Troy-Bilt TB144 26cc 4-Cycle Gas-Powered Cultivator/Tiller with Edger Attachment Kit
by Troy-Bilt
|
Our Price: $335.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Lawn & Patio See more product details |
|---|
Tools and Hardware Reviews of Troy-Bilt TB144 26cc 4-Cycle Gas-Powered Cultivator/Tiller with Edger Attachment Kit
Customer Review: Surprised at how well it performed
Summary: 5 Stars
I had talked myself into buying a small rear-tine tiller (my back cannot take the abuse from a large front-tine version) and then I saw this little gadget for ~$200 less. At first I didn't think there was anyway it would be up to the task, but after a fairly thorough literature and market review I decided to give it a try. I'm glad I did.
It cut through the sod with no problems as well as a number of finger thick roots. It only bogged down briefly before it spit out a 1/4 of a brick that it dredged up from the soil.
Pros:
Extremely lightweight--I can carry it with one hand
Very maneuverable--should make cultivating an easy chore
Reasonable cost
4-cyle, no gas/oil to mix
Doesn't take up a lot of storage room
Fairly quiet
EASY ON THE BACK
Removeable tines--quick and easy cleaning
Cons:
Small tilling width--takes more time per square foot tillage
Fast idle on running tank dry--SAFETY ISSUE (more on this below)
I was allowing the tank to run dry while I finished the raking and planting. Suddenly the idle began to run up as the tank ran out; when it did the centrifugal clutch engaged and the tiller tried to take off. Admittedly it wouldn't have gone far because it ran out of gas almost immediately after I snagged the handle, but it is something to consider.
Bottom line: I would not want to do a large garden with it. Mine is 5' x 15' and took me about 3 hours to till, rake and plant. At the end of that time I was still in pretty decent shape, pleasantly tired, but not beat up.
Customer Review: Don't waste your money on this machine!
Summary: 1 Stars
When considering purchasing this Troy-Bilt gas cultivator last month, I was concerned about the earlier review that cited repeated failures of the recoil starting mechanism. However, because that review was over a year old, I figured that Troy-Bilt would have improved the design by now, and nearly all of the other reviews were quite positive, so I ordered the cultivator. Bad decision. After twenty minutes of use (the cultivator does an excellent job of working the soil), I shut off the machine to clear some debris from the tines. When I tried to restart it, the rope had no spring tension and pulled out to its full length and wouldn't retract. An authorized repair facility told me the spring hadn't been wound tightly enough, so they tightened it and tested the starter several times successfully. I then used the cultivator for a few minutes and assumed the problem had been fixed. Wrong. When I tried to start it for my third session, the starter mechanism failed again in the same fashion. Now I will have to take the cultivator back to the repair facility and hope they will order a replacement part. But even if they replace the part, I don't think I will ever be able to trust this machine to hold up. As an earlier reviewer noted, the Troy-Bilt name doesn't mean what it used to. My father bought me a Troy-Bilt Horse model tiller in the mid-1970s, and I used it extensively for twenty years, then gave it to a friend, who is probably still using it. It's sad that the Troy-Bilt reputation for solid, durable equipment has been tarnished--if not destroyed--by MTD's apparently insufficient commitment to quality.Customer Review: A Great Little Work Horse. Updated after 3 years
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this unit to help prepare my 4 raised gardens for planting. In Arizona, we get several plantings and crops per year so we do a lot of garden work. The trees growing near the gardens love to send roots into the soft soil of the garden. I wanted to buy a tiller that wasn't full size and easy to use.
I've had this Troy Built unit now for a short time but have spent 6 hours hard running time putting it through its paces. I found it easy to start and operate. It doesn't wear you out like a full size tiller does. I was very happy how deep it digs. Once you break through the surface, it keeps grinding deeper and deeper. I think I tilled at least a foot deep over the entire surface. It chewed up all the tree roots. The roots were so plentiful that they actually rolled up on the blades, so I had to stop and clean them off every so often.
It is a clean 4-cycle running machine so you don't have to mix oil and gas. It is VERY easy to start and the priming bulb is a very good addition to make it start easier.
I am VERY happy with the purchase so far and have the gardens planted for another crop of veggies and flowers for the wonderful mild winter of Arizona.
I've now had this tiller 3 years and it is running great. No problems at all. Only caution I would remind owners is to drain the gas out of the tank after use so the gas does not ruin the fuel line while in storage.
Customer Review: A lot of power in a small package
Summary: 5 Stars
I was pleasantly surprised at the power that the Troy-Bilt 4-cycle cultivator had. I needed a small tiller to use in several raised garden beds. This tiller fluffed the beds quickly and easily. I even used it to break-in some new beds - the tiller broke through the soil with little effort. It did jam on a rock at one point, but the tines were easy to remove and replace after freeing the stone. I also LOVE the fact that it is 4-cycle - no mixing of the oil and gas! I was running out of gas cans for all of the different gas mixes my power equipment needed. The only thing that I have found that I don't like about this machine is the wheels - they are too narrow and unstable. The instability makes it hard to drag it around the yard because it is always falling over. The narrow wheels also make it hard to till - they were always sinking into the soil and holding the machine in place. I ended up removing the wheels completely and pulling the tiller backwards and letting it run forward. It worked great (and gave a great upper body workout at the same time), but it could be an issue for someone with poor strength or balance. Other than the wheels, I have no problem recommending this machine to any small gardener.Customer Review: Troy-Bilt does the job
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased the Troy-Bilt cultivator after trying a neighbor's Mantis. The Mantis worked but was hard to start and finicky about adjustments, plus it bogged down several times. The Troy-Bilt starts very easily and just never quits. It digs in well and seems to run at a higher speed than the Mantis. It's light-weight and easy to handle, even when digging through sod. To break up a large section of lawn for a garden, a larger roto-tiller definitely is needed, but the little Troy-Bilt will dig up small strips of lawn with little difficulty. I've also noticed in some of the reviews that users complain about difficult starting and needing to empty gas that has been left in the tank for several months. Apparently, some people are not aware that gas goes "stale" after not being used for several months. The problem is that the gasoline additives now in use go bad after a period of storage and this adversely affects the volatility of the gasoline. So when any of these gas-powered tools has been out of use for several months, be sure to empty the old and replace it with fresh gas. That's one nice thing about the Troy-Bilt -- it uses straight gas, so there's no need to mix oil and gas (as in the Mantis).