Mtd OEM-290-253 INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

❒ Wrenches (two 9/16 inch)
❒ Screwdriver (medium-sized)
❒ Soft Rubber Mallet
❒ Penetrating Oil
❒ Metal File (needed only if

tine holders are also
removed)

How To Reach Us

If you have any questions about removing or installing tines, please

refer to the “Customer Assistance” information on the back cover.

These instructions apply only
to owners of the following
tillers:

❒ HORSETMModel
❒ ECONO HORSE

TM

Model

❒ PONY

®

Model

First, read the general
information given for all model
tillers on Pages 1 through 4. You
will then be directed to install­ation instructions for your
particular model tiller. Carefully
look at the adjacent figures while
following the step-by-step
instructions. Finally, see the
Bolo Tines Maintenance Section
on Page 16.

Attention!

HORSE Model Owners

Horse Model tillers have two
different style tine holders as
shown in figures to the right:

❒ Welded steel
Note: Welded steel holders may

be secured to tine shaft either
with two bolts and nuts or with
single mounting bolt (illustrated
in these instructions).
❒ Cast iron

Owners of HORSE Model
tillers with

cast iron tine holders

should keep the cardboard box in
which this kit was shipped to use
with the template (pattern) on the
inside back cover of these
instructions. You will use both
the template and the box when
assembling tines.

Owners of all other models can
ignore the template and discard
the box.

Welded Steel Tine Holder

Cast Iron Tine Holder

How To Use These
Instructions

Tools Needed

Thanks for buying new bolo tines. These tines were designed for your model tiller
and will handle all of your tilling needs including sod busting, seedbed preparation,
cultivating, and turning under crop residue.

THANK

YOU!

Bolo Tine Kit

OEM-290-253 / 290-253-081

for HORSETM, ECONO HORSETM,and PONY®Tillers

Installation Instructions

C. Use two 9/16-inch wrenches
to remove the bolts which attach
the tines to the holders. (Tines

are not attached to cast iron
holders with bolts. In the case
of cast iron holders, remove
each gang [set of four tines]
from a holder by removing
only one bolt, and then
loosening the other three bolts
on the same gang.)

D. Always discard old hardware

and tines. Use only the
hardware which came with your
new tines.

Bolt Removal Tips

❑ Loosen all four nuts on a holder plate or tine gang before trying to remove any of the nuts and bolts.
❑ If necessary, use penetrating oil to loosen stubborn nuts.
❑ If necessary, place the closed (boxed) end of a wrench on the nut and sharply tap the wrench with the

rubber mallet until the nut is loose.

Item Qty Part # Description

Horse, Econo Horse, 8 GW-1270-1 Left-curved Tines
and Pony Standard Tines 8 GW-1270-2 Right-curved Tines

Hardware for Standard 16 1100043 3/8"-16 x 1-1/4" Hex Head Bolts (Grade 5)
Tines (All Models) 16 1733398 3/8"-16 Hex Locknuts

Custom Tines 8 GW-2475-1 Left-curved Custom Tines
(All Models) 8 GW-2475-2 Right-curved Custom Tines

16 710-0514 3/8"-16 x 1-1/4" Hex Head Bolts (Grade 5)
16 712-0798 3/8"-16 Hex Nuts
16 736-0169 3/8" Lock Washers

If You Ordered Custom

Tines...

Custom tines (special, hard­faced tines which last up to 2­1/2 times longer than stan­dard tines) are perfect for
tilling sandy, gritty soil, or for
custom tilling or market gar­dening.

If you received Custom
tines, read this General
Information and then follow
the standard tine installation
instructions which apply to
your particular model tiller.

If you have any difficulty
installing your Custom tines,
contact our Service
Department (Refer to the
back cover of this manual.)

2

Step 1: Check Your Parts

Remove the tines and hardware package and check that you received all of the parts listed below for your
model tiller. If any parts are missing or damaged, contact our Technical Service Department and we will arrange
for replacements.

