On Tue, 23 Mar 2004 22:16:07 +0000, Dogger wrote:

My allotment hasn't been used for about five years. I dug it over last
year and it was like digging over the Gatwick runway.

I was thinking of getting one of those mantis cultivatiors. Any one
got a view on them?

I had one years ago. It did a *good* job of cultivating fairly hard
soil, 'though I didn't try it on tarmac. :-) It was very sturdy and
uuintimidated by rocks of up to 3" diameter. It was a perfect *bear*
to start, although some methods and incantations were recently posted
on rec.gardens. One advantage was its portability -- it was small and
light enough to throw in the back of my car. Its path isn't wide --
8-10", so most suitable for tilling small areas. I've never heard of
anyone getting rid of a Mantis because it broke down. Mostly it's
frustration with the starting and need for a larger machine.

On Tue, 23 Mar 2004 22:16:07 +0000, Dogger wrote:

My allotment hasn't been used for about five years. I dug it over last
year and it was like digging over the Gatwick runway.

I was thinking of getting one of those mantis cultivatiors. Any one
got a view on them?

I had one years ago. It did a *good* job of cultivating fairly hard
soil, 'though I didn't try it on tarmac. :-) It was very sturdy and
uuintimidated by rocks of up to 3" diameter. It was a perfect *bear*
to start, although some methods and incantations were recently posted
on rec.gardens. One advantage was its portability -- it was small and
light enough to throw in the back of my car. Its path isn't wide --
8-10", so most suitable for tilling small areas. I've never heard of
anyone getting rid of a Mantis because it broke down. Mostly it's
frustration with the starting and need for a larger machine.

The message
from James Fidell contains these words:

In article , Dogger wrote:

My allotment hasn't been used for about five years. I dug it over last
year and it was like digging over the Gatwick runway.

I was thinking of getting one of those mantis cultivatiors. Any one
got a view on them?

I know a couple of people who have one and think they're great, but
their ground is already fairly well cultivated. The veggie garden
I'm working on at the moment on the other hand, which has been pretty
much ignored for perhaps as much as ten years, was almost completely
untouched by quite a heavy duty rotorvator, so the mantis would
certainly have been pointless.

James

This one`s been dug over once so it should be a little bit better. Must
admit I`d rather have a big brute for the big work but the Mantis looks
useful for preparing seed beds and weeding.

The OP could of course hire a big one for the times he needs a big un.

The message
from James Fidell contains these words:

In article , Dogger wrote:

My allotment hasn't been used for about five years. I dug it over last
year and it was like digging over the Gatwick runway.

I was thinking of getting one of those mantis cultivatiors. Any one
got a view on them?

I know a couple of people who have one and think they're great, but
their ground is already fairly well cultivated. The veggie garden
I'm working on at the moment on the other hand, which has been pretty
much ignored for perhaps as much as ten years, was almost completely
untouched by quite a heavy duty rotorvator, so the mantis would
certainly have been pointless.

James

This one`s been dug over once so it should be a little bit better. Must
admit I`d rather have a big brute for the big work but the Mantis looks
useful for preparing seed beds and weeding.

The OP could of course hire a big one for the times he needs a big un.

The message
from James Fidell contains these words:

In article , Dogger wrote:

My allotment hasn't been used for about five years. I dug it over last
year and it was like digging over the Gatwick runway.

I was thinking of getting one of those mantis cultivatiors. Any one
got a view on them?

I know a couple of people who have one and think they're great, but
their ground is already fairly well cultivated. The veggie garden
I'm working on at the moment on the other hand, which has been pretty
much ignored for perhaps as much as ten years, was almost completely
untouched by quite a heavy duty rotorvator, so the mantis would
certainly have been pointless.

James

This one`s been dug over once so it should be a little bit better. Must
admit I`d rather have a big brute for the big work but the Mantis looks
useful for preparing seed beds and weeding.

The OP could of course hire a big one for the times he needs a big un.