I have been looking at tillers and found this one that is available locally. Anybody have any thoughts, information on it? [
EarthquakePioneer 17 in. Max Tilling Width, 99 cc Viper 4-Cycle Gas, Dual Direction Rear Tine Tiller, 37037
Model# 37037
If I had a choice I would always go with Troybilt! Even though they are no longer in business, their superior products are still chugging along. I have a 30 year old 5 Hp Pony that I enjoy using as it never fails to start!
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/troy-bilt-super-bronco-16-in-208-cc-ohv-engine-rear-tine-counter-rotating-gas-tiller-21d-65m8766-1458451?store=2111&cid=Shopping-Google-LOB-Local_Feed&utm_medium=Google&utm_source=Shopping&utm_campaign=LOB&utm_content=Local_Feed&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIwLfh7JGA-AIVYwnnCh3TpQnYEAQYBSABEgLgsvD_BwE
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I agree with DennisD if you can find a old Troybilt say pre -1990, (I am not sure what year the quality changed for the worse). They are WORKHORSES if they were properly maintained, most of them are still running strong today. I see one on Craigslist for sale every now and again.
The bronco and other ilk are cheap made stamped steel gear case tillers that wear out in 2 or 3 years of heavy use. I would hands down purchase a good condition older Troybilt Horse tiller that will last 30 years.
That earthquake tiller has stamped steel tines capable of running in forward or counter rotating. I had a similar tiller years ago that wore out in 2 years. I’m a heavy user of tillers so take that to mean cheap tillers are something I no longer mess with. I got a Troybilt Horse in 2010 for $400 and have used it since. I had to replace the engine 6 years ago with a Briggs industrial 8 hp motor. It will probably be running when I die 30 years from now.
That 8 hp horse for $900 would be a pretty good deal for $750.
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Troybilt all the way!! I have one I bought some years ago. I had an old one stolen out of my shed and insurance gave me enough money to buy a replacement one. One great tiller. They last and last - unless it gets stolen.
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I have a garden area about 40’ x60’ so would not be getting heavy use. I should have mentioned I didn’t want to deal with a used one that needs “work” There have been a few listed locally. Boise, that is around 500 miles away. And I need one within a few days. Will have cool rainy weather through Monday, then I hope to be able to start planting my garden. I used to use my mom’s older riding garden tractor, but she is in a nursing home now and my stingy brother is in charge of stuff, “another nasty family story”. So I will probably still get this one, it’s close at TSC.
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I may look into getting the Troy Bilt Big Red. Its $2500. I have an 8HP and a 7HP that both have major issues. Big Red has 14.5HP I have no idea how double the power would be like. My 8HP was an absolute bear.
Is there a shortage of tillers? I used to see a dozen or so in front of the big box stores every spring but nowadays i see none.
Im hoping i find a good older one before i have to buy a new one.
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I am looking at an older one with a Kohler engine on Monday. Older man that no longer gardens bought it new. Looks to be garage kept. Is the Kohler a step up or a step down from the Briggs I/C? Ive had 4 Horses with Briggs I/C and never seen a Kohler one until now.
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Kohler is a better motor. They can wear out if used heavily. Crank it and verify no significant oil burning and verify the carburetor works properly from low to high. Check the reverse disk to see if it is nearly worn out. Check the tines to see how much wear they have. Check the tires to see if they hold air.
The oldest tillers had only 2 forward speeds. Later models have 4 speeds, 2 from a gear lever at the rear and 2 from changing the belt position. The 4 speed model is better tuned for the average person to use.
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Back in the mid 90’s I bought a 8 hp MTD rear tine tiller, 24" till width… it had a Briggs/Stratton engine, and it served me well. I remember driving to a Low’s in Murfreesboro TN to get it.
It eventually did wear out… think it was 2016 when I sold it to a guy… and bought me a new tiller.
My newer one is a Cub Cadet 6.5 hp Kohler 3000 series engine, 18" rear tine tiller… you can choose between forward or counter rotating… and I always use counter… My older MTD tiller had those options too. This cub cadet has never been serviced (other than me changing the oil each spring)… I may have replaced spark plugs once… and just keeps on running… so far at least.
It starts on the first pull most of the time and does a good job of breaking my ground.
Now I don’t use a tiller constantly during the year… I normally use it 4-5-6 times a year and normally only when breaking ground, or when working up a new bed somewhere…
It has had to deal with lots of chunk rock over the years and it has held up well.
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Hell no
I can tell tines aren’t hardened by pics.
I’d want pneumatic tires
Brand not reputable to me…
I see those all over the place in my neighbors gardens… however i dont know or think they are being sold currently? The website doesnt list them anymore and i havent seen one at a box store etc for awhile… well to be honest i dont see any tillers for sale really. Even Husqvarna. Maybe the china shortage thing killed them?
Ive never had one with reverse… all of my tillers and my fathers were just forward gears. He also has another one but i need to see it also… he said he bought it for parts in case his needed anything. All good points… Tines are expensive. I think the last two sets i bought were the KD Hard Hat and both lasted a long time. I bought a set of cheapo chinese ones with the one too many holes and they were junk.
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I have a 40+ year old Troy Built Horse. It is an amazing machine. My brother is in the small engine tool service and sales business. He says it is getting very difficult to find parts for these machines. He no longer services them for this reason. The last time I took it in he had one of his mechanics rebuild one of the worn out parts from a piece of steel bar they had in the shop. If I ever need to replace mine I will go with a new Honda FRC800 tiller. They cost upwards of $2900 in our area, but they also have a great reputation. They have been very hard to find for the last three years.
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@krismoriah …
I have a TSC Store in my town, and a Cub Cadet Dealer… I found images of the Cub Cadet rear tine tillers online… but it says “unavailable from seller” and the seller was cubcadet.com
So… yes… something is up there… may not be making or selling those anymore.
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I looked at a top of the line cub cadet tiller a few years ago and would not purchase it because it is not built heavy duty enough. There are 3 or 4 tillers I would purchase new, but cub is not one of them.
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I got mine at a fall sale… best I remember 650.00 in 2016.
It has definitely been worth it to me and is still going strong despite some serious abuse. Here if I go more than 4 inches deep, sticky red clay loaded with rocks, some huge ones too, tiller jammers. I think it may be tougher than it looks… I have thought several times… well I just tore it up… (get a big hammer and bust a huge rock out of the tines)… but it cranks up again and continues working.
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I did go get the Earthquake I was looking at. I liked that it has reverse, it is suppose to dig a couple inches deeper than the other brands. Will start it in a couple of days, it rained all night, ground is muddy and it is still too cold to plant.
I did quite a bit of searching for tillers and did notice many places had to order the item, then didn’t list whether they could even get them. TSC is about 6 miles away and other big box stores are 25 to 50 miles. Didn’t really want to spend lots of time shopping for something that might not be at store.
TSC had ordered one of these for a customer and they were sent 2, so it was already put together and they offered me a thatch kit for half price. Now I can level out some of the night crawler mounds. 
Picked this ol girl up today. 1986 with a kohler 8hp. Owner was in his 80s and it hadnt been used in 8yrs. It started for me first pull. So far i like it alot better than my 8hp briggs I/C looks to be built better. $400
There is a spring on the lever that you push down to engage the transmission. Replace it or re-work it. How do I know it is bad? That is classified information! Look up how to adjust the lever using the small block under the Y yoke. Replace spring, adjust block, you will have no problems getting it to till properly. $400 is a dirt cheap steal for that tiller! Don’t forget to check the transmission is full of lubricant. There is a plug just visible in the bottom picture that you remove to check it.
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