Is Kubota's tiller any good?

[Lefty7]

OK, thanks, foreman Etexas, sorry - I missed it. And I appreciate the info, skipmarcy. I'm doing a slightly bigger garden than you, but with a new tractor and tiller, I plan on opening up some new plots that have never been tilled.

I was at my dealer yesterday fleshing out some details on the L3940. He carries the Woods line of tillers; they are all chain drive. Wonder what Woods owners/operators think of them. (?) Guess I'll search around to see.

I've pretty much decided on reverse rotation, and I think that a 60" will be best for me, as the 72" is probably going to spread my power out too thin. But am still contemplating the chain vs. gear thing. And I have yet to look into some of the other suggestions offered here, so I may concentrate on the tractor and wait on the tiller while I get more info and do more research, (as long as I've got some time before I need it.)

 

[Lefty7]

I think the Kubota brand is made in Italy by Maschio or Caroni. Very good tillers.

If your 3940 is HST you have 31.5 PTO hp. For a 31.5 HP I would stick with a 60" for sure, but then I like to till deep.

Look at Befco and Sicma tillers also. Made in Italy to a very high standard. Good luck with your purchase.

OK, I want to thank everybody who stepped in to help on this. I've waded into the tiller arena deep, and finally found what I think will be a very good machine. (Haven't had a chance to use it yet.)

But first: yes, it appears obvious that several of the tillers on the market are actually sourced from the same mfr. Also, Kubota no longer badges any tiller with their name. That time has passed. As many of you reported, it's whatever the dealer carries. Mine carries Woods, and they looked OK, and similar to several others. I checked out almost everything mentioned on this thread, including the Korean ones, some of which are pretty neat. I decided I wanted reverse tine rotation AND gear drive. When searching for that combination, it seemed that most reverse tillers were chain drive, and most gear drives were forward rotation, so I kept looking. Re-read all info and suggestions here. Picked up on the alternate makers listed by bilrus61, and when I came upon the Sicma stuff, I felt I had really found something.

These Italian-made units, I find, have had a great reputation for some time, and I wondered if they might have been making the Kubota-branded unit in the past. (They price out about the same as if you add a tiller to your virtual tractor build on the 'Bota website.)

They make a 'regular' model whose size, construction and price is competitive or on par with most of the other brands. They also make a heavy-duty offering, and that got my attention. Then I realized they offer a model with gear drive AND reverse rotation.

I was still up in the air about the width consideration. Didn't want to go too wide, and dilute my PTO power, but I hated the idea of always having that outstanding tire tread. It bothered me that they usually jump from 60" right to 72" with nothing in between. (I recall asking by bro-in-law what size he used behind his Case, and he said "I don't know, but it's wide enough to cover both treads.") So I looked into these "Phoenix" tillers made by Sicma - sometimes listed as "Sigma" - further, and found out that they make the HD job, gear, reverse, in a 66" width! My L3940 specs out at 66.5" wide with the R1s.

I'm done. Ordered it from Everything Attachments in NC; it arrived today. And yeah, its more than I was planning to spend on a tiller. (BTW, they had one in orange.) Looks major league, but I'm leaving it in the shrink wrap and on the pallet for now. Why? My tractor won't be done for another week.

Once again, thanks for all the help, gentlemen.

 

[bilrus61]

The wait to till is hard isn't it? LOL. Just one more bit of advice, make sure before you put it in the soil that the slip clutch is adjusted. Loosen it till it slips then tighten it up and then till. Sometimes the new ones get stuck in storage. Oh and check the fluids too. After that till and have fun.

 

[The Toolman]

Woods or Land Pride will paint your tillers K- orange if you want. They offer 4 or 5 different colors besides their own.

 

[kuboman]

OK, I want to thank everybody who stepped in to help on this. I've waded into the tiller arena deep, and finally found what I think will be a very good machine. (Haven't had a chance to use it yet.)

But first: yes, it appears obvious that several of the tillers on the market are actually sourced from the same mfr. Also, Kubota no longer badges any tiller with their name. That time has passed. As many of you reported, it's whatever the dealer carries. Mine carries Woods, and they looked OK, and similar to several others. I checked out almost everything mentioned on this thread, including the Korean ones, some of which are pretty neat. I decided I wanted reverse tine rotation AND gear drive. When searching for that combination, it seemed that most reverse tillers were chain drive, and most gear drives were forward rotation, so I kept looking. Re-read all info and suggestions here. Picked up on the alternate makers listed by bilrus61, and when I came upon the Sicma stuff, I felt I had really found something.

These Italian-made units, I find, have had a great reputation for some time, and I wondered if they might have been making the Kubota-branded unit in the past. (They price out about the same as if you add a tiller to your virtual tractor build on the 'Bota website.)

They make a 'regular' model whose size, construction and price is competitive or on par with most of the other brands. They also make a heavy-duty offering, and that got my attention. Then I realized they offer a model with gear drive AND reverse rotation.

I was still up in the air about the width consideration. Didn't want to go too wide, and dilute my PTO power, but I hated the idea of always having that outstanding tire tread. It bothered me that they usually jump from 60" right to 72" with nothing in between. (I recall asking by bro-in-law what size he used behind his Case, and he said "I don't know, but it's wide enough to cover both treads.") So I looked into these "Phoenix" tillers made by Sicma - sometimes listed as "Sigma" - further, and found out that they make the HD job, gear, reverse, in a 66" width! My L3940 specs out at 66.5" wide with the R1s.

