need info on choosing a rototiller

[deputy11]

hey guys, a friend of mine is thinking of buying a tractor mounted rototiller for his tractor and is needing some info before buying one. He has a older 601 ford tractor. i think its about 35 or 40 horse. What are some of the features to look for in a rototiller and which brand seems to give you the most bang for the buck.

When looking for a tiller there are a couple things to check. What sort of parking stand does it have? A poor one lets the tiller rock after you unhook and can make rehooking difficult. That can be solved by making your own dolly for it so it is always in position. Another thing if you get chain drive is: is the tension self adusting or does it use the bolt and jam nut set up? The top thing IMHO is a good slip clutch rather than shear bolt. Some places, especially breaking ground for a new garden, can have so many buried "treasures" that you will waste more time replacing shear bolts than tilling. I think all tillers have adjustable skid shoes but maybe the cheaper ones don't, so check. Some people like the feature that makes them easily offset but my experience says get one that covers your tire tracks in one pass.

Others probably have things to watch for. I'm not particular to brands as long as they are up to the job for many years and that parts will be available many years down the road. Tines and skid shoes do wear out and grease/oil seals can fail. Happy tiller shopping!!

 

[botakix]

hey guys, thanks a bunch for taking the time to respond. i think i learned enough to pass along some helpful info to him, and let him be the judge. thanks again guys

 

[CompactTractorFan]

I use a Land Pride reverse rotation which I really like,

What size do you have? We would like to get one of those eventually.

 

[TripleR]

What size do you have? We would like to get one of those eventually.

I have the RTR0550. I believe this is larger than recommended, but my 2660 has no problem with it.

 

[Builder]

I know a local fellow that bought a new 7 ft MX series John Deere Brush Hog this year for $3500. Guess where the gearbox was made? If you said China, you are right. Ken Sweet

Ken, I have a new MX-8 Bush Hog and the gear box is made in Spain.

 

[sweettractors]

Ken, I have a new MX-8 Bush Hog and the gear box is made in Spain.

How old is it? Ken Sweet

 

[Car Doc]

I thought I wanted a reverse tiller when I was shopping for one and the price is what steered me away because I could not see a single reason why they were higher other than the mystique factor of having something new and different and I wasn't going to fall for it.

I am glad I didn't get one my 6' KK2 does a fantastic job maybe not as good as a reverse but I am happy with it and all the times I have hired out the customer has been happy with the work.

I believe KK stuff some of it anyway may be made in Canada I don't know why I think that but that's what comes to mind. My slip clutch and driveshaft are definitely from china though so who knows where the rest is from for sure.

 

[King Kutter Rep]

I thought I wanted a reverse tiller when I was shopping for one and the price is what steered me away because I could not see a single reason why they were higher other than the mystique factor of having something new and different and I wasn't going to fall for it.

I am glad I didn't get one my 6' KK2 does a fantastic job maybe not as good as a reverse but I am happy with it and all the times I have hired out the customer has been happy with the work.

I believe KK stuff some of it anyway may be made in Canada I don't know why I think that but that's what comes to mind. My slip clutch and driveshaft are definitely from china though so who knows where the rest is from for sure.

99.9% of the King Kutter equipment is made in the US, in three different factories. Only a few items like spin spreaders, cement mixers, and drag harrows are actually outsourced from overseas (not china).

Like all of the other big implement manufacturing companies, we buy gearboxes from China. King Kutter has extremely good luck with these gearboxes and have an extremely low failure rate. Extremely low.

 

[sweettractors]

99.9% of the King Kutter equipment is made in the US, in three different factories. Only a few items like spin spreaders, cement mixers, and drag harrows are actually outsourced from overseas (not china).

Like all of the other big implement manufacturing companies, we buy gearboxes from China. King Kutter has extremely good luck with these gearboxes and have an extremely low failure rate. Extremely low.

I am glad that we now know that "Made in the USA" is different than "Assembled in the USA". If I understand you correctly, the KK Roto tillers and I assume Rotary Cutters are "Assembled in the USA" with some foreign components? Ken Sweet

 

[King Kutter Rep]

I am glad that we now know that "Made in the USA" is different than "Assembled in the USA". If I understand you correctly, the KK Roto tillers and I assume Rotary Cutters are "Assembled in the USA" with some foreign components? Ken Sweet

Using that logic, if every single component isn't originated from the US, then it shouldn't be called made in the USA? I think that's poor logic.

King Kutter products are MADE in the USA. Tiller rotor bars are made here. The flanges are made here and welded onto the rotor bar. The top of the deck of the rotary tiller is formed in our plant. The deck for the rotary kutter is cut and formed in our plant, as are the side rails. We manufacture the stump jumper in our plant. The box frame for our discs are cut, punched, and welded together in our plant. The three-point frame is bent, and punched, and put together in our plant in the USA. To me... that's MADE IN THE USA.

It's hard to get much more American made than that.

Ken... why aren't you a King Kutter dealer? You sound like a heck of a good dealer and I think every company could use more good dealers. I don't know your area, maybe we've already got a dealer there.