Buying Advice Need lots of tractor buying advice

[alligatorob]

I need a tractor, but know about as little as is possible to know. Years ago when I was young I worked on farms a little and drove a few tractors, but that was over 40 years ago, I do not even remember what I drove back then. I recently purchased a 2 acre place, more than half in peaches. My son has a couple of acres down the road, I am sure that if I get a tractor it will get used there too.

I am on a slope and watching the farmer who has been working it I can see irrigating takes a lot of minor ditch digging and repair, its flood irrigated.

I need something that will plow snow on my 300+ ft gravel driveway, I am in northern Utah and can get up to 2 or 3 ft on the worst year. Most years less.

The place also needs a lot of landscaping/driveway building. Much of the yard needs to be leveled and I need to add a driveway loop. I will need to maintain the gravel driveway, it has some slope to it and I can see erosion already. I will also want to either plow or mow the orchard.

I am retiring so not young and want something I will be comfortable on. I am a big guy.

I am not terribly mechanically inclined or interested so I want lower easier maintenance. But I can do simple things myself.

The closest dealer to me (~5 miles) is a Case dealer, but he only stocks bigger machines, nothing smaller than about 50 hp, probably too big for me. He said he can get me any model I want, but I think I need to see and drive before I buy. The next closest (~20 miles) is a John Deere dealer, he seems to stock a number of the smaller ones. Within 100 miles I can pretty much find anything.

I have been doing some online research, but that only works so far. I have some basic questions that I am hoping to get help with:

• What brand or brands are most reliable? I prefer something with a dealer close by, and for that reason might even go with Case, if I can find one to test drive.
• What size should I be looking at? I do not want to go too small, but no need to waste $.
• What is the difference between capabilities of 2 wld and 4 wld? It looks like you can get a lot more tractor for the money if you go with a small utility 2 wld tractor, any problems with that? My ground cab be muddy, and has some slope but with a lot of rocks.

I am thinking new, just because I can probably afford it, and I assume maintenance will be easier for a few years anyway. On the other hand I am not rich and if I can get what I want used for less money I might be persuaded. I know it would probably be less expensive to hire somebody to do what I need done, and they would know what they were doing, but that's not really the point, I want my own tractor and to learn how to use it. And I need something to occupy my time in retirement!

Any and all advice will be appreciated.

 

[newbury]

RENT if you can. Just to gage the size. A weekend rental might save you thousands versus getting the wrong tractor.

Look around for someplace that rents small (< 40HP) tractors and test a few out.

If you will have A LOT OF DIGGING you might need a backhoe, which is a great expense but sure beats a shovel.

Based on the little info I'm thinking 25 to 35 HP, 4WD w/ FEL, (front end loader), QA (quick attach) bucket, loaded ag tires.

2 wd MIGHT do, but you can't change 2wd to 4wd easily.

Figure out the heaviest thing you might have to move and size accordingly.

 

[Musdalen]

I'm not an expert, but having gone through what you are doing now, I ordered a JD 3039R. Should be here any day now, so nothing more to report.

With a lot of peaches you will have lots of trimming and a grapple might be nice to get them moved out of the orchard.

 

[jeff9366]

I recently purchased a 2 acre place, more than half in peaches. My son has a couple of acres down the road, I am sure that if I get a tractor it will get used there too.

Will you be raising peaches as a business, so you can write off tractor and implement purchases?

I am on a slope and watching the farmer who has been working it I can see irrigating takes a lot of minor ditch digging and repair, its flood irrigated.

Filling a tractor's rear tires with fluid lowers overall center of gravity making the tractor more stable. You will certainly want a Front End Loader (FEL) and bucket. A Backhoe is the berries for trenching ~~~ but $6,000 to $7,000 option on a new, small tractor. There are many, many Backhoe alternatives.
VIDEO: middle buster - YouTube

I need something that will plow snow on my 300+ ft gravel driveway, I am in northern Utah and can get up to 2 or 3 ft on the worst year. Most years less.

I tractor in Florida. Others will respond to SNOW.

The place also needs a lot of landscaping/driveway building. Much of the yard needs to be leveled and I need to add a driveway loop. I will need to maintain the gravel driveway, it has some slope to it and I can see erosion already.

How long is the driveway? Land Plane Grading Scraper (LPGS) is usually first choice for gravel maintenance. FEL is the first choice for landscaping~~essentially a powered wheelbarrow.
VIDEO: land plane grading scraper - YouTube

I want want to plow or mow the orchard.
Few would plow an orchard or vineyard. Most would mow with a Rotary Cutter, AKA Bush Hog to prevent erosion.
VIDEO: rotary cutter bush hog - YouTube

I am retiring so not young and want something I will be comfortable on. I am a big guy.
Consider tractors with a bare weight of 2,600 pounds and up. Also, minimum of 12" ground clearance; not 9".

