Background: I had a 1 acre lot that was manicured with a GC2300, MMM and FEL. Great machine for what it was, really got me into the tractor / SCUT way of doing things.
Present day: We are closing on a 20 acre hobby farm that currently has no animals. The 20 acres is mostly wooded with two big clearings (maybe a total of 4-5 acres). The clearings are not manicured lawn and I don't think they ever will be (meaning heavier tractor will probably be okay) We live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, so snow removal is going to be on the top of the list. The gravel driveway is 500' long.
The GC2300 was a really nice machine but would be too small / take to long to perform the workload on this piece. I'm looking for a tractor that can has great FEL lift capacity (gravel, dirt, fill, snow, etc). Strong enough for general farm work although I don't see making hay in the near future. Removing small trees, cleaning up some of the overgrowth is top priority. Nimble enough that I could clean out parts of the barn if/when animals arrive. Strong enough to run either a front mount snowblower or a 3 pt snowblower with a plow mounted on the front for snow removal. A cab is a must due to the weather (aftermarket would be fine).
I would also like to keep the budget to around 15k. I've been reading about the Kubota L3240 which I think fits the needs pretty well. For that price range I'm looking at some used models as new the MSRP is close to 40k. I'm not brand loyal, interested to hear if anyone has thoughts on Kioti CK35? Maybe the L3240 isn't the right choice?
My reliance on a dealer will be minimal as there aren't any in this area. So the warranty issue is almost void...
Any thoughts?
Present day: We are closing on a 20 acre hobby farm that currently has no animals. The 20 acres is mostly wooded with two big clearings (maybe a total of 4-5 acres). The clearings are not manicured lawn and I don't think they ever will be (meaning heavier tractor will probably be okay) We live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, so snow removal is going to be on the top of the list. The gravel driveway is 500' long.
The GC2300 was a really nice machine but would be too small / take to long to perform the workload on this piece. I'm looking for a tractor that can has great FEL lift capacity (gravel, dirt, fill, snow, etc). Strong enough for general farm work although I don't see making hay in the near future. Removing small trees, cleaning up some of the overgrowth is top priority. Nimble enough that I could clean out parts of the barn if/when animals arrive. Strong enough to run either a front mount snowblower or a 3 pt snowblower with a plow mounted on the front for snow removal. A cab is a must due to the weather (aftermarket would be fine).
I would also like to keep the budget to around 15k. I've been reading about the Kubota L3240 which I think fits the needs pretty well. For that price range I'm looking at some used models as new the MSRP is close to 40k. I'm not brand loyal, interested to hear if anyone has thoughts on Kioti CK35? Maybe the L3240 isn't the right choice?
My reliance on a dealer will be minimal as there aren't any in this area. So the warranty issue is almost void...
Any thoughts?