Kubota M7040 vs. JD 5403 vs. NH TN75A

[RFB]

Here's a coupla pics of some hills my 5030 plows, with 43 pto hp.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/4881/sort/1/size/medium/cat/500/page/1

http://www.tractorbynet.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/4882/sort/1/size/medium/cat/500/page/1

Every inch of several miles, sometimes two or three times a day, with some piles almost 20 feet tall, at 3500' elevation.

Get the Kubota dealer to let you take a 5740HSTC home and try your attachments on your hill, and let your wife drive it around as well.

I think that you will be pleasantly surprised.

 

[texasjohn]

I've got a L5030, as has RFB. He has carefully explained every point I would have made, had I gotten here first. I agree with him. I have 200+ acres and it will plow, plant, haul 1500 lb hay bales, lift the 2800 lb hunks of concrete culverts I use as fence posts. In short, I cannot believe that you need anything larger than a 5740HSTC for your 5 acres.

The HST has never even gotten hot on me much less "overheated." I can think of nothing easier for a female to operate than an HST ..... one only presses the clutch when stopped and intending to shift from between Low, Medium, or High gear. Then, the forward/reverse is a continuously variable gearing by rocking your foot back and forth.

I find that the HST is an extreme safety feature.... one can creep forward/back at an inch a minute if you wish to do so... with full power to the wheels at the RPMs selected.

The cab, also, is a serious safety feature... there are handholds on the door that give one a feeling of safety during entry/exit and ease of sitting in the seat when things are a little bouncy (not a replacement for seat belt). The FEL can be managed extremely slowly by resting the elbow on the arm rest and just barely moving the joystick... this just barely moves the FEL... AND control of the FEL is extremely important... the method of elbow-rest manipulation does not rely on strength of shoulder muscles, but rather fine motions of the wrist and arm... something a female can easily do.

Let me put it this way...I spent less than 5 minutes demonstrating to my 26 year old 130lb daughter-in-law how to operate the tractor and she spent the next 2 hours very successfully picking up dumped sand, navigating thru a narrow fence opening, around a tree and placing the sand appropriately in their back yard. Forward gear, backward, throttle control, FEL... she mastered it all and made no mistakes, didn't run over anything, always lowered/raised the FEL at appropriate speed.

Other tractors might well work for you. I KNOW the 5740HSTC will meet your needs for safety, ease of use, function, reliability (over 500 hrs on mine, no failures).

Z-Michigan expresses my opinion about the size tractor you need as regards haying. .

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

If you really do have 5 acres, nothing I said about needing an M7040 applies. If thats all the ground your working an L5740 would be just fine.

 

[tydp]

Mr. Messick,

With all due respect, at what point does a compact cease being one. I think that the 5740 at 57hp (50pto) could definitely occupy a transitional category that is really larger and more capable than what one thinks of as a compact.

The 5740 should have more than enough capability for small scale (the original post indicated 5 acres of potential hay operations) haying and grounds keeping tasks.
big bubba,

"Anyone involved with hooking up 3 pts, and general equip applications should be able to handle depressing a clutch and shifting."

Without disparaging your opinion, I disagree. While my crystal ball is no better than anyone else's, I think that the entire premise of manual clutching/shifting transmissions is anachronistic, and in not too many years will be like crank up windows in cars. (Do they still make those?) The fact is that all manufacturers advertise the "new and improved" shifting capabilities of their respective transmissions. They would not do that if the overall customer base really wanted to jam gears. IVT/CVT transmissions are becoming more ubiquitous, and so are all of the various flavors of "powershifting" transmissions, all for the aforementioned reasons. Reduction of cockpit workload is not just a convenience, it enhances safety.

Finally, if the 3 pt "hooking up" evolution is regarding the alignment tasks, slipping a clutch to obtain precise positioning is significantly more difficult for those at the beginning portion of the learning curve. (There are some people who when faced with that task, will simply opt out.) The precision for incremental movement with HST/CVT/IVT is significantly easier to obtain with less instruction time and effort.

Sounds to me like like all hat and no cattle.

 

[s012adh]

Basically I have a small-scale farm and the 5 acres of hay I make is mainly used to feed our horses. Aside from bush-hogging, about the only other thing whatever tractor I may get needs to do is pull out an occasional fence post or use the 36" auger I have to drill an occasional hole or 2.

Does anyone have any experience with both the JD 4720 and Kubota 5740? The stats between the 2 look about the same except for the hydraulic flow to the implements being higher on the JD. Since they're both hydrostatic, I'm assuming that one isn't any easier to use than the other? Although does anyone know how you switch between the Low/Medium/High gear on the JD 4720 since the documentation that I saw online doesn't show it having any type of clutch like the 5740 does.

 

[bake321]

The MF 3635 is a beautiful tractor, but the two local quotes that I got were 46 and 50 k, way to much for me. We rented a L4310 with a 5 foot bush hog back on our property in Kentucky and mowed 50+ acres with it. Tough machine. Based on the size of your property I would look at the L series.

Bake

 

[Z-Michigan]

Does anyone have any experience with both the JD 4720 and Kubota 5740? The stats between the 2 look about the same except for the hydraulic flow to the implements being higher on the JD. Since they're both hydrostatic, I'm assuming that one isn't any easier to use than the other? Although does anyone know how you switch between the Low/Medium/High gear on the JD 4720 since the documentation that I saw online doesn't show it having any type of clutch like the 5740 does.

The difference in hydraulic flow isn't likely to be very important for your uses, I don't think. As for clutch, Kubota puts a clutch on HST tractors - hardly anyone else does. On the JD and most other brands with HST, you simply come to a full stop and move the range lever to what you want. On the Kubota's I've test driven you can do this just the same without pushing the clutch in, but I suppose if you have a clutch you might as well push it.

I think those two are good comparable tractors, I would drive both and then start looking at how well you like them for "feel", prices, and how the dealer treats you.

 

[CumminsLuke]

You know, the more I think about this the more I come to agree. The L5740 would be all you'd need and then some, and a heck of a lot easier for your wife to operate. My M7040 is not the largest tractor in the world as far as physical size and getting around, but it is a far cry bigger than an L5740.

 

[s012adh]

I just got done talking to the Kubota dealer and he currently has a 5740 on the lot that I can test drive so this weekend I will get down there to take a look at it. I haven't had a chance to check out prices on this tractor to know if the price quoted is any good but he quoted me $25,800 for the tractor on their lot that has dual mid SCV's and joystick control, dual rear hydraulic valves, and front exhaust. And for an additional $4,500, I can get the LA854 front loader with the 72" heavy duty bucket and skid steer compatibility. He told me that Kubota is currently offering 0% for 24 months on this model. Does anyone know if Kubuta is likely to offer 0% for 36 months on this model sometime in the near future? I know I saw the JD 4720 having the 0% for 36 months offer so I'm a little surprised that Kubota isn't following suit.

 

[tydp]

I have a Kubota M5400 which is a previous version of the M6040. It has been flawless. We had an M6800 that was a pevious version of the new M7040. It was also flawless. Had it 5 years I think and traded it in for a Kubota M9540. I would not buy that particular Deere (4720). It is one of their "value" models made in Pune, India. That would be a deal breaker for me.
Not to be one-sided, the M9540 has been flawless until last week. It jumps out of high range unless you hold it there. I believe it has 300 plus hours, and will be repaired under warranty.