Buying Advice Pros and Cons on equipment

[farmer2009]

Good thoughts, we already have a house (14 year old log home), barn (100 years old) and various assorted other out buildings. Our first planned construction project is a shop building, thinking of a steel structure, three sections Wood working shop (love to do it, enjoy spending the winter days) Garage for mechanical repairs / parking the better equipment Covered storage (sorta pole barn like) Yes, the budget will certainly have to grow, the figure I put out was for the first purchase, thought is we will grow into other equipment as we figure out our needs. The good thing is that other than mowing a couple of fields and keeping the road up we really don't have to do anything if we decide not to. While so far I have enjoyed getting out and doing hard physical work, that may have been because it was such a contrast to my day job - will that change once we are here 365 days/year - will have to see. Like to connect with you when we get out there - I have a lot to learn! Steve

On your storage. Get some quotes from builders that know what they are doing. I had a friend that put up a steel structured building that could have been built as a pole barn and he had about 2.5 times more money in it than the pole barn would have cost him. And about 4 times what it could have cost him as I and others offered help. But he had to have it now and didn't want to wait. Well the builder was slow then put the roof on twice and still looked like an ocean. So he got his now building. My point is unless going huge look at a pole barn.
Plus instead of building separate structures see if you can join them into one long building. Then go inside and add dividing walls or hang curtains.

On the equipment budget. Good to hear you understand it's too low. Try looking for a new holland 4630, 5610, 6610. With a loader and 4wd. Or something similar in another brand. This size will be very capable for your needs. No it won't be the best for everything or do it all. Used I think you can get close to budget.
I have never liked the (24)40series john deere's as they had no leg room never could get on and off without almost falling.

Happy shopping.

 

[Threepoint]

Steve, congratulations on your retirement! Exciting times ahead. I'm not a farmer or forester, and haven't stayed at a Holiday Inn Express recently, but I recognize thoughtful, well-reasoned advice when I see it. You've gotten a lot of that in this thread, so I'll offer just a few comments. Your plans for your TN property are ambitious for the two of you, and as others have said can easily become a lifetime of projects. You're retired -- you and your wife want this to be fun! And I'm guessing you don't have the boundless physical energy that you had at 35 or 40. After a high-pressure career in aerospace, getting back to the land sure sounds great, but you've got a lot of it, and a tough year or two with a few setbacks that are bound to happen may have you rethinking how much you and your wife want to do. So unless you have fairly deep pockets and will be able to afford to bring in outside talent and manpower at will as plan B, you're right to move ahead slowly, in small increments. Not saying don't go for your dream, just that retirement dreams have a way of evolving as circumstances and priorities change. Making good local connections for advice (sounds like you're doing that), developing a realistic five-year plan based on that input and your budget, and not saddling yourself with more capital investment in equipment than you can comfortably keep in repair, and extricate yourself from if necessary, will IMO be real important to keeping stress and regret to a minimum. :thumbsup:

 

[Shblack]

How about a New Holland 575E - just watched one with 4WD sell at auction, year 2000 model, 2200 hrs, allegedly in good condition. Thinking a 4-way bucket would be an asset for picking up stumps and rocks? There is a fellow that runs a metal fabrication facility near us that will design and build pretty much what you ask for. I was thinking of just what you mentioned, basically a long building, two bays would be enclosed, a 3rd would be a pole barn with a concrete slab. I would put a loft in the shop section for storage of material, have an open bay in the garage section with a beam and traveling hoist.

Steve

BTW - the fellow that runs the metal fabrication shop has an interesting side business selling to the back to the land / off the grid movement - has a nice web site at https://www.backtotheland.com

 

[Shblack]

I appreciate the well thought out and caring advice - indeed we are keeping our house in Calif just in case things really turn south. While we have a fair amount of land, most of it will continue to grow trees, deer and turkey without much input from me, in fact we lease part of it out to a local contractor who keeps up the roads in trade for a freezer full of meat. So to me one of the biggest challenges will be adjusting to a very different culture and a much slower pace of life. Only a couple of projects are really hot (like the driveway and shop), the rest will be some what TBD our energy and other priorities like fishing. I did retire somewhat early (60), so hopefully I still have a bit of gas left in the tank...

Steve

 

[HEC]

Steve, my wife and I both retired and moved to the country on just over 100 acres in 1989 and just love it . The peace and quiet after living in the city is just great . There are always projects to keep us busy but I love that also and I'm 72 now . I wish you guys the very best.

 

[farmer2009]

How about a New Holland 575E - just watched one with 4WD sell at auction, year 2000 model, 2200 hrs, allegedly in good condition. Thinking a 4-way bucket would be an asset for picking up stumps and rocks? There is a fellow that runs a metal fabrication facility near us that will design and build pretty much what you ask for. I was thinking of just what you mentioned, basically a long building, two bays would be enclosed, a 3rd would be a pole barn with a concrete slab. I would put a loft in the shop section for storage of material, have an open bay in the garage section with a beam and traveling hoist. Steve BTW - the fellow that runs the metal fabrication shop has an interesting side business selling to the back to the land / off the grid movement - has a nice web site at https://www.backtotheland.com

I don't know much about that backhoe. It would do a lot of your required task. But they are no good for mowing. If it has a 4in 1 bucket on it then it should push snow and dirt nicely. If going that route I do recommend an extend-a-hoe.

 

[Shblack]

We own a valley with a stream running down it, house sits right above the stream (above the 100 year flood point). Limestone bluffs blend with the trees behind the house and across the valley, bottom of the valet is meadow. There is a cave behind the house with a lake in it which supplies the water for the house and pool. It is incredibly quiet at night (except in the summer, when the tree frogs and katydids make quite the chorus). In the winter you can just about touch the stairs! Living in Maine have you been seeing the aurora lately? I would expect that the recent solar storm would give an awesome display

 

[Shblack]

I was thinking of something lighter for the mowing (2nd tractor) since the fields are relatively small, it would be more maneuverable and use less fuel. I have seen others also recommend an extend-a-hoe - what are the advantages?

 

[dave1949]

We own a valley with a stream running down it, house sits right above the stream (above the 100 year flood point). Limestone bluffs blend with the trees behind the house and across the valley, bottom of the valet is meadow. There is a cave behind the house with a lake in it which supplies the water for the house and pool. It is incredibly quiet at night (except in the summer, when the tree frogs and katydids make quite the chorus). In the winter you can just about touch the stairs! Living in Maine have you been seeing the aurora lately? I would expect that the recent solar storm would give an awesome display

Sounds like a peaceful place to live. Out of curiosity I looked up Tennessee Ridge, you are 'out there' by the looks of the sparseness on the map. I imagine some lifestyle changes will happen compared to California city life. Your stress level will go down, healthy exercise working on your place, cleaner air. All good stuff.

I went out and looked for the aurora during that solar storm but didn't see much. The land rises to our north, so our horizon in that direction is fairly high.

 

[farmer2009]

I was thinking of something lighter for the mowing (2nd tractor) since the fields are relatively small, it would be more maneuverable and use less fuel. I have seen others also recommend an extend-a-hoe - what are the advantages?

Try a CUT (compact utility tractor) with a 6 foot brush hog or a 7 foot finish mower. Decide how often you want to mow those fields and that will dictate what you need.

Extend-a-hoe advantage is reach. Some models will add about 50% reach I think. This lets you dig deeper also.