Help with choosing tractor, implements NEWBIE?

[ChuckinNH]

I found my BX with loaded rear tires to feel quite stable when used without a loader, or the backhoe, and I expect that a mmm would enhance that feeling. They are quite narrow though, and putting the loader on makes them feel more tippy with terrain changes. My small B feels more stable on my logging roads, and steep areas with a loader on. Taking the loader off seems to make less difference than it did with the BX. It is taller, and so felt different for the first few minutes, but that became natural quickly.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I agree with the others. That HP is too small for your land and 4' mower will take you all day. I also feel the dealer is looking for you to trade in a year. I have a 28 HP 4x4 Jinma and if you are handy you should look at them. I got my tractor brand new for $10,500. That was tractor, FEL, and a 6' Finish Mower. You can get into a 35 HP Jinma for your budget with a FEL, Finish Mower, and a Bush Hog.

I am not a fan of MM mowers. I like to use my tractor for many other things and they would get me hug up. A example of this is towing logs out of my hilly woods.

Also where are you located? We may be able to point you to some good deals.

Chris

 

[shane]

Yep, like the others have said, what you are considering is too small. Your dealer, like car dealers, wants to sell you less product so he can keep his margine up being that you have a budget. "Say you can't afford the 37 hp JD, no problem, this little 22 hp will handle your 15 acres and it's only $14,999".

 

[Red Raider]

I agree with the majority of posts that (1) the horsepower recommended by your dealer seems too small and (2) you'll never regret getting a bigger tractor (assuming you can garage it as you would a smaller).

Additional observations: If you live away from the property, you inevitably won't be cutting grass as regular as you would like-- I'm in that situation now--I'm deferring purchase of a finish mower and instead using a 6' rotary cutter.

Second, the size of the tractor in the compact range is even more important because of it's impact upon what I believe will end up being your most useful and relied upon attachment-- your front-end loader. Once you use a FEL- equipped tractor awhile, you will never see how you got by without a FEL. Someone mentioned using a JD755 on 15 acres. I had a 755 (33 PTOhp) on my then 15 acre home place and thought it absolutely great. However, when I began checking loader capacities for it (after using one on my big tractor), I was disappointed with the lift capacity versus the cost. Ended up selling the 755 and getting a 4710 w/ the largest loader available. Once you get into fooling w/ farm stuff and accumulate implements, you will be glad you got the larger tractor with maximum FEL capacity IMO. Good luck.

 

[krackerjack9]

You might want to see what everyone else has in your area, and if it pretty limited then there might be a oppurtunity for you to make some extra $$$. I have the Kubota L4400 and a Rhino 172 mower and loader. Anyway I do a bit of tractor work to make some extra $$. And all I can say is a good 6ft mower will pay for its self over and over. Maybe its not what you looking for but today alone I made 390.00. I used 7.3 gallons in the tractor and 4 gallons of gas in my blazer hauling it around. And its only Monday!! Most of the time I only get one or 2 jobs a week but it makes my tractor payment and keeps me with some extra cash for fuel. So if your going to make a investment on a tractor you might look at what else it can do for you besides keep up your place. I can help make ends meet for some.

 

[roxynoodle]

I'm not an expert on this one, but if you are going to be on steep hills I think it is PowerTrac that everyone recommends in that situation. Talk to your neighbors who have similar property and see what they are using.

Do you have other uses for the tractor now other than mowing? If the BX2350 suits your other uses well, you could always consider a larger, used tractor to do the mowing and can probably pick one up cheap. Otherwise, the BX is just too small for that much mowing. If you do choose an older tractor for mowing and the mowed area is hilly as well, be sure to get one with a ROPS.

 

[Charlton John]

I do have some steep hills - comparing the Kubota B and BX the BX sits lower to the ground - will that make it safer or does the size and weight of the tractor make it safer?

I too have some steep hills on my property. What ever tractor you buy deffinitly load the tires w/ Rim Guard and ballast the back w/ more weight by using a ballast box or a rear implement like a box blade etc... No matter what tractor you decide on bigger or smaller (again for 15 acres I would think the B series is the way to go or a bit larger) no slopes are completly safe and you should handle them by going up and down not sideways.

 

[RWolf]

I work 25AC with a JD 5103. 40PTO HP. I use a 6' rotory cutter for mowing and it takes about 8+ hours to mow the entire 25. If I had to do it over I would have gotten an 8' cutter but the 6' is fine. I use a HD 6' box blade to manage driveway and unfortunately with the loader had to bury a horse after only owning it for about 2 weeks. And I've added a couple of other implements. What I'm saying is that for your needs if you can afford a larger tractor you will be better off and a lot more happy with your purchase. Speaking of that I believe I read that you don't want to spend over 15k. My 5103 was under 13k w/ loader and another $1500 for the rotary cutter so for you immediate needs that would fit your budget. Of course my 5103 isn't 4wd and if your hills are as steep as you say you probably should go with a 4wd. But you "can" work your land without it. So far I haven't ran into anything that I couldn't do with this tractor. JD also has a nice tractor calculator for figuring out what will meet your needs.

I'm not familiar with other brands so I really can't comment on their capabilities but from reputation they are all good brands. I'm just partial to green.

good luck on your find.

 

[Gittyup]

The BX's are too small. The bota dealer is steering you to what he wants to sell.

For your budget, I'd consider the Kioti CK35. They are now being offered with a free loader. It's a beast of a tractor, heavy and strong, and will handle a 6' bush hog quite well. Just my opinion, but more tractor for less money than comparable JD's, botas, or NH's.

I'd also consider used and go even bigger so that you could use a 7' bush hog. A couple of hours mowing is fine, but all day will get old fast.

I've seen some really good deals on Farmtracs too. Just don't know about long term parts availability.

 

[Soundguy]

I also think the dealer rec's are wrong.. i think he just has a BX he needs to sell.

15ac on a 4' mower will be -plenty- of seat time... like maybee a full 12+ hour day of mowing.

IMHO.. 30hp minimum.. and up from there.

I comfortably run tractors in the 70-95 hp around on my pasture.. and I'd only got 13ac.. etc.

soundguy