Mantis Gas Garden Rototiller Description

The Mantis Gas Garden Rototiller is the cousin to the electrical versions so this model gives a wee bit more independence from power cords. Again it is no toy – being powered by a two cycle, commercial grade gas engine it has some power for rototilling. It is easily moveable at 20 pounds and because it is only 9 inches wide is very maneuverable in tight spaces.

The starting mechanism of the Mantis Gas Garden rototiller is spring loaded which means the pull to start the engine is quite light: there is a push button gas primer to ensure the carburetor has sufficient fuel, and starting the engine is supposed to take three to four pulls.

One safety aspect is the centrifugal clutch. This means that the tines of the Mantis gas Garden Rototiller only start moving when the throttle is depressed and the engine revs increase. This gives a finer level of control and avoids the problem of having a runaway Mantis!

Once you have the throttle depressed and the engine is going at full revs, the tines of the Mantis gas garden rototiller rotate at 240 Revs Per Minute (RPM), enough persistence to break through a hard surface even clay. Once it breaks through the surface it will till to a depth of 10 inches. For surface cultivation only, you can simply reverse the tines and the tilling depth is reduces to three inches.

It is stated that at this RPM the Mantis gas garden rototiller can re-cultivate an area of 1200 square feet (30 feet by 40 feet) in about 32 minutes. The tines are patented being called “reversible Serpentine”, assisting in better digging performance and less bouncing. The tines are also guaranteed against breakage for the lifetime of the rototiller.

The handle grips are soft rubber to insulate against jolts from hard ground etc.

The Mantis gas garden rototiller has a one-piece-cast-gear box to give it durability.

Mantis Gas Garden Rototiller Specifications

• Easy pull, spring loaded start; two cycle engine with carb. Primer
• Centrifugal operated clutch; gearbox one piece cast
• Maximum tine revolution of 240 RPM
• The Mantis gas garden rototiller is 9 inches wide.
• Digging depths of 3 and 10 inches with patented reversible serpentine tines.
• 5 Year consumer warranty on entire tiller including engine, plus a lifetime warranty on tines against breakage.
• Weight 20 pounds
• CARB compliant (Can be sold in California)

Mantis Gas Garden Rototiller Review

The Mantis gas garden rototiller seems to be generally popular with 63% of users giving it a 5 rating and 13% giving it a rating of 4. So this means 76% appeared to be happy with their purchase, leaving a bit less than a quarter of users a bit luke warm.

This model Mantis gas garden rototiller has won the “Consumers Digest Best Buy” award so it must have something going for it. Quite often we find in these reviews that because people haven’t read the manual, or are using the product in a way that surpasses its operational ability, they blame the product and give it a poor rating. This is not always the case, obviously, but it is surprisingly common.

For example, some people complain about the Mantis gas garden rototiller jumping about in harder ground. If they had read the manual they would have seen that in harder ground Mantis suggest you need to slow down and the action is to pull the rototiller towards you first, then let it move away from you.

One thing that is repeated often in the various reviews of the Mantis gas garden rototiller is their ruggedness and reliability. Reviewers mentioning they have similar models to this Mantis Gas Garden Rototiller that have gone without fault for years.

It was very easy to assemble and the manual has clear pictures of what you need to do.

Most were impressed with the “soft” pull required to turn over the Mantis gas garden rototiller , and they found that following instructions (DVD or manual) the easy start advertised was in fact correct, maybe 3-4 pulls.

A few people commented on the position of the cut out switch on the handle which can be annoying if you are digging in rough ground, because the movement of the Mantis gas garden rototiller can cause your hand to knock the switch and the engine cuts out. They realised it is a safety feature and learnt to position their hands so it was no longer a problem. Something else which was noted was there is no way to disengage the engine from the tines – you have to stop the engine to stop the tines. But apparently this is common with all 2 cycle machines.

Most found the noise level from the gas engine OK, especially in relation to other gas appliances of the same size.

So the Mantis gas garden rototiller is a capable machine with a lot of good reviews and so we would recommend this rototiller in Position 6

The post Mantis 7225-00-02 2-Cycle Garden Rototiller appeared first on Best Reviews of Product.