Official Yard Machines front-tine tiller parts

Tips for improving tilling when using your Yard Machines front-tine tiller

Worn or damaged tines, broken tine shaft clevis pins, a worn drive belt, a faulty transmission, a problem with the clutch cable, improper depth-stake setting or bad soil conditions can cause a tiller to do a poor job turning the soil.

The soil must be moist enough that it forms a ball when you squeeze it in your hand, but dry enough that the ball falls apart when dropped. Check soil conditions and water the area that you're tilling if the ground is too dry. Let the ground dry out if soil is too wet.

Check the depth stake setting and adjust it for the type of soil you're cultivating. Lower the depth stake to till at a 1-inch depth when using the tiller on soil for the first time or when breaking up hard soil. Also use the 1-inch depth setting to break up sod for shallow cultivation. Raise the depth stake to till loose soil and for deep cultivation.

Check the condition of the tiller tines and replace worn or damaged tines.

Frequently replaced parts in Yard Machines front-tine tillers

• Clevis pins. The clevis pins are shear pins that couple the tines to the rotating tine shaft. A clevis pin is designed to shear off if the tines hit a fixed object during cultivation to prevent damage to the engine and other tiller components.
• Spark plug. The spark plug provides the ignition spark for the engine cylinder.
• Starter rope. The self-retracting starter rope coils around a spring-loaded pulley on the top of the crankshaft. The person operating the tiller pulls the starter rope, which rotates the spring-loaded pulley and spins the crankshaft to start the engine.
• Carburetor. The carburetor mixes air with fuel in the proper proportion to produce a combustible gas. That gas/air mixture is pulled into the cylinder where the piston compresses it and the spark plug ignites it.