Time to go bigger or get creative?

[Kilo69]

So the CK35 HST has been opening my eyes to what a tractor does. Most things I do revolve around can I use the tractor to do it haha.

Lately however I've begun to wonder if I could do more with a few more HP. Especially in the way of haying. Right now I do not hay my fields so to speak but use my bush hog to mow down a section let it dry then rake it into a small trailer for use as bedding. It's a bit labour intensive but I'm cutting it anyway might as well use it for something.

I'd love to get into baling my own hay but I don't think I have the HP to running the implements. Also we've been using water cubes to collect rainwater from the barn and house roof. Sure would be nice to be able to pick up a full cube and put in a fresh empty one.

I've seen some interesting hay equpiment lately like mid-size round bales and such that I could run on the CK35... but I can't see anyway to increase my loader capacity. Which leave me with other ideas, like making a trailers/carts to mount the water cubes in.

We have 110 acres with only about 10 cleared but we plan to start expanding the hobby farm into a small farm raising muscovy duck and sheep for meat over the next 2-3 years. It's a hard choice... yes going bigger is always nice, but can I manage with the CK35 is the question. Or will one day I reach the tipping point? I priced out a couple DK's and to step into on of them wasn't a huge price jump with the trade-in on the CK35. Any comments suggestions?

 

[VictorW]

I have a CK30hst and understand what you're up against. Mine works good for my jobs but I'm not using it like you are using yours. I think you would be better with a bigger DK for what you're doing. The DK40, from what many members have mentioned, is one of the best for the price. You get a loader that lifts @2600 lbs, more than twice yours, and has 41hp. The DK45 has the same loader and I believe 44hp but you pay a good bit more for 3hp. Members who own each can help you with the differences. If you found a good deal on a DK50, I'd take a look because your jobs would fit it. A DK35 has 4hp more and @400lbs more in lift but I don't think that's what you need. Before you work yours to death and while it's still worth more in a trade, you might want to look for a bigger tractor. With your jobs, I think you'll be happier with a bigger tractor if the wallet permits.

 

[IndyIan]

How much do you spend on hay per year? How much time do you have to do hay yourself?
For me its $700 and I don't have the spare time to have a good chance of making good hay... So I buy every year, and some years even the full time guys have problems getting 2 cuts off without rain or having the hay go too mature while waiting for a dry spell.

I've thought about going super low tech with a sickle bar mower, a big hay fork on the tractor, and a wagon. And try either an outdoor haystack or packed loose hay inside a hoop barn... But for $700 it seem like a lot of work or expense with a hoop barn big enough for 20 4x5' bales loose!

How heavy are your water cubes? A cubic metre(1000 litres) is 2200lbs which on a pallet fork will be quite close to the DK's lifting capacity. Maybe a 12V sump pump would transfer a cube fairly fast and you could have one on a trailer?

 

[Kilo69]

How much do you spend on hay per year? How much time do you have to do hay yourself?
For me its $700 and I don't have the spare time to have a good chance of making good hay... So I buy every year, and some years even the full time guys have problems getting 2 cuts off without rain or having the hay go too mature while waiting for a dry spell.

I've thought about going super low tech with a sickle bar mower, a big hay fork on the tractor, and a wagon. And try either an outdoor haystack or packed loose hay inside a hoop barn... But for $700 it seem like a lot of work or expense with a hoop barn big enough for 20 4x5' bales loose!

How heavy are your water cubes? A cubic metre(1000 litres) is 2200lbs which on a pallet fork will be quite close to the DK's lifting capacity. Maybe a 12V sump pump would transfer a cube fairly fast and you could have one on a trailer?

Good point on the hay costs... our current costs are only about $400 and my calculation's when we have the sheep would probably only run us another $1k so $1400 per season. Which is not a lot of hay to be honest and like you said time management it key for haying. Easily can tie up several 10's of thousands in equipment and still end up having to buy hay if I have a poor season or miss out on a cut due to timing.

The cubes would be a good 2200lbs. Right now I can move a 1/3 full cube any more and it just can't seem to handle it. I like the sump pump idea (that's kinda my thought too). Would also be handy to pick up water from a stream or pond should the need arise if we have a dry spell. Maybe I can make due with the CK35..

That being said,Victor's point of upgrading now while the CK still has value before I end up pushing it too hard for too long is a valid point lol.

