JD 665 tiller info needed

[Big Bear]

Hi to all,
I am brand new and this is my first post.

I have never owned a tractor but have had several dozers, mostly JD. I have 103 acres and want to develop the homestead and put in several food plots for deer, turkeys, etc. The driveway is 1.5 miles and a work in progress.

I have been lurking here while I waited to be authorized to post and I have learned so much from the folks at this site. It is definitely helping narrow down what exactly I need / want in a CUT and allowing me to gain confidence that I am not making a big mistake with my choice.

I am almost decided that the 3720 will be the ticket. There have been several add ons that I would have not considered had it not been for this site. JD should be extremely happy this place exists.

At some point, I will list the package for review and would appreciate your comments. But for now, I am still researching attachments.

A question I have not found an answer to is: Is the JD 665 tiller gear driven and does it have a slip clutch?

I want to till up roughly 4 plots totaling about 4 to 5 acres. I have a dozer to remove the stumps / brush and break the sod.

Can someone educate me on what a quality tiller should have?

Your help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[joecdeere]

The 665 has a chain final drive and does come with a slip clutch.
It is a good heavy rental yard tested tiller. 3-4 acres is a lot of ground to till, maybe a good set of disc harrows would be better? I'd hate to see how many sets of tines you would go through doing that job.

 

[AKfish]

A 3720 will handle a 72" tiller. Working 4-5 acres I'd want every inch...

Having said that however, maybe with food plots for deer and upland birds you'd want to go with an overseeder type planter and skip the tiller entirely.

Many local extension offices offer rental or use of those kind of planters for the kinds of use you have in mind.

AKfish

 

[Mike120]

I probably use my tiller more than anything else, but for what you are wanting to do....you're better off using a no-till overseeder if you can rent one. If you really want to turn the ground, go with a disc. After you disc you could use a tiller if you want, but it will take you forever to do the same thing with the tiller alone.

 

[Big Bear]

Thanks Joecdeere, I was hoping the JD665 was gear driven. It seems very expensive.

I may have not been clear on the acreage under till. It is 4 or so acres spread over 4 separate spots and will only be tilled on a rotation basis every 3 to 4 years at roughly an acre to two a year depending on the plot. The soil has few rocks (at least the 1.5 acres I had plowed and disced last year) and is loam.

The main field is around 5 acres but I am only tilling 1.5 of it. No problem gettig around here but the others are in tight spots on benches with little turn around room.

I was thinking commercial grade tiller with gear drive and slip clutch.

Does this make sense?