Comparison MX5100 vs M5140 for grapple work and land clearing

[3boys865]

Looking for any advice and comparison between the MX5100HST and the M5140 hydro-shuttle in terms of performance and fit for doing grapple work clearing brush and trees. Will be using tractor to clear, move and stack brush and also to move and pick up downed trees to waist height for easy cutting.

Obviously, the M series is a heavier and beefier tractor and the FEL is bigger and stronger. Trying to determine how beneficial the extra capabilities of the M series would actually be for doing this type of land clearing work. I have studied the differences in specifications and evaluated the pros and cons of both on paper, but looking for some input and advice from people that have hands on experience with these tractors doing similar work. Right now, I am doing everything by hand, so either will be a big improvement. I don't mind paying more for the additional capabilities of the M5140 if it will allow me to do more work or to do the same work safer and easier. I have heard the MX5100 is very capable as well, and if the actual lift capabilities are close enough to the M5140, the MX5100 has the advantage in manueverabilty and price.

What would I be able to do with the M5140 that I couldn't do with the MX5100?

I am planning to get a true 3rd function valve and a open bottom root grapple. Any advice on other options or attachments I should consider to optimize the tractor for land clearing?

[PoorPlowboy]

The HST is going to move more brush per hour with the grapple than the shuttle. Other capabilities will be very competitive.

[MtnViewRanch]

Get as many rear remotes as you can afford. Best to get then now vs. later, get at least 1 of them with the float function. Seems like a landscape rake would be good for raking after you use the grapple. Maybe a box blade or land plane to level things out after everything is cleaned up.

Good luck

[JoeBuyer]

No substitute for weight. M5140 all the way if you are talking pure clearing ability. Having said that a buck is a buck. You just will get more done with the M5140 due to weight. But you have to balance the cost out. I clear brush with a 10,000 lb machine and would not give up 1 lb. If you don't have a lot of brush to clear get the machine that is the better value.

[3boys865]

The HST is going to move more brush per hour with the grapple than the shuttle. Other capabilities will be very competitive.

Would the M5140 offer significant more capabilities in terms of lift capacity and picking up downed trees / stumps? Comparing the FEL specs, it doesn't appear to be a significant difference in the rated lift capacities. How much of an advantage is the additional weight of the M5140 compared to the MX5100 in terms of the amount of weight you can lift with the FEL? With loaded tires on both tractors, I would think the additional weight in the rear of the M5140 would make it more stable doing heavier lifts.

[PapaPerk]

Would the M5140 offer significant more capabilities in terms of lift capacity and picking up downed trees / stumps? Comparing the FEL specs, it doesn't appear to be a significant difference in the rated lift capacities. How much of an advantage is the additional weight of the M5140 compared to the MX5100 in terms of the amount of weight you can lift with the FEL? With loaded tires on both tractors, I would think the additional weight in the rear of the M5140 would make it more stable doing heavier lifts.

Read the loader specs. That will answer your question.

[3boys865]

Read the loader specs. That will answer your question.

I did compare the specs on paper as noted in my post. It appears that the specs are not significantly different in terms of lifting capacity. The LA844 on the MX indicates 2443 at pivot pin and the LA1153 on the M5140 indicates 2536 at bucket center in power position. Not sure how different the measurement at pivot pin is compared to the bucket center.

I was looking for some comparison feedback from anyone who has actually used these tractors for similar work. I would think that the M5140 would out perform the MX5100, but not sure if significantly enough to warrant the difference in price.

[Piston]

I can't comment on how much better the M5140 would be, but I would say it certainly would be "better" for land clearing. The ONLY advantage to the MX5100 is the HST. For a long time, I had a really hard time even thinking about the possibility of giving up my beloved HST.....Now, I'm not so sure it would "kill" me that much.
I think the additional capability of a larger/heavier tractor outweigh the pros of the HST. ESPECIALLY if you've never owned an HST tractor before!

I recently started running my tractor (same size and capability as the MX5100) with the mindset of always thinking to myself, "can I do whatever it is I'm doing, without this HST?" The answer is certainly yes. One thing I didn't like about land clearing with my HST is that you have to have the RPM's up closer to 1800 or so for the transmission. When you do this, your hydraulics become much "faster" than you want them. It becomes more difficult to feather the valves on the FEL. I've done a LOT of land clearing with only my tractor and the implements I have for it, and I can say that if I was in your shoes right now, I would most certainly go with the larger tractor. (actually, I would go with the M7040 if you want to stick with Kubota)

Honestly though, even more important than your tractor decision, is the fact that you already mention getting a grapple. You will do more work with the grapple than you could ever imagine. The ideal combination for land clearing in my opinion, is the FEL grapple with 3rd function valve, and a HEAVY DUTY box blade with top n tilt. (hydraulic scarifiers are nice, but you wont' miss them if you've never used them before)

Remember that a tractor is just the engine that moves all the tools that actually do the work. A tractor with no implements is useless. I didn't have enough money to go out and buy a brand new tractor, and still have left over money to buy implements. So what I did, was buy a used tractor, and purchased my implements used over time. I know have one heck of an arsenal and still have less than 30k dollars wrapped up into my setup. I plan to upgrade my tractor when the time is right, but my smaller, less powerful tractor with all my implements, is more useful than any brand new larger tractor with nothing but a bucket.

The extra weight will help a lot. I had to have the tires filled with 1100lbs of ballast, and keep a 1000lb box blade on the back, and I wouldn't want any less weight! The problem though, is now that I have all this weight on my tractor, it will strain in anything more than medium range. I continually hear the HST whining like I'm overworking it (I'm not, but it sounds that way) when I have a heavy load in medium. I personally feel that I would get more done with a larger hydro shuttle tractor, than my HST. Although, I do LOVE HST don't get me wrong, but it isn't as important as I always thought it was.

Here is my land clearing setup... I wouldn't hesitate to go with hydro shuttle now, whereas I was "scared" to before. (Dad's running the tractor)







In this last pic, you can see how thick the trees are in the background, behind the clearing. This is how thick the entire clearing was. I cleared this spot in 3 days of work using this setup. There were a few trees I couldn't push over that required sawing, but a larger tractor would have gotten them

[Piston]

I did compare the specs on paper as noted in my post. It appears that the specs are not significantly different in terms of lifting capacity. The LA844 on the MX indicates 2443 at pivot pin and the LA1153 on the M5140 indicates 2536 at bucket center in power position. Not sure how different the measurement at pivot pin is compared to the bucket center.
.

You mention that the LA1153 has a 2536lb capacity at bucket center. For comparison, my LA852 loader has a lift capacity of 1875lbs at bucket center. That is a HUGE difference in capability.
(note: the LA852/853/854 loaders are going to be just about identical in lift capacity to the LA844)

You can find the specs on the LA854 easily and use those numbers to compare. It will be almost the same as the 844.

[JoeBuyer]

Piston,
Impressive pictures. Nice work.