School me on Tillers (walk behind)

Hi All,

We have a small (72 x 48 feet) garden. Right now I borrow a tiller every couple of years in the spring, but am thinking of getting one. In the past my wife has planned the garden, I've planted stuff and then it's been her deal but starting last year I'm taking over the whole deal. I was thinking walk-behind rather than three point due to the garden size and thinking of using it to cultivate during the season also. Right now the garden is marked off by cattle panels, so I could get a big tractor in if needed.

A friend has an older Troy Built (I think a Pony, but not remembering for sure). I till so infrequently that really drags me along and is hard on my back. This person runs E-10 and invariably forgets to drain the carb in the fall, so it's often at my house in the spring for me to get running (so continuing to use this prior to planting is one option). They talk every year about buying a new one and I tell them they're probably better off with the old one, just put it away for the winter, so I could probably buy this one pretty cheap if I wanted to. I didn't quite get it running to where I liked it this spring and it is wearing in other places, but buying this may or may not be an option.

I'm looking to spend less than a grand if I go new, so some of the really nice tillers I see aren't really on the table. Looking at (for example, no preference on my part at this point) the Troy Built line I see counter rotating tines on some. Is this as wonderful as it sounds, or does the tiller just try to back over me instead of running away on me? I also see a "Bronco Axis" marked down/clearance. This one has vertical tines (they rotate like an egg-beater, drilling into the soil). Serious option, or gimmick? I don't have lots of rocks here if that makes a difference (guessing a potato sized rock would wreak havoc on the vertical tines). I have not done it, but plan to start throwing a couple of inches of composted manure on in the fall and tilling that in. Would the vertical tines mix that in?

I also like the idea of spreading the rows out a little and using a tiller to cultivate during the growing season. Is there a magic size that's not too small for the spring, not too large for the season? I have more space and can expand if needed (in fact, we normally just plant 2/3 rds of the above area and leave 1/3 in grass which is mowed, so expanding isn't an issue).

Any suggestions or observations welcome! I could rent a 3 pt tiller for the spring, then have a small one to cultivate. I do have an old Gravely walk behind (L8?) but no tiller attachment.

Thanks,

Bob

Find an older tb horse.

The old Troy Built Pony was a good tiller. I'm thinking there is supposed to be an adjustable spike in the back that drags to keep it from running away.

I haven't investigated any of the new ones, but suspect it would be easy to get a lesser quality product unless you spend for the quality.

One thing you could do is check out some Youtube videos of actual owners using and evaluating them. That will give you a real life view over something the manufacturer puts out.

You're on the mark about the spike. We bought a Pony and it was a bucking bronco until I read on here about the spike. Ours was worn way down. Welded an extension onto it and it's a whole different machine.

If the tines rotate in the direction of travel the tiller wants to lurch forward and drag the operator with it. I do not like that. Counter rotating tines are a must and the ones I have used have never tried to back over the user. In winter you should be able to get a good used one for a lot less than a thousand dollars.

Original TroyBilts were durable tillers, they have been bought out by MTD which cheapens everything they take over. They have never been great in tight soil. Unless you have sandy soil you should only consider a counter-rotating rear tine tiller.

I gardened with a Troy Bilt horse model for years. But the new counter-rotating tines are much better at working new or hard ground. Plus they dig much deeper than forward rotating. I use forward gear for loose soil and for leveling after counter-rotating pass. I now use a Craftsman tiller, I think I paid about $700 for it 5 years ago. I have been very pleased with it.

I posted this (link below) years ago, some good information on the Troy Built in there.
Troy Built

In the late 70's my Dad bought a Troy-Bilt Horse with the 7hp Kohler engine and once I was big enough I was its primary user. I have no idea how many acres I've covered with that tiller and it is still going strong to this day. With regards to the tine rotation, as you and others have said forward-rotating models like the Horse can lurch forward if you try to go too deep too fast in tight ground. They key here is to make several passes and chew down a little more with each one. I've always wondered what counter-rotating tillers do when working down residue such as cornstalks and viney stuff like melons and tomatoes. Here the forward-rotating tines do a good job - I know from experience that with a big tiller like the Horse a few passes in standing cornstalks and there isn't much left of them. The tines use the soil as a cutting board as they come down on the material. I can't quite visualize how a counter-rotating model would do this job but since I've never used one I can't pass judgement.

We always planted 30" rows and the 20" wide tiller fit well between them for cultivating as long as the plants weren't too bushy.

I purchased a Husqvarna new got it for $770 from lowes works great narrow enough to run down rows forward for weeding easy on the back counter rotating for initial planting.

I have an old Troy Bilt Horse. Replaced the tines and the original HH60 Tecumseh motor last summer with a Briggs & Stratton. The thing is a tank, and it won't try to run away unless I dig too deep in the first pass. But the real key is to work lots and lots of organic matter into the soil so it stays loose.

