Echo RB-60 Spreader Review

The new Echo RB-60 is the greatest spreader in the world...that you can buy for under $200. Sure, there are better commercial spreaders out there, but those will run you far north of $400. When everything is considered, there is absolutely no residential or pro-sumer product currently on the market that combines the ease of use, comfort and build quality that Echo does in their newest spreader.

If you were to go out today and buy a new spreader to put down your daily dose of nitrogen, you would be faced with two options:

The first would be to purchase a Scott's spreader. They're plastic. They're disposable. Forget the debate on plastic vs. paper drinking straws or plastic bags from the grocery store. Just stop making Scott's spreaders and you've solved the world's plastic waste problem. They have more plastic in them than the Kardashians and the wheels look like they came from the spare parts bin at Hasbro.

For what it lacks in quality, it does make up in usability. The controls are easy and intuitive. The settings are universal. And the handle position, grip and posture is comfortable.

However, the engineers at Scott's got a little too cozy with their marketing department. I would much rather have Scott's invest their time and materials into building a more durable product than designing and installing a phone holder. A phone holder? For once in our lives can we not have our phones glowing within two feet of our face?

We don't need a holder for our phones so a barely functioning app can be promoted while we're fertilizing the lawn. We need a hopper that isn't cracking under the weight of one bag of Milorganite.

The second option is spending a little more money and going with something from Chapin or Earthway. Also throw in Agri-Fab as well. You'll get better build quality and an item that isn't completely undetectable to airport security. Unfortunately, you'll soon come to learn that the other thing these types of spreaders come with is a set of bloody knuckles. Chapin and Earthway decided to take the direct opposite philosophy of Scott's and made their spreaders as difficult to use out as possible.

Just look at the control lever. It's something directly out of a mid-century dentist office, and just as painful when in use. Who was the design genius that approved using a wingnut and a steel bolt that sticks out three quarters of an inch and then place them directly in the path of the users knuckles? They should have just installed a cheese grater in that spot, at least it would have been multi-functional.

And look at all those settings! 30 of them. Should I put down my fertilizer at 23, or 24!? Or 22? No 25!!! Because I need to make sure I'm regulating that last .001 lbs. of nitrogen. Did the designers watch Spinal Tap the night before designing the label?

Now this is where the Echo RB-60 starts to shine. They don't screw around with fancy labels and absurd numbering systems that most fertilizer manufacturers use. They didn't try to invent another set of numbers for you to convert, like kilometers to miles or Celsius to Fahrenheit. No, they put a permanent sticker with all the most popular settings from other manufacturers, and then they matched those settings in an easy to use slider on their spreader. Revolutionary!

For the edge guard, there isn't a separate attachment that you have to purchase, store and then lug out when you need to use it. There also isn't a convoluted cabling system to have it controlled by a lever near the handle, making it susceptible to accidentally being triggered causing a stripe in your lawn. No. It's a simple piece of plastic that you take your finger and flip down to engage. When you want to disengage it, you take same said finger and make a flipping motion upward to flip the plastic up. So simple. So easy.

The rest of it is well made. The "T handle" frame is perfect for a guy like me who is over 6 feet. The pneumatic tires are easy to push through my thick, dense, dark green turf. It also ditches the slider for opening and closing the hopper and uses the pistol grip. If you want all the numbers, go here: https://www.echo-usa.com/Products/Spreaders/RB-60. I'm not going to repeat them.

The build quality is great, and you won't have a problem fully loading it with 50 pounds of your favorite product.

FINAL WORD: Get it. Best spreader in it's class.

I never thought pushing 50 pounds of chemicals up and down a 15 degree slope with my pudgy body would ever be enjoyable. It's still not and probably never will be. But with the Echo RB-60 it's certainly not unpleasant. And that is the highest compliment I can give a spreader.