Buying Advice Looking for Smaller Tractor with Strong Loader

[cartod]

Any of the major colors will work in the mid 30 hp range. My 3320 is very stout for its size, Im sure the Kubota is just as good. Buy the dealer.

 

[RickB]

Lifting 1600 lbs at the pins won't cut it when lifting baleage centered 24" to 30" ahead of the pins and stacking or lifting into a feeder. Don't fool yourself, or worse, hurt yourself in a rollover. Also, unless you routinely weight your 4x4 silage bales, I'll bet they run closer to 1600lbs. Not hard at all to get a 4x5 to weigh a full ton.

 

[Green Power]

Lifting 1600 lbs at the pins won't cut it when lifting baleage centered 24" to 30" ahead of the pins and stacking or lifting into a feeder. Don't fool yourself, or worse, hurt yourself in a rollover. Also, unless you routinely weight your 4x4 silage bales, I'll bet they run closer to 1600lbs. Not hard at all to get a 4x5 to weigh a full ton.

I agree buy more tractor than necessary, it seems its always best to buy a size or 2 bigger.

 

[Gittyup]

It struck me that a skidsteer might work best in the stalls. As for tractors, any of the with 2000+ lbs of lift. The Kioti DK40 is a good value.

 

[Poopdeck Pappy]

The bad thing about the skidsteers I've run is that the rear visibility is terrible. I'd hate to use a skidsteer in tight quarters just for that reason.

 

[RickB]

The bad thing about the skidsteers I've run is that the rear visibility is terrible. I'd hate to use a skidsteer in tight quarters just for that reason.

You can usually feel or hear when it's time to stop.

 

[sd455dan]

The bad thing about the skidsteers I've run is that the rear visibility is terrible. I'd hate to use a skidsteer in tight quarters just for that reason.

But the good thing is you can spin them on their own axis (skid-steer) unlike a tractor.

I still prefer my tractors for most everything..

 

[verdanthills]

Thanks, everyone. After moving a few wrapped bales around with my case farmall 95, I've decided that the bales are too heavy to move with a smaller tractor that can also clean out the barn. I will continue with the Case for bale moving and get a smaller B series Kubota for barn cleaning.

 

[Gary Fowler]

An even smaller BX series might be even better for just barn cleaning and light FEL work. I have never driven anything smaller than a B series, but many folks here swear by the BX. I do know that it is much more maneuverable than a B series and would lift all the manure that the bucket would hold with ease. I have a B26, my daughter has a B 2620 and while both are pretty maneuverable, I think a BX would be even better if you are in tight quarters like horse stalls.
The down side would be that it is a bit small for anything other than stall cleaning and yard maintenance. They also seem to make good lawnmowers with the belly mower but then so do the Bxxxx series.

 

[texasjohn]

congrats....you well defined your task, researched, tried it out in real life, determined what is going to work best for YOUR situation BEFORE making a purchase.
I think you are right...I was becoming concerned about lifting that weight high and maneuvering on possibly uncertain footing with a smaller tractor. Lots of weight up that high can get real tippy without sufficient width and weight underneath.