It’s almost planting season! Do you have enough garden space for everything you want to plant this year? Are you ready to attack the soil with your fork and spade again or would you appreciate a bit of help this year? Is the Yardmax YT4565 the best heavy duty rototiller or not?
Maybe you want more flower beds to add colour around the yard. Or you’ve outgrown your vegetable patch. The thing is – even if you rotate the plantings in your garden, you may find space a bit tight.
If your only solution is to cultivate new ground, you’ll need the right tool for the job. Because you could spend hours – or days – breaking through the sod with a shovel and turning it with a pitchfork. Sounds like back-breaking work, doesn’t it?
Or you can use a heavy-duty tiller and finish the job in no time flat. The best thing about rototillers is the speed at which you can ready large planting areas.
Should you rent or buy a rototiller?
If you’ll only use the tiller this once, it’s more cost-effective to rent a machine – most tool rental outlets offer tillers at hourly, daily or weekly rates.
But if you have other projects lined up, you should definitely consider buying a tiller of your own.
What type of tiller do you need?
If you want to make sure you are choosing the right rototiller for you, you need to ask yourself a few questions first:
- Will you be tilling existing plots or breaking new ground? If you plan to maintain your existing flower beds, you won’t need a very powerful tiller, perhaps a small cultivator will do. But if you need to make ground ready for planting vegetables every year or tilling grassy areas you will need a bigger tiller.
- How large is your space? If you want to prepare small flower beds in the spring, a small cultivator will do. If you plant to use the tiller on larger plots, choose a larger, more powerful tiller which will have a wider working width.
- What kind of soil are you dealing with? You might have soft, loamy soil. That’s great – any cultivator can handle it. But if you’re not so lucky, you could be dealing with heavy clay soil or a really rocky plot. If you have harder soils you’ll want the machine to do the grunt work in which case a larger tiller is a better choice
- Do you need a versatile tiller? Most garden tillers are built to do one job extremely well. Though they can handle other tasks, if you’re looking for true versatility, your choices are limited.
Some tillers are set up to accept different implements to handle specific tasks. They’re typically front-tine models which are less powerful, but great for smaller spaces.
- How much work do you want to do? Tillers are built to handle the tough jobs, so that you can avoid most of the back-breaking labour. But they won’t do all the work for you. Most tillers still require at least a minimal effort to operate – and while they’re lighter, smaller models may need more muscle on big jobs. If you choose a small tiller for a larger job, be ready to sweat.
- What is your budget? With such a large variety of tillers, pricing can range anywhere from under $200 to nearly $5000. Look for the best bang for your buck, but avoid spending on unnecessary features.
Based on your needs and plans, there are several types of tiller available.
Stick with the smallest, least expensive electric powered cultivators for the lightest jobs. They’re available in corded or battery-powered versions.
Next up come the gas powered cultivators. They’re a good choice for slightly tougher jobs – their more powerful, front-tine design will help propel the unit forward. But they are still quite small and are more used in raised beds – flower, herb and small vegetables.
Front-tine tillers are suitable for mid-size jobs. They are more powerful than cultivators and will be suitable for use in vegetable gardens. Be advised that the front tine tillers can be more tiring to use than a rear tine tiller- it uses its front tines to pull the tiller forward (this can make it hard to hold) whereas a rear tine tiller has gearbox driven rubber tyres- smooth and easier to manage.
For handling tough jobs, like breaking new soil or rototilling deep into rocky or clay soils, you’ll need a rear-tine tiller. These big, gasoline-powered engines have gearbox driven rubber tyres which are driven separately from the tilling blades, so they’re much easier to move through rough, uneven soil. They are larger than front tine tillers but they are ten times easier to use.
Best heavy duty rototiller
The Yardmax YT4565 208cc Rototiller
Yardmax has designed an impressive rear-tine tiller at a great price point – even with features comparable to the big name machines. It’s the perfect choice for the home gardener handling heavy-duty projects.
Simple and safe to operate
It’s simple to operate this tiller single-handedly from either side of the machine. And the YT4565 protects the operator – and bystanders – with adjustable side shields and a full length rear shield.
Incredible grip
While the adjustable drag bar fitted to the rear of the tiller optimizes its balance, the tiller’s front counterweight provides incredible tire traction.
Engine cut out
Keeping safety a priority, the tiller is built to shut down if you encounter massive rocks in the soil. This is a great safety feature and one i wouldn’t buy a tiller without.
Fully adjustable tilling
The Yardmax Y4565 features an 18” wide shelf-sharpening, rear-tine setup. There are 7 depth adjustment levels.
Smooth handling with pneumatic tyres
Unlike many rear-tine models, the aggressive tread on the 13” pneumatic wheels provides great handling in any soil type.
Forward and reverse transmission
The durable, heavy-duty transmission contributes to the self-propelled drive system and offers one speed in both forward and reverse.
Powerful efficient engine
With a Briggs and Stratton 208cc engine that provides 9.5 foot-pounds of gross torque at rotational speeds of 190 RPM, the Yardmax tiller can handle the toughest jobs of any cultivator. It has dual-rotating tines; forward rotation is ideal for cultivating, and counter-rotation lets you dig deep for thorough tilling.
Final Verdict
The Yardmax Y4565 rototiller offers the absolute best value for its size in the rear-tine rototiller class. It’s easy to assemble and operate and has great safety features. Have a look at the great reviews other users have left on Amazon for this robust machine.
