Agri-Fab SmartLink Master Platform

I heard horror stories about this product shipping poorly packaged and missing parts. I didn't experience this with this product (though the plug aerator attachment was a completely different story) and it came in a thick box with all the heavy parts well secured with no damage to the box (though it was shipped Fedex, and they're much gentler on packages than UPS).

Whatever you do, do NOT loosen the bolts that loosely attach the side plates to the top of the platform. Take it out of the box as one piece even though it's awkward and you risk pinching your fingers.

Why is this? Because the instructions for assembly are terrible. There are insufficient diagrams, and the instructions perpetually refer to the "left" and "right" side of the platform, but the author never bothers to tell you what orientation the tray is supposed to be in for "left" and "right" to mean anything as it's relative! There is no "left" or "right" labeled on the tray or any of the diagrams either. As I took the bolts out before lifting the tray out of the box, I managed to get it completely flipped around and had to take it apart and put it back together again once I realized my error.

The video instructions aren't much better, it's just a couple of marketing-type dudes with a crescent wrench fumbling with the parts while a narrator reads the instructions to you word for word.

Once assembled the product is solid. There's a few nit-picks I could make, like the wheels have no bearings, they ride directly on a (threaded) bolt, which is probably fine for the purpose, and there's so much slop in the assembly holes for the tray it's difficult to get the sides perfectly plumb during assembly. If you tighten the bolts that hold the wheels on just a little too much the wheels won't even turn until you loosen them up and hope the nylock nut does it's job.

Note that assembling this item would be much easier with a helper to hold parts for you while you tighten nuts.

I heard horror stories about this product shipping poorly packaged and missing parts. I didn't experience this with this product (though the plug aerator attachment was a completely different story) and it came in a thick box with all the heavy parts well secured with no damage to the box (though it was shipped Fedex, and they're much gentler on packages than UPS).

Whatever you do, do NOT loosen the bolts that loosely attach the side plates to the top of the platform. Take it out of the... more

I have used the platform with the dethatcher and the slicing aerator over my 30,000 sq.ft lawn. It worked quite well.

Then I reseeded the bare spots caused by lack of rain this summer and am waiting for the new grass to fill in. I recommend this product. Seems to be well built.

After carefully reading the instructions, the Master Platform and Plug Aerator were easy to assemble. Parts are robustly made and fit correctly. The lift mechanism works well to lift the attachments off the ground when riding over concrete and hazards. The recommendation in north Florida is to aerate during cooler spring and fall temperatures to prevent the soil from drying out due to heat/sunshine.

Under moist soil conditions, I’ll aerate once in late fall and twice in early spring, followed with fertilizer, sand, top coating compost, etc. The going price here is $160.00 to hire a business for each aeration. Mine is new and I need to wait a month for the weather. Performance ratings were based on witnessing others using this same product.

After carefully reading the instructions, the Master Platform and Plug Aerator were easy to assemble. Parts are robustly made and fit correctly. The lift mechanism works well to lift the attachments off the ground when riding over concrete and hazards. The recommendation in north Florida is to aerate during cooler spring and fall temperatures to prevent the soil from drying out due to heat/sunshine.

Under moist soil conditions, I’ll aerate once in late fall and twice in early spring,... more

Ground at my house is hard, I used 3/8 inch blocks for weight and seemed to sink spikes about 2 or more inches.

Assembly a task, but really good product.

This is a great piece of lawn equipment. Works great.

I purchased the platform, coring link, rake, and roller for fall lawn prep. The platform is well constructed. As is the attachments. The coring link was missing the shaft when it arrived. Customer service was great. They sent on right out. The platform will hold concrete blocks without sagging. I even added an actuator to lift the platform over side walks and drive ways.

Really good idea. Fairly priced, and easily assembled.
Also, a real space saver.