O my, I am comfused

[gladehound]

Regarding tires:

For snow my favorite is Modified Industrial (hand grooved and siped), than Turf, than Ag, than stock industrial.
For mud it is hands down Ag, than Industrial (modified or not doesn't matter), than turf. and there is a large gap between each. Turf's are awful in mud.
For puncture resistance in woods it is Industrial, than ag or turf (might not matter)
For lawn it is turf, than industrial and with ags you can kiss your lawn goodbye!

As you can see, modified industrials are the most versatile. Never at the bottom of the list. Always top or middle. If you think most of your time will be on the lawn and are dead set against a dedicated mower (which really is the way to go) get the turfs and a set of chains for when you might need them in the mud. You rarely will need chains in snow with turf tire but they are nice insurance for that occasional ice storm or mega snow storm. I live about 2 hours from you so have a lot of the same weather and I haven't used chains since I modified my industrial tires many years ago. There is a whole thread about that if you're interested.

 

[gladehound]

Nikko, the rumor in the north country is that turf tires are better for winter white than either ag or industrial. Reasoning is ag tires get too little traction grip to the ground and industrial fills up and becomes a slick too easily. Chains come in metal and also in rubber versions.

As far as lawns go . . Turfs are the most forgiving and the least digging. While turf tires may not be as tough for rough ground exposures like broken small tree trunks etc.. they offer alot of grips that drop dirt, mud, and snow if given a chance. If you're in clear mud . . Then with any of them . . . Look for a winch and something ro tie it to. Thats the rumor.

A clarification. Turfs will fill up with mud or snow faster than industrials or Ags. With mud this is bad and this is why turfs are the worst in mud. With snow this is good because snow gets good traction on snow (think snow ball!). Snow also gets good traction on ice. So you want the snow to stick to your tire. Again, there is a huge thread on grooving industrial tires that goes into more detail on it.

 

[tman1020]

Taking chains on and off to drive on different parts of your lawn sounds like a pain to me. I have used chains before, when they are working right they have great traction but for me it seemed I was always having to adjust or repair them. Plus they can tear things up if u aren't careful. This is my first compact tractor with r4 tires they are made by Titan here in USA and seem like a nice compromise and would choose them again. Everyone's soil is different but for the most part if it's wet stay off the manicured lawn no matter what tire unless it's a small lawn mower. Personally i have never wished for turfs when I had something more aggressive but have wished for more aggressive when I had turfs. But that's what makes the world go around everyone's different.

 

[jenkinsph]

Did a little reading on the MF 1734E this morning and looks to be a nice little economy tractor. I like the three range hydro and consider this a plus. The narrow width is good about 52 inches+ but the wheelbase is longer than expected at 68 inches. It has a transmission driven pto instead of independent so a clutch pedal is used to disengage/engage the rear pto. No mid pto offered. Single brake pedal on right with treadle pedal so no split brakes for steering corrections while using the loader. It does have slightly better hydraulic flow than some of the other tractors such as the Deere 3032E which are very similar in build.

For fel work without split brakes this tractor will be difficult to work with unless the ground is dry. The 68 inch wheelbase is rather long for a small tractor resulting in wider radius turns. This tractor would be better suited for work in open areas than a more confined suburban lot with trees and plantings. This tractor is not well suited for mowing a lawn with trees and other obstacles which I suspect will be the primary need of the OP. It also isn't well suited for fel work, without split brakes you cant back drag the fel very far before you need to stop and correct your heading. Driving forward with the fel bucket down with turf tires would be even more difficult to steer. While chains will help somewhat with steering putting them on and taking them off to change between mowing and landscape work will get old real fast.

On a limited budget I would much prefer to have a slightly smaller tractor with better features than a larger tractor with these handling issues. A smaller properly equipped scut will take less time to mow a typical lawn with trees and plantings. A zero turn or all wheel steer will mow much faster and closer to edges resulting in less trimming work. Between the trimming work and the chains I suspect this will result in an unhappy user after a few seasons.

