Which to buy

[jimmyj]

Hi all

I am contemplating a new tractor with FEL and wonder what advice you would have. I have a 10 ac hobby farm and use the tractor for snow removal, manure moving and moving hay. Right now I have an older Allis compact and the loader can only lift about 400lbs.

I was hoping for 4wd HST and a loader, and in the Kubota brand I would have to look at the larger L series units to move 700lb round hay bales. I don't mind moving them on the 3ph, but a decent loader would be a must for me with all of the odd chores around.

Can I get away with a smaller CK20 or 25 if I'm not carrying the bales on the FEL?

[rimshot]

Originally Posted by jimmyj

Hi all

I am contemplating a new tractor with FEL and wonder what advice you would have. I have a 10 ac hobby farm and use the tractor for snow removal, manure moving and moving hay. Right now I have an older Allis compact and the loader can only lift about 400lbs.

I was hoping for 4wd HST and a loader, and in the Kubota brand I would have to look at the larger L series units to move 700lb round hay bales. I don't mind moving them on the 3ph, but a decent loader would be a must for me with all of the odd chores around.

Can I get away with a smaller CK20 or 25 if I'm not carrying the bales on the FEL?

====================

I'm considering that CK20 as well. They are claiming the CK20 can bench press 1100 lbs with that FEL.

rim

[Dmace]

Depending on the physical size of those bales, the CK20 could probably lift them but keep in mind the 1074lb lift capacity is at the pins and if the bales stick out 3-5ft away from the pins, then your lift capacity is greatly lowered. You will also need a good amount of ballast, that is counter acting weight on the rear. Kioti recommends 600 lbs on the rear of a CK20. I just leave the backhoe on but when I just have the boxblade on, I notice the rears (even though they are loaded) get very light when I lift some big rocks.

For your application, you might want the larger frame of a CK25 or CK30. For the price difference you are probably better off with the CK30 also, a little extra power never hurt.

CK20 loader specs

CK30 loader specs

[Gittyup]

The 3 ph on the CK25/30/35 will handle your bales just fine. So will the CK20. But, I'd get the bigger and much heavier CK25. CK25 gear is only a little more than a CK20 HST.

[canzipper]

Hey JimmyJ

If Winston Churchill were buying a tractor for his estate at Chartwell.........he wouldn't be too conservative and would upgrade to the CK30 and probably be liberal with his bankroll and opt for HST as it's a lot easier on us well-fed, mature guys!

You can't go wrong with a little extra HP!

[PA hayseed]

Originally Posted by jimmyj

Hi all

I have a 10 ac hobby farm and use the tractor for snow removal, manure moving and moving hay.

I don't mind moving them on the 3ph, but a decent loader would be a must for me with all of the odd chores around.

Can I get away with a smaller CK20 or 25 if I'm not carrying the bales on the FEL?

Just my .02

If your stacking those bales, better go with something bigger, with a higher reach. If your going to move dirt, manure, gravel, etc, and do it regularly, I would go bigger. If your cutting grass on the 10 ac, you will likely want a 7' mower/brush hog depending on your situation.

I would skip to a 35 or higher. From my perspective the 20 and 25 are ok, but in the long run you will want something bigger. Bigger tractors have more umph, move faster, weigh more, and are geared towards harder work loads. I had a 26 hp tractor once, I now have a DK45. The DK40 is just about equal to the 45 in many aspects. I don't want to move a round one that got wet reaching the limits of my tractors potential, and pushing it to the limit every time.

For the regulars here, I am not knocking the 20's and the 25's - they are awesome.

[IslandTractor]

I've owned a CK20 and now have a DK40se. If I were lifting 700lb plus bales of hay routinely I'd go with the bigger tractor. The CK20 is quite remarkable in what it can do and I don't think you'd have trouble moving bales of hay around but it would still make sense to have excess capacity and ballast if you were planning on lifting high.

[ChuckinNH]

I agree with Island tractor on this one. Frame size, wheelbase, width, and tractor weight is important with that much weight in the air.

[williekioti]

For what it's worth, I've moved around Rounds on my CK30 w/the Woods 1012 FEL, loaded rears and rear blade on. It lifted them fine, but I was a tad light in the rear. I was just helping out my neighbor because his machine was out on a job site for a few weeks. If I was doing it regular like I'd put more ballast out back and it would have been golden. I don't have any idea what the rounds weighed, sorry. I have to concur with the others, I wouldn't go any smaller the CK25/30 sized machine to do this on a regular basis.

Good luck with your tractor shopping.

[canoetrpr]

Hi Jimmy:

Didn't see this post until now. The CK30 specs out pretty close to my L3400 which as you know I have been moving rounds with my 3pt with no problem at all. I can move 5x6 rounds that have to be 1500lb.

I'm sure the CK30 will handle it fine - keep the loader on!

That said, bigger never hurt :-). The DK35 is quite a lot more tractor than the CK30 and really not much more money.

I think that the best buy in the lineup is the DK40 with the 401 loader. That loader on the DK40/45 is a MONSTER!.

I drove a DK40 and while I liked it a lot, it was HUGE compared to my L3400. That is something to bear in mind if you are working in smaller space. I am quite sure that I could manouver fine with the DK40 once I got used to it - just something to bear in mind.

Now... what they really need to get out there is a DK40/45 se with a factory cab! That would be sweet ... and I hear that they are coming.

In your case I would not hesitate to go with a CK30 or L3400 sized machine unless you are planning to stack large rounds regularly... in which case I would be looking at a DK40 sized machine.

Good luck.