bobsaccamano41
New member
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2020
- Messages
- 8
- Tractor
- 2020 Massey GC 1725E
Hey everyone:
New to the forum here, and new to the world of tractors. I'm in the market for a compact/subcompact tractor for various landscaping, grading, gravel spreading/road maintenance, ditch work and possibly drainage installation in my yard.
First, a little background about what I need from the tractor:
My wife and I just moved into out new construction home back in January. The house sits on a lot just over 8.5 acres, with a little more than half of that being wooded. With the exception of my front yard, the majority of the lot is hilly, with some sections in the back getting as steep as 30-35 degree slope.
The soil is red clay, and there are still a large amount of rocks strewn about the yard (mostly in the front and side yard), that, despite my best efforts, I just have not been able to get out. Also, my contractor did kind of a crappy job grading the land prior to us moving in.
So what I'm going to need this thing to do, and the implements/attachments I need:
1. Mowing - The primary use of the tractor is going to be mowing. I have about 2.5 to 3 acres that I mow. The rest that isn't wooded I let a neighbor bale for hay. As I stated, much of the mowing is going up and down slopes. While most are manageable, albeit long, there are a couple of spots that I cannot get with my little poulan pro riding mower. Right now, my mower has a 42 inch deck, and it takes me every bit of 5 hours to mow, weed eat, and blow off of the driveway and sidewalks each time I mow. So a 60 inch mowing deck is must.
2. Grading/Leveling - In addition to the general driveway and road upkeep, I also need to do some significant grading on my lot. We have underground power lines that run through my side and front yard, and the contractors did a crappy job of smoothing that out. They did a similarly crappy job in smoothing out the land where my water lines from my well are buried. In addition, I've got some humps, and just general uneven, choppy ground in some spots that need to be levelled and smoothed out. I also have a drive way that is paved to 50 feet, but have about 20 feet graveled. I also have a long gravel right of way that is used by myself, and my four neighbors that I also would like to help with upkeep (spreading gravel when needed, removing crowns, etc.). So in this respect, a box blade/box scraper, and front loader are musts.
3. Cleaning up ditches/installing drainage system: I've got a ditch that runs along the road in front of my house that needs some work, and will likely require regular attention to keep it clean and doing its job. I'd also like to improve it a little as well. My house sits on a property that used to be an old golf course out in the country and there are still some remnants of cart paths in my yard that I need to bust up and get out of there as well. In addition, I'm having some drainage issues - my grass hasn't come in all that great and with the red clay and certain grading deficiencies from the contractor, the water is running into areas that I don't want it to run. So in the future, if my own grading and leveling doesn't correct that, I may be installing some drainage basins and drain lines over the hill to address this. So for this, a backhoe would be nice, but it's not something I necessarily need at the moment. If the price is right, however, I'll definitely grab it.
4. Miscellaneous Work Around The Property - In addition to all of this, I'll also be using the tractor for some general tractor use endeavors. hauling rocks/wood, tilling my garden, etc. I'm not planning on grabbing a tiller right away, as I can borrow a family members for the time being so long as the tractor I get has a 3 point hitch.
As far as the tractors I'm considering:
1. John Deere 2025R
2. Kubota BX23S OR the BX 2380
3. Mahindra eMax 22L
4. Massey 1526 OR the GC 1725.
Right now, I've got my local Massey dealer working up a price on the two Massey tractors. And if they come back within my budget, I'd say the 1526 is probably the one I'm leaning towards at this point. A little bigger than what I probably need, but I'd rather have a little more juice than not enough.
While the price of the Kubota BX23s is tempting, I just don't think there's enough weight to it and I'd be worried about how it would handle the hills. Also, it looks like the tires on those are a little smaller than what they should be (but again, I'm new to the tractor world so just an observation based on really nothing). From my understanding, the BX 2380 is basically the same thing as the 23s, just without the loader/mower/backhoe package. Also, the Kubota Dealer said that the three point hitch doesn't come with the 23S. I've looked into this and maybe I misunderstood him, but that seems strange.
The John Deere 2025R seems to check all of my boxes, but I've also heard some mixed reviews about reliability. Three of my neighbors have new 2025R's and have nothing but positive things to say about them, and I even hopped on one of them and mowed a little in it and it was really nice. The problem with the 2025s is that I cannot find anywhere that has them in stock. According to my local dealer, it could be until October before they get any back in stock. This is a problem because I'd like to get the grading issues and all this other stuff sorted out before the weather starts to change. With a 1 year old and a 4 year old who are constantly running all over the place, I don't want to have to spend days at a time on the tractor getting all of this done before we start getting crappy weather. So the sooner I can get my hands on the tractor, the better.
Finally, the Mahindra is another one that has caught my eye, and I really like it. It's a little lighter than the 2025r, and has a little less horsepower, but I think that it would work great for what I need it for.
Right now, I'm leaning towards the Massey as my number 1 choice, followed by the Mahindra, then the JD, and lastly the Kubota.
Again, I've got to this point with nothing more than just reading, comparing and looking at pricing, etc. My wife's grandfather swears by Massey, but I've also spoken to several that swear by any one of the other tractors.
