Kubota/ other tractor in a small orchard?

[wchp14]

I am preparing to buy a new Kubota or possibly another make of a compact tractor. I currently own a Ford 8N and JD 345 garden tractor, the 8N is just too much work and I lack the mechanical skills/time to work on it and the I want to consolidate the Ford and the Deere into one machine. I own about 3 acres, I have 60 fruit trees in about 1/2 acre and am steadily expanding and I mow about 1.25 acre weekly around my house and the rest I mow a 2-3 times a year. Its a very flat rectangle. I own a brand new CountryLine post hole digger I bought for my ford 8n and it worked ok but I have read reviews that say the Kubota BX and B series are not the best for that post hole digger.

I want a machine that can mow my yard, help out digging holes in the orchard, has a bucket on it, and I can put a blade on the back to grade my yard and driveway. I have done a lot of homework on a BX2670 and a B2620 and am not sure where to go. There is a Deere dealer close but its either Deere or Kubota and doing a lot of reading on here makes me lean towards Kubota.
My trees are approx 8 feet apart

Thanks for any advice/suggestions

Grant

 

[jeff9366]

I want a machine that can mow my yard, help out digging holes in the orchard, has a bucket on it, and I can put a blade on the back to grade my yard and driveway. I have done a lot of homework on a BX2670 and a B2620 and am not sure where to go. There is a Deere dealer close but its either Deere or Kubota and doing a lot of reading on here makes me lean towards Kubota.
My trees are approx 8 feet apart.

Two attachments for your FEL bucket may suffice; Bucket Spade for planting and a Ratchet Rake for grading.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...da-planting-sand-pears-kubota.html?highlight=

https://www.google.com/search?clien...et+rake+site:tractorbynet.com&rls=en&start=10

 

[TJP89]

I looked at the Kubota B series, think it was the 2920, before deciding to go bigger. I was very impressed with the B, and in your case would go with it over the BX series. There is just more capability in the B series IMO. I don't think the 26 or 2920 would have a problem with a PHD, while the BX might. You can get a MMM for the B if you want to as well, and it is very capable of handling a loader and rear blade. JD has their 2 series, but I don't know a whole lot about them.

 

[flusher]

My trees are approx 8 feet apart: what kind of trees? How high off the ground are the lowest branches?

My guess is that you probably don't want a tractor with wheel track greater that 4-5 ft wide so you don't damage the lower tree branches. Or get whacked in the head while mowing your orchard.

My first tractor was a new 2005 Kubota B7510HST with the LA302 FEL. Paid $12.6K.
Wheel track is 4-ft. With only 3 acres it's a good choice for the jobs you mentioned.

Good luck.

 

[Gafn]

I have had a BX2660 - and would not recommend that size tractor, here is why:
1) lift capacity of the bucket is @ 500 lbs max
2) Ground clearance is way tow low
3) 3 point attachments are carried too close to the ground - the auger nearly drags the tip on flat ground at max lift - you need an extra person to pull the auger on an angle if you go over an uneven ground, single 12 inch bottom plow drags the ground at max lift
4) If you need to move a full bucket of wet dirt, tractor feels very unstable near max bucket lift weight
5) Tractor is too small for its power, 26hp is great but at 1360lbs that power is lost to spinning tires - not enough weight to hold it to the ground and use the power, tried once to pull a sub soiler - at only half draw the tractor was just spinning, I had to make multiple passes gaining only 2 - 3 inches of depth on each pass, this is in red clay with a 2 inch wide sub soil plow face, this tractor does not stall - it just spins...
6) The BX bucket is only 48 inches wide, a few cubic feet of top soil and your full = more trips back to the pile
7) The brake pedal is above the Hydro rocker pedal = no way to ease up to anything on a slope, tractor drifts while you are moving your foot to brake pedal (this really SUCKS)

The BX series is a fantastic commercial grade mower and a great hobbyist tractor with a light weight FEL. I used mine for two years before selling it to get into a larger tractor.
I now have a 35hp tractor, see this thread: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/buying-pricing-comparisons/335083-out-orange-red.html
I also have fruit trees, and carrying the new soil mix for planting new trees in a larger bucket saves a ton of time.
Lift capacity on the FEL is 2200lbs vs the 500lbs - consider what you will be moving, say a pallet of new trees, or a pallet of fertilizer, or a ICB full of water - the BX can not do that.

With your trees being 8 feet apart - you can use a larger tractor with a finish mower - you don't need a mid mount mower.
Get a cheap used zero turn for trimming around the trees and the house...

 

[Grandad4]

I am preparing to buy a new Kubota or possibly another make of a compact tractor. I currently own a Ford 8N and JD 345 garden tractor, the 8N is just too much work and I lack the mechanical skills/time to work on it and the I want to consolidate the Ford and the Deere into one machine. I own about 3 acres, I have 60 fruit trees in about 1/2 acre and am steadily expanding and I mow about 1.25 acre weekly around my house and the rest I mow a 2-3 times a year. Its a very flat rectangle. I own a brand new CountryLine post hole digger I bought for my ford 8n and it worked ok but I have read reviews that say the Kubota BX and B series are not the best for that post hole digger.

I want a machine that can mow my yard, help out digging holes in the orchard, has a bucket on it, and I can put a blade on the back to grade my yard and driveway. I have done a lot of homework on a BX2670 and a B2620 and am not sure where to go. There is a Deere dealer close but its either Deere or Kubota and doing a lot of reading on here makes me lean towards Kubota.
My trees are approx 8 feet apart

Thanks for any advice/suggestions

Grant

You are going in the right direction in your search. I think you would be able to get your work done with either a BX-sized or a B-sized machine. Each has its own advantages and you'd have to figure out for yourself which one would work best for you. The BX I have is very compact and sits low to the ground so it is very maneuverable. It goes under things that would present problems for a larger tractor. It lacks ground clearance and weight so working the ground with farm implements isn't a strong point, but it clears snow, mows, grades a gravel road, etc. like a champ. Last weekend I spent some time on my cousin's B2620. The larger tires make it sit higher off the ground and there is just enough more tractor that you know it would pull more , lift more and generally get more done in a day's time. If I didn't have a need for the reduced dimensions of my little BX, I'd probably have chosen its bigger brother.

As for that post hole auger, I've been using a full-sized Speeco PHD on the BX for about 10 years now without problems. Don't assume yours won't work until you check a couple of things:
1. A BX type tractor sits low to ground as noted, so attachments are also low. The PHD will drag the auger on the ground unless you use the right setup when assembling the PHD. On mine that simply meant drilling another mounting hole for the U-shaped lower 3 point bracket on the long PHD pole going to the auger so it raises higher.
2. Likewise, you need to make sure the PTO driveshaft is short enough so it doesn't strike the tractor rearend when the auger is lowered. If it does, 5 minutes with a hacksaw takes care of it.
Good luck shopping!

 

[wchp14]

I have decided on a B2650 for a FEL and a 48" rear blade the dealer will sell it to me for 17K delivered to my door with out a quick attach bucket.
Thanks for everyone's thoughts and opinions

 

[Grandad4]

I have decided on a B2650 for a FEL and a 48" rear blade the dealer will sell it to me for 17K delivered to my door with out a quick attach bucket.
Thanks for everyone's thoughts and opinions

Great choice! Congratulations!