Hello,
Great site! I followed a link here from countrybynet.com.
This fall I will need to purchase a tractor for a 60 acre property (currently 40 ac. in CRP and 20 in timber) that we are going to build a house on. Here are the main jobs I see the tractor doing now:
1. Plowing a driveway that will end up being in the 1600 to 2000 ft. range. It will rise 250 or so feet from a paved county road. It will be a gravel drive that is 14 ft. wide. Location is N. Idaho and there is typically 0-3 snowstorms in the 8-12 inch+ range and lot more days of 2-4 inch accumulations. It will often warm up periodically so snow on the ground is rarely more than 18" and will even melt off completely at times. I think I've decided on the FEL/rear blade setup after reading other posts on this subject, as both of those implements will be useful otherwise. I've considered buying a plow for my F-350 but really don't want to subject the frame to that much stress year after year. Besides, I'll need a tractor anyway.
2. We will burn roughly 5 cords of firewood yearly and cut/split/stack it all ourselves. Some of the wood will come from the property itself, so the tractor would be used for transporting cut wood and occasionally skidding smaller logs. Fairly hilly property...
3. Spraying weeds to keep the CRP land in compliance (govt. requires nox. weeds be kept down).
4. Occasional use of rental/borrowed fence post driver for fence maintenance.
5. Not sure what we'll be doing with the 40 acres when the CRP contract is up -- probably combo. of small amt. of pasture and reforestation for the rest.
By the way, the lawn will be small enough to continue with my push mower.
I've looked at what's available and thought a NH TC30 fit our needs pretty well. I want a gear transmission and don't need anything fancy, just reliable. I've operated tractors, balers, swathers, etc. but never paid attention to specs on those machines as a kid.
I'd like to keep the initial purchase (tractor and FEL) in the 15k range. Is this more tractor than I need (TC30)? I would love to hear everyone's input. Also, I came across the NH TT55. It seems it is price comparable to much smaller (albeit 4x4) CUTs. It seems like it's extra weight would make up for lack of 4x4. Then I could use a bigger blade...
I'll consider any brand I can easily get parts for, as well as newer used tractors.
Thanks for any input!
Great site! I followed a link here from countrybynet.com.
This fall I will need to purchase a tractor for a 60 acre property (currently 40 ac. in CRP and 20 in timber) that we are going to build a house on. Here are the main jobs I see the tractor doing now:
1. Plowing a driveway that will end up being in the 1600 to 2000 ft. range. It will rise 250 or so feet from a paved county road. It will be a gravel drive that is 14 ft. wide. Location is N. Idaho and there is typically 0-3 snowstorms in the 8-12 inch+ range and lot more days of 2-4 inch accumulations. It will often warm up periodically so snow on the ground is rarely more than 18" and will even melt off completely at times. I think I've decided on the FEL/rear blade setup after reading other posts on this subject, as both of those implements will be useful otherwise. I've considered buying a plow for my F-350 but really don't want to subject the frame to that much stress year after year. Besides, I'll need a tractor anyway.
2. We will burn roughly 5 cords of firewood yearly and cut/split/stack it all ourselves. Some of the wood will come from the property itself, so the tractor would be used for transporting cut wood and occasionally skidding smaller logs. Fairly hilly property...
3. Spraying weeds to keep the CRP land in compliance (govt. requires nox. weeds be kept down).
4. Occasional use of rental/borrowed fence post driver for fence maintenance.
5. Not sure what we'll be doing with the 40 acres when the CRP contract is up -- probably combo. of small amt. of pasture and reforestation for the rest.
By the way, the lawn will be small enough to continue with my push mower.
I've looked at what's available and thought a NH TC30 fit our needs pretty well. I want a gear transmission and don't need anything fancy, just reliable. I've operated tractors, balers, swathers, etc. but never paid attention to specs on those machines as a kid.
I'd like to keep the initial purchase (tractor and FEL) in the 15k range. Is this more tractor than I need (TC30)? I would love to hear everyone's input. Also, I came across the NH TT55. It seems it is price comparable to much smaller (albeit 4x4) CUTs. It seems like it's extra weight would make up for lack of 4x4. Then I could use a bigger blade...
I'll consider any brand I can easily get parts for, as well as newer used tractors.
Thanks for any input!