Advice on keeping cub cadet 3204 or compact tractor Fel

[Steffy]

Considering my first Tractor need advice

Hey, first post after finding this site a week ago and looking for some good advice!

My wife and I live on 2.5 hilly acres, about 1/3 is wooded and hoping to have 1/2 acre of permanent garden beds. We buy around 20 yards of mulch every spring and take as many wood chips as is delivered, usually 2 truckloads. We have no need for a tiller, but often wonder what life would be like with a fel. Oh, we also heat with wood so moving logs to the splitter and the splits to the house is accomplished with our cub cadet garden tractor 3204 with around 275 hours on it and a simple dump trailer. Our neighbor offered to mow our property soon after settling on the house, and now we just pay him to continue mowing. So no real immediate mowing needs. Plowing snow is another task that I would like to address, either myself or just paying someone to do it for us..

I'm pretty sure the cc has some life left in it, and I was throwing around the idea of getting a johnny bucket sr, but fear the bucket would lose most of it's value when the cadet dies? Stopped at a kubota dealer today and got a quote for a bx18-- with a fel and mower deck for 13,700 or 240/month with insurance. Should I try to sell the cc and bite the bullet with the bx, or ride out the life of the cc and make due with what I have?

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

 

[George2615]

Re: Considering my first Tractor need advice

Welcome to TBN....

Once you buy a tractor with a loader you'll wonder how you ever got along without one. A tractor w/ loader would be of great use to you for hauling your wood, plowing snow, moving dirt, mulch, stone etc. you'll have hundreds of uses for it that you can't do with the CC. Since you were quoted a Kubota with FEL and mower deck you can sell the CC. The money you get from selling the CC can go toward 3 pt. attachments. Glad you asked the question. We'll be more than happy to help you spend your money.

 

[Steffy]

Re: Considering my first Tractor need advice

Hey, thanks for helping me spend my money What 3 pt. attachments would you recommend for me?
Never really considered a FEL, but after buying a hilly property and muscling a wheelbarrow up hills, i'm
getting tired! I'm sure this has been discussed in much depth on this site, but at what point does someone
consider a fel necessary?

Sounds like you don't consider the CC worth keeping?
Thanks!

 

[George2615]

Re: Considering my first Tractor need advice

You could surely keep the CC for mowing I just think if you get the Kubota you would probably not use the CC.
The 3 pt attachments needed would depend on what you want to do on your property. Planning on moving any gravel, dirt, mulch, etc. Attachments like a back blade, rake, box blade, utility trailer, come to mind.

 

[MESSMAKER]

Re: Considering my first Tractor need advice

Loader is greatest thing ever. Makes dozens of difficult jobs easier. A sub compact might be just the ticket.

 

[scoutcub]

I'm a Cub guy, but have to say with what you're needs are, I'd definitely be looking for a subcompact tractor loader mower. I do everything you mentioned with my sc2400 subcompact (except moving logs which I use my bigger machine) and its definitely a back saver.

Good luck!

 

[Steffy]

Sounds like a subcompact is the way to go, unless anyone else can convince me otherwise
Next would be which color and model?

Just out of curiosity, what do you think my CC could fetch? I bought it from the previous home owner when we settled on the house, wrote him a check for 1500, he said it was around 6 grand new. It's got 275 hours on it.
Thanks!

 

[scoutcub]

Can't remember if the 3204 has the diff lock, and depending on which size deck you have.......the 3000 series are great machines, I've owned and sold dozens of them.
275 hours isn't much at all. I would say you could get at least the 1500 back out of it, perhaps closer to 2000, maybe a bit higher.

As for subcompacts, I'm fond of the black and yellow, the Yanmars. Great machine, lots of bang for the buck. The majority of other machines are good as well, you may pay a bit more for orange and green paint.....lol...try em out and see what fits you.

Good luck!

 

[Steffy]

I see that you have a sc2400, would that be the model that you recommend?
My local yanmar dealer may take the CC as a trade in, just need to send them pic/info. Would you suggest this route or
selling on CL, etc?
BTW, i've never owned a tractor before, so bear with me lol

 

[George2615]

Just about every brand you can name such as Mahindra, Kioti, Massey, Deere, Kubota, LS, Yanmar, Cub Cadet, and others all have sub compact tractors available with loaders and hydrostatic drive. Time to start checking your local dealers to see what they have in stock for you to test drive.