I have some basic questions that I am hoping to get help with:

What brand or brands are most reliable? I prefer something with a dealer close by, and for that reason might even go with Case, if I can find one to test drive.
Prudence of the operator and performing preventive maintenance are the key factors in reliability. You lose both when you buy a used tractor with more than one owner.

What size should I be looking at? I do not want to go too small, but no need to waste $.
Consider tractors with a bare weight of 2,600 pounds and up. Also, minimum of 12" ground clearance; not 9".

Perry, Utah, is over 4,000' altitude. Be aware that you will lose about 8% of the power of a normally aspirated diesel engine at 4,000'. For that reason, do not buy a MINIMUM horsepower tractor. Consider MINIMUM 30 horsepower, 40 horsepower better.


What is the difference between capabilities of 2 wld and 4 wld? It looks like you can get a lot more tractor for the money if you go with a small utility 2 wld tractor, any problems with that? My ground can be muddy, and has some slope but with a lot of rocks.
The greatest advance in tractors came with the invention of the Three Point Hitch in the 1930s. Power steering and 4-WD were the next great advances. You want all three, especially on sloped ground. 4-WD is critically important on light tractors. For new operators, 4-WD is a safety issue as well as an operational issue.


I am thinking new, just because I can probably afford it, and I assume maintenance will be easier for a few years anyway. On the other hand I am not rich and if I can get what I want used for less money I might be persuaded. I know it would probably be less expensive to hire somebody to do what I need done, and they would know what they were doing, but that's not really the point, I want my own tractor and to learn how to use it. And I need something to occupy my time in retirement!

I am 69-1/2 years old and share your mind set.

 

[jeff9366]

Here are some used tractor listings on eBay, close to zip code 84302:
-volvo in Industrial Tractors | eBay

Here are some SOLD listings:
Tractors | eBay

 

[alligatorob]

Thanks for all the great advice, it is appreciated.

One question, what about after market attachments and implements rather than factory? I am going to the John Deere dealer soon to look at his tractors and have been doing some online pricing, they are pretty proud of their attachments, it seems you can get what looks to me like the same thing for a lot less if you don't go John Deere. Any thoughts?

Jeff, thanks for all the help. I know your part of the country well, I grew up in Pinellas County and lived in Franklin County for a long time. But I had promised the wife years ago that we'd move to Utah, her home state, when we retired so here we are. I much prefer your snow, and fishing, to ours!

 

[flusher]

Looks like plowing snow and mowing are the only recurring jobs. The others you mentioned are one and done efforts. Rent the proper equipment for these tasks.

I'd size the tractor for snow plowing and get one that will plow your driveway in less than 3 or 4 hours for the largest expected snowfall. In other words, size the tractor for the snow plow implement.

Good luck.

 

[jeff9366]

The difficulty for a tractor newbie is evaluating implements on an apples to apples basis. "Looks" may deceive.

You should evaluate implements by weight first, then secondary attributes, price third. Examples of secondary attributes: width, ease of adjustment and range of adjustment.

Most of Deere's 'Frontier' implements are made by other manufactures, painted Deere green. Deere selects high quality suppliers that have been in business a long time. Only Deere knows how much Deere takes as a premium.

See what implements are interesting at Deere, then solicit alternatives here, supplying precise Deere model numbers. Good advice from a dealer can be worth a lot.

Many on T-B-N, including me, feel everytfhingattachments.com is the leader in direct sales: Tractor Attachments And Skid Steer Attachments For Any Tractor Or Skid Steer Rick and Travis have provided valuable input to me.

For branded implements I have patronized Iowa Farm Equipment several times: Iowa Farm Equipment

I remain amazed that I can unload almost any tractor implement three days after I order, in rural Florida.


Will you be raising peaches as a business, so you can write off tractor and implement purchases?

 

[ch1ch2]

RENT if you can. Just to gage the size. A weekend rental might save you thousands versus getting the wrong tractor.

Look around for someplace that rents small (< 40HP) tractors and test a few out.

If you will have A LOT OF DIGGING you might need a backhoe, which is a great expense but sure beats a shovel.

Based on the little info I'm thinking 25 to 35 HP, 4WD w/ FEL, (front end loader), QA (quick attach) bucket, loaded ag tires.

2 wd MIGHT do, but you can't change 2wd to 4wd easily.

Figure out the heaviest thing you might have to move and size accordingly.

This is some real good advice.
I have and have had several tractors.
I can not tell you what I would buy for myself.

 

[Grandad4]

One question, what about after market attachments and implements rather than factory? I am going to the John Deere dealer soon to look at his tractors and have been doing some online pricing, they are pretty proud of their attachments, it seems you can get what looks to me like the same thing for a lot less if you don't go John Deere. Any thoughts?

Can't improve on Jeff's good advice, but just to be clear, the 3 point hitch and pto in back are standard across all makes of farm equipment, so you can choose from any supplier. Other add-on attachments, particularly a front end loader, must be matched to the specific brand and model of tractor.