To prevent serious personal
injury when removing or
installing your bolo tines:

• Stop the engine, and
remove the electric start
key (if your tiller features
electric start).

• Let the engine and
muffler area cool.

• Disconnect the spark
plug wire, and position the
wire away from the plug to
prevent accidental starting.

WARNING

Tine edges can be sharp
and can have slivers that
could cause personal
injury. Use care at all
times when handling tines.
The tine hood edges may
also be sharp. To prevent
personal injury, wear thick
gloves when touching the
edges of the hood.

CAUTION

Step 2: Tine Removal

A. Carefully tilt the tiller
forward until the engine is
resting on the ground. (On some
models it may be necessary to
prop up the rear of the tiller or to
add additional weight to the
engine to stabilize the tiller in
this position.)

B. Raise the tiller hood flap and
secure it out of the way with a
rubber band, string or, in the case
of the PONY tiller, with the
depth regulator adjustment bar
knob.

PRE-INSTALLATION STEPS

3

Step 3: Tine Identification

Separate the sixteen new tines

into two groups: eight left-

curved tines and eight right­curved tines. Tines can be

identified as either left-curved or
right-curved tines in two ways:

Figure 1: Look for "L" or "R" stamped on the tines.

Figure 4: Insertion of bolts.

Step 4: Bolt Installation

NOTE: Skip this step if you
have a HORSE Model tiller with
cast iron tine holders.

A. On all other models, place
the sixteen bolts through the
holes in the tine holders with the
threaded ends of the bolts
pointing outward toward each
side of the tiller as shown below
in Figure 4.

(The installation of
tines on holders is described
later in these instructions.)

Figure 3: Right-curved tine.

Figure 2: Left-curved tine.

B. Or, hold the tine with the

blunt edge toward you. If the tip
curves toward the left, the tine is
a left-curved tine. If the

tip

curves toward the right, the tine
is a right-curved tine. See
Figures 2 and 3 which show the
two types of tines.

A. The letters and numbers
stamped on the side of each tine
are factory code marks which
contain either an "L" (on left­curved tines) or an "R" (on right­curved tines). See Figure 1.

Blunt
Edge

Blunt
Edge

B. Sort lock washers and nuts
into four groups of four each.

Figure 5: Cutting edges of tines must enter the soil first when the
tiller moves forward.

I

MPORTANT: Tines rotate in the same direction as the

wheels. During the installation steps, place tines on holders
so cutting edges (not the blunt, wider edges) will enter the soil
first when the tiller moves forward. See Figure 5.

Threaded
Ends

Cutting Edges

Tip Pointing
Up

Tip Pointing
Up

Look for "L" on
Left-curved Tine

Look for "R" on
Right-curved Tine

70

70

ER

ER

R

l

o

e

t

e

a

W

h

t

i

o

n

R

o

e

t

n

i

a

T

t

i

o

n

Use this procedure to install
tines only if your tine holders are
shaped as shown below in
Figure 7.

NOTE: Be sure to use the
specific tines (left or right
curved) called for in each
installation step.

HORSE MODEL TINE INSTALLATION

(WELDED STEEL HOLDERS)

Figure 7: Welded steel tine holder.

Step 1: Position Holders
Before Starting Tine
Installation

On PTO Models, disengage the
PTO Lever. On non-PTO
Models, place the Forward/
Reverse Lever in Neutral.

Rotate the tine holders and
shaft (by hand) until any one of
the semi-circles on the

outer

mounting plates of the holders is
at the 12 o'clock position in
relation to the ground. See
Figure 8 on Page 5.

Step 2: Install Tines on Left
Inner Holder

Tines used in this step:

two right-curved tines

followed by

two

left-curved tines

A. Place two right-curved tines

(shown shaded in Figure 8)
opposite each other on the
previously installed bolts. Make
sure that the tines are positioned
as follows:

✔ Tines are across from each
other.
✔ Tines are against the outer
surface of the left inner holder
plate.

