Hand held / small tiller

[GCJenks204]

The house we bought last year has between 10 & 15 smaller raised planting / garden beds. I don't want to dig them by hand so am contemplating some form of tiller for them. None of them are large so a full on roto tiller is out of the question.
Anyone have any experience with these machines? I don't think I am tied to any brand of these could be anything really. Local Echo & Shindaiwa dealer is having a 20% off Sale on Friday so those would be good options...

 

[sawfun]

I wonder how the Stihl and Mantis compare.

 

[GCJenks204]

I've never heard of Mantis and would never rule out Stihl. I am very intrigued by their Kombi system.

 

[Termitebuffet]

I have a mantis , it's been flawless for years ...I use it in my raised bed garden ....

 

[Dingeryote]

We use the Stihl MM55 like a rented mule. Literally, I hand it to one of the crew, and point at a row of bushes with bindweed coming up.
Hundreds of hours racked up.
Zero complaints, or issues, other than the craptastic Tampon style spark arrestor screen..which can be cured by removing it, and hurling the POS into the nearest tree line.
The little things will punch way above their weight, and tear ass on Sassafrass and Sumac roots if needed.

The Cousin has gone through 3-4 Mantis Tillers in the same time, doing the same thing. All were warrantied through the box store though.
I don't know what his guys are doing different.

I figured it would be handy for new plantings, but has become a LOT more viable than I ever figured.

 

[GCJenks204]

Well went my my local Stihl dealer and I think the MM55 is going to be the winner, unless I decide that a Kombi / multi tool system makes more sense. My Stihl dealer was also the only Mantis dealer nearby and they dropped Mantis this year. Massive price increase combined with declining sales did them in here. Also visited an Echo & Husqvarna dealer and although the Echo mini tiller is cheaper it really seemed cheaper and didn't have the option for other attachments.

The last thing weighing on my mind is that I also want a new string trimmer, last year I spent more time fighting with the trimmer head than doing the actual work. I swear it will be the last piece of box store crap that I ever buy.

Does anyone have any experience with using the cultivator attachment on any of the multi tool systems? Stihl, Echo or Husqvarna?