oughtsix
Bronze Member
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2009
- Messages
- 94
- Location
- Redmond, Oregon
- Tractor
- '58 Fordson New major, BCS 735 & 715
I think I was 12 or so the first time I ran a rototiller. My mother wouldn't let me operate the rental front tine tiller to break new ground to enlarge our vegetable garden... but my dad would. Some time later after I was off to college my parents bought a Troy built Pony. Man, was that nice in comparison! When I moved back to Oregon and bought my second house some time in the early 90's I decided to pick up a second hand Troy built. After months of searching I came across something called a Mainline/BCS tiller in the want adds (yes, pre-Internet we would look in the news paper for used equipment).
What I purchased for $200 was a Mainline tiller that was already about 20 years old. It came with an Acme 10hp rope start engine, locking differential, 5x10 wheels with wheel breaks and a 26" tiller box very similar to a 735 model BCS. I literally cut out an entire hill with that tiller. The 10hp Acme was always temperamental but after a friend borrowed it is was just trashed! After much tinkering and eventually taking the Acme apart I ended up putting a new 13hp Honda engine on it. This served me well until the tines broke off the tiller box about a year ago. The threaded portion of the threaded shaft the tines bolt to broke rendering the tiller box useless. I did center bore this shaft and tap it so I could use a bolt to secure the tines instead of the nut on the threaded shaft but never got the tiller gear box back together. I have been looking for a replacement box since.
A couple days ago I found a 715 with a bad engine on craigslist for $300. I called and went over there this evening to look at it. To my surprise the 8hp acme kicked in with a dose of gasoline in the carb on the first pull! I am sure the carb needs a good cleaning but I was surprise at how well the motor ran for 15 seconds until the gasoline was exhausted. After hearing the engine kick over I was happy to pay $300 for it but walked away paying $240 for it.
My plan was to pull the tiller box from the 715 and put it onto my 735 (I still don't know if it is a splined or 3 dog pto on the 715). Now I am thinking that I can get the Acme running well with a little work. With the possibility of having 2 running tractors I am thinking of swapping parts between the two to make them more suitable for my use. I am thinking of swapping the Acme and the 4x8 wheels to the 735 and use it with my mower attachment (Mowing seems like it would be easier with a differential and wheel breaks). Then I would have the 13hp honda and bigger wheels on the 715 for tilling where a differential and wheel breaks aren't really needed. My mowing deck is a brand new 22" BCS deck that I picked up a while ago for $150 but it was made for a 200 series BCS tractor which has a different mount. I haven't had a chance to figure out how to connect a 200 series deck to a conventional series tractor. I think I will have to do some fabrication to make it work.
My understanding is the 20" tiller box is the same gear box as the 26? I also believe the transmission in the 715 is as heavy duty as the 735 transmission but just doesn't have the differential? Will the 715 handle the power of the 13hp honda? I really love the honda for tilling because I can run the engine, and hence tines, really slow for breaking ground and still have plenty of torque from the big 13hp engine. 8hp seems like it should be plenty for mowing with the
What I purchased for $200 was a Mainline tiller that was already about 20 years old. It came with an Acme 10hp rope start engine, locking differential, 5x10 wheels with wheel breaks and a 26" tiller box very similar to a 735 model BCS. I literally cut out an entire hill with that tiller. The 10hp Acme was always temperamental but after a friend borrowed it is was just trashed! After much tinkering and eventually taking the Acme apart I ended up putting a new 13hp Honda engine on it. This served me well until the tines broke off the tiller box about a year ago. The threaded portion of the threaded shaft the tines bolt to broke rendering the tiller box useless. I did center bore this shaft and tap it so I could use a bolt to secure the tines instead of the nut on the threaded shaft but never got the tiller gear box back together. I have been looking for a replacement box since.
A couple days ago I found a 715 with a bad engine on craigslist for $300. I called and went over there this evening to look at it. To my surprise the 8hp acme kicked in with a dose of gasoline in the carb on the first pull! I am sure the carb needs a good cleaning but I was surprise at how well the motor ran for 15 seconds until the gasoline was exhausted. After hearing the engine kick over I was happy to pay $300 for it but walked away paying $240 for it.
My plan was to pull the tiller box from the 715 and put it onto my 735 (I still don't know if it is a splined or 3 dog pto on the 715). Now I am thinking that I can get the Acme running well with a little work. With the possibility of having 2 running tractors I am thinking of swapping parts between the two to make them more suitable for my use. I am thinking of swapping the Acme and the 4x8 wheels to the 735 and use it with my mower attachment (Mowing seems like it would be easier with a differential and wheel breaks). Then I would have the 13hp honda and bigger wheels on the 715 for tilling where a differential and wheel breaks aren't really needed. My mowing deck is a brand new 22" BCS deck that I picked up a while ago for $150 but it was made for a 200 series BCS tractor which has a different mount. I haven't had a chance to figure out how to connect a 200 series deck to a conventional series tractor. I think I will have to do some fabrication to make it work.
My understanding is the 20" tiller box is the same gear box as the 26? I also believe the transmission in the 715 is as heavy duty as the 735 transmission but just doesn't have the differential? Will the 715 handle the power of the 13hp honda? I really love the honda for tilling because I can run the engine, and hence tines, really slow for breaking ground and still have plenty of torque from the big 13hp engine. 8hp seems like it should be plenty for mowing with the