Honda FRC800 Tiller Questions

[TheWaterbug]

I'm seriously considering buying a used Honda FRC800 to replace my aging Troy-Bilt Pony. I've taken the old Pony to the repair shop so many times that the repair guy is suggested I buy something more rugged. When I asked him what's most reliable and durable, he said, "Buy a Honda."

But I need a few answers before I decide:

1. Will this unit fit in a normal minivan with all the seats removed? Does the handle fold down far enough?
2. Can I put the transmission in neutral and push it across level ground, with the engine off (e.g. if I can't get it started)?
3. I just now realized that this is _not_ a counter-rotating design. My existing Pony tiller isn't, either, but I was hoping for an upgrade in this department. Will the extra power and 2-speed transmission make up for the lack of CRT?
4. What would you all consider to be a fair price for a used unit, in good condition, including shipping to CA?
5. Any other manufacturers/models I should consider in the same price range as the FRC800?

[Gary350]

I did Google search for that Honda FRC800 20" tiller it looks nice I sometimes wish I had a self propelled tiller. I was considering buying a self propelled until I took a friends tiller for a test run through his garden. There are several advantages and disadvantages. A long heavy tiller is hard to turn in tight spaces. I need 3 ft to turn my tiller but my friends self propelled tiller needs about 6 ft to turn. I have a fence on 1 side of my garden and a building on the other side I will loose 3 ft of garden space on 2 sided of my garden if I buy a bigger tiller. But the nice advantage with self propelled I could till my garden with much less work and probably much faster. 20" is good to weed between rows after plants have been growing for a month. 20" tiller lets you plant closer row spacing. Larger engine uses more fuel. Larger tires makes tiller easier to handle. If it is a heavy tiller make sure it has reverse. Tillers all have a neutral for transmission other wise soon as you start engine you will be running to catch your tiller. I have 2 tillers one is 24" I use it to till the whole garden it is a bit faster than my 20" tiller. My 20" tiller is best for tilling weeds between 32" row spacing. I can plant 30" to 36" row spacing if I want. I learned tiller needs to stay 6" away from plants to remove weeds to avoid damage to small plants. When weeding with the tiller you need to till only 1" deep or less sell propelled will give you very good control weeding the garden. My first till in spring is 1" deep. If weeds return I do another 1" deep till. Before I plant a row I do a 4" deep till only on the row being planted soft soil helps roots grow fast. No need to till deep between rows where I walk. If you have no problem turning your tiller around at the end of each row then I would buy the Honda FRC800.

[PaulF]

That is one huge, powerful tiller. It is made for commercial type tilling and weighs in at over 250 lbs. It may well fit in a mini-van but getting it into the back of a van may be a problem. While a bit much for my needs and a smaller version would suit me better, the 800 should be considered top of the line so far as I am concerned. My current tiller is a front tine, forward rotation, 16", forty-five year old Sears that has seen the repair shop once to adjust the carburetor, so I can't complain. If it ever dies a Honda is in the picture as a replacement (unless Toyota ever gets into the small engine business).

[TheWaterbug]

I decided to rent an FRC800 from my local Home Depot so I could evaluate it before I decide to buy one:

1. It's a big machine! But I am almost as heavy as it is , so I can still wrangle it when it's neutral.
2. It fits in my Dodge Caravan, barely, and my old plywood ramp is _just_ wide enough. The wheels have about 1" clearance on either side, but when it's in 1st gear it moves slowly enough that I can keep it on track and safely into my car.
3. I can muscle it out of my van and onto the ramp without having to start it, which is a good thing because it only fits in my minivan with the clutch handle pushed down. Actually I could probably get the clutch handle back up and disengaged if I moved the handle to its lowest position.
4. I was able to get it down the side trail, over a big root (using the ramp again) and into my garden in 2nd gear.
5. 3rd gear is really fast! You almost have to jog to keep up with it. I'm not gonna try going downhill in 3rd gear!
6. It tills really well! It's a totally different class of machine from my old Pony. That's not surprising given it retails for more than twice the price and has 60% more hp, but it was still a surprise when I first got it into the dirt. I ran over some 4' tall weeds with 1.5" thick stalks/trunks, and it just pulverized them.
7. All the hullabaloo about "it's a Honda" is apparently true! I almost ripped the cord out of the recoil starter the first time, because I wasn't expecting it to be that short and that easy. Clara Johnson could definitely start this up.
8. It's not a perfect machine. I wish it had:
   1. Differential drive, to make turning easier. It's difficult to make a tight turn with this beast.
   2. Counter-rotating tine gear. My soil is wet and easy to turn right now. When it turns to concrete later this Spring I'm worried about holding this thing back, even with the drag bar all the way down.
   3. Tool-free adjustment of the drag bar and handle height. This rental unit has the standard nut and bolt replaced by a pin and cotter pin, which is nice. I'll have to do that if/when I buy my own unit. But the handle height adjust still requires a wrench. I might consider replacing that with a knob if I find myself adjusting it frequently.

But all said, I like it! If I can swing a good deal on a good unit, I'm planning to buy one.

[TheWaterbug]

And does anyone have the secret decoder ring for Honda tiller serial numbers? I want to verify the date of manufacture for any used tiller than I consider buying. For example my rental tiller's S/N is FAHJ-1106943.

[TheWaterbug]

I bought it! I got this for $700, plus tax and gas to Palmdale (150 miles round-trip). The debris shield was pretty mangled, but I was able to "fix" that by running over it with my car:



I ran it for about 20 minutes, to prep some pits for tomatoes, and it ran great! I think I got a really good deal on this.