# Thoughts on Chapin Spreader



## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

More specifically, Chapin 8303C

 Chapin International 8303C Chapin Professional SureSpread Spreader, 100 Lb. Capacity


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

Looks solid. Pneumatic wheels.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

I'm wanting to say there was an older version of this spreader that had really bad reviews on Amazon, but the reviews for this one look pretty good.


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## mowww (Jan 16, 2018)

It looks like it has quite a few Earthway components with a Chapin hopper. Seems like it could offer good value at the current price.


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## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

Cool. Just happened that I need a new one. I'll try her out and give it a little review.


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## jpos34 (Aug 31, 2019)

I hated mine, sold it without even 1 full season of use


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

jpos34 said:


> I hated mine, sold it without even 1 full season of use


What were the issues?


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## jpos34 (Aug 31, 2019)

Grizzly Adam said:


> jpos34 said:
> 
> 
> > I hated mine, sold it without even 1 full season of use
> ...


Very heavy, the setting adjuster was very hard to get dialed in and hard to keep locked in place even with the locking washer that was provided, Also threw very heavy to the right and lots of the granules would hit the inside walls of the tires and not throw out like it needed to, I've since upgraded to the Lesco 80# that I found on Marketplace.


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## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

Well, it's ordered. I'll give it a test and report back.


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## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

So far, I really like it. Compared to my old Scotts Edgeguard Deluxe, this one is a dream. 
Some (ALL) assembly is required, but it was light work. Easy if you follow the instructions. Popped open the gear box and the metal gears are lubed with lithium grease. The only knock I have on it, is the spinning arm to move the media is too high off the bin. I'm going to see if I can adjust it or fabricate something else to move small amounts better.

I put down some Urea to get an idea of how much product it puts out. I put down about 14 pounds using the Setting of 12. Which is exactly 1 lb per 1k sq ft. I have 14,400 sq ft lawn. I also put down 100 lbs of organic material and ran it wide open and it did great. I have some PreM to use, so I'll be doing that today or tomorrow. Still trying it out and getting used to how far it throws.

The spreader is pretty damn nice. It throws far. It rolls great with the pneumatic tires. It's big enough for an entire 50lb bag of fertilizer. It came with a two piece screen and a hopper cover. Overall, I'd buy it again. :nod: :thumbup:


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## Tpack (10 mo ago)

BigRedGun said:


> So far, I really like it. Compared to my old Scotts Edgeguard Deluxe, this one is a dream.
> Some (ALL) assembly is required, but it was light work. Easy if you follow the instructions. Popped open the gear box and the metal gears are lubed with lithium grease. The only knock I have on it, is the spinning arm to move the media is too high off the bin. I'm going to see if I can adjust it or fabricate something else to move small amounts better.
> 
> I put down some Urea to get an idea of how much product it puts out. I put down about 14 pounds using the Setting of 12. Which is exactly 1 lb per 1k sq ft. I have 14,400 sq ft lawn. I also put down 100 lbs of organic material and ran it wide open and it did great. I have some PreM to use, so I'll be doing that today or tomorrow. Still trying it out and getting used to how far it throws.
> ...


I just got my Chapin 8303C assembled and my opinion is similar to yours. The spinning arm should definitely be closer to the bottom of the spreader to break up any clogged material. This thing is heavy duty compared to my 4 year old POS Scotts deluxe. I wonder if washers used as spacers under the hopper would be a good fix?


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## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

Tpack said:


> BigRedGun said:
> 
> 
> > So far, I really like it. Compared to my old Scotts Edgeguard Deluxe, this one is a dream.
> ...


Yeah, I will probably end up messing around with it when it's warmer and stops raining. Winter just can't seem to let go in the midwest this year. It's working okay, but once that arm is a little further down it will be awesome.


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## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

I called the customer service number for tech support a couple days ago and reached someone right away. I spoke to a female on the phone and told her that the auger shaft and agitator sticks up about an inch off the hopper and she said that was normal as she measured the one in the office. She told me it could be the design due to the weight of the material vs the drive gears. Tpack, can you take a photo of yours or measure how far off the hopper your auger arm is? Thanks.


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## Tpack (10 mo ago)

BigRedGun said:


> I called the customer service number for tech support a couple days ago and reached someone right away. I spoke to a female on the phone and told her that the auger shaft and agitator sticks up about an inch off the hopper and she said that was normal as she measured the one in the office. She told me it could be the design due to the weight of the material vs the drive gears. Tpack, can you take a photo of yours or measure how far off the hopper your auger arm is? Thanks.


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## BigRedGun (Oct 1, 2021)

Tpack said:


> BigRedGun said:
> 
> 
> > I called the customer service number for tech support a couple days ago and reached someone right away. I spoke to a female on the phone and told her that the auger shaft and agitator sticks up about an inch off the hopper and she said that was normal as she measured the one in the office. She told me it could be the design due to the weight of the material vs the drive gears. Tpack, can you take a photo of yours or measure how far off the hopper your auger arm is? Thanks.


Thanks brother. That's about where mine is at. I think I may fabricate a better one.


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