[Steveharford]

I'm so pleased. A neighbour of my In laws has moved away and downsized. He had already given me a lawnmower and a scarifier. During a farewell drink last night he gave me his Mantis which has hardly been used. Very generous of him and I am so pleased as I know I will use it but could never have justified purchasing one.

[snowdrops]

Lucky you, let us know how you get on with it. I keep looking at them but can't justify the expense, then I think if I bought it now it would make each years use cheaper by the time I'd had extra years use if you see what I mean. Enjoy

[m1ckz]

get 1  there brillient     use mine all the time 

[Gerry Norris]

there is an alternative to  a mantis which I found I could not justify as they were so Expensive even 2nd hand and that is"The Handypetrol mini tiller" I bought mine new for a price of £159.99and it is brilliant! It can even tackle the plot where the potatoes are grown and that ground has some very large stones,If you need replacement blades/tines you can change all 4 for £30.00 pounds.

[Fairy Plotmother]

there is an alternative to  a mantis which I found I could not justify as they were so Expensive even 2nd hand and that is"The Handypetrol mini tiller" I bought mine new for a price of £159.99and it is brilliant! It can even tackle the plot where the potatoes are grown and that ground has some very large stones,If you need replacement blades/tines you can change all 4 for £30.00 pounds.

I go along with this. Ours cost £165.....that's £ 33 per annum for 5 years. Save a lot of backache....and knee ache....ooooh and shoulder ache. Justification enough for me and Plotfather loves it!

[Nikkithefoot]

I kept talking my self out of having a Mantis, but recently took the plunge. OMG why oh why did I not get one years ago? It has revolutionised my allotment. What used to take all day to dig now takes about half an hour. Yes I still dig areas, but life has become so much better since having it. Cannot recommend highly enough, lightweight,easy to start. You will soon justify its use.

[Rich72]

I have just bought a second hand one for less than £100. SO happy with it

[Growster...]

I have just used our Mantis to till a couple of beds for garlic, and it really did the job well, despite getting pretty gummed up with some old manure I'd chucked all over the place!

It was still manfully (womanfully ?), chugging away, even when I eventually noticed that the tines were totally blocked up with grass and straw! It still did a great job!

I really couldn't do without it these days, it's a marvellous help for ageing Growsters...

[m1ckz]

i paid 200 for my 4 stroke mantis     would not be without it   

[Welsh Merf]

To echo Steveharford, I was lucky enough to be given a Mantis from a friend. He'd used it once to scratch the lawns!

I have had it three years now, and what I've learned is: that it is a tiller - not a rotovator (don't expect it to do something it wasn't designed to do); it clogs up easily in heavy soil (but still keeps going); string and long roots get tangled up easily; it has never failed to start, even when left from one season to the next; it's best to use it when the soil is nice and dry; it will go down to about nine inches (eventually).

Would I be without it? Not on your nelly!

[Growster...]

You only need to look at Ebay, to see the value of Mantis machines and their add-ons!

They're priceless - up to a point of course!