Gilmour 819603-1001 196SPB Impulse Polymer Sled Base Medium Duty Adjustable Pattern Master Circular Sprinkler

I bought 2 of the Gilmour 196SPB Pattern Master Impulse Sprinkler on Polymer Sled Base about 2 years ago because I have very irregularly shaped lawn areas and no other sprinklers were able to be fine tuned to vary the distance of water thrown around these various areas. That meant I was wasting lots of water with the other types of units I tried. I also tried linking three small sprinklers up in a row so that I could set each one to throw the water different distances and angles, but by the time the water got to the 2nd and third units, there was limited water pressure left. So I saw this Gilmour Pattern Master, and thought I would try a couple of them. It's been two years of using them, and they have been terrific, just what I was looking for. Overall, excellent units. Setting the sweep. As other reviewers have said, setting them up takes a few minutes to get used to how much of a 360 degree angle sweep you need, but after a minute or so of experimenting, and getting yourself wet while you watch it work up close and adjust it while it is working, you can fine tune the sweep it throws to within a foot - very precise. I had something approximating an "L" shaped area to handle, and put the sprinkler in the intersection of the "L" in front of a bush, pointing out at the lawn with the hose hidden along the shrubs. Many other sprinklers on the market allow you to set a sweep, so that is no big deal. I had several of them, and they all did a good job at the variable sweep. But read on to the next step below to see what Gilmour did so well to introduce variable distance throwing... Setting the Distance for each angle. Once you get the sweep/angles it throws water at the way you want, you then adjust a variable pattern of how far it throws the water within the sweep angles you set in the earlier step. Gilmour controlled how you do this very cleverly. All you do is push up or down the plastic ring at the various angles as the sprinkler goes around its path. To learn how it works, just push up from beneath the sprinkler every 15 degrees or so pushing the ring up all the way for some angles, and half way for other angles. Again, it will take a minute for you to watch it go around its sweep and to master how to set those adjustments affect the water output with trial and error, but once you see how it works from your test, you will then quickly be able to set the distances around the sweep angles by properly pushing up from underneath in several places from underneath the ring. Depending on your water pressure (mine is on a well pump, so not very strong, maybe gets up to 40 or 50 lbs of pressure), you can fine tune the distance it throws in this step very accurately. I have some parts of the sweep where I adjusted it so it throws the water 35 feet, and other parts of the sweep where I set it to throw the water only 8-10 feet, with lots of variation you can set in between. Durability. Yes, it is made of plastic, but would have to be to allow for their little plastic distance variation ring to smoothly be adjusted up and down. I had no leaks where you connect the hose to it, so that part was solid, and I have connected and disconnected them several times each watering season. The unit is lightweight, though, and it does vibrate some when it is working, and it could actually shift its position where you originally place it, so you may want to do what I did, and stake it down. The vibration does not change the settings you made, but could literally make the entire unit move an inch or so, thus throwing off the sweep angle because the whole unit moved. I took a coat hanger, made a U-shaped stake, and staked it down in two places. That worked great and it stayed put all season, and I reused the U-shaped hooks from the coat hanger the second season. But you can figure out various ways to resolve that minor issue. I am into the third season of using them, and except for the one my lawn tractor mowing deck edge hit by accident in my first season (which did break the unit, no surprise, and I bought a replacement) they are still going strong and have not broken now that I have learned to avoid them with the tractor! My watering season is about 5 months, and at the end of the first season, I disconnected the units for the winter and store them in the garage, and marked them with permanent marker to indicate which location in my yard each is for, and I marked them with an arrow pointing to a landmark on my yard so I would know exactly where to angle it on the yard when I place it down the following year. That way, I would not have to readjust the settings again. Competition on the market. I see that another mfg, Nelson I think, makes something similar too, but the Gilmour got better and more reviews, so I went with the Gilmour and after nearly three seasons of use, have no complaints. I am considering buying 2 more for other sections of my yard based on the success of these, or to have at least one backup in case I have another tractor incident with one. I am not sure why more companies do not sell these. Summary: Pros: Reasonable price and it does exactly what it is described to do. Color blends in with grass. Saves water by your being able to fine tune sweep and distance in a variable way. Holds up well to time (my third season using them). Quick delivery from Amazon. Adjustments stay put nicely, and can be readjusted without fear of breaking those adjustments. After trying at least 7 or 8 different sprinklers I finally found the one that meets my needs and has lasted into my third season and is still going strong. I recommend the unit highly. Cons: It would be nice if Gilmour include little stakes or something to stake them down, since they do jitter a bit while being used, and over time may shift the unit's location on the lawn a bit.

