Horsepower/Acre

   / Horsepower/Acre #1  

JimBinMI

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2000
Messages
1,008
Location
Coldwater, Michigan
Tractor
2015 Kubota BX25D-1, New Holland TZ18DA
Hey all,

After reading this and other boards for over two years, it is my opinion that many compact buyers have "Tim the Toolman Taylor Syndrome". Don't get me wrong, it's your money and in our economy it is your right to spend it the way you want. I just believe that a lot of guys buy way more tractor than they need.

Example: my neighbor who I don't believe reads this board owns a 27 hp diesel, he mows the same amount of lawn as I do, moves less snow that I do, rototills and disks/cultivates a garden - which I don't do but I could. I only have 18.5 hp!

Just for the heck of it, and to see if I'm anywhere close to right will you respond with: Horsepower divided by Acres Maintained (if you work commercially like MarkC, you'll have to decide if you'd have the same tractor for your acreage for personal use or not)

For me it's: 18.5 hp divided by 8 acres = 2.3 hp/acre
I know this doesn't consider a lot of things but it is also NOT A COLOR ISSUE! If you want to leave comments about how you use your tractor to justify hp you don't need my permission! Thanks in advance! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

JimBinMI

We boys and our toys!
 
   / Horsepower/Acre #2  
JimBin, it looks like my number comes out to be .39 hp/acres. I have a 32 hp tractor and 82 acres. JerryG
 
   / Horsepower/Acre #3  
I am almost embarassed (actually, not really) to report 24.78 hp/acre. I have 2 tractors and 34 implements and attachments. This is my hobby and my passion (other than my wife). I don't own a yacht or motorboat, I don't own an airplane, I don't own sports cars, I don't own horses and their attendent equipment and buildings, and I don't belong to a country club. I do use my equipment to do a lot of work for my neighbors and for a considerable amount of chore work on the grounds where my church is located. I really don't know how to account for the acres that I do work on from time to time but actually don't own. I have an incurable affliction known as "tractoritis," but at least I don't need a therapist to be happy.
 
   / Horsepower/Acre #4  
Well, leaving the other work out of it, mine comes out to 43 / 155 = .28. Obviously, I would not have a smaller tractor if I didn't use the tractor for other things. I'd have a larger one, if they made one with HST and I could trailer it, other things being equal, of course.

Mark
 
   / Horsepower/Acre #5  
hi jimbin
well i work out to a small 0.075 Hp/Ac(150/2000)but it also does out side work (over 1500Ac no-till drilling) Hp is a hard one to rate per acre if you were just mowing grass you could get away with very little Hp but if doing deep ripping and lot's of ground work you may need alot more.some people it comes down to time or lack of it and need more Hp to get the jobs done faster .over here smaller farms buy hand downs from bigger farmers who are buying from large farmers .the Av size a few years ago was around 70-90Hp per 500 acres now it's up around 100-120Hp with fewer farm workers about farmers have to work smarter and some are useing outside contractors to do some of there work.with 100Hp +tractors selling new at USD500 per Hp there are not many new tractors being sold and with the way farming is going i can see more and more contractors doing farmers work ,with farmers just haveing small tractors for odd jobs and feeding out to stock
cya
JD Kid
 
   / Horsepower/Acre #6  
Sounds like "Off Topic and Just for Fun" /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif Can't imagine the connection with "Oil and Lubricants". New Math????? /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Afraid I don't see if you had all of this data, what conclussion you could possibly reach from it. HP is NOT dependent on area worked as much as what you do on that area.

Kinda like Tim the tool man calculating the impact wrench torque or largest size box end wrench required per sq ft of workshop. Probably depends more on what you intend to do with those tools.

I had a 40 HP 2WD tractor and now have a 68 HP 4WD tractor. I live on 10 acres, my son uses it on his 5 acres, and I have 75 acres at another address. My dad farms 150 acres with a 40 HP 2WD tractor, but wishes he had the 68 HP tractor pretty often. Unfortunately it is not true that it just takes longer with an 18 HP tractor. There are some things that you just cannot do in agriculture with a small compact tractor - which is ok, if you have no need to do them. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

This difference in use is recognized by the manufacturer's and they do not normally put draft controls on compact tractors but they do put tilt steering wheels on some.
 
   / Horsepower/Acre
  • Thread Starter
#7  
Wen,

OK, I'll help you with the math! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif That way you'll know that us Blue owners are good for something!

10 + 5 + 75 = 95 acres, 68 hp divided by 95 acres = .72 hp/acre

If you don't use the tractor on the 75 acres, you didn't say, then it would be 68 hp divided by 15 acres = 4.5 hp/acre.

Oh, and by the way, it's my survey and you don't have to think...isn't that the way most surveys work? And if you are trying to figure out how I'm going to say that NH is the best tractor from this survey, FORGET IT! As I said, this is not a color related survey.

Thanks for the info Wen, and if you need anymore math help, you just let me know, I'll be glad to help if I am able! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

JimBinMI

We boys and our toys!
 
   / Horsepower/Acre
  • Thread Starter
#8  
Wen,

By the way, in your Bio you only list 10 acres, with a 68 hp tractor, you were one of the guys I was thinking about on hp/acre overkill. I believe you could do about anything you wanted on ten acres in a couple of months (maybe more since it's Orange /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif) then the tractor just sits around collecting dust and you're not having anymore fun! So you see, it's with deep concern that I do this survey, mainly for those who have NOT bought yet! A diesel will do more than most people think and I'm trying to inform the public! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Thanks for your info, JimBinMI

We boys and our toys!
 
   / Horsepower/Acre #9  
I have 3.4 acres and I have a B 2400, now it is 24 hp, but PTO is less but this is like telling your fish size when you catch a fish. 1 inch becomes 6 inches. anyway mine is 7.0 something per acre. I also do tilling and seedbed prep for pay but the real question is did I start to do custom work because I had the tractor or did I buy the tractor because I got a very good deal on it. Sometimes I wish I had a larger tractor and others I wish I had a smaller one when I try to mow between the trees. Remember size is in the eyes of the beholder.

Dan
 
 
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