Fix'n to get a Tiller

[jstrick]

I have a 72" Long brand tiller - very well made and it does amazing job for loosening and aerating the soil. It was a strain on the old Farmall (27 HP) but my new Kubota MX6000 (53 PTO HP) doesn't even notice it. I've never had a problem with Ozark mountain rocks (a few dings in the cover is all) or roots, but all of what I till is already cleared.

 

[tjandrews]

I'm not and the truck farmers here practice planting under plastic sheets on chiseled ground.

Plastic sheets that are only used one season, then taken up and sent to a landfill, to be replaced with more plastic next year. And yet they call themselves "sustainable."

We're too small to be a "truck farm," yet I've been growing vegetables for sale locally for 60 years. We bought a barely-used Tractor Supply "Countyline" tiller 6 years ago, and use it every spring. The Tractor Supply tiller is rebranded, made by another company, but I don't know which. I've heard King Kutter, but I've heard others, too.

The first year we just tilled up the vegetable ground, but decided that was too hard on the tiller and too slow. Now we plow first, and use the tiller to break up the ground after. Especially helpful for planting pumpkins on a plowed alfalfa/grass sod. It would have been nice if the tiller had been wider, but the price was excellent for no more than it had been used, so we get along with it.

 

[STAYSAFE]

What is your PTO power. You need at least 5 horses per foot of width. I don't have one, don't need one but if I was to get one, King Kutter would be my last choice.

I had to replace the seals on my Countyline’s gearbox within the first hour of using it.

 

[mahovy]

Looking at adding a tiller to the yard.
Currently i'm running a 3 turning plow and disking. I'm thinking a Tiller will speed up the process and get me the results I'm looking for.
I've searched the threads and found too many to read through. I'm thinking a 72" or 84" . King Kutter II is local and rated pretty good. Whats Y'all got?

My experience with tillers and plows is that the tiller doesn’t go as deep as a plow/turner. Also roots and rocks will bounce the tiller as most plows will flip them with the dirt.

 

[3gunr]

Could have fooled me. Useful for what? Sucking down expensive diesel fuel and agitating the ground as in deep tilling? Why do you think smart farmers went from moldboard (deep tillage) to no till crops? Simple answer. Deep tillage (and that is exactly what a rototiller is), is wastefull both in fuel and nutrient retention.

backhoes (tractor mounted) and number one, rotary tillers are number 2. Most useless (and expensive) to buy and maintain implements.

As usual no actual usable information , Just your useless opinion.

 

[tjandrews]

I had to replace the seals on my Countyline’s gearbox within the first hour of using it.

That has not been our experience at all. Must be either we are incredibly lucky, or you are incredibly unlucky.

 

[Mart5130]

I have a Titan UM-56 tiller. It's heavy duty and built in USA. It says 56" but its the same width as my tractor including the rear tires. Its got a clutch instead of shear pins.

I'm glad about the clutch. It's worked when I needed it to.

With your plow - cut your fresh patch with the plow then hit it again with the tiller you will have a beautiful garden patch ready to plant.

I think our big veggie garden (we have several) is about 150' x 40'

After my neighbor hit it with his JD 4030 and a 6 disc Moldboard Plow I tilled it all up 2x took me about a 1/2 hour going easy. That was compacted clay. With the Moldboard Plow it turned the grass upside down and I planted a cover crop on most of it and taters and beats first season. We still have a good supply in hand.

I have a 52hp tractor and when tilling I barley know its there. I gotta keep an eye on it in case a rock jams it up and locks up the drive shaft. I've smoked the clutch not watching but no problems. If it was a sheer pin I'd have broke it. I gotta big root stuck init.

I have the same tiller- Titan Implement- Very well built and have it on my 35 hp Kioti. Mine does have a sticker on it that says “made in India” FYI but no problems at all with it. It’s a beast!

 

[Massey convert]

I also have a King Kutter, it seems to be well built, and works well. I was surprised by the depth it tilled, about 6 inches. I would like it to be deeper, but the garden grows just fine being tilled at that depth. It does a nice job of grinding the dirt up, I usually overlap, so in effect I'm tilling it twice. I have no doubt when it hits a rock, and it will find them all. As for choosing a brand, I didn't have much choice, shopping locally. When I was looking, I did not see any used ones for sale, I suspect that once most people own/use one, they don't want to give it up.

 

[jyoutz]

I've got a Woods tiller. It seems to do a good job. I've had it for over 20 years with no problems. They used to be pretty common and I would think you would have some Woods dealers in your area.

I’ve had my Woods tiller over 20 years and bought it used from an equipment rental company. That thing is durable.

 

[Bobrown14]

Could have fooled me. Useful for what? Sucking down expensive diesel fuel and agitating the ground as in deep tilling? Why do you think smart farmers went from moldboard (deep tillage) to no till crops? Simple answer. Deep tillage (and that is exactly what a rototiller is), is wastefull both in fuel and nutrient retention.

backhoes (tractor mounted) and number one, rotary tillers are number 2. Most useless (and expensive) to buy and maintain implements.

True on the nutrient retention. We have to break up the hard pan somehow. The moldboard turns the soil and cover crop over 180 degrees - that in turn breaks down to help grow micro-organisms that in turn make better tilth and help restore the humus which is totally gone with hard pan.

We have to start somewhere. How do you go from hard pan clay to humus without turning the soil??

What we did was moldboard 18" turn over the grass that was barely alive in the clay and then tilled that down with a tiller as deep as I could go, then top dress with compost (not manure) and plant a cover crop of oats. Planted several rows of garlic too.

Next spring we will plant veggies without tilling.

Ideally Id have loved to add a shaper to the back of the tiller and make raised beds but we did that the old fashioned way - my wife did it with a shovel and a rake while I kabitzed around with the tractor . Someone has to clean it.