Product Description

The Mantis 2-cycle tiller has remained the gardener's best friend for over 25 years. With well over a million units sold, it is the most recognized and accredited roto-tiller in the world and a Consumers Digest Best Buy for 9 consecutive years. The 2-cycle Mantis tills 10 inches deep and 9 inches wide, and its tines are patented and reversible to cultivate and weed up to 3 inches deep. This handy, sleek, lightweight unit can fit into narrow areas with ease and is ideal for raised beds as well. With 9 optional attachments the tiller can also trim hedges, aerate, dethatch, plow, furrow and much, much more. The 2-cycle tiller weighs a mere 20 pounds and is covered by a 2-year warranty; its tines are guaranteed for life against breakage

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1620 in Home Improvement
• Brand: Mantis
• Model: 7225-00-02
• Dimensions: 26.75" h x 13.75" w x 9.75" l, 23.00 pounds

Features

• The commercial grade 2-cycle engine is powerful, reliable and utilizes push-button priming for easier starting.
• At only 20 lbs, the Mantis Tiller is easy to maneuver, carry and transport
• The compact design allows the tiller to get in tight spaces and be stored where larger tillers cannot go.
• The patented reversible tines can be used to till down 10 inches or shallow cultivate the top 2 to 3 inches of soil.
• 5 Year consumer warranty on entire tiller including engine, plus a lifetime warranty on tines against breakage.

Amazon.com Product Description
You'll be ready to garden all year round with the Mantis 7225-00-02 Two-Cycle Gas-Powered Tiller/Cultivator. With a powerful engine, durable tines, and compact profile, the Mantis Tiller/Cultivator is ideal for creating new gardens, tilling in narrow rows and raised beds, or along fences. Whether you're a first-time gardener breaking through new ground or a veteran green thumb, the Mantis Tiller/Cultivator will help you maintain a bountiful garden for years to come.

At nine inches wide, this tool is perfect for tilling in narrow rows. View larger.

Master and amateur gardeners alike find it handy for both new and established gardens. View larger.

Powerful but Easy to Control
Don't be fooled by the small, compact design of the Mantis Tiller/Cultivator. Though it weighs a mere 20 pounds and has a width of only nine inches, the Mantis is powerful, thanks to its two-cycle, commercial-grade gas engine.

A reliable push-button primer will get you started, but the tines won't move until you squeeze the throttle. Once you've activated the throttle, the patented serpentine tines spin at up to 240 RPM to break through sod--even hard clay--tilling down to a depth of 10 inches.

The Mantis Tiller/Cultivator makes it easy to maintain your garden. Simply reverse the tines to shallow-cultivate depths of up to three inches--it's much faster than using hand tools. And because it tills a nine-inch-wide path, this tool is especially useful in tight spaces and hard-to-reach areas. That's a real advantage for raised-bed gardeners.

Convenient, Versatile, and Durable
The Mantis Tiller/Cultivator features folding handle bars which make it convenient to store in a garage or tool shed.

And with optional attachments (sold separately), the Mantis Tiller/Cultivator can be used beyond the confines of your garden. Its lightweight design and convenient carrying handle make it portable, so adding an accessory such as a border edger or hedge trimmer could potentially keep you busy all summer and into the fall.

The tiller/cultivator's durable one-piece cast gear box is designed to last. Additionally, the tines are guaranteed against breakage for the lifetime of the tool.

What's in the Box
Gas-powered tiller/cultivator with serpentine tines.

Patented serpentine tines spin at up to 240 RPM to break through sod and even hard clay, tilling down to a depth of 10 inches. View larger.

From the Manufacturer
The Mantis 2-Cycle Tiller/Cultivator is an amazingly powerful and versatile tool for your garden. Powered by a 2-cycle commercial grade gas engine, the Mantis Tiller provides surprising power in a tiller that weighs only 20 lbs. The engine utilizes a push-button priming system for easier and reliable starting. A throttle-activated centrifugal clutch engages the tines only when you squeeze the throttle so you won't have to worry about a "runaway" tiller. The patented tines spin at up to 240 RPM allowing the Mantis Tiller to easily break up dirt, through sod, and even hard clay! The compact design tills a 9-inch wide path, making the tiller easy to maneuver and fit in narrow spaces such as between rows and along fences. A full range of optional attachments expand the many uses of the Mantis Tiller throughout the garden and your yard. Some of the attachments include a Plow, Planter\Furrower, Lawn Dethatcher and Border Edger. The entire tiller comes with a factory-backed 5 year consumer warranty that includes the engine and the tines are guaranteed for life against breakage.

