Mantis plough attachment

[Snoop Puss]

Has anyone got one of these? If so, have you got any advice or suggestions (even don't bother buying it!)? Can you still use the kickstand to support the tiller with the plough attached?

All and any advice welcomed.

Edited to add: Sorry if this isn't the right place to post this, mods. I wasn't sure where this kind of equipment query ought to go.

[MarkHackwell]

Has anyone got one of these? If so, have you got any advice or suggestions (even don't bother buying it!)? Can you still use the kickstand to support the tiller with the plough attached?

All and any advice welcomed.

Edited to add: Sorry if this isn't the right place to post this, mods. I wasn't sure where this kind of equipment query ought to go.

I have one of these, and from what I remember the plough attachment holds the tiller up when your using it. I use it to do my potato usually but this year I think I'm going to use containers so might not this year, will see though If you do get one and use it would be great to see pics

[Snoop Puss]

Thanks, Mark. Am still pondering. I found info on the American Mantis site that says you can't put the kickstand down while the plough is attached. Mr Snoop has this idea that he could adapt the plough bracket to fit wheels. To be honest, what I really want is the wheel set, but he reckons the wheels are poor value and that for the same money, I could have the plough and he could sort me out with better wheels that could be readily removed and replaced with the plough when I wanted to use it.

[ESBkevin]

Warning: I have never used a mantis!
I'd see if you can look at some videos of it in use. I suspect that the lightweight of the mantis means the soil must already be very loose and well worked, plus the depth you can achieve would be not very deep in practical terms. So unless you were doing large amounts of ridging in long rows the chances are you could do any planting faster with a spade than changing the mantis to wheel drive and bolting on the plough attachment before converting it all back afterwards to cultivator use.
I have no actual experience of a mantis, and this is purely speculation on my part, but I have used a number of rotavators over the years. So research some working video and see if the results are worth the cost and effort is my advice.

[Snoop Puss]

Quite right, ESBkevin. It's quite surprising how deep the Mantis will go when the soil is in the right condition. The trouble with the videos is that they obviously have worked the soil amazingly before demonstrating the plough attachment, so they're not very realistic. I'm under no illusions, but that said, I'm not expecting to plough a field like a tractor would.

[MarkHackwell]

Warning: I have never used a mantis!
I'd see if you can look at some videos of it in use. I suspect that the lightweight of the mantis means the soil must already be very loose and well worked, plus the depth you can achieve would be not very deep in practical terms. So unless you were doing large amounts of ridging in long rows the chances are you could do any planting faster with a spade than changing the mantis to wheel drive and bolting on the plough attachment before converting it all back afterwards to cultivator use.
I have no actual experience of a mantis, and this is purely speculation on my part, but I have used a number of rotavators over the years. So research some working video and see if the results are worth the cost and effort is my advice.

I was sceptical too when I first got my Mantis but I have had mine about 4 years now and had no problems soo far Clay soil down here and it's hit lots of stones and its still working as well as when I first had it! Had someone service it last year and if you get that done once in a while (that was it's first) it should last years! I use my mantis a lot during the spring but less so the rest of the year. It depends on weeds too as if it's a new plot you don't want to chop weeds like someone did on our plots last year and they learnt the very hard way lol

[Snoop Puss]

Yes, Mark. I think my Mantis is a marvel. It's the third rotavator/tiller I've owned. Mr Snoop wasn't convinced by it when he saw it and kept saying we needed a bigger one. But it does everything asked of it.

[The Idiot Gardener]

I did have a Mantis with the plough attachment. I didn't buy it; I inherited when the Mother went into the pickle factory. To be fair, it was unbelievably poor at just about everything. I spent more time trying to work out why anyone would invest in such an abomination than doing anything productive with it, and it wasn't for a lack of trying.

In the end I picked the thing up and threw it across the garden (I daren't have taken it to the allotment because that would have killed it). It bent in several places and after that took up room in the shed.

I'd say don't bother.