 

[IndyIan]

I don't think you'd ever regret going up to a DK either unless you want to go bigger again. Most used stuff like manure spreaders, or even plows, is probably all sized a little bigger than a DK can really run. My neighbor has a couple dozen cows and uses a 70's 80hp 2wd JD for everything. He'd let me borrow some of his equipment but its all too big for the DK. Maybe I could run his spreader but I'd have to really watch how I loaded it as I've got half the pto hp he's got. Same thing with his haybine and probably the square baler too. On the other hand, the DK's loader is just as strong and with its smaller size and 4wd I can go into the woods and some wet areas and he can't.
Anyways, we toyed with the idea of going bigger with our goats, but with kids and full time jobs, the time isn't there, so I bought the DK as an all weather all-terrian hay unloader and barn yard cleaner, driveway plower and maintainer, dirt mover, and weekend log skidder.
That said, I think Motorseven puts away a pretty serious amount of hay with his DK, a couple hundred 4x4 rounds I believe, so it can be done if you get the right size of equipment and run it well.

 

[MotorSeven]

Kilo, it actually sounds like you need to go bigger than a 40 if your going to get serious into hay. A 40 will pull most 4x4 balers & most square balers, but if you want big bales, you will need a 60-70 horse tractor. My baler is a old Hesston 530 that is now broken(ain't fixin it again) and I never had any tractor baler trouble...just baler trouble. Next year I plan on buying a brand spanking new Krone KR125 4x4 soft core baler which the 40 can handle easy.

You may just want to keep the 35, and buy a older larger 2wd tractor. The used prices for the 70-80 hp range tractors here is very reasonable. Having a couple or three tractors at baling time is great, you don't have to keep switching implements. Your 35 can handle a rake and tedder, but a big cutter(over 6') needs a 50ish horse or up.

How much does a "cube' of water weigh"? That's in POUNDS...not that metric stuff we fooled y'all into switching over to back in the 70's:laughing:

 

[Kilo69]

Kilo, it actually sounds like you need to go bigger than a 40 if your going to get serious into hay. A 40 will pull most 4x4 balers & most square balers, but if you want big bales, you will need a 60-70 horse tractor. My baler is a old Hesston 530 that is now broken(ain't fixin it again) and I never had any tractor baler trouble...just baler trouble. Next year I plan on buying a brand spanking new Krone KR125 4x4 soft core baler which the 40 can handle easy.

You may just want to keep the 35, and buy a older larger 2wd tractor. The used prices for the 70-80 hp range tractors here is very reasonable. Having a couple or three tractors at baling time is great, you don't have to keep switching implements. Your 35 can handle a rake and tedder, but a big cutter(over 6') needs a 50ish horse or up.

How much does a "cube' of water weigh"? That's in POUNDS...not that metric stuff we fooled y'all into switching over to back in the 70's:laughing:

Well the cube would weight about 2200lbs plus the forks to pick it up with. I was actually looking at the DK50 HST (HST cause the wife loves HST and I'm trying to keep her using the tractor). I'm also considering a Kubota MX5100 HST as they seem to be closer in price than they were a few years back.

Picking up and old 2WD is a good idea too! Off to look at the used ads I go lol

 

[MotorSeven]

Not too old though! Something that's been maintained, not abused and definitely a front end loader:thumbsup:

 

[kiotiken]

Well the cube would weight about 2200lbs plus the forks to pick it up with. I was actually looking at the DK50 HST (HST cause the wife loves HST and I'm trying to keep her using the tractor). I'm also considering a Kubota MX5100 HST as they seem to be closer in price than they were a few years back.

Picking up and old 2WD is a good idea too! Off to look at the used ads I go lol

I just went from a CK30 to DK45 and it's a BIG difference. I really like it for the kind of stuff I do now and it will be great for the kind of stuff I will do in the future. The FEL is fantastic and was one of my issues with the CK line. All that said, I really think you'd be best to go bigger. There's not a big difference between the DK40/45/50, just a few PTO hp, from what I know, everything else is identical. For what you're looking to do, if you're going to trade for a new bigger tractor, I'd go bigger than the DK50. I don't know what you think about cabs or spending the money for one, but the RX6010 looks pretty sweet but I'd look even bigger as well. I think Kioti excels in the smaller CUTs, but I'm not sure if the same is true in the larger utility tractors. I'd open up the entire field of options and check out all options in the 80hp + size.

I'm on my 3rd tractor in 3 years. Instead of being in the same boat this time next year with a DK50, buy for your future needs now.

 

[Gittyup]

At $1400 per year, I'd just buy. Maybe augment with hay on your land. What about the small square balers? Have you considered letting someone else hay your land for a portion of the hay/proceeds? If you put forks on the 3ph you get a bit more lift on the CK. I have a hydraulic "high lift" set for my 3ph. It lifts to about 5' high. But, it won't lift 2200 lbs either. So if you need more lift, you'll have to consider a bigger tractor.