I would recommend that most consumers buy what will work the best for 90% of their needs, the remaining work 10% you deal with best you can.

 

[gladehound]

Did a little reading on the MF 1734E this morning and looks to be a nice little economy tractor. I like the three range hydro and consider this a plus. The narrow width is good about 52 inches+ but the wheelbase is longer than expected at 68 inches. It has a transmission driven pto instead of independent so a clutch pedal is used to disengage/engage the rear pto. No mid pto offered. Single brake pedal on right with treadle pedal so no split brakes for steering corrections while using the loader. It does have slightly better hydraulic flow than some of the other tractors such as the Deere 3032E which are very similar in build.

For fel work without split brakes this tractor will be difficult to work with unless the ground is dry. The 68 inch wheelbase is rather long for a small tractor resulting in wider radius turns. This tractor would be better suited for work in open areas than a more confined suburban lot with trees and plantings. This tractor is not well suited for mowing a lawn with trees and other obstacles which I suspect will be the primary need of the OP. It also isn't well suited for fel work, without split brakes you cant back drag the fel very far before you need to stop and correct your heading. Driving forward with the fel bucket down with turf tires would be even more difficult to steer. While chains will help somewhat with steering putting them on and taking them off to change between mowing and landscape work will get old real fast.

On a limited budget I would much prefer to have a slightly smaller tractor with better features than a larger tractor with these handling issues. A smaller properly equipped scut will take less time to mow a typical lawn with trees and plantings. A zero turn or all wheel steer will mow much faster and closer to edges resulting in less trimming work. Between the trimming work and the chains I suspect this will result in an unhappy user after a few seasons.

I would recommend that most consumers buy what will work the best for 90% of their needs, the remaining work 10% you deal with best you can.

Very well said. My wheelbase is longer and I have no problems with loader work / steering and rarely (but sometimes) use the split brakes. I wouldn't dream of mowing my lawn with my tractor!

Would be interested to know how many hours a year the OP expects to work in the woods, move snow, mow etc. The OP seems dead set on doing something that few recommend - that is use the same tractor for the lawn and woods work. I also have no idea what type of woods work the OP expects to do. A lot can be done with a tractor for the size the OP has landed on. However, he is bound to be disappointed because 1400 pounds of breakout isn't really enough to uproot a lot of the stuff the grows in the woods. And as you mentioned this tractor isn't really suited for the lawn. has the OP landed on something too small for forestry and too big for the lawn? Maybe. But I've seen a lot of ~30 hp tractors with turfs mowing lawns and I certainly did a lot of work in the woods with my 19 hp CUT (although the lack of loader breakout force at 1600 pounds was indeed frustrating, my current ~4,000 pounds of loader breakout force is a dream by comparison yet it is still easy to find the limits in the woods).

I suspect that 90% of the OP's time will be lawn mowing. As such, a nice zero turn or front mount mower should be the first priority. A used small skid steer or larger used loader tractor, or just renting when needed should be considered for the other tasks.

Here's an example of my uses and tools for it in case this is in any way helpful. I try to have the right tool for things I do a lot but also am very economically minded and like things that are multi-purpose (i.e. rear hydraulic angle blade instead of more single purpose front snow blade):
40 hrs / year mowing - Used commercial Exmark Laser Z 52" (was 80 hrs per year with residential unit)
20 - 40 hrs / year moving snow on 6 properties - Kioti DS4510HS Loader snow bucket / hydraulic angle back blade
15 hours / year splitting wood - stand alone 22 hp splitter (own 25% share, we pass it around)
30-50 hours / year storm clean up, clearing new areas of woods, tearing out stumps and rocks, wood gathering, landscaping / construction - Kioti DS4510HS Loader tooth bucket, forks, stump bucket / hydraulic angle back blade
5 hours / year of hay rides - Kioti DS4510HS + trailer
4 hours per year maintaining 5000 square foot gravel drive (my kids tear it up a lot with buggy) - Kioti DS4510HS w/ hydraulic angle back blade
Post holes - once and done - Joint purchase 3pt digger with friend who need holes also - $400 out of pocket.

