Comparison I think I've wandered off the beaten path...with the possible selection of a tractor

[LeeWorm]

First question, as I sure others may have mentioned in other posts is what do you plan I doing with it? What's your terrain? This will determin how big and some other features you may want. What sometimes gets missed is: How long do you plan on owning it? Can you be sure that brand and parts will be available over that span? No company can gaurantee they'll still be around, but some compaies may be more stable than others if you looking for having the tractor long term.

I just picked up 2.5 acres south of Houma that was once cane fields. The developer ran a harrow over the land but not very deep so there is a "ripple" left over and you can still tell where the furrows were. Aside from the obvious need to cut the grass, the other things I need/want to do prior to building the new house are site work, planting trees and other landscaping, utility and sewerage prep, and road prep and maintenance. After we build and move onto the property full-time, we are planning on doing a modest sized victory garden. So I have been looking at 20-30hp 4wd HST machines with FEL and BH attachments.

I am aware that a BH attachment could easily account for a 1/3 of the purchase price on a compact tractor but I know what I have to do over the next 5-7 years just on this particular piece of property. I have run the numbers and the repeated rental costs for backhoes or small excavators over that time would exceed the cost of the BH attachment.

I do plan on keep the machine "until the wheels fall off" but considering that I will probably just be a weekend warrior I don't see longevity being a problem. Even though a "breakdown" will not be as critical to me as it would be for the local farmers I would still prefer to acquire a machine that could be supported locally should Murphy and his little "law" pay me a visit. Within a 90 mile radius I have 2 JD dealers, 2 Kubota dealers, 2 NH dealers, and 2 Mahindra dealers as those are the makes that I see on most of the local farms. If I extend that radius out to 150 miles then I pick up at least two or more of all of the makes that I would actually consider.

I have actually been able to visit each of the JD, NH, Kubota, and Mahindra dealers nearby to physically get a feel for the different machines. However, I have been running into a problem with the other dealers as most of them are not open on the weekends and that is making it almost impossible to see their products firsthand without having to take half day off to make the trip during the week.

 

[murphy1244]

Whatever you pick go with a dealer close to you. My Kioti- New Holland dealer is less than 10 miles. Note, Ny machine has never been back to my dealer and I am a Murphy!

 

[LeeWorm]

Whatever you pick go with a dealer close to you. My Kioti- New Holland dealer is less than 10 miles. Note, Ny machine has never been back to my dealer and I am a Murphy!

With that being said, the "local" dealers are as such:
JD <5miles
NH/Kubota <5mi
Massey <5mi
Kubota/Mahindra 60mi
JD 55mi
NH/Mahindra 55mi (This particular dealer is less than 3mi from my office...)
Kioti 100mi, 180mi
Branson 105mi
LS Tractor 65mi

Also no offense intended with your name...simply typo.

 

[RoMad]

I always wonder why people are so concerned that a dealer be close by. I had my first tractor 3 years and took it to the dealer twice. The dealer was about an hour away, but for two trips in three years it wouldn't have mattered if it was two hours away. I bought the tractor used off of an individual so I never made an initial trip to a dealer at all.
I did come to this site and research the tractor prior to buying it.
As far as the distances above, I would not let any of them influence my decision.
For 2 1/2 acres a Kioti ck20 is a nice little tractor that is a real work horse for it's size. I really got a lot of work out of mine.

 

[Bluegill2]

I've never had any of my tractors back to the dealer.

My Kubota dealer is about 50 miles away and I've been there only a couple times.

 

[grm61]

Buy something you "like" It is going to be your work companion for a very long time.
You don't want to look at your expensive tractor everyday and think gee, I wish I would have gotten a bigger tractor, or I wish I would have gotten a cab, or I should have gotten red/orange/ green blue one, get something that really floats your boat.

I would suggest getting something big enough, that even if you move someday, or your needs change where you are now, you have enough tractor for whatever might pop up, and even if they don't change, your working the tractor at half capacity, in my eyes that's safer, and easier on the machine.

See its all about justification:thumbsup: if you need any tips just let me know
Get the biggest machine you can afford, that you really like.
My .02

 

[murphy1244]

With that being said, the "local" dealers are as such:
JD <5miles
NH/Kubota <5mi
Massey <5mi
Kubota/Mahindra 60mi
JD 55mi
NH/Mahindra 55mi (This particular dealer is less than 3mi from my office...)
Kioti 100mi, 180mi
Branson 105mi
LS Tractor 65mi

Also no offense intended with your name...simply typo.

If you go with the first 3 you might be glad there close by.:laughing: Kidding, No offence taken. I buy my filters and other stuff from my dealer and its nice to stop by and chew the fat every now and then. You do learn a lot from them. I bs with the Service manager and we get along good. May need that some time you never know. If your serious about a Kioti check out the DK line.

 

[Don87]

To be honest, with 2.5 acres, I just don't see the benefit of the backhoe unless you are building your own house........brick by brick. Your contractor will be able to get the guys to do it in half the time(or less), and about the same money as you would pay for the hoe alone.

Eliminating that part, you have 2.5 acres of cleared land that will hold a house and garage at the bare minimum. And then you want to plant a few trees......A tree spade will do that with just an FEL.

Now you are looking at mowing, and tilling. I don't see anything larger than a SUBCUT tractor in your future............Maybe a BX25, JD 1 series, or a Massey 1710 All with backhoes if you so desire. And they are all very close to you if you need parts or service.

But I really don't see the need in your situation. I wanted a hoe in the worst way on my 2 acres, but just couldn't justify it. Even though I built a pond that is 19' by 22' by 3.5 feet deep.

 

[LeeWorm]

Murphy,

I am actually waiting on pricing from a Kioti dealers on the Ck series as they have been advertising several really sweet package deals. Seeing as how you have one and they appear to be on the "heavy" side; I would imagine that it would be better to get the model with the higher horsepower in any given series.

Also, I know exactly what you mean about the bs'ing at the dealership. The Kubota/Mahindra dealership that I mentioned is a full service farming center and the guys that show up there are incredible. The old "saltdog" farmers congregate there like it's a donut shop on the weekend...and on rainy days. The things that you hear about their ideas and means range from being obscure to "why didn't I think of that!?!?!"

 

[GManBart]

Murphy,

I am actually waiting on pricing from a Kioti dealers on the Ck series as they have been advertising several really sweet package deals. Seeing as how you have one and they appear to be on the "heavy" side; I would imagine that it would be better to get the model with the higher horsepower in any given series.

Don't get too hung up on horsepower to gross weight...that really isn't the important consideration. Anything sold by a company as big as Kioti is going to be adequately powered to move the machine around, just fine. The important difference is in matching up the PTO horsepower to the implements you intend to use....going up 3-5hp can allow you to run the next size implements, or run them more easily.