Bought a Troybilt 634K-ProLine tiller, UNHAPPY :(

I have one of the old troybilt horse 8 hp models.The only time it jumps about is if i'm trying to till to deep on ground that has never been tilled,or been many years since it has been tilled or plowed.I can't till but about two-three inches deep.Once over drop down another three inches and then I'll drop it all the way for the last time. As long as I till it once a year,every spring,I can go over it once and at full depth and it will never jump about.I know some locations the land is harder than other places, but like I said,where I garden,once a year till deep in spring and the soil remains loose........Eddie Buck

The new smaller Troybilts are useless. Need to step up to the Horse model if you want something that looks like they did way back when. Darn pricey though.
The small things you are complaining about they have no control over,
weird oil holes-different aps for the same engine.
Stupid controls-govt mandates for safety.

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Deja Moo; The feeling I've heard this bull before.

I use a Honda F501 mid tine tiller for my one acre market garden and I have zero compliants about it. I love it, but they are not cheap!

For one thing the engines are not specific to any piece of equipment so multiple fill and check points are common... Sad to say but an 800.00 tiller today is NOT the equivelent to the 800.00 Troys of 30 years ago! The good ones are over 2000.00 now but the smaller one you ghave will work fine when YOU learn hoe to use it,

You need to know you will need to make multiple passes on the area ya want to till especially in new areas. I also try to till at 90 degrees to the first pass and alternate between the passes.

That small tiller may bounce but it is a small tiller and you will get used to it. Try not to hiold on so tight- let the tiller do the work and do not try to horse it around. Its all in the learning! And ya will learn by practice.

and the smaller tillers are not worthless they do have a learning curve and won't do like the bigger horse models but in reality most folks won't be putting in gardens big enough for the bigger models... If you are gonna garden that large of a scale you should know better by then!

We bought an Ariens 7hp rear tine tiller in 1977 or so, and still use it. Did wear out an engine and a set of tines in 30+ years. We borrowed the neighbors 8hp Troybilt (an old one) and couldn't believe how hard to handle it was compared to our Ariens. We also have a BCS that we got used a couple of years ago. It is better built but I find that our particular model of BCS is a little light for our soil. They are a well engineered machine, though, with lots of accessories.

My number one rule of buying anything with an engine is to buy it from a place that has a shop on the premises--or if it is used, to buy a brand that is sold by such a place. If they don't work on them, don't buy it there. Avoid buying chainsaws, mowers, or tillers from big box or discount places. They don't have to fix them so they don't care.

As with everything everyone has a different opinion and experience. I bought a Sears tiller 4-5 years ago. You can change the rotation of the tine by moving a lever on the handlebars. It is rear tine. They turn either forward or counter. I have used Troy Bilt tillers a fair amount. Mainly ones made in the 80's and 90's. And like the Sears every bit as good if not better. No jumping or throwing you around or running on hard ground like the Troy Bilts like to do. Once you get the hang of a Troy Bilt they do a good job. But to me not as user friendly as a Sears. The only thing I would change being a mechanic technician is I would have more horse power for the tilling width. That is what limits how deep you can go at a time. You can overload the engine. I would have to look at the hp but believe it is 7.5 or 8.0. I had a Honda mini tiller that was almost useless and the engine was a lemon. But haven't had a bigger Honda. JD

I have a craftsman rear tine garden tiller I bought new about 6-7 years ago. Other than the belt slipping off a few times, which is probably my fault as I've never replaced it, it has been a work horse here. We don't have a lot of stones in our sandy soil, so the tiller glides right along. I've had pretty good luck with craftsman garden equipment (chipper, mower, riding mower, etc.). Maybe I'm just in the minority though. I remember wishing for a troybilt when I was young lad, but I'm happy with my craftsman for now. I've never met a front tine tiller that I liked.

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I also have and older craftsman rear tine, and have been very very pleased with it. I bought it used after looking at the new troybilts and realizing that the quality just wasnt there in the Troybilts any more. I got a LOT more tiller and features for less money, and have been nothing but pleased with my 15 +/- yr old tiller that still starts on the first pull, has more speeds than I need, and gives me nothing but excellent service.

If I were you, I wouldnt hesitate taking it back to Lowes. They will simply return it to the manufacturer, which sends the strongest message of all.

Irv

We bought a used Troy Bilt a few years ago. DH thought it would be easier for me to handle. I had the same experience that you did. I am not a small person but that thing dragged me all over the place. Our ground here is too hard for that type of tiller so last year we sold that one and bought a good front tine tiller. It works great. We were told that Troy bilt tillers work great in sandy soil. Here we have hard pan and clay.

Sorry this happened to you because a "good old name" isn't now. As Jennifer said, the company sold out to a cheapie outfit and "This ain't your grandpa's tiller anymore." We have an old Troybilt Horse and love it but when it's done, it'll be something else for us. It's a hassle even getting parts for the old ones.

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This world is not my home; I'm just a'passin' through.

I'm sorry you are having such bad luck with your tiller. I had very similar results when I bought my Troy-bilt about 7 years ago. At least I only wasted about $550 at that time.

I was so excited about getting it, and it turned out to be the second biggest piece of junk I've ever bought. I tried everything, I put ten lbs extra weight on the front, I tried different depths/speeds. Once I got my glove caught and the darn thing pulled me off my feet and dragged me for a bit until my hand came loose from the glove. It got pinched between the handlebar and the throttle bar, so even when I let go the throttle stayed up.

I never could get that machine to work well. After we moved from WI to SD, I tried again with similar results. Finally spent a lot of money on a Craftsman reversible tiller, (I think it's the biggest one the have, the others didn't have the features I wanted) and have got wonderful results. I gave the TB one last try, taking it out in to the freshly tilled garden and I still had it jump around and pull me all over. I refused to sell it, would not inflect that on anyone. Finally told DH he could take off the motor and use it for a different application.

Cathy

I really like our Cub Cadet that we got last summer. It really tears up sod in new garden areas.

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IOWA

Sorry to hear all these bad reports on the new troy-bilts, my 8.0 Horse turned 30 this year and still performs great. I do have a sandy soil, but used it some on a garden I shared with a friend on clay ground and quickly found it was torture unless you caught the soil with the perfect amount of moisture made sure to take shallow passes. On new ground you can only cut a couple inches at a time with each pass. Back when I had a repair shop I tried most brands that I worked on and for the most part prefered the troy-bilt.