Customer Reviews

Agri-Fab 45-0177 400-Pound Max Farm and Garden Push Cart, Olive

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I've owned several of the Agri-Fab 14 cubic foot garden carts in the past and I used to rave about how great they were.

After my last one started getting a little beat and the wood started getting rotten, I looked for a new one. Based on my past positive experience, I passed up several other brands and after much searching for the Agri-Fab 45-0177 at Do It Best Hardware.

I was disappointed from the moment I opened the box.

No longer made here in Illinois - now in China. (How can something this heavy be made in China!? Doesn't the shipping cost kill any manufacturing savings!?)

Anyway - the "wood" sides and bottom are no longer any kind of recognizable wood. They used to be nice-looking dark-stained plywood. Now - they're HEAVY, ugly, rough green-painted junk wood. Not even a nice paint job. Mine even had oil stains on it right out of the box.

The hardware is completely inappropriate. The screw heads USED to be a wide "truss head" that held onto the wood well. The stuff they send now is a small, "Fillister head" that is completely wrong for use with wood. It's too small and sinks into the hood before it's tight enough to hold. I guess you could replace all the hardware - and I may still - but c'mon guys! Send us the right screws!

The wheels/tires are also JUNK. They used to be standard 26" bicycle-type wheels with fairly standard tires and tubes. The ones currently supplied are kind of "crimped" onto the rims. Not readily replaceable or even available locally. The tires/tubes also leaked air right out of the box. Just cheap material I guess. The hubs of the rims are also different. They're CAST IRON! This is great for a truck, but VERY heavy! the older-style stamped metal ones were fine. Strong, durable, and LIGHT.

In all fairness - the metal parts of the cart are very good. The fit is good. The paint is actually excellent. It LOOKS like it will be durable and it's smooth. Time will tell if it holds up.

If I had unlimited time, I'd replace all of the hardware, the wood, and the wheels - but what's the point of buying something just to have to re-build it to make it usable?

BTW - I have replaced all the wood on my old garden cart. It will be good for another 5 or 10 years - and it's much lighter and durable than the "new" one.

Agri-Fab: you guys have lost me as a repeat customer unless you restore this item to it's former quality. I hereby rescind my former rave reviews of this product.