Kubota L3130 and Woods BrushBull 600

[jayiowa]

I recently bought a 52 acre piece of land in Iowa. It has rolling hills and currently has grass, brush, and small trees under two inches covering most of it (a little corn and soybeans for variety). I would like to keep about 30 acres open. I don't want a thirty acre lawn, I just don't want trees covering the entire thing.

Since I have no experience with anything other than lawn tractors, I have a few questions. The main implement I think I need is a medium duty brush hog. The Kubota dealer suggested an L3130 HST with a Woods BrushBull 600 would be a good match for my needs. Does anyone have experience with this combination or something similar? Does the L3130 have enough power to run this cutter up a hill? I was planning to get some front weights since I don't have an immediate need or the money to buy an fel at this time. Would 400 pounds of weight on the front be enough to counterbalance the 1000+ pound cutter? Has anyone had issues with brush or small trees damaging the underside of a Kubota? I have found a couple of threads mentioning these issues with the JD4310 and the Mahindra 4110.

The next question is price. The quote was as follows:

L3130 HST, R4 tires, $15,400 (list $17,536)
Woods BB600, $1,800 (list $2,068)
weight bracket and 7 weights, $535

Is this reasonable pricing or a bit high?

The final question is about maintaining an earthen dam. There is a good size dam creating a four acre pond. The vertical drop from the top of the dam to the base is about 25-30 feet. It is fairly steep. Can a tractor be used to keep trees from growing on this or is a dam too steep for this kind of tractor? The top of the dam is fairly wide and flat allowing turnaround of a tractor.

Thanks,

 

[aloha]

Welcome to TBN.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Kubota dealer suggested an L3130 HST with a Woods BrushBull 600 would be a good match for my needs. )</font>
I use a Woods Brush Bull 60. Although rated as standard duty, it is well built. You might consider this model to save some money. Anything I have been able to drive through (or over) it has handled, including trees up to 2" diameter. My B7800 has ample power to pull it up any hill which is safe to drive; an L3130 should have no problems.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I don't have an immediate need or the money to buy an fel at this time. )</font>
I can appreciate the money involved, but you need to think this through before you buy a tractor without FEL (and toothbar). Read through this thread: Which attachmant do you use the most? Favorite?

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Can a tractor be used to keep trees from growing on this or is a dam too steep for this kind of tractor? )</font>
Maybe. How steep is "fairly steep?" I mow a berm that is "fairly steep" but only 4-8 feet high, and do not enjoy it. There are mowers that may be a better choice for maintaining your dam.

 

[sherpa]

With 52 acres you are going to need a loader. Having a tractor with a loader is like having a pickup, once you own one you wonder how you lived without it. $535 for weights would go a long way toward owning a loader. I would shop around for a better price.
Sherpa

 

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( It is fairly steep. Can a tractor be used to keep trees from growing on this or is a dam too steep for this kind of tractor? )</font>

Welcome to TBN, Jay. But "fairly steep" isn't a good enough definition for anyone to give you a definitive answer. However, my guess is that there will be no problem. Just don't get crossways on the slope. I mowed some steep dams myself and always went down forward and up backwards. In some places, I could simply go back and forth forward and backwards, in others, I'd go down forward, go around and up to the top via a different route, and then mow going down again.

 

[Ledgemere Farm]

I mowed some steep dams myself and always went down forward and up backwards.
I agree with you. Only when I mow steep hills, it's forward up and backward down because my tires spin trying to back up over it. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( it's forward up and backward down because my tires spin trying to back up over it )</font>

If that works for you, that's fine, but I do it the other way because I feel safer. If the tires spin trying to back up a slope, then I figure it's too steep for me to want to drive up it forward because I just won't take a chance on the tractor rearing up and going over backwards.

 

[jayiowa]

I think the slope on the dam is between 1:3 and 1:4. Could I mow that with one of the up and down patterns? I like the sound of going down forward and up backwards. That seems like it would be using the weight of the cutter to keep all four wheels on the ground. My only concern is that it puts the narrower track on the downhill side.

 

[Bird]

Jay, I can't say for sure without seeing it, and there could be some dams too steep for me to get on, I'm sure, but I never encountered one personally that I couldn't mow going forward down it. As I said, if one was too steep to back up it, I'd just go around by another route to get back to the top and mow down it again.