Customer Reviews

WOULD NOT STILL BE GRUBBING THE DIRT IF I DID NOT HAVE THIS CULTIVATOR
This is my twelfth season for using this tiller. To prepare my garden I use an ancient Troy built that has been going strong for about 18 years now (I bought it used) and it looks as if this Mantis two stroke is going to last just as long. To be honest, I am a rather lazy gardener and the job of all jobs I hate most is cultivating and weeding. This little machine has taken away almost all of the excuses I have for not having a neat, well tended garden. There are a couple of things you should know though before purchasing this little gem:

First, this is not a machine that is suitable for breaking up new ground or ground that has not been tilled for several years. It simply is not built for that.

Secondly, you should not let your mind wonder when using this cultivator. It can take out a garden plant in a flash if you loose control over it and indeed, if you are extremely inattentive, it certainly has the capability of taking off a toe or two.

Thirdly: I would strongly recommend you use gloves when using this for any extended period of time. They give you protection of course, but they also allow for a better grip, ergo, more control.

Forth: Try to avoid running in through bailing twine, wire or even vines if possible. Getting the stuff untangled is truly a odious task.

Fifth: Perform the preventive maintenance on it as recommended and then double the timing on it. Keep the tines sharp and keep them replaced as needed. (Yes, the tines are guaranteed against breakage, but I promise you that they will bend if bounced off enough rocks...hey, I live in the Ozarks, rocks I know!)

Sixth: Watch out for larger rocks. Not only can the bend tines, but they can cause the machine to go out of control.

Seventh: Watch and take great care with your gas/oil mix and at the end of the season follow the directions as to winter storage.

Now that being said, this thing is a snap to use. As a matter of fact it can easily be handled by a knowledgably and trained child with very little supervision. It can go into places a larger tiller cannot possibly go. It is light and is very easy to maneuver once you get the hang of it. Now I admit that I am a complete and absolute klutz when it comes to fixing anything mechanical (well, truth be told, non-mechanical things too), but I have had to take this into the shop only once in the years I have owned and used it. Everything else I was able to fix myself using only the manual provided, and over the past couple of years a few sites on my computer. No fancy tools are needed; only the ability to read and a smudge of common sense. Hey, trust me, if I can do it, then just about anyone can. I mean we are talking here about someone so inept that my wife use to have to put the children's Christmas toys together as I could not manage it.

I am like another reviewer here. I doubt if I would still be gardening, vegetable and flowers, if I did not have this cultivator. If and when it finally goes belly up (which will probably be long after I go first), I plan to purchase another. I do wish I could give this one more than five stars.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

Old Timer
I can't even remember when I bought my Mantis, but it was at least 25 years ago. It has gotten hard use every year ever since. Mantis really stands behind their lifetime tine warranty; they replaced mine totally free of charge after at least 20 years without any questions. The new machines look almost identical to my ancient one. The amazing thing is that the price has hardly gone up at all. In todays dollars, that makes it a raging bargain. The machine is light enough for almost anyone to use it, but be prepared for some serious bouncing around if your soil is rocky. It's unbelievably powerful for such a small machine. I've seen professional landscapers use it to loosen soil for planting new shrubs in some nasty, hard-packed soil. They just use it to dig down as far as the tines will reach, remove the loosened soil, and then dig down farther until they have the hole as deep as it needs to be. In the garden, the tines can be easily turned around to use it as a shallow cultivator for weeding purposes. The best thing of all is that it can be used in tight or hard-to-reach places where no conventional tiller can go. The small size and light weight make it especially easy to store without taking up valuable floor space. For the price, the Mantis is a really practical piece of equipment that no serious gardener should be without. It won't ever totally replace the big tillers, but it can do a whole lot of things that the big ones can't. I would have given up gardening many years ago if I didn't have my Mantis. One of my gardens is inside a small (about 10'-by-20') fenced area that my big tiller is simply too big to handle. The Mantis gets right into the corners and tight to the fence with no problem. The Mantis may look like a toy, but - trust me - it's not.

not heavy duty
Serious tillers bewarned this product does actually till soil that has never been tilled before but with effort. It works great in previously tilled areas.