NOTE: When installing the
tines you will be directed to
perform a two step procedure
and then check to ensure that the
installation is correct before
going on to the next step.

4

Step 5: Find the Installation Instructions for Your Model

Each tiller's distinctive tine pattern provides the optimum in tilling performance for that model. Be sure to

install tines in the pattern described for your tiller.

Find your tiller in the following list and go to the indicated

page to continue with tine installation.

❑ HORSE (Welded Steel Tine

Holders), see the instructions
at the bottom of this page.

❑ HORSE (Cast Iron Tine

Holders), see

Page 8.

❑

PONY, see Page 12.

❑ ECONO HORSE, see Page 14.

Figure 6: Order of installation on holders (welded steel holders shown).

On all models, tines will be
installed in the following order
(see Figure 6):

A Left Inner Holder
B. Right Inner Holder
C. Left Outer Holder
D. Right Outer Holder

Order of Installation

C A B D

Step 3: Install Tines on Right
Inner Holder

Tines used in this step:

two left-curved tines

followed by

two right-curved tines

A. Place two left-curved tines
(shown shaded in Figure 8)
opposite each other on the
previously installed bolts. Make
sure that the tines are positioned
as follows:

✔ The tips of these two tines
should be directly opposite the
tips of the two right-curved tines
installed on the left inner holder
in Step 2-A (see Figure 8).

5

✔ Tips point inward toward
the transmission housing.
✔ The cutting edges will enter
the soil first when the tiller
moves forward.

B. Place two left-curved tines
(unshaded in Figure 8) opposite
each other on the bolts, over­lapping the tines installed in Step
2-A. Make sure that the tines are
positioned as follows:

✔ These tines are also across
from each other.

✔ Tips point outward toward
the sides of the tiller.
✔ The cutting edges will enter
the soil first when the tiller
moves forward.

C. Add lock washers and nuts to
all four bolts and tighten
securely.

Figure 8: Installing tines on inner holders.

✔ Tines are against the outer
surface of the right inner holder
plate.
✔ Tips point inward toward
the transmission housing.
✔ The cutting edges will enter
the soil first when the tiller
moves forward.

B. Place two right-curved tines
(unshaded in Figure 8) opposite
each other on the bolts, over­lapping the tines installed in Step
3-A. Make sure that the tines are
positioned as follows:

✔ These tines are also across
from each other.

✔ Tips point outward toward
the sides of the tiller.
✔ The cutting edges will enter
the soil first when the tiller
moves forward.

C. Add lock washers and nuts to
all four bolts and tighten
securely.

Right-curved
Tine

Left -curved
Tine

Left-curved
Tine

Right-curved
Tine

To allow an unobstructed view
of the left inner tine holder,
the left outer tine holder is not
shown in this drawing.

Position Semi­Circle at 12
o'clock

Tips of innermost tines
are directly opposite
from and point toward
each other.

Figure 9: Innermost tines on inner holders.

Step 5: Install Tines on Left Outer Holder

Tines used in this step:

Two right-curved tines followed two left-curved tines

Figure 10: Installing tines on outer holders.

6

Step 4: Check the Installation

This completes the installation
of the tines on the two inner
holders. To ensure that the
installation is correct, check for
the following:

A. Make sure that the tips of the
four innermost tines (those
nearest the transmission
housing) are directly opposite
each other, pointing toward each
other and toward the trans­mission housing. See Figure 9.

B. Make sure that the cutting
edges of all tines will enter the
soil first when the tiller moves
forward.

Left-curved
Tine

Right-curved
Tine

Left-curved
Tine

Right-curved
Tine

Innermost
Tines

Position Semi­Circle at 12 o'clock

Tips of innermost tines
are directly opposite from
and point toward each
other.

Innermost
Tines

Left outer holder
not shown.

Tines on inner holders
not shown.