. Hopper does not appear to fully empty even after readjusting.