What is the best single axle tractor for the garden?

Characteristics of different types of power tillers and attachments

With the onset of spring, there is a resurgence in the retail chain that sells power tillers. Mechanical helpers are buying up quite actively. You may hear questions among visitors: “How to choose the right single–axle tractor? Which type is preferred? How quickly the purchase will pay for itself? Is it possible to buy a good helper inexpensively? Which optional equipment do I need to buy?? How versatile is a machine??”

Sales consultants are trying to offer more expensive equipment, they can be understood. The wages of store employees depend on the amount of purchases. You can meet the visitors, who purposely come for a particular power tiller. They have a list of auxiliary equipment, purchased simultaneously with the power plant.

What engine to choose??

When choosing a power tiller you should pay attention to the engine type. diesel or gasoline. Let’s understand the differences between them.

The devices with diesel engines are more durable and reliable. Some models have an impressive service life. up to 3000 hours. In addition, these engines have a low fuel consumption, as well as reduced wear of parts. The disadvantages of diesel engines include large size, certain prohibitions during idling, and most importantly, the increased price, which directly affects the price of the device.

Gasoline engines, even with similar power to diesel engines, have a smaller size. Using them is much easier, you do not need any special knowledge. To the disadvantages of gasoline engines can be attributed a lower number of engine hours and performance. But despite this, all this can be considered compensated by the lower price.

If we say a few words more specifically, well proven units Neva, which have petrol units Honda, Robin-Subaru, Briggs Stratton, as well as Zirka with a diesel KM178F. Therefore, it is impossible to say unequivocally whether a diesel or a gasoline engine is better. Everyone has his own goals.

Rating of the best power tillers producers

Before choosing a specific variant, it is worth to study the information about the manufacturers, which have long been represented on the market and have proven themselves. It is desirable to buy the products of the following brands:

• Neva is a company that needs no introduction and for a long time has been one of the Russian market leaders in small agricultural machinery. The wide range of models for different purposes, a wide choice of attachments, extensive dealer network. all this makes Neva motor blocks popular from year to year. Reliable and unpretentious machinery, which is equipped with engines from the world’s leading manufacturers.
• Oka, Urga and Avangard. all these motor blocks are manufactured by JSC “Kaluga Engine”, the range is very large, so you can find a model of any power from different price categories. Reviews about the technique in general are positive, but there are also not very successful modifications, so before choosing it is not superfluous to study the opinions of your favorite technique.
• MTZ. The motor blocks of this brand are produced by Smorgon Aggregate Plant, located in Belarus. The machines have a rich history, have been popular for several decades and have a unique, patented by the manufacturer design. It is equipped with different engines. both budget ones and Japanese, there is a whole range of necessary attachments.
• Leader, Master and Favorit. these motor blocks are produced by the Kovrov plant. Degtyarev from Kovrov. Not bad technique, which uses both proven solutions and its own developments. The range is extensive, when choosing, it is important to consider all the features of use.
• Motor Sich. motor blocks are made in Zaporozhye, they are of good quality, there are many models to choose from, which allows you to find a solution for any site. In addition, the manufacturer offers the entire range of necessary attachments, and there are no problems with spare parts.
• Caiman. excellent French motor blocks, which produces the company Pubert. The line consists of more than three dozen variants of all classes. The products are qualitative and reliable, easy to use, but the cost is much higher than most analogues.
• WEIMA, KENTAVR, FORTE, BIZON and GARDEN SCOUT. Chinese machinery, produced by almost one factory, often differing only by color and stickers on the motor block. The above-listed brands are of the highest quality, they have long been on the market and there are no problems with spare parts due to their high interchangeability.

Remember that on sale there are often Chinese knockoffs of European and Belarusian motor blocks. That’s why it’s best to buy from an official representative or trustworthy company.

Buying new gardening equipment is a joyful but responsible event. First, you need to spend time choosing a model. The engine’s power should be in line with the amount of work to be done

The machine’s starting system

You can start a single–axle tractor either manually or with the help of an electric starter. Some well-known manufacturers offer both types of engine starting on their models.

Starter can bring the machine to work at any time of year, regardless of low air temperatures, type of fuel. But this starting system requires a battery. The unit requires constant charging, which can be done with the built-in generator or a battery charger.

MTZ-09H (Belarus)

Minsk Tractor Works was founded in 1946. It makes tractors, motorized equipment and attachments. Machines of the “Belarus” brand have become a cult and are a benchmark for the agrarians. Power tillers are not a core production line for MTZ, the first model came off the assembly line only in 1985, and Belarus MTZ-09H model has been producing since 1992.

A Japanese Honda GX 270 four-stroke petrol engine with the power of 9 l is installed on the power tiller.с. This engine is often used for the production of gardening and construction equipment. There is a safety bar on the bottom and the front of the engine. The engine starts manually, but optionally can be installed electric starter. Fuel tank capacity. 5,3 liters.

Model MTZ-09H. it is a 2×2 machine. Before the mass spread of motor blocks it was called a “single axle tractor“. The machine is designed for use with an active rotary cultivator, so its center of gravity is offset forward. Gearbox with four forward and two reverse gears. The fitted differential ensures movement of wheels with different angular speed for comfortable driving on a rough terrain and at corners. Machine weight 176 kg.

