Tiller Simple (?) Rotary Tiller Question...

[jbrumberg]

Dougster:

We are all remiss; nobody complimented you on your good looking brand new tiller ! Use it well and safely. Oh, by the way I use my tire guards to hang my greasy rags when working on my tiller and they also make a good place to dry those washed rags . Jay

 

[Dougster]

Dougster: We are all remiss; nobody complimented you on your good looking brand new tiller ! Use it well and safely. Oh, by the way I use my tire guards to hang my greasy rags when working on my tiller and they also make a good place to dry those washed rags . Jay

Oh no no no Jay... Unfortunately, I am still shopping!!! Still haven't found the tiller that both fits my needs and that I can afford. I keep going back and forth between full width... 68" to 72"... or smaller with offset feature to cover at least one track.

Just when I think I can live with a smaller offset design and still get the job done, someone comes to me and says that full width is the only way to go... and just when I think I can live with the weight, bulk, cost and hassle of carting around a full width machine... someone comes up and tells me I'm crazy not to go with a smaller, cheaper offset!!! I kid you not!!!

Those C&C machines look quite nice, but the shipped price I got today kinda shocked me at a time when I am having so many other costly repairs and upgrades to deal with. The Muratori on eBay just jumped in price today as their sale ended... and I am still wondering about waiting for the first TSC store in the sales tax-free land of "Live Free or Die" to open and maybe revisit the idea of a full-sized KK tiller.

Meanwhile, I need to check Woodbury and Coastal again... just to see what they might have that they may want to unload at a semi-affordable price this time of year.

Not easy being as "dirt poor" as me ya know.

Dougster

 

[jbrumberg]

Dougster:

Every time I go to TSC I always go to their attachment area and I always migrate to their tiller area. The more I look at their KK gear driven model the more it grows on me. It appears that KK (or whoever) put some effort in making this product. I have not read of any complaints that I can remember about the Muratori brand tillers either. Jay

 

[Dougster]

Dougster: Every time I go to TSC I always go to their attachment area and I always migrate to their tiller area. The more I look at their KK gear driven model the more it grows on me. It appears that KK (or whoever) put some effort in making this product. I have not read of any complaints that I can remember about the Muratori brand tillers either. Jay

Well, you probably remember the story: I ordered one from TSC in Griswold, CT... but when it came in and I went down to pick it up with cash in hand... I couldn't bring myself to actually purchase it. It was a goopy, rusting, abused mess and the shipping frame/crate was falling apart, making it impossible to get home safely in the dump trailer (after I had called and specifically asked and could have easily brought down the equipment trailer & chains instead of the dump had they simply told the truth).

The bigger issue, of course, is that I need a tiller I can transport to jobsites without major hassle and use it in some relatively tight places. This is where the idea of a smaller offset model became very appealing. But there is no arguing that a full-width geared monster is probably going to do a better job in really tough soils where the smaller, lighter offset chain-drive tiller might not cut it. Meanwhile, the financial squeeze is on this month after a costly "series of unfortunate events" and other necessary equipment purchases coming due.

Bottom line: I love the CCM models, but the wallet is screaming Muratori offset from eBay or KK full width from the sales tax-free land of "Live Free or Die."

Dougster

 

[LoneCowboy]

Never use a tiller on virgin soil rip it up first (box blade scarifiers, real scarifiers, plow, whatever). It will work without doing this.
for a while
but you'll tear the snot out of your tiller, it won't last long.

Get a full size, not made in china and go with it. lot easier to only have to make one pass, than two. I can't hink of anyplace where I needed a tiller smaller than my tractor, that it would have worked (and I could have gotten the tractor in)

Tire guards??????????? no way, makes zero sense. Maybe they should include a manual on how to set the top link instead, would be cheaper.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Doug, is it possible to get a full sized tiller that has offset capability, or that is offset? My 102" flail mower is flush with the left side of my tractor and hangs out 24" on the right. Sure works out good for me. Or would that end up being to big of a tiller? 78" or maybe 84"? I don't know, just another alternative for you to think about.

Later

 

[Dougster]

Never use a tiller on virgin soil rip it up first (box blade scarifiers, real scarifiers, plow, whatever). It will work without doing this. for a while but you'll tear the snot out of your tiller, it won't last long. Get a full size, not made in china and go with it. lot easier to only have to make one pass, than two. I can't hink of anyplace where I needed a tiller smaller than my tractor, that it would have worked (and I could have gotten the tractor in) Tire guards??????????? no way, makes zero sense. Maybe they should include a manual on how to set the top link instead, would be cheaper.

Understood about ripping things up first. In fact, I have been doing so well with my boxblade and rake combo that I sometimes wonder if owning a tiller is really necessary at all... but folks expect me to offer a "true" rotary tilling service and I aim to please... even if I've gotten this far without having to own one.

Trust me when I tell you... I will own a Chinese tiller when that place way down under finally freezes over. I learned my lesson the hard & costly way on my Chinese chipper... and I firmly say: "Never again"!!!

On size, always remember that my jobs probably average in size 3-5% of what yours do. My more typical problem is that my equipment is often too big... almost never too small... for the job at hand (and transportation logistics is fast becoming THE defining issue that will make or break me).

Yep... a tire guard! Believe it or not. I liked some of the answers here a lot better!!!

Dougster

 

[Dougster]

Doug, is it possible to get a full sized tiller that has offset capability, or that is offset? My 102" flail mower is flush with the left side of my tractor and hangs out 24" on the right. Sure works out good for me. Or would that end up being to big of a tiller? 78" or maybe 84"? I don't know, just another alternative for you to think about. Later

I can't possibly go bigger than 72" wide due to transportation issues. 68" would be ideal. And I should clarify that I've been looking mainly at PTO shaft offsetable tillers... with offsets only up to 4" max depending on your PTO, 3-pt, etc... not those true offset machines with the collapsible lateral drives. Turns out that the particular brand & model of that type I was hoping to buy is no longer imported into the USA. I was also discouraged from going that route by the manufacturer's rep. There were apparently safety issues that caused them to stop importing that particular model series into the US from Italy. The replacements are far more complicated and more than double the (already high) price.

But yes, the PTO shaft offsetable machines are available up to 72" (full size for me) and maybe beyond.

Dougster

 

[MtnViewRanch]

But yes, the PTO shaft offset-able machines are available up to 72" (full size for me) and maybe beyond.
Dougster

Just my opinion and you know what that is worth, but I would sure be looking at that 72" offset-able tiller if I were in your shoes. Offset-able = good.

 

[Dougster]

Just my opinion and you know what that is worth, but I would sure be looking at that 72" offset-able tiller if I were in your shoes. Offset-able = good.

Well, that would be the most expensive option of all... a cool $2K shipped for the "tire guards" model first pictured above. That's nothing to a rich left-coast ranch owner with 14 different over-sized construction toys... opps, I mean "machines"... but $2K is a ton of money to me right now given everything else I am trying to fix, buy and/or upgrade!

Compare this to $1,300 delivered (just expired sale price w/shipping) for the Muratori 60" offsetable and $1,600 for a gloppy, rusty KK 72" (non-offsetable) picked up next month in tax-free NH.

Dougster