 | Brand Mantis Model 7262-15-02 Listprice $449.00 Price $449.00 |
NOW FEATURES A FREE KICKSTAND SO YOU CAN SET THE MANTIS UPRIGHT ANYWHERE. ALSO INCLUDES A BORDER EDGER. THESE ARE VERY USEFUL ADD-ONS! The one and only Mantis Tillers are the best of the best. You can have complete confidence in tilling your garden because the tines are guaranteed for a lifetime against breakage. Small tiller head reaches tight spots. The curved teeth chop through tough sod down to 1051 deep, and they reverse for shallow garden and flower bed cultivating. Fingertip speed control and shut-off switch. Designed for comfort during extended use. Honda Engine Mantis has a 22cc, 4 cycle Honda engine for extra power without the need to mix gas and oil. All that power weighs only 24 pounds! ....read more
Manufacturer’s defect
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
The Mantis tiller arrived with a defective carburetor / throttle system. I received it on April 19 and it has never functioned properly; it has been in the repair shop of a local dealer virtually ever since, which is very frustrating. Most distressingly, the specific defect appears to be fully anticipated by the manufacturer. That is, this precise malfunction (but only this one) is specifically described in the Mantis owner’s manual (at p. 8), although no guidance is provided regarding how to fix the problem. Obviously, this defect has occurred with sufficient frequency to warrant inclusion of this written description, but for whatever reason, Mantis has been unable or unwilling to effect a cure. My entire experience with the Mantis tiller has been very disappointing, given its putative high quality and its $450 price.
Disappointed in Amazon
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I bought this tiller last year March 31,2009 it was shipped to me April 1,2009. I used it in my garden last year and this year I tilled once with it. The second time I started this tiller it cranked great but the tines would not turn. I called Amazon and was told that their warranty was for one (1) year. I reminded the lady that it was only over a year by a few days but she said there was nothing she could do. She told me to contact Mantis so I called them and was told that yes the tiller was warranted for 5 years if I had bought it from them and not Amazon. After we chatted for a few minutes she told me that I could take it to a dealer and they would pay for the repair. The problem was that the dealer was about 75 miles from me. I finally agreed to make the drive. First I called the dealer and got directions and ask when would be a good time to bring the tiller up to his shop and he told me that they were covered up on Monday and Tuesdays so it would be better later in the week. He said that he would have the parts and I would not have to make two trips because he could fix it while I waited. I called back on a Wednesday afternoon and was told to bring it Thursday Morning. I arrived at the dealers place at 8:35 am. I was told that I had talked to the wrong man on the phone ( there were only two men in the shop) the one man said that the person I talked to didn’t know anything and I should have talked to him! There were no parts to fix the tiller and I had to leave it with them. Thursday April 29, 2010 I called to check on my tiller and was told that they are still covered up and they would call when it was ready!
I’m very disappointed in Amazon, I have been a customer for 10 years and placed many orders with these people but I don’t think I will ever buy anything else that a warranty could be a problem. I may not buy ANYTHING from them but I can’t say for sure at this time because I’m so upset!!!!!!
Great for small planting beds!
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I purchased the 4-cycle Mantis, and it was fairly simple to put together. Once I found the primer to force gas into the lines the engine started right up. Restarts only took one easy pull. The tines really churn up the dirt, and you can dig down 10-12 inches. I had clay, rocks, and sod with plastic mesh to mix up. The clay caused the Mantis to bounce, alot! Pulling back on the Mantis tilling a 5 foot area, and then slowly moving forward tilling the same area a little deeper was the only way to get down deep. Sometimes I had to go over the same area a couple of times to get an even depth, but it was some pretty hard clay. Not any more, the clay is all broken up and mixed with the good dirt.
The plastic mesh did get wrapped around the tines pretty bad, but I had installed the weed reducers and I had the weed detangler tool to help get the mesh out. I had to stop many times and clean out the mesh and clay buildup, but it was a nice break from constantly pulling back on the tiller.
The one disadvantage to the tiller is that it contantly wants to take off on you, and you are the only thing stopping it. It requires alot of forearm and upper body strength to keep pulling back on the tiller at all times. Working the tiller from side to side and back and forth seemed to provide the best results. If you have a big area to till, I would recommend investing in a rear tine tiller that you can walk beside and guide with one hand. If you have a small, or raised, planting bed (3-4′ across by 8-15′ long#, then the Mantis will work fine. Unfortunatly, my garden was more than twice that size and took me about 8 hours to till #day and a half). Your arms may be sore for a couple of days, but it is a good workout, and your planting beds will look great.
I haven’t tried the border edger yet, but the kickstand was very handy to have. Wear ear protection, even the quieter 4-cycle was loud.
Not too big, not too small — just right!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
For years I’ve used a Troy-Bilt tiller to till our garden. But I am the only one in the family who can use it. And since there are tilling needs throughout the year, and I am often on travel, we tried, and were disappointed by, those cheap tiny tillers at home improvement stores. But we are very happy with our Mantis tiller (we got the Mantis 7262-15-02 4-Cycle Honda Gas Powered Tiller/Cultivator with Border Edger and Kickstand), and here’s why:
This tiller is smaller than normal tillers, but larger than those tiny home improvement store tillers. The big tillers are too big for everyone to use and the really tiny tillers only seem useful in flower beds with potting soil. But everyone in the family can use and control the Mantis tiller. Also, it is strong enough to use in the garden. Not too big, not too small — just right!
We really love the convenience of not having to mix the gas and oil. They are separate, and that’s a lot less hassle.
The handle is not too tall, which means the everyone in the family can use it comfortably.
We found the engine to be much quieter than either the Troy-bilt or the tiny home improvement store ones.
