Rototiller PTO vs stand alone

[rgarry]

Hi, Have a JD 3032e and have about 1/3 of an acre that we are going to plant (has irrigation under it (8-12"). Trying to figure out if I am better off with a stand alone rototiller which seems a little bit easier to adjust vs a 4 ft PTO based rototiller. The areas does have some trees and thus maneuvering around with the tractor takes some time. I was thinking that a stand alone unit will allow me to avoid sprinkler heads and set it at 6" with good precision. Obviously, it will be harder to upscale and I know that many of you use a rototiller for other uses. I do have a box blade which I use along with the brush hog to keep the trails open. The property is 62 acres. Thanks for any advice.
Ron

 

[Mat4644]

If you have a shallow sprinkler system in place then you don't want 6 inch till depth. It would take multiple passes and too difficult to control depth precisely. Just what are you planning that requires the till depth?

 

[shovelmike]

I have been very happy with stand alone counter rotating rear tine tillers, also less chance of damaging your irrigation pipes. I used a MTD with no reverse for 30 years until it wore out, replaced with a Troy Bilt with reverse. If I had known how nice a reverse gear was I would have traded much sooner, much less muscle required and very maneuverable.

 

[jshwhite]

I've used both stand alone and 3pt. I'd go 3pt all the way. Currently use a 5ft KingKutter. They do an excellent job. Because of the weight of the tractor, they won't skip or throw you around when you hit roots, rocks or other hard stuff. Get a quality one and it'll till about anything you give it. Once I was doing the maintenance on mine and found 2ft piece of 3/8" rebar wound around the shaft/tines. I never knew I hit it. For the depth, just set the depth skids as deep/shallow as you want. You'll get a very consistent seedbed.

 

[jaxs]

If " 1/3 of an acre to plant"mean's once and done,I'd rent a walk behind rear tine. If you are planting 1/3 of an acre garden,I'd buy a r walk behind rear tine so as to cultivate between rows during growing season. A quility pto driven tiller has means of controling depth but I question the need for only 1/3 acre. You might find other use for a pto but you will find far more use for a rear tine. If you are planting a food plot or cover crop,rippers on your box blade will do pretty good job and depth is easy to control.
My neighbor didn't buy either ,he borrow's mine. :laughing:

 

[jshwhite]

If " 1/3 of an acre to plant"mean's once and done,I'd rent a walk behind rear tine. If you are planting 1/3 of an acre garden,I'd buy a r walk behind rear tine so as to cultivate between rows during growing season. A quility pto driven tiller has means of controling depth but I question the need for only 1/3 acre. You might find other use for a pto but you will find far more use for a rear tine. If you are planting a food plot or cover crop,rippers on your box blade will do pretty good job and depth is easy to control.
My neighbor didn't buy either ,he borrow's mine. :laughing:

"My neighbor didn't buy either, he borrow's mine." ...ain't that the truth! And something always breaks when they borrow it.

Good point you make about cultivating between rows of a garden. A walk behind would be the way to go there.

 

[jaxs]

"My neighbor didn't buy either, he borrow's mine." ...ain't that the truth! And something always breaks when they borrow it.

Good point you make about cultivating between rows of a garden. A walk behind would be the way to go there.

neighbor
But the worest doen't come until while watching you repair it, neighbor tell's other neighbor "that wouldn't have happened had you bought higher quility equipment".

 

[pmsmechanic]

neighbor
But the worest doen't come until while watching you repair it, neighbor tell's other neighbor "that wouldn't have happened had you bought higher quility equipment".

Where I come from if it breaks while you are using it you repair it.

 

[fried1765]

Hi, Have a JD 3032e and have about 1/3 of an acre that we are going to plant (has irrigation under it (8-12"). Trying to figure out if I am better off with a stand alone rototiller which seems a little bit easier to adjust vs a 4 ft PTO based rototiller. The areas does have some trees and thus maneuvering around with the tractor takes some time. I was thinking that a stand alone unit will allow me to avoid sprinkler heads and set it at 6" with good precision. Obviously, it will be harder to upscale and I know that many of you use a rototiller for other uses. I do have a box blade which I use along with the brush hog to keep the trails open. The property is 62 acres. Thanks for any advice.
Ron

I have both a Troy Bilt and a 5' King Kutter.
I bought the King Kutter ten+ years ago.
The troy Bilt has been sitting in a corner of the barn ever since.

 

[fried1765]

Where I come from if it breaks while you are using it you repair it.