This is not only the best sprinkler I've ever had, but one of the best things I've ever bought on Amazon, period. It is pure genius. After using it for a couple of weeks, here is my overall appraisal: This "pattern sprinkler" is a huge time-saver. My lawn is a normal sized suburban yard, but for some reason it used to take me forever to water it (which makes me disinclined to do so). With my succession of previous sprinklers, in order not to be watering the street, driveway, or house, I have had to move the sprinkler all over the place. Between back and front yards, I have had to move the sprinkler 11 or 12 times at minimum, and even then there would be a lot of crossover, so that certain areas got double-watered. With this device, I only move the sprinkler five times, max. PRO: - Saves time and water. Precise allotment of water from roughly 45 feet to within 5 feet in a 360 degree circle. Basically what this means is you put it down in one spot, set the two rotation controls (or just let it spin in a continuous 360 degrees), and then set the distance limiter setting which has about 30 points on the circle that can be set from 45 ft to less than 5 ft each. Then, let it run. You then can have the water going full blast 45 feet across the yard, pulling back when it goes across the front of the house, going out a little further before the driveway, a little further more at the street, pulling back at the mailbox, and then going back to 45 feet out. Just incredible. - Quick to setup for each move. Once you see how the distance limiter buttons work, you can set them in 30 seconds or less each time. The rotation limiters are simple levers you just move. - Very lightweight, but seems durable. - Low price. CON: - It's made of plastic (thus the low price) so if you slam it on hard ground or concrete it is going to break. This problem could come into play if you are moving it, and winding up a lot of hose in your arm, and then carrying it all with the sprinkler hanging out at the end. You need to be careful and not just throw it all down on the ground. But believe me, after watching this little baby run you are going to want to be careful with it anyway. I think if they made one out of aluminum or some exotic substance and charged $150 instead of $19 I would be the first one to buy one. With this plastic model, I will just make it a point to go buy a new one if ever or whenever this one breaks.

I wanted to like this sprinkler more than I ultimately did. Given that I think that has more to do with my preferences and situation rather than quality or effectiveness of the product, I rate this at four stars. First, my situation: A corner lot house in the California 'burbs. Lot's of grass (well, grass and weeds in roughly equal parts) in uneven shapes due to walkways, flower beds, etc. What the sprinkler did well: * Adjustability: I've got to say, the sprinkler does exactly what it is described to: Adjusts to sprinkle any shaped area. I was impressed - and still am - at the ingenuity of the designer(s). It took a few minutes to figure out, but when I got it, the results were impressive. If you have a weird area to sprinkle and don't want to move a simple broadcast sprinkler a dozen times to cover it, this may be your sprinkler. What I didn't care for: * Since this is an impulse sprinkler, the movement comes from an arm getting in the way of the water stream, basically knocking the stream over a notch until the arm swings back and knocks it over again. This style covers reasonably well, but not perfectly. (as most sprinklers also don't) My issue is with the effect of the adjustment: For long runs, the stream shoots way out, leaving much of the grass in the interim relatively dry; for short runs, where the adjustment comes in to play, a hood comes down and deflects the stream of water, forcing it downwards. The upshot: The areas of coverage where the water has the shortest travel get soaked, while the area of longest travel gets relatively little water. Result? Seriously uneven watering. This, despite the fact that the sprinkler seemed to go faster through those short spans. Other thoughts: * While it worked great for adjustability, the ring that is used to make the adjustments does not seem like it would last over time. I didn't get the feeling that this is really meant to be adjusted every time one needed to move it to another part of the yard. Rather, it is best having it dedicated to the one spot that it is adjusted for and then replaced at that same spot every time, in the same orientation, so you don't need to make the adjustments over and over again. Which is fine, but just not for this particular user. I can see that it would be really great for certain applications; it just wasn't the right product for my particular weed farm. If you can plant this sprinkler in the same spot, in the same way every time you water, and if the distances between the maximum reach and the minimum reach aren't too great, this may be the sprinkler for you. I'll try using this in another part of my yard to see if it works any better there and I'll write an update if I have a different experience going forward. I will say that overall quality is good and seems stout enough for a sprinkler of this type, holding in reserve my judgment of the circular adjustment device over the long term.

Awesome sprinkler. Fully customizable and easy to use. One thing I would recommend is tightening the adjustment plate before use. I saw that I would set the sprinkler adjustments and then the spray pattern was changing on its on. Figured out the circular plate that holds the adjustment tabs was loose and spinning freely. After giving them a couple of turns and tightening them down I haven't had a single issue. Side note, you will need to use a weight of some kind on each side to keep these from moving around since they are plastic and light weight. About a 1lb object on each side should do fine.

