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Like I said above I have 5 of the ones on the left and love them. As a side note I threw away #'s 3 and 4 of the ones from Lowes the other day. They, like #'s 1 and 2 that preceeded them to the trash can, started leaking on the bottom where the two plastic halves are molded together. I will not ever buy another one from Lowes. |
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Preliminary Review:
So I finally received my Solo 415, 418, and 419 sprayers today and I am definitely quite impressed with the 418 and 419 at first glance but not so much with the 415. Oddly enough, the 415 looks very similar to the Lowe's sprayer and so I assume that their performance will be similar. Anyway, this is just a primer to the full review/shootout and basically is just pics of the products with no performance tests conducted yet. Enjoy! The Competition: ![]() ![]() ![]() Over the Counter: ![]() Over the Web: ![]() Ace Hardware ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Home Depot ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Lowe's ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Solo 415 ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Solo 418 ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Solo 419 ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Expect a thorough review and more pictures by this Friday or Saturday!
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I bought a few of the Lowes sprayers.. and I agree that they are complete Junk. They are also the exact same ones sold at Tractor Supply and Kmart/Sears Essentials.
I started to buy the ACE ones but a review on their website said that the plastic tip wears out to fast.. so I unfortunately bought the lowes ones because of the metal tip and metal plunger. The Solo 418 are sold at Northern Tool.. so I might pick up a few from there if you give them a good review. I saw some at walmart that actually didn't look half bad.. but being walmart they probably suck. I wonder if Target carries any sprayers? Last edited by Strs90; 06-24-2008 at 11:22 PM. |
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Nice prelim. Denzil! I'm waiting for my Meg's WB solution to eat through the Big Lots bottle...so far, so good but the spray pattern is fubard now. Haven't had a chance to use the USPlastics one again.
Looking forward to your shootout! |
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Ok everyone, I'd first like to apologize for not posting this review in the time frame that I had initially stated I would. The review itself was already done by Thursday night but I didn't get a chance to post up the results due to many factors. Anyway, the results were pretty interesting and I thoroughly enjoyed doing this review for the benefit of everyone, even myself! So here it is, what some of you have been waiting for, the final verdict!
Here was the setup for these tests: - Each sprayer was filled to approximately 1/4 to 1/5 of its respective capacity - After the wheel was sprayed by each sprayer, all product was removed with a rinse with hose water to provide a clean surface for the next sprayer - The first set of pictures consist of each sprayer being pumped 30 times - The second set of pictures consist of each sprayer being pumped 50 times (I pumped 20 additional times to the previous test) - The last and final set of pictures I had pumped each sprayer at least 100 times (I pumped as much as my arms allowed, LoL. Six sprayers and at least 100 pumps per sprayer = two very sore arms) 30 pumps: Ace Hardware ![]() Home Depot ![]() Lowe's ![]() Solo 415 ![]() Solo 418 ![]() Solo 419 ![]() 50 pumps: Ace Hardware ![]() ![]() Home Depot ![]() ![]() Lowe's ![]() ![]() Solo 415 ![]() ![]() Solo 418 ![]() ![]() Solo 419 ![]() ![]() At least 100 pumps: Ace Hardware ![]() Home Depot ![]() Lowe's ![]() Solo 415 ![]() Solo 418 ![]() Solo 419 ![]() Not completely content with the Solo 415's performance considering the Lowe's brand sprayer was more or less the same product, I decided to inspect the 415. To my surprise, it was leaking a bit of air from somewhere within the seal and I had tightened it down pretty good or so I thought. Anyway, that was quickly remedied by putting a little more elbow grease into closing the seal by twisting the head of the sprayer tighter. In result, this is what it produced: ![]() Much better results as I had originally expected after initially observing how well the Lowe's sprayer performed. I also went back to ensure that all other sprayers were adequately tightened and weren't leaking air as well in which they weren't. There are a few things to note though. A large factor in the performance of these sprayers had to do with how well the sprayers were filled with product. As I mentioned earlier, the less product or the empty space there is in the sprayer, the more pumps are required. In the end, I decided to use the Solo 415 for my P21S Gel. After deciding to dedicate the 415 for P21S Gel, I filled the 415 to the top with it and tested to see how many pumps it required to get the performance similar to the last picture after re-tightening the sprayer. It took well under 30 pumps so I was definitely happy. In my opinion, I find it more beneficial to have the smaller containers and wouldn't suggest models such as the Home Depot sprayer or the Solo 419. Pumping those sprayers were kind of a pain but the Solo 419 definitely wasn't as bad as the Home Depot sprayer. Like I had mentioned before, the Home Depot sprayer really is crap, LoL. As far as OTC is concerned, the Ace Hardware sprayer wasn't really all that bad. I did find that when tuning the sprayer into full spray mode to spread product, it tended to curve its spray instead of shooting it directly forward. It was really weird but other than that, a decent hand sprayer. However, the Lowe's sprayer is the best you can get OTC, IMO. It's pretty much exactly like the Solo 415 and it works great! As far as Solo is concerned, I think my favorite one would have to be the 418. I enjoy the extra feature it has with the directional nozzle which can definitely be useful for a few different applications. It's also nice considering that it's smaller than the Solo 415 and looks better (for those that care about cosmetics). Knowing that P21S Gel is more viscous than some other products such as P21S TAW, I tested all the sprayers again while rinsing them all out. By filling them all completely with hose water, I observed their behavior and they all were able to spray perfectly in a very nice mist-like fashion. So it's pretty conclusive that with the less viscous products, sprayer performance isn't so much a concern. They all performed well, even the Home Depot sprayer!!! Overall, I believe these tests were definitely a success and I hope it was of some assistance to you all as it was for me. I do admit it was a bit costly but it was definitely worth it to find out myself, LoL. I hope you all enjoyed this review. ![]() Any further comments, questions, or concerns are definitely welcome!
Last edited by Denzil; 07-03-2008 at 06:50 PM. |
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Great review Denzil! My Lowe's sprayers, I had 4 of them all performed well as far as the spray pattern and such. But where they failed was where the bottle is molded together on the bottom. All 4 began to leak from pinholes in that area. I had to trash each of them after that. The 418's (I have 4 of those) have performed superbly and at only $3 more for each sprayer over the Lowe's ones I will never buy anything except the Solos.
Thanks for taking the time to do the review and making it so indepth. One of the best comparison reviews I have seen. |