Looking for my First Tractor

[rademamj1]

Do the turf tires handle soft ground and/or mud well? I do have several very steep slopes, not sure how well the turf tires do on steep terrain?

I have a riding lawn mower for the front yard, didn't think the R4 tires would be too bad on the ditches and fields. How much "damage" do you see form the R4's?

Yes turf tires handle soft ground, grass, snow and a little mud. No tires handle a lot of mud. They also do surprisingly well on slopes and light loader work. I was just recommending you consider the R3 turf. You can read the previous threads on R3 turf vs R4 industrial.

I went with R4 industrial tires for my 1st tractor. I have spent many hours each year repairing the damage these tires do to the ground, mainly during use in the spring time.

My recommendation for R3 turf was based on your first post, which included mainly field tilling, mowing and some light loader work. Dominately heavy loader work using pallet forks to move heavy totes around for chicken farm operations. For that type of work the R4 industrial excels.

 

[ericm979]

My land is steep- avg slope is 33%. The 20/25 series come with three different sets of wheels and tires, of slightly different sizes. The 3725 normally comes with the middle set. I got mine with the smaller ones that I think come on the 3520 and 3020. The idea being to lower the CG a bit. It was Dave's suggestion. And Dave's added 2" spacers on the rear. I went with R4s as they're broad and flat, which makes them more stable on side slopes as long as the tread is not sliding sideways of course. Our soil's sandy and drains well even though we get a lot of rain, so there's rarely mud.

The larger frame 20 series will handle a 2000lb tote better than the smaller lighter 15 series. Mine handles it ok but I can feel that there's a lot of weight out there.

Branson's DPF works well for most users. A few in cold areas who run their tractor at low rpms have had problems with the DPF eventually clogging. It needs to get hot enough often enough to stay clean. For most, normal use does that. If you have to, it's easy to replace the DPF with a muffler. There's no ECU to hack.

 

[rScotty]

I recommend that you rent one of those tractors for a week. Use it for a few hours each evening and see how it works on your land. If you don't learn something important to you that you haven't even thought of yet I'd be surprised. My bet is that you will learn enough to save the rental fee. Use it normally, they aren't fragile. But do return it better than you got it.

If the dealer has one that is used, you might even get him to deduct the rent from the price if you buy it.
There is nothing at all wrong with looking at low hour used tractors.
Right now I see you spending a lot of money for something that you don't know much about. You need to fix that.
For instance, turf tires are a big dollar adder. They work well on our land. Comfortable ride and gentle on the land. But do they work that well on yours?
If they argue that you might damage their used tractor, that alone will tell you a lot about both their product and something about the dealership.

Spend a week of evenings with one. Frankly I'd start simple. Just driving it around your property & moving some rocks and picking up slash will teach you lots. No need to work it hard, just get accustomed to how it works.

Someone mentioned Dave's; IMHO that would be a good place to start.
rScotty

 

[chim]

Many of us fall into the trap of recommending what works best for us on our land. I do it a lot myself.

rScotty's advice of trying something on your land would be ideal.

 

[camsoup02]

I recommend that you rent one of those tractors for a week. Use it for a few hours each evening and see how it works on your land. If you don't learn something important to you that you haven't even thought of yet I'd be surprised. My bet is that you will learn enough to save the rental fee. Use it normally, they aren't fragile. But do return it better than you got it.

If the dealer has one that is used, you might even get him to deduct the rent from the price if you buy it.
There is nothing at all wrong with looking at low hour used tractors.
Right now I see you spending a lot of money for something that you don't know much about. You need to fix that.
For instance, turf tires are a big dollar adder. They work well on our land. Comfortable ride and gentle on the land. But do they work that well on yours?
If they argue that you might damage their used tractor, that alone will tell you a lot about both their product and something about the dealership.

Spend a week of evenings with one. Frankly I'd start simple. Just driving it around your property & moving some rocks and picking up slash will teach you lots. No need to work it hard, just get accustomed to how it works.

Someone mentioned Dave's; IMHO that would be a good place to start.
rScotty

This is great advice. I had not thought about this at all.

Kind of like a demo at my place, instead of in the dealers lot.

 

[LOWTECH]

Steve Heckeroth the inventor of the all electric drive tractor series is at Mendocino CA. Take a look at the CET model as it meets all your needs. Electric is more expensive to buy but at the end of the day pays for itself in energy savings, maintenance and repairs.. Solectrac Electric Tractors | United States

 

[Ortimber]

Steve Heckeroth the inventor of the all electric drive tractor series is at Mendocino CA. Take a look at the CET model as it meets all your needs. Electric is more expensive to buy but at the end of the day pays for itself in energy savings, maintenance and repairs.. Solectrac Electric Tractors | United States

Do you have one of these? The video makes the 3pt and loader performance seen very slow.

 

[LOWTECH]

I dont but a colleague of mine has the E-Utility. The loader on the e-Farmer is powered by electric actuators and yes - slower than hydraulics. The e-farmer and the CET have the same hydraulic pump out put as the other diesel brands in the 30 hp class.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

I would lean to the heavier side of the tractor chassis you've looked at.

I have the cabbed version of the same tractor Eric has. I can tell you with anything close to 2000 pounds on the loader, you're going to want every ounce of tractor weight you can get. The rest of your requirements would be easily met by any of the models you're looking at.

But 2000 pounds on a loader?

With filled rear tires and a box blade or mower on my 3 pt, my tractor weighs 7000 pounds (7100 actually). Believe me when I tell you that you feel every pound of that kind of weight carrying around on the front end of the loader.

Also, with that much weight on the loader, R4 industrial tires are your only sane choice. Keep the fronts up to near max air pressure.

And keep the load as low to the ground as you can while moving it, and be *very* careful when traversing uneven ground.

I would lean towards the 35 hp or more. You may find like Eric has, that running a wood chipper (you guys have many more burn restrictions) will make you wish for more hp.

Don't worry about the emissions at all. IF, (and only IF) it becomes a problem for you, they come right off on the Branson:

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/century-branson/409434-exhaust-mod-my-3725-a.html

 

[fried1765]

Do you have one of these? The video makes the 3pt and loader performance seen very slow.

I suspect that we are many years from electric tractors taking over the CUT market.
30 years from now..... maybe ????