Love these sprinklers. I love the ajustment patterns as I do a lot of sprinkling in small areas and I can adjust so water wont hit walls

I waited 2 months to write this review because of the mixed reviews on this product. This sprinkler in my opinion worked awesome especially for the price, the coverage this gets is magnificent and I love the fact that you have control over where the water is going to spray. I gone through a couple different ones from Amazon including the Nelson Traveling sprinkler and I kept finding myself using these sprinklers again. I can not say my experience was perfect with this item, but what is perfect? During the first month there was one time the sprinkler would just sit there and not rotate but after a little fiddling around with it it began working correctly. I was so impressed with this sprinkler I bought a second one for the backyard. Pros: Besides the price, it has lasted the entire summer (up until now). I used these twice a day for 20-30 minutes and they have not failed on me. The adjustable tabs on the sprinkler are valuable because your coverage is controlled. Cons: At times I find the water pressure not being consistent, Im not sure if its something to do with the water pressure in my area or what but sometimes the sprinkler would spray full at a distance and at other times its weak (and no the water in my house was not being used). I have a large front and back yard so I have to move this around a couple times to get complete coverage in my yard, this doesn't seem to bother me though Overall I would give this product an "A", the traditional up and down sprinkler would possibly be a better fit for my yard. If I were you I would compare the two and figure out which would work best for your personal use. If your yard is wide and long like mine the traditional one might be better for you.

Best and most versatile sprinkler I've used, ever. I have a 2500 sq ft back yard that's L shaped and I connected two of these though three would be best, the customization is top notch and should be the industry standard for impact sprinklers so you water the lawn not the fence, patio, sidewalk, your house etc. Build quality wise theres tons to be desired, namely this plastic will break if youre not careful walking around your lawn or have small children. The plastic base is sturdy enough but I'd do away with it, because if it sits long enough it kills more grass than necessary. I replaced my base like so. I have three of these, two in back and one out front on the side with no irrigation. Which these were made of rust proof metal, I'd pay for that but they gorilla glue fine if necessary. Water pressure is great even daisy chained. I definitely recommend.

**UPDATE 2 weeks later - wrote to Gilmour to express my dissatisfaction and they've said they'll honor their warranty and send me a new one. Hasn't arrived yet and I have no idea if it will be more durable if/when it does, but we'll see. At least they responded to me, that's a positive sign.** Got this sprinkler for a very large meadow garden b/c it was highly recommended on gardening sites for being durable and having a long throw (up to 80' diameter). First use - disappointed a bit b/c throw was really closer to about 40', which means I can't just set and forget but need to move it, which is a pain b/c the garden is very far from the house, but whatever, I was willing to deal with that). Used it the second time today and the place where the garden hose connects just snapped right off WHILE the sprinkler was on and now I can no longer connect a hose to this, rendering it nothing but a bunch of lightweight plastic and utterly useless. Used 2x, broken to bits, and it's going to be 100 degrees here today and I have no way to water my garden so my plants will die. Terrible, terrible product. Do not buy.

Das Teil ist toll und sehr flexibel einsetzbar. Der Regner sprüht nicht nur den üblichen Kreis, sondern kann durch zwei Stopper auf einen Beregnungssektor eingestellt werden. Außerdem kann die Wurfreichweite flexibel auf die örtlichen Verhältnisse eingestellt werden.

So at first out of the box i didn't see any set up instruction but its a sprinkler so no biggie right??? well i hooked 1 of the 2 units i purchased up and turned on the water and it basically just dripped out the front, no pressure no movement. So i tried the 2nd one I purchased with the same result. Frustrated i went to the box which says to watch videos on Gilmour website which i did.. and low and behold they both work great!! issue was operator error lol. This throw water far and can even be adjusted to mist areas and control weather water is heavy or light in different directions. i normally have and inground system but not having one at this house yet this is the next best thing i have found and i have a big yard. Would buy again!!! Update. Contacted Fiskars/ Gilmour Canada and they are replacing the entire head for sprinkler as i lost screw and was looking for a replacement and there are none on website. Great product good customer service!

I don’t normally take the time to write reviews unless I feel SUPER compelled by a product to do so. I’ve only been using this sprinkler for a few days, so I can’t really rate it’s durability, but WOW. It works exactly how it explains in the Gilmour How To video on YouTube (recommend you watch if purchasing)! My yard has a weird shape - it is square for the most part, so you think it’d be easy to water with any old sprinkler, but there are small parts I’m trying to keep alive that reach just sliiightly down the sides of my house, and it’s difficult to water these areas without soaking my entire deck (above and under) each time I water with other sprinkler types. Anyways, it has been an extremely hot, dry summer, and after going through god knows how many sprinklers and how many diff set ups to reach ALL areas of my lawn (and not soak my entire deck at the same time), I think I’ve FINALLY found the one!! Right now I have it sitting in the middle of my “square” lawn on the 360 setting, but it adjusts beautifully when going around my deck, so as not to soak unwanted areas. Worth it!

Great product. Use it to water entire lawn. Ability to adjust spray makes it ideal to get more lawn and less of neighbours car. Set it up with a water timer and able to water entire lawn. Saved $$$$ from having to install inground system. Hides nicely in garden bed. Would recommend. Just wish it was made of metal instead of plastic.

I bought my first one last summer and this year bought two more. I am on a well with about 40psi and it works awesome for the amount of coverage it gets. I like how you can change the distance by popping the red tabs up or down changing the angle of the spray making it so customizable. I used the first one I bought all last summer and so far this summer, leaving it out all of the time and so far it's held strong.