+1 on the spike.

Saw it on this forum a couple years ago. Mine didn't have one.

Makes a big difference

Fred

Another vote for an older Troy-Bilt. We have 3 Horse models in the family, all 70's era machines, all with extensive use on good-sized gardens (plus lots of friends & family "custom" work) and all still going strong. As mentioned, the forward-rotating tines work just fine as long as you don't try to do the entire depth of cut in one pass.

I have an old Troy Bilt Horse with electric start. I put full sized car battery on it when the original battery went bad. The extra weight improved the traction and made it less likely to run away in heavy tilling.

I owned a Troy-Bilt Horse for several years. It was more of a bucking bronc than a good horse. If the ground was hard, forget it. It ain't going to go deep enough to do any good. The horse died. I gave it away and bought a Craftsman with the counter-rotating tine option. The craftsman is more user friendly than the Troy-Bilt, but really is not any better. If it didn't have the counter-rotating tines, it would be totally worthless.

Look for a BCS or Grillo machine. All gear driven with a true clutch - no belts, no bronze bushings, no tin gearbox. They have a lower center of gravity versus a Toy-Bilt, so you're less likely to tip it over if you have hills. The tine RPM is 290 versus 185rpm, which means you get nearly twice as many cuts per tire rotation. More cuts means smaller bites, which means lower chance of the machine leaping. Larger BCS and Grillo machines have a locking differential so they're easier to turn. Best thing about them is you can use them year-round - tiller in spring, mower in summer, chipper in fall, blower in winter. They're expensive, but worth it. You'll be willing your machine to your great-grandkids.

When I was married I wanted to buy my wife a new Troy Built. I had half the money and asked about financing the rest for one year but they would not do that. The local Deere Dealer sold BCS and he said no problem so we got a BCS. 25 years later we still have it and my wife grows a big garden. It has a faster tine speed and is much easier to handle than a troy built.(Wife grew up with a troy built). You might not like it if you have stones in your garden as it will jump some when encountering them. Daughter is getting married soon and wants a BCS as well. Tom

If you have a small tractor, is moldboard plowing and maybe disking instead of roto-tilling an option? Plowing before roto-tilling makes the job of roto-tilling much easier. Fall plowing and spring tilling/disking can make a great seed bed in the snow belt. Back in the 1960's dad would plant 40 inch rows in the garden and weed the garden with a 2 row cultivator mounted on a JD B.

I've never run a Troy built and I'd plant my garden to grass seed before I'd spend that much money on a new one. I have a 36 inch tiller on a Wheel Horse tractor that makes a nice seed bed with out beating a guy to death and have a MTD walk behind I use for cultivating that's no fun to use, also have a new Mantis that has about five hours on it that I thought would be easier on a old guy but it ain't as easy as the women on the TV commercials make it look, maybe I need to retire from gardening.

Thanks for all of the replies (but keep them coming).

I like the idea of the BCS, but already have small tractors (and the Gravely, which is an earlier take on the same concept). Also having too many real tractors I can't justify that money when I look at the antique tractor I could buy instead (the walk behind would be easier to store, I guess).

I used the real tractor (probably a 4 cylinder Ford 4000 at that time) to initially establish the garden plot. Right now it's surrounded by cattle panels with chicken wire attached, but I can make them movable enough to get a tractor into that again (except I've got more permanent stuff on the west end, raspberries, maybe some asperagus and strawberries soon). I did go rip the rest with the extended rippers on a box blade this spring before tilling (Hey, it was there).

The online reviews on the "Bronco" (CRT Troy Bilt) are either "flimsy piece of junk, handles bent" or "Hey, it's a Troy Bilt, Dad had one so I know it's gonna be good". I think I'll pass on that.

The older one the friend has may be an Econo Horse (I said Pony above, I'm not sure). I may talk to them about that one. It has the Tecumsuh engine, probably needs a carb and some belts and maybe tines. I put a new magneto on it a few years ago, but hear the carbs are spendy? How are other parts for that? I'm thinking that I be better off getting that (or similar, depending on what I can find over the winter) and and re-doing everything, but I'm at the point with my Gravely where I'm wondering if that approach is worth the effort?

Thanks again,

Be sure to check out a Honda rototiller. Easy starting. Easy to handle. Doesn't take a small man and a boy to turn it around. Yup check out a Honda.

We bought a Craftsman a few years ago and it has a shifter on the tines so you can have forward or counter rotation. Very handy.
It has better clearance than some of their earlier models.
Wife purchased a lifetime maintenance contract as well so we can call for new belts or to have it serviced if I don't have the time.
However I suppose now that Sears is in trouble it may not be the best idea.
Husqvarna has the same type of tiller.