What I Learned by Renting a Tractor. . .

[k0ua]

K, how many people on here use their brakes to steer?

I do. When working dirt up against a wall/foundation. or clearing ice/snow from driveway. With chains on the rear tires you can still steer with brakes. They are also useful to get unstuck when one tire is stuck and the other is on fairly solid footing, you can brake the spinning wheel and therefor apply power to the stationary one.

 

[4570Man]

I hardly ever use them on regular tractors but on my 310 and M59 the front end is pretty light and I use the split brakes pretty often.

 

[Aegis07]

I hardly ever use them on regular tractors but on my 310 and M59 the front end is pretty light and I use the split brakes pretty often.

I also find them useful if you are on ice... The front tires may not pull you around but the split brakes can definitely help swing the front end around.

 

[tradosaurus]

Greetings All. . .

I posted one of those "I'm buying my first tractor" threads some months back. I received A Lot of great advice from you folks, and I appreciate it. My wife an I are in our new home with 39 acres, and are loving it. I was blindsided by the MoneyMan in the family (my wife) once we moved in when she said, "we can't afford a tractor right now." OK, plan B began. I have rented a tractor/bush hog twice since we have been in the new house. For all those folks who give the advice to rent one for a days or a week, THAT is the best advice to give the new tractor shopper.

The tractor I rented gave me A Lot of info to understand what I liked, didn't like, need and didn't need. I found that there are not a lot of places that rent tractors/bush hogs. The ones that do, only seem to rent tractors in the 30hp range. I ended up renting a JD 3038E. I rented it the first time for one day, and the second time for one week. I have about 11 acres of pasture, 1 acre for the house and the rest trees. Here are the things I learned.

1) I need a tractor with enough HP to sufficiently handle at least a 6' rotary cutter, preferably 7' or 8'. It is a real drag mowing 11 acres with a 5' cutter.
2) I do NOT like Hydrostatic drive. Wow! ! ! Do not like the noise, or the HP loss. I am very proficient with a stick drive, and prefer it. That comes from driving one for a week. Even for a day. A test drive or two at the dealer would not have allowed me to really get the feel of that.
3) It is HOT here in Texas. It is Dusty in my pasture. I am very allergic to grass and dust. Driving that tractor with a tight mask on my face was very annoying. I would REALLY like a tractor with a cab. But that will only happen if I get a "second tier" tractor, like a TYM. I am not dead-set against a TYM, but I have been focused on Orange. Budget is certainly gonna be an issue with the "MoneyMan". I most likely will have to continue wearing a dust mask.
4) Finally, I learned that Cup Holders on a tractor are STUPID. When I'm on the tractor, I'm working. You can only have a yeti type water container that fits snugly or it flies out of the tractor when you hit a bump. Sheeeeesh! ! !

I think biggest questions potential tractor owners have is what size tractor do I need. Rent one, and go from there. Do some work with it. It became quite evident what I needed after using the rental. And, I now have enough experience with HST to know I don't like it. I will most likely be buying a low hour used machine, so I will get as much HP as my budget will allow.

I really appreciate all the help you folks gave me with my initial post.

For all you potential tractor owners. . . RENT a tractor first. That is the best advice given on this site.

jp

I'm not too far from you. You did right renting a tractor.
I looked at your property and if you have chances of running over stumps or have uneven ground consider the protection you will need underneath the tractor to protect hydraulic filters and other vital components.
Had I known I would have bought the MX5400 instead of the L3301.
There might still be good incentives to buy new tractors. 0% for 60 months might give your the room to buy that tractor.
The cab will push your price up quite a bit but I agree that mowing in comfort without the possibility of getting stung by yellow jackets or inhaling dust is a price worth paying for a cab.

 

[grsthegreat]

Oh...my tractor has 3 cup holders..... love them. Holds radio remote, cell phone, large ARTC water drinking jug. You name it.

 

[PILOON]

I've owned 4 tractors.
Massy 20 that had a gravity bucket that I discovered was only good to scrape manure from a concrete floor.
But for the measly $100. it was fun for the short time I had it.

Next was a Ferguson that had spent its life on the docks loading salt.
That I got as a dare. I had jokingly told the service station that was selling it that I'd give him exactly what he paid for it.
As it turned out he'd divulged that info couple years earlier and my memory was accurate.
True to his word I became the new owner but hard to keep in a suburb environment.
Sold it for minor profit.

Then came a Deere 500 something, ($2000, delivered) cabbed big brute 3 cyl c/w FEL and blower and dual clutch.
Much too big to do my drive and could not climb my hill even chained as it was 2 wheel drive.
It however was a cheap buy.

Next I spotted a Mitsubishi 180D 4wd c/w FEL and blower, nice compact that was agile.
I offered $1000. + the Deere brute and we had a deal.
I DIY'd a cab, added a heater and enjoyed close to 20 years of satisfactory usage and still do.

Oh in between I've rented many backhoes for various jobs but still rely on the Mitsu for everyday chores, with snow being the main one.
From time to time I did landscape related work for clients/neighbors with the Mitsu to the point that it owed me nothing.
I made a drag to maintain my driveway, a big tooth to pluck trees, added a tooth bar to excavate/ load material etc.

On renting, I rented a mid sized tracked digger and managed to do prepare my site to build my present home and did that over 2 days of intensive work.
Since the tracked hoe had a blade as well I basically landscaped as I dug placing rocks for walls and separating soil types as I worked in such a way that once the house was built I only needed to seed a lawn.
That was over 20 years ago and and no regrets.

Yes, renting from get go would have made decisions much easier but guess I like the hard way.
LOL, but it was all a fun learning curve.