PTO shaft is installed to transfer torque from engine to implements. Turning speed. 1200 rpm. Attachment is rear-mounted on the trailed implement and front-mounted on the PTO. MTZ. it is a good single axle tractor because it is designed to fit agricultural and municipal equipment: plow, cultivator, snow blower, trailer, etc. д. The implement is well suited for tilling in shallow soils and is as versatile as a mini-tractor.

Types of power tillers

In general, a single-axle tractor is a self-propelled machine designed to perform a wide range of agricultural.

There are the following types of power tillers on the market:

Structurally, in addition to the engine, a single–axle tractor includes in its composition:

When working on a single–axle tractor, additional agricultural equipment is installed, which turns it into a universal machine, with which operations are carried out, such as, for example:

In addition, by attaching a trailer with a seat for the operator to the motoblock, you can turn it into a minitractor, which will also expand its functionality.

What to look for when choosing a power tiller

Determining the weight category of the tractor, it is necessary to pay attention to its other parameters. Among the variety of models it is not so easy to choose the best one, as it may seem at first sight. Evaluate the capabilities of this rather complex device, according to a number of criteria, the most important of which are:

• engine power;
• The type of transmission and the ability to lock the differential;
• type of gearbox;
• power take-off shaft (PTO);
• track width;
• the location of the center of mass.

The brand of manufacturer is also important. After all, it often determines the quality of manufacture, as well as reliability and efficiency of the power tiller.

power unit

Choosing a single–axle tractor, first of all, you should pay attention to the engine, namely the brand of its manufacturer and the declared last motor life. It will also be useful to find out where the nearest service center of the liked motor.

Most often on the motor blocks of any class are installed engines from well-known foreign manufacturers, such as:

The engines of these companies are characterized by high reliability and long service life (from 500 to 2000 hours). Especially popular are Lifan engines, which, all other things being equal (the manufacturer’s declared service life is not less than 1100 hours), are also inexpensive to operate.

Yamaha long-life engines can be installed on premium motor blocks, with a claimed service life of 3 to 5 thousand motor-hours.

Chinese engines Zongshen, loncin

Many domestic and foreign manufacturers design motor blocks using Chinese engines Zongshen and loncin. These engines, as well as popular in Russia motors Lifan, are copies of motors manufactured by Japanese Honda. All these engines, made by the famous Chinese companies have a pretty decent motor life and good reliability. all this is due to the use of the most modern technical solutions that help to increase their service life, such as:

• cast-iron cylinder liners;
• Oil level control sensors, automatically shutting off the engine when the latter drops below the minimum level;
• treatment of crankshafts with high-frequency currents, etc.д.

The Chinese engines are much cheaper than the original Japanese or American engines. Suffice it to say that the repair of the latter may in some cases exceed the cost of Chinese motors. That is why many experts recommend buying motor blocks with Chinese engines. At the same time, the difference in their cost will compensate for the purchase of a second engine of the same kind.

IMPORTANT! It is necessary to be careful with the purchase of Chinese engines with the GX marking in the name. Most often it is found on engines installed on Chinese motor blocks Shtenli, Groff, Spec, Stark, Fermer, Alikak, Skiper, etc. All of them are produced in the same Chinese factory, and their engines have a capacity from 8.5 to 18.5 liters.с. They have nothing in common with Honda engines and are of low quality. The GX marking indicates that such engines are only a copy of a Honda motor. They last at most 500 hours at most and most fail after only 300 hours. Another disadvantage of these reducers is the 85% power loss after only 2 seasons of operation.

Gearbox

On power tillers you can find such gearboxes as:

Additional information. old gearboxes used in older models consisted of a worm and pinion mechanism. This design featured a high efficiency, but could not withstand high loads. For example, even work with a duckboard or light plow caused the gearbox mechanism to overheat and fail. Nowadays, power tillers with worm gears are almost never met.

The chain reducer. The chain reducer is a reliable and simple design consisting of a chain and a set of gears. It is used in light and medium-sized power tillers with small and medium engines. Easy to maintain and simple to repair. Provides reliable work on small plots, but used attachments are severely limited (light plow, ogler).

IMPORTANT! The chain can stretch over time and should be changed in good time. If the gearbox housing is non-disassembled, the entire unit must be replaced.

Gearbox. Gearbox is considered the most reliable and unpretentious in operation. It can work on any ground, even in the most extreme conditions. Gear reducers are installed on heavy power tillers with PTO, working with heavy implements. Practically timeless, the main thing is to change oil in time.

One of the main disadvantages of gear reducers is the high noise level and its cost.

Gear and chain reducer. The most common reducer. Gear and chain reducer is used only on Russian-made motor blocks. Available in single-speed, two-speed and more. Design provides high elasticity in operation (ideal output shaft speed of 80-120) and low vibration level. Very long service life and reliability of the gearbox. Structurally, it is the most complex and cannot withstand heavy loads. The development of this gearbox was driven by the need to increase the number of forward (up to 4) and reverse (up to 4) gears.