There are a decent number of tines, and they really do the job of tearing into the soil.
So we really enjoy our Mantis tiller, especially since anyone in our family can use it throughout the year.
(review by Kendall Giles)
The most useful piece of lawn equipment I have.
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I bought the Mantis with Honda GX25 engine. I bought the dethatcher and aerator tine also. My original intension is to use it as a dethatcher only. It worked very well. It pulled out so much dead grass in incredible. The good thing is it did not beat up the lawn. THe lawn looked good right after dethatching, not like the big dethatcher that put bare spots on the lawn and you have to wait weeks for the lawn to recover.
What surprised me was how well it work to cultivate weeds. It take some getting use to, at the begining, I have problem of it jumping. But I soon learn all you have to do is pull it back slightly and it will stop jumping. It takes some getting use to but it work. I even remove one tine and put the edger wheel on one side and I can get a very narrow line of tilling into nerrow space. I use it to dig holes for planting also.
Bottom line, I am using it all year round.
I know there are always people complaining about engine hard to start. My suggestion is read the manuel on how to start or ask someone that know small engines. Both the Honda GX25 and the 2 cycle engine on the cheaper Mantis are ALL tried and true COMMERCIAL engine. They both have iron clad reputations. If you have problem starting, chances are you are doing something wrong. Make sure you use fresh gas with StaBil fuel stabilizer. Stale gas is the main problem of gas engine. You have to do maintenance like washing the air filter or changing it in the 2 cycle case. Follow the instruction. If you don’t maintain the gas engine, all will die in the first year. This is not for taking it out every few months, use it for 10 minutes and hang it up for another few months. It will die!!!
If you think it is too much trouble, get the electric version.
Mighty Mouse
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Easy to use, works really hard, can carry around to different spots in the garden. How did we manage before our Mantis?
Little bouncer
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The Mantis is a nice little tiller, but I am spoiled after having a Troy Bilt tiller for 40 years. The mantis is so light that it bounces off small stones and into your garden plants before you can regain control. Because it is plagued with “Ralph Nader save the operator controls”, it is difficult to control the throttle position easily. It also gets stones jammed in the tines easily.
I’m not knocking it, because it makes a nice BACK YARD tiller for the home owner. Just be aware of its shortcomings.
4 cycle mantis
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Best tiller I have ever owned. Very light and very powerful. Starts on first pull. Very easy to use. I would recommend this tiller to anyone with a vegtable garden or flower garden.
Hmmmm
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
Well it never worked for me at all to rate all its features.
I wanted to clear the ‘weed garden’ leading to the water in our backyard this winter. The idea was to till the land and seed grass. I read reviews and reviews on the internet about how great this product is. So I went the extra mile and paid hundred dollars more for the 4-cycle.
Setup took me about couple of hours. Don’t miss watching the DVD; this will save you more time than you can think. The hardest part of the assembly was bolting the stand to the handle as the access becomes limited once you have the gas tank and main body mounted.
I bought gas and filled the tank. As easily demonstrated in the video, I pulled the starter 3 times after priming. The engine wouldn’t start. I tried again several times that same day after giving some gaps. There wasn’t the ‘purr’ of the motor I liked to hear. I called customer service. She started giving me instructions and asked me to yank something (I don’t remember now after 4 months) the top. I told her I don’t see the part she was talking about. I told her my Mantis was a 4-cycle Honda motor. She realized the problem – she was giving instructions for a 2-cycle Mantis! She gave me two dealer names that will take care of the problem. Both dealers said it will cost me money to have them fix it as I didn’t buy from them. I had, had enough.
I returned the product back and the great customer service at Amazon (the best out there. Why can’t Comcast and Verizon have such customer service?) promptly gave me back all my 450 bucks back. I would rather have had a working product and cleared the backyard and see the grass fill up than the weeds. Hmmm…
Mantis 4-Cycle Tiller/Cultivator
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This Tiller is truly an amazing tool — if you buy new – squeeze excess oil out of air filter foam (into a paper towel) before use. Assembly a snap –Starts easily — does the work of a big machine while being light and easy to work with.Mantis 4-Cycle Tiller/Cultivator with Border Edger and Kickstand #7262-15-02
a real time saver and convenient
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
i have been thinking about buying this product for awhile. i had been delaying for awhile due to the high price but when amazon offered a discound on this product along with the $30 off for signing up for the amazon chase credit card, i broke down and bought it. it ended up being only $30 more than the 2-cycle model after all the discounts. i gave it 4 stars due to the price that you would have to pay if you didn’t factor in the discounts.
so far i am pleased with the way it runs and works. its very easy to move around to the different parts of my yard due to it being small and light…it helps too when other family members want to use it. they can just throw it in the trunk of their car and go.
it worked very well in areas of my garden where the soil had been turned over in the past, making the soil very light and soft. this is a nice alternative to using the shovel which can be hard on the back if you want to plant several plants.
i also have a large area that i want to use the tiller but the soil is very hard clay and dry. this makes it difficult to use the tiller since the ground is so hard the tiller just bounces off the ground. the tiller is not heavy enough to dig into the ground. my solution to this is to wet the hard ground at night with the hose and give the water time to soak down into the dirt and in the morning use the tiller to turn over the softened wet dirt.
finally, since its a 4-cycle engine, i like the fact that i don’t have to mix the oil and gas together trying to get the right mixture. all in all i am very pleased.
love this tiller
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I just recieved my tiller, put it together, (easily done, comes with instructional video) and tilled my flower beds for spring planting. The engine started on the second pull, and was suprisingly quiet. I would reccomend this tiller for anyone with a green thumb.