Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8
horsepower engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John

"John Q. Public" wrote in message
m...
Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8 horsepower
engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John


For what kind of projects, and how often?

On Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:20:45 -0500, "John Q. Public"
wrote:

Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8
horsepower engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John

Below is what I found at www.consumerreports.org


March 2005 printable version
Mini-tillers: More power, less effort

Person using Honda Harmony mini-tiller.

GROUND CONTROL More digging power at lower speeds helps four-stroke
tillers like Honda’s Harmony ease handling.
Mini-tillers aren’t just for ardent gardeners. The best of these
machines can handle more pedestrian chores such as tearing away
crabgrass and whisking away weeds far more quickly and easily than a
spade or hoe.

Several new models add faster starts and more digging power, courtesy
of a four-stroke engine like the kind on mowers. They also run
cleaner, since four-stroke tillers produce fewer exhaust emissions
than the two-stroke models they’re replacing--a prime reason why most
two-stroke tillers do not meet stricter California emissions
standards. Yet at about $300, most of these cleaner machines cost
about the same as older, dirtier models.

You’ll also find plug-in electric tillers, along with tiller
attachments that replace the bottom half of the shaft on some string
trimmers. But weeks of testers’ tilling, sod-busting, and weeding
revealed that some of these machines work far better than others. Here
are the details:

Some take more strength and care. Spending just $90 for a tiller
attachment may seem appealing if you already own a string trimmer that
can power it. But the trimmer-powered tillers we tested were slow,
heavy, and hard to handle.

You’ll find electric tillers tempting if you love push-button starts
and hate handling gasoline. But the ones we tested for this report
were slower and less powerful than most gas-powered tillers. We also
found it all too easy to drag an electric tiller’s power cord over
young shrubs, flowers, and other short, fragile plants.

All gas-powered tillers are noisy. All 12 gasoline-powered tillers and
trimmer-driven machines produced a racket at or above the 85 decibels
at which we recommend hearing protection. Electric tillers are quiet
by comparison; the quietest emitted just 68 decibels at ear level,
making it quieter than many vacuum cleaners.


HOW TO CHOOSE

Mini-tillers have grown in sales as lot sizes and gardens have shrunk.
But they aren’t for everyone. You’re likely to prefer renting or even
buying a larger tiller for yard projects beyond 300 square feet or for
rocky soil. You may also prefer the added control of hand tools for
jobs smaller than 100 square feet.

See Types to determine which type meets your needs. Then keep these
points in mind as you shop:

Determine how you’ll use it. The best of these machines excelled at
tilling, sod-busting, and weeding. But you may be willing to trade
some performance in one or more of those areas for a lower price or an
electric’s push-button starting.

Look for convenience. Features highlights labor-savers that make some
tillers easier to use. Those that count most include a four-stroke
engine for gas models, along with easy tine removal and wheels for all
tillers.

Also be sure that any tiller is reasonably easy to lift and rolls
smoothly on its wheels. Check, too, that the handlebar is wide enough
to allow both elbows to clear your sides when you pull back on the
machine--something you’ll do often while working as the tines pull the
tiller ahead.

Consider repairs down the road. Half of all tillers are sold by Home
Depot (Honda, Yard Machines), Lowe’s (Troy-Bilt), and Sears
(Craftsman). Some of these retailers have service agreements with
local dealers, as do brands such as Hoffco, which are sold by
manufacturers.

Before buying, ask which dealer will provide your service. Then, as
with other power equipment, call or visit the dealer to get a sense of
whether you’ll be treated as well as customers who bought their
machines at that dealer.

Think twice about add-ons. With some tillers, you can buy dethatchers,
edgers, aerators, and other attachments for roughly $40 to $100 each.
As with tiller attachments for trimmers, however, we’ve typically
found these add-ons less effective than dedicated machines.

Keep it safe. Wear goggles and boots, along with hearing protection
when using a gas tiller. And keep children and pets away while you
work.


Person firing up a mini-tiller.

Starting: one, two, three

Firing up a two-stroke mini-tiller often requires a mysterious
sequence of carburetor throttle, choke, and some well-placed pumps of
the fuel-primer bulb. Clear instructions and an automatic throttle
made starting the two-stroke Craftsman 29256 easier than other
two-strokes: Pump the primer bulb 10 times, flip the blue choke lever,
and pull the starter cord. The four-stroke Troy-Bilt 21A-128T063 we
tested has an even simpler system that eliminates the carburetor
choke. But as we found, two other four-stroke tillers typically fired
up with one less pull of the starter cord.

On 2007-03-23, John Q. Public wrote:
Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8
horsepower engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Well -- I've got a Honda mini-tiller (not sure of the model), but
it's going to be way too small for what you're after. However,
IF you can get one with a Honda motor, please do-- Honda makes
really nice motors that when regularly serviced will start on the
first pull unlike most other Briggs & Stratton motors I've used.

My mom bought my father a pressure washer a few years ago and
I insisted it had a honda motor on it and it runs like a champ
and still starts with a single tug of the rope.. My only peeve
with Honda is that they've been changing out a lot of parts from
metal to plastic on some of their products.. Of course if you're
only buying a tiller with a honda motor on it (and the tiller is
made by someone else) this may not apply in your case..

I like TROY. Once they showed a tiller going around a tree in the root
zones. I was very disturbed and wrote them a letter and they pulled all of
those commercials and assured me AI would not see another commercial roto
tilling tree roots. So I support troy.

--
Sincerely,
John A. Keslick, Jr.
Arborist
http://home.ccil.org/~treeman
and www.treedictionary.com
Beware of so-called tree experts who do not understand tree biology.
Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep reminding us
that we are not the boss.

"John Q. Public" wrote in message
m...
Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8 horsepower
engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John

Well, it has to bust sod. But really my gardens are usually 20'x20' and
up to 30'x30'. Just an ordinary vegetable garden.
Any body know anything about blue BCS machines ? They used to call them
the best tillers on earth.



JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"John Q. Public" wrote in message
m...

Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8 horsepower
engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John



For what kind of projects, and how often?

Although some will disagree, you really only need a tiller to make a new
garden, as you're doing. Afterward, you're supposed to designate growing
areas and "walking & kneeling areas". Never walk on the growing areas.
Therefore, you never need the tiller again. At the very least, get a price
quote from one or more landscapers for doing the initial sodbusting. It
might be cheaper than a tiller.



"John Q. Public" wrote in message
m...
Well, it has to bust sod. But really my gardens are usually 20'x20' and up
to 30'x30'. Just an ordinary vegetable garden.
Any body know anything about blue BCS machines ? They used to call them
the best tillers on earth.



JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"John Q. Public" wrote in message
m...

Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8
horsepower engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John



For what kind of projects, and how often?

For breaking up sod, you need a big strong tiller, but you need it only
once unless you move your garden. So I rent one for breaking up the sod.

Subsequent tilling is more like weeding with a hoe, so buying a small
tiller makes sense. I had a mantis that didn't last, and a Honda that
has run flawlessly for years.

John Q. Public wrote:
Hello,

I'm in the market for a new garden tiller. Something with a 5-8
horsepower engine, rear tine, and no more than $600 or so.....
I want this one to be the last I'll ever buy.

Who makes the most dependable ?
Availability of replacement parts is important also.

Opinions anybody ?

Thanks,

John