 

[windy acers]

JUST LOOK IN CRAIGS LIST FOR A USED MASSEY FERGISION 135 DEISEL (35 HP) AND BE DONE WITH IT. IF IT NEES REPAIR GO TO YOU TUBE AND FIGURE IT OUT FOR YOURSELF.

 

[gladehound]

JUST LOOK IN CRAIGS LIST FOR A USED MASSEY FERGISION 135 DEISEL (35 HP) AND BE DONE WITH IT. IF IT NEES REPAIR GO TO YOU TUBE AND FIGURE IT OUT FOR YOURSELF.

I love when others say what I want to say!

 

[Ooklaa]

I appreciate everything being told. I'm not going to into the woods like a atv, but I also want something a little stronger then what the scut are offering. Their is some tight manuvering and I will have some thinking to do with the bigger machine. Not everything is perfect, 2 machine is not a go. Rather go buy a new riding lawn mower to replace my d125 and rent skid steer to do my cleaning work. I would estimate spending at least 4-6 grand renting machines to clean up my yard. Which still leaves me with no machine to do any other projects my future brings.

You guys have valid points but I'm. But I'm the type of guy he says well I want a sports car but need a family car. Well not gonna buy 2 cars. I'm be happy with my Volvo v70r 300 horsepower wagon. It's the best of both worlds combined. By far not the best sports car, propably a better family car. But for way better then having 2 cars.

 

[TJP89]

I think the MF will do just fine. I don't think you'll have anything to big to handle, and it should be able to get into some tight spots, as long as it has HST, which I assume it does.

On tires, I'd go turfs. You are going to be on the lawn most of the time, and they will work fine in the woods for the little use you have back there. I used my little craftsman lawn tractor in the woods for years, never punctured one of the turfs on that. However, 4WD is a must, but I'm guessing you have that too. the tractor even with turfs will be hard on the lawn, R4s and R1s would really do it in. I have R1s and I can't go on the lawn with the CK unless it's bone dry. That's OK, because I have two dedicated mowing machines to go on the lawn with.

I will say you might want to eventually plan on getting a lawn tractor or small zero turn, as the MF will not be the ideal mower. Those are only a few grand, and a good chunk of that would be covered by selling the RFM. Not of course an immediate thought, but don't lock out the idea of having a second machine down the road. And keep the old mower too, it will come in handy, especially for tight areas.

 

[AxleHub]

You guys have valid points but I'm. But I'm the type of guy he says well I want a sports car but need a family car. Well not gonna buy 2 cars. I'm be happy with my Volvo v70r 300 horsepower wagon. It's the best of both worlds combined. By far not the best sports car, propably a better family car. But for way better then having 2 cars.

Just the kind of attitude you need Nikko. Far too many times posters want to fit rookies into equipment that worked for the poster's needs instead of what works for the rookie's needs.

That doesn't mean you can't learn from them or consider new ideas . . . but the fact is over several years some were telling me what I should get . . but never once stood on my land, never once looked at my skills in person or saw my checkbook or knew how I would use the tractor. Some just wanted me to fit into what had worked for them . . Not for me.

TBN is a great forum . . but opinions don't neccessarily equal wisdom.

Don't be afraid to consider and reconsider your choices. Here's a hint: Have your wife along when you go back to look at the Massey and also show her one or two other units you considered. Get the salesmen away away away from you and then you "teach her" about each of the 2 or 3 different units and let her ask you questions. Take it from me . . the teacher "always" learns more than the student . . plus she's involved in the process too. You'll be surprised how much you learn when you are teaching about 2 or 3 different machine sizes/choices.