Buying Advice New small land owner.. what do I need?

   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #1  
M

makey98

New member
Joined
May 30, 2017
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Location
Greenwood, IN
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New here as I finally was able to buy a nice house with 4.5 acres! Looking at how to mow and plow snow and general tasks and wanted some advice.

Here are the stats. Driveway is asphalt and 150 feet long. Property is mostly mowable acres with a 30 yard x 30 area of brush the previous owner left long. There are about 20-mid-size small trees (apple, pear, smaller evergreen) and maybe a couple larger hardwoods on the property. There is the end of a creek that drains down the northwest corner down the side, so it slopes a tiny bit and probably gets wet every once in a while. Dry now and maybe 1 foot across. Overall pretty flat. .

Options as I see them.
1. Nicer lawn tractor with 46 deck or larger with snowplow blade (probably $3500
2. Zero turn 46-50 deck $3000 so need to add plow to my truck for driveway. Plow = $1000-1500 new.
3. New Compact utility tractor (25hp, 60 + belly mower, loader, and plow ($14,000 plus) not feasible in 2017 or 2018... maybe 2019
4. Old small tractor from 70痴 or 80痴 or some decade with a pull behind finish mower attachment. ($3000-$8000?)

I have a hard time paying 3k for a lawn mower of any type so my heart is with a fun tractor and I am sure I can find many uses for it. Loading or pulling mulch or hayrides and such, but I also don't want to be cursing some old thing and dumping a bunch of money in it just to have a little fun. I live in the Midwest so the soil is hard clay and I also wonder if these older tractors with ag tires will eat up the yard as well.

Any advice welcome on what to pick and solid old tractor brands/models to look for as well. Thanks. I have enjoyed reading all the posts on here so far!
 
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #2  
Ask your new neighbors what they use and what they wish they had. They know what works for your area - just don't buy what they have for sale!
 
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #3  
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #4  
Teachu2 has the right idea. What works for one wouldn't work for another. Take a drive / walk the neighborhood and ask around.
 
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #5  
I like options 2-3-4.

2. Zero turn 46-50 deck $3000 so need to add plow to my truck for driveway. Plow = $1000-1500 new.
Zero Turn will give you a fast, quality cut. It will be warm and dry inside your truck plowing in miserable weather. You will have good lights.

3. New Compact utility tractor (25hp, 60 + belly mower, loader, and plow ($14,000 plus) not feasible in 2017 or 2018... maybe 2019
MMM or Three Point Hitch mounted Rotary Cutter or Finish Mower.
Better a tractor with 12" ground clearance than 9" ground clearance. Better 2,600 pounds bare tractor weight than 1,700 pounds bare tractor weight.

HERE IS A CANDIDATE SUBCOMPACT TRACTOR @ $12,900: 216 JOHN DEERE 123E MFWD COMPACT TRACTOR WITH LOADER 1 HOUR HYDRO TRANSMISSION | eBay

4. Old small tractor from 70´s or 80´s with a pull behind finish mower attachment. ($3000-$8000?)
Nothing wrong with a well maintained used tractor. Shop for a 20-horsepower to 25 horsepower diesel tractor with FEL, not a gas Lawn & Garden tractor.
You will need FEL to move light snow, and rear blade for heavier snow. You will need a Rotary Cutter or Finish Mower. Most used tractors will probably be offered with one, the other, or both.

A residential tractor without a Front End Loader (FEL) is barely half a residential tractor.

USED TRACTORS FOR SALE VIA EBAY NEAR ZIP CODE 46142: Tractors | eBay
 
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   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #6  
Option #1; a small rider mower with snowblower attachment. Pushing snow with these type of small units doesn't go well I if it gets deep, drifted or piled up. Set up the budget for replacement with a compact tractor when possible.

As an aside a used Kubota B7100 HST with a mower and loader would be perfect for what you describe. I had one in an almost similar usage situation. For me it worked very well. All the manufactures have similar sized new units. Small & light with lots of horsepower for rotary attachments.

Stay away from the old small farm tractor. They may be capable but are not user friendly in your type of situation.

The dedicated rider mower with an independent walk behind snowblower may be the most economical way to go.
 
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #7  
A B7100 can run a 4' rotary rough cut mower (brush hog) if you're using it on grass and weeds. For brush I'd recommend a 42" rotary, which is what I had on my B7100HST. Brush hogs can handle tall grass and weeds and small 1-1.5" brush. Finish mowers are for lawns or similar grass.

If the mowing is all on smooth ground and will all be finish mowing you can use a riding mower. They're much less sturdy than a tractor and have small tires that will fall into every hole and you'll feel every bump. If it fits the terrain it's a lot cheaper than a tractor but it won't have a FEL.
 
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #8  
Spend the money and get a nice zero-turn or riding mower to start out. From what you have stated it sounds like you already have a well established yard that only needs maintenance. Once you have lived there a couple of years you will know what you need and can decide if you want/need a tractor. Me personally, I will always own a tractor of some kind. It gets a lot of back breaking work done and I just plain love tractors. However, I would not want to mow my yard with it and I spend a lot of time mowing the yard. The zero-turn makes it quick and easy. If you have a lot of grass then you will be cutting grass at least once a week all spring, summer and beginning of fall.

My cousin owns 5 of the prettiest acres you have ever seen. Not a stick in the yard. All they have in powered equipment is a Wheelhorse lawnmower, weed-eater and chainsaw. It is like walking through a park only better. But he is in the yard 24/7. So having a tractor is not a necessity.

It ultimately comes down to money and how much of it you can afford to spend. I know $ 5,000.00 and up seems like a lot for a lawnmower but it will be like having an extra cable/phone payment a month and once it is paid off it will still be a nice machine. One area in my life where I never buy cheap is with equipment. Quality is always better than cheaper.

Something else to consider is a weed-eater and chainsaw if you don't already have those items. Congrats on the property. There is nothing better than owning land and working it.
 
   / New small land owner.. what do I need? #10  
Am I misreading something, or are you saying you can get a new snowplow for a truck for under $1500?
 
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