I'm done. Ordered it from Everything Attachments in NC; it arrived today. And yeah, its more than I was planning to spend on a tiller. (BTW, they had one in orange.) Looks major league, but I'm leaving it in the shrink wrap and on the pallet for now. Why? My tractor won't be done for another week.

Once again, thanks for all the help, gentlemen.

I bought a 60" Sicma last fall. Only used for about 10 min to try it out but decided they are a top quality brand. No one had the gear drive so I went with the chain. What model did you get? Make sure when you get yours to loosen off the slip clutch as they come really tight.:thumbsup:

 

[Lefty7]

Just one more bit of advice, make sure before you put it in the soil that the slip clutch is adjusted. Loosen it till it slips then tighten it up and then till. Sometimes the new ones get stuck in storage. After that till and have fun.

What model did you get? Make sure when you get yours to loosen off the slip clutch as they come really tight.:thumbsup:

This thing looks almost bulletproof, and of course, I would've been happy with it in any color whatsoever. It just so happens that Everything Attachments (via Unifarm Machinery Corp.) had them in stock in both red and orange. And I'm sure a chain drive unit would be fine, I just had it in my head that I wanted gear drive. (I'm always trying to 'over spec' whenever possible.) The exact model is T10R-66GE-K.

It's still on the pallet. I got my tractor on Good Friday, (it was a GOOD Friday for me!), and obviously that has consumed my attention. Wow. Anyway, I'll have more to say about the Phoenix/Sicma tiller once I actually use it - but I need to do some more site prep with the backhoe before I remove it. Will post my new L3940 as soon as I have some pics to share.

I will indeed adjust the slip clutch (and attend to all fluid levels) before I try this beauty. Thanks for those reminders.

 

[reubenT]

I've had a 36" Sicma tiller that I run with a kubota B6200, bought em both in 1989. They are both getting a bit worn, (I will rebuild them both eventually)
But for now, since I'm scaling up and plan on planting several acres every year, (sweet sorghum, field corn for meal and possible sale to a seed company, sesame for oil, and a variety of regular garden stuff, some for home use and some for sale) I've decided I need a bigger tiller to use with my old JD 2010. So been doing a lot of comparison and reading of comments of users. And being on a mountain side, having rocks of all sizes to deal with, including buried immovable boulders that a tiller bounces off of. I need the toughest tiller I can get. Most of them look too light duty to me.
As best I can tell the toughest one I can find in about a 5 Ft width is the Pheonix (Sicma) T15 GE 62"
So I have about decided that is what I want. But I can't afford it right now. So I guess I'll have to settle for a regular duty tiller of some kind for this year and see how it does. And perhaps I can save enough from some crops to get the good one by next year. RT

 

[reubenT]

Want another opinion?
I was just talking with the feller at an equipment parts/repair shop near McMinnville Tn. where tillers are used commercially by just about every farm/nursery for miles around. And he was telling me the maletti tillers are the best ones available now, even better than the sicmas which they used to be dealer for and sold a lot of. Their price seems to be similar to the sicma/pheonix.
He said most any tiller out there will do average work fine, with already plowed fields and no real jolts to worry about. But when I told him I was clearing land and had rocky ground, one of the heavier models made by maletti was his first choice for a heavy duty tiller that would do really rough work without breaking down. He was sure most of the tillers out there would not last long with the rough work. A few years ago the kubota tiller was made by maletti, now they have land pride on their website.

 

[Lefty7]

A few years ago the kubota tiller was made by maletti

Thanks for that info. I had heard it was an Italian maker, and wondered if it was Sicma.

Running a little late (as usual), I just took the backhoe off the new L3940 (40 hrs.!), and have hooked up the 3-point. The Phoenix Sicma T10 is about 4" away from being attached and usable. Of course, things being what they are these days, it was shipped with no manual, no info, nada. I found the English translation version of a Sicma tiller 'manual', which is quite extensive and lists all their models - but by the Italian model designations. It is mostly all specs, charts and part #s. There's not much included about actually operating a tiller. But I did learn something from it: the 2 mounts (that go to the 3-pt. lower arms) are shipped facing up - but the drawing shows them facing forward. I was real happy about this, because I came up about 2" short - with the shaft collapsed all the way - and could see that the mounts needed to be moved. (I think they ship them that way so they won't be on the side, and get hit or catch on things when in transit on a pallet.)

Link to the Sicma specs/English is:

http://www.farmimplements.com.au/manuals/Caroni/Sicma - Rotary Hoe Manual.pdf

So I got no owner's manual in hand, and I'm curious... I'm assuming the slip clutch adjustment is that big specialty-looking nut over on the left side. (?)

Also: it's got a Eurocardan shaft. The protective bell-shaped ends of the PTO shaft cover both have these little chains hooked on to them. Is this supposed to hold the cover (halves) secure in some way? What am I supposed to do with these chains?

Well, it should finally be turning some soil tomorrow. I figure an Italian tiller should grow good peppers and tomatoes, at the very least.

 

[Lefty7]

Also: it's got a Eurocardan shaft. The protective bell-shaped ends of the PTO shaft cover both have these little chains hooked on to them. Is this supposed to hold the cover (halves) secure in some way? What am I supposed to do with these chains?

OK, it's in 'Instruction Manual', P. 13: "After installation [of shaft], secure safety guards both to the tractor and the machine using the special chains and make sure that they pivot freely".

No mention or diagram re: the slip clutch adjuster. It's gotta be that big hex nut. So if you adjust it so it slips, then about how far back from that point is a good general setting? Half a turn?