5' Rotary Cutter OK With B2650?

[Milo]

My tractor requirements will likely be changing to include a lot more mowing, brush hogging a couple small fields once a year along with mowing trails through the woods, and moving snow and brush.
The main use will be all the mowing so light weight is better and I prefer a 72" mmm.

Many suggest 5hp per foot with a rotary cutter which has me concerned as I'd want a 60" cutter (ideal size for trail use) and the B2650 only has 20hp at the pto. Woods offers a light duty 60" RC they claim works with 20hp. I just don't want to make a mistake. BTW travel speed isn't a concern on the trails or fields so creeping along in low range is fine. Any other suggestions? At this point I'm not interested in anything with a turbo and my preference is Kubota.

 

[4570Man]

The HP will be fine. The bigger problem might be keeping the front wheels on the ground.

 

[jeff9366]

Presumably you have pretty good tractor experience with the B7500. You should realize how important tractor stability is, especially in hilly West Virginia.

Don't go up one increment. It takes a 50% increase in tractor weight and horsepower before you really notice it.

Look at the intermediate frame Kubota 'L' models or better go for a heavy chassis 'Grand L' either new or used. The L3560 or its predecessor L3540 is just a few inches wider/longer than a 'B'.

Used L3410 tractor-loader on eBay near Zip Code 26519: Kubota L3410 Tractor 4WD 35HP Diesel LA482 Loader 175hrs Canopy Roof Nice 4x4 | eBay

I went from a Deere 750 (BX size) to a new B3300SU, then after 400 engine hours on the B, to my L3560. The intermediate time on the B3300SU tractor-loader was not too expensive in terms of depreciation ($10 per hour.), but replacing the suite of implements for larger/heavier ones was expensive and time consuming.

Mowing in LOW will get old really fast. If you do not mind LOW on the B7800, stay with it.

I mow pasture in HIGH with the L3560, using a 60" Land Pride Rotary Cutter.

BUY ENOUGH TRACTOR. BE SMARTER THAN JEFF9366.

If you have a lot of turf to mow and your turf is open, get a Three Point Hitch mounted Finish Mower. If you have a lot of turf to mow and obstructions, get a Zero Turn.

VIDEO: finish mower tractor - YouTube

KUBOTA: http://www.kubota.com/product/LSeries.aspx

USED KUBOTAS ON EBAY NEAR ZIP CODE 26519: Kubota Industrial Tractors | eBay

 

[Milo]

Thanks everyone. So HP is not a problem with rotary cutter especially when going slow in anything thick. I wasn't planning on going slow when mowing LOL. Just exercise caution with the 500# cutter on the back.
My issue with an L is weight as an everyday mower and there's no center pto so no mmm.

A nice zero turn mower is an option but I think that that still leaves me needing a tractor for the 5' RC and FEL with a 60" light material bucket which would be more money and two machines to maintain.
I first considered keeping the B7500 with its 54" deck and 48" bucket and picking up a used professional zero turn along with maybe an old 2wd farm tractor for brush hogging for the same money maybe even less but that's adding two more used machines to store and maintain. That's still an option but the idea of one machine is attractive.

 

[jeff9366]

My issue with an L is weight as an everyday mower and there's no center pto so no mmm.

I have air only in the R4/industrial tires on my L3560, which weighs about 5,400 pounds. I run over lawns in the residential development in which I live on a daily basis with no damage to the St. Augustine grass.

True, no MMM on the 'L" size frames and larger.

 

[number two]

You would be fine with a 5 foot standard/light duty on a B2650.
I run a 5 foot on my B3030 with no power issues at all on tall grass and small saplings.
I have the loader on but drop the bucket and have no issues with a light front end,although mine is the cab model.
I think my PTO HP is 22 or 23.
Go for it!
Good Luck!

 

[prichard]

5 foot works great on my 2601. Plenty of power and no light front end.

 

[LD1]

AS others said, its about the weight and not the power. Sure, there will be times you wish you had more power.....but just go slower is all thats needed.

5' cutters range anywhere from 500lbs to 1200+lbs. Stay toward the bottom end.....and use caution. Or have some weight up front. A front loader works well for that.

 

[JWR]

I think you will be just fine with the B2650. As others have said the more tractor the better BUT running a MMM seems important to you and there might not be a whole lot in the Kubota line (any?) bigger that still have the MMM. Seems to me Deere may make a little bigger machine with a mid PTO (or at least they have an option for a mid PTO on bigger machines.) An important issue is dealers. Knowing Preston Co. (and having property & equip in Harrison and Tucker Counties) I know your Kubota dealer situation. They have anything you could possibly need but I think most of the support other than sales is in Salem rather than Bruceton. I had a really nice JD4700 from L&T in Buckhannon from 2000 thru 2011. L&T is gone and I have trouble dealing with the big one in Fairmont. Long story shorter, I think you probably have better support with Kubota where you are. Now back to some experience that may be helpful to you: I use 2 B2150's -- one with a 5ft hog and one with a 4ft hog. The HP, wt & size is about the same as the B2650. I say with all kinds of confidence you will have no problems running a 5ft hog on it. I also run a 5ft MMM at times on the B2150's. That older 60" MMM by Kubota on the B2150 is an indestructible workhorse that cuts smoother than any deck I've used and somewhat better than the 60" deck on my BX2200 here in MD. You are not going to cut big brush with arm-thick stuff using a bush hog on that 2650. Just not enough machine. If you wanted to cut heavier stuff go to a smaller hog. I feel the 72" MMM is a little big & I'd go with the 60" myself. I assume you'll want and have lots of use for the FEL. Try to get a skid-steer bucket interface on the loader if you can because there is so much stuff out there to fit that attachment interface.

 

[Milo]

JWR good points and your assessment of the dealer situation jives with mine. The main reason I lean to Kubota is my experience with my B7500 which I bought new in 2003 it's never been back to the dealer and simply 100% trouble free. So that along with my desire (in the interest of simplicity) to do everything with one machine has me thinking along the line of a B2650, with 72" deck for the almost stupid amount of mowing, FEL, and 5' RC for the small fields and all the trails. The drawback, as others have posted in various threads like this, is having to remove and re-attach the cumbersome MMM half a dozed times a year for using the FEL and RC, I'm not getting any younger LOL. Plus it's makes for a pretty heavy mower especially when the ground's soft.

As mentioned I really like the simplicity of one machine but after studying the pros and cons I'm now considering two machines. I built a 2650 on Kubota's site which came to $25,200 list with loader and 72" deck. A 2601 with loader and no mmm is $5K less which could apply toward a zero turn, I'm guessing a pretty good 60" zero turn will cost around $9,000? If so $4,000 more gets me a better and faster way to mow plus not having to wrestle with the mmm. And since I don't need the 2650's 72" deck I think a 2601 will work just as well for my relatively light FEL and RC work.

I appreciate all your suggestions, my mind's not made up yet so please add any advice you feel appropriate.