At my place, mechanically operating tools are NOT LOANED OUT, and hand tools are very rarely loaned (they never come back)!
I will volunteer to do the work for you, if/when I have the time.

 

[jaxs]

Where I come from if it breaks while you are using it you repair it.

That's where my neighbor is from,he didn't like the arrangement. :duh:

 

[jaxs]

I have both a Troy Bilt and a 5' King Kutter.
I bought the King Kutter ten+ years ago.
The troy Bilt has been sitting in a corner of the barn ever since.

Yea and if your wife read's that,you'll be sitting in the corner with the tiller you spent money on and never use.

 

[oosik]

I choose the stand alone Troy Bilt with counter rotating tines. It simply goes places where I can never get the tractor.

 

[Sonny580]

I have/use a KK 72" tiller for the first ground stir,---then th rest of the season its the TB Horses----I have 8 of them and they all get a workout on 4.5 acre garden.
You will find them to be more useful , IF you have to make a choice between the 2 types.

 

[jshwhite]

At my place, mechanically operated tools are NOT LOANED OUT!
I will volunteer to do the work for you, if/when I have the time.

Exactly. I learned that lesson a few years back and changed my policy to match yours...

 

[3Ts]

I have both a Troy Bilt and a 5' King Kutter.
I bought the King Kutter ten+ years ago.
The troy Bilt has been sitting in a corner of the barn ever since.

I have the same combination and the same situation with the Troy Built sitting in the barn.
I'm thinking about enlarging the garden this next year and will probably pull it out to till between rows.

Yea and if your wife read's that,you'll be sitting in the corner with the tiller you spent money on and never use.

We had the Troy built first, then needed something to repair hog damage to the lawn so she was on-board with the purchase. I did not know how it would work to repair the hog damage, but it turned out "not bad". We've used it on our garden, neighbor's place, & ... easier and quicker than the walk behind.

 

[3Ts]

"My neighbor didn't buy either, he borrow's mine." ...ain't that the truth! And something always breaks when they borrow it.

Good point you make about cultivating between rows of a garden. A walk behind would be the way to go there.

neighbor
But the worest doen't come until while watching you repair it, neighbor tell's other neighbor "that wouldn't have happened had you bought higher quility equipment".

Where I come from if it breaks while you are using it you repair it.

At my place, mechanically operated tools are NOT LOANED OUT!
I will volunteer to do the work for you, if/when I have the time.

Exactly. I learned that lesson a few years back and changed my policy to match yours...

I'll loan out tools that are not expensive with the expectation that I'll never see them again. Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. I do not loan out powered tools, except one time. I didn't really want to do it then, but he'd helped me a lot - more than what the walk behind tiller cost so I let him borrow it. Not to much damage when I got it back. Otherwise, if you want something done, I'll come over with my equipment and operate it, but it's not leaving here without me and it's returning when I leave.

 

[fried1765]

I'll loan out tools that are not expensive with the expectation that I'll never see them again. Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. I do not loan out powered tools, except one time. I didn't really want to do it then, but he'd helped me a lot - more than what the walk behind tiller cost so I let him borrow it. Not to much damage when I got it back. Otherwise, if you want something done, I'll come over with my equipment and operate it, but it's not leaving here without me and it's returning when I leave.

There is a liability issue to consider also.
If I take my L48 TLB over to my neighbor's place to dig a hole, and hit a utility line, or do some other damage, I am responsible.
If my TLB is damaged or destroyed, while off my property, I have no equipment insurance coverage.

Insurance replacement value of my 250 hour L48 (with lots of built in accessories) would likely be the L47 @ $60K PLUS.
And .....the L47 only digs to 10', plus it sports the Tier IV crap.
Needless to say: The L48 will not leave my property!

 

[pmsmechanic]

I loan out stuff all the time and it's very rare that I don't get it back. Like in the last 40 years maybe $100 worth. If I want to borrow something the neighbor has I have no problem obtaining the use of it, but I always try to return in better shape than when I picked it up. To me that is just the normal way of doing business but then I live in a pretty descent community. Neighbors look out for each other and most of us are here "together".

 

[fried1765]

I loan out stuff all the time and it's very rare that I don't get it back. Like in the last 40 years maybe $100 worth. If I want to borrow something the neighbor has I have no problem obtaining the use of it, but I always try to return in better shape than when I picked it up. To me that is just the normal way of doing business but then I live in a pretty descent community. Neighbors look out for each other and most of us are here "together".

It USED to be that way all across the USA.
Not so much, in some places here anymore.