Some final thoughts - one of the other big bonuses for the Massey and Mahindra is that they have 84 month zero percent financing. While I hate to finance stuff, my wife and I just recently paid off our house so I don't have a whole lot of money sitting in the bank to throw at a tractor. So the flexibility with an 84 month zero percent loan is big. The Massey seems to check all of the boxes that I have - as does the John Deere - the difference is the possibility of lower monthly payments (although more of them), as opposed to the JD, and the Massey is in stock at my local dealer. The Mahindra is in the same boat, the only knock in my opinion is the fact that it is a little less in the horsepower department (which I'm not sure would make much of a difference). It's also a bonus that the Massey, like the JD has individual forward and reverse pedals.
So that's where I'm at. If anyone could offer any advice, talk me out of any of them or talk me into any of them, I'd greatly appreciate it!
Thanks!
Bill
New to the forum here, and new to the world of tractors. I'm in the market for a compact/subcompact tractor for various landscaping, grading, gravel spreading/road maintenance, ditch work and possibly drainage installation in my yard.
First, a little background about what I need from the tractor:
My wife and I just moved into out new construction home back in January. The house sits on a lot just over 8.5 acres, with a little more than half of that being wooded. With the exception of my front yard, the majority of the lot is hilly, with some sections in the back getting as steep as 30-35 degree slope.
The soil is red clay, and there are still a large amount of rocks strewn about the yard (mostly in the front and side yard), that, despite my best efforts, I just have not been able to get out. Also, my contractor did kind of a crappy job grading the land prior to us moving in.
So what I'm going to need this thing to do, and the implements/attachments I need:
1. Mowing - The primary use of the tractor is going to be mowing. I have about 2.5 to 3 acres that I mow. The rest that isn't wooded I let a neighbor bale for hay. As I stated, much of the mowing is going up and down slopes. While most are manageable, albeit long, there are a couple of spots that I cannot get with my little poulan pro riding mower. Right now, my mower has a 42 inch deck, and it takes me every bit of 5 hours to mow, weed eat, and blow off of the driveway and sidewalks each time I mow. So a 60 inch mowing deck is must.
2. Grading/Leveling - In addition to the general driveway and road upkeep, I also need to do some significant grading on my lot. We have underground power lines that run through my side and front yard, and the contractors did a crappy job of smoothing that out. They did a similarly crappy job in smoothing out the land where my water lines from my well are buried. In addition, I've got some humps, and just general uneven, choppy ground in some spots that need to be levelled and smoothed out. I also have a drive way that is paved to 50 feet, but have about 20 feet graveled. I also have a long gravel right of way that is used by myself, and my four neighbors that I also would like to help with upkeep (spreading gravel when needed, removing crowns, etc.). So in this respect, a box blade/box scraper, and front loader are musts.
3. Cleaning up ditches/installing drainage system: I've got a ditch that runs along the road in front of my house that needs some work, and will likely require regular attention to keep it clean and doing its job. I'd also like to improve it a little as well. My house sits on a property that used to be an old golf course out in the country and there are still some remnants of cart paths in my yard that I need to bust up and get out of there as well. In addition, I'm having some drainage issues - my grass hasn't come in all that great and with the red clay and certain grading deficiencies from the contractor, the water is running into areas that I don't want it to run. So in the future, if my own grading and leveling doesn't correct that, I may be installing some drainage basins and drain lines over the hill to address this. So for this, a backhoe would be nice, but it's not something I necessarily need at the moment. If the price is right, however, I'll definitely grab it.
4. Miscellaneous Work Around The Property - In addition to all of this, I'll also be using the tractor for some general tractor use endeavors. hauling rocks/wood, tilling my garden, etc. I'm not planning on grabbing a tiller right away, as I can borrow a family members for the time being so long as the tractor I get has a 3 point hitch.
As far as the tractors I'm considering:
1. John Deere 2025R
2. Kubota BX23S OR the BX 2380
3. Mahindra eMax 22L
4. Massey 1526 OR the GC 1725.
Right now, I've got my local Massey dealer working up a price on the two Massey tractors. And if they come back within my budget, I'd say the 1526 is probably the one I'm leaning towards at this point. A little bigger than what I probably need, but I'd rather have a little more juice than not enough.
While the price of the Kubota BX23s is tempting, I just don't think there's enough weight to it and I'd be worried about how it would handle the hills. Also, it looks like the tires on those are a little smaller than what they should be (but again, I'm new to the tractor world so just an observation based on really nothing). From my understanding, the BX 2380 is basically the same thing as the 23s, just without the loader/mower/backhoe package. Also, the Kubota Dealer said that the three point hitch doesn't come with the 23S. I've looked into this and maybe I misunderstood him, but that seems strange.
The John Deere 2025R seems to check all of my boxes, but I've also heard some mixed reviews about reliability. Three of my neighbors have new 2025R's and have nothing but positive things to say about them, and I even hopped on one of them and mowed a little in it and it was really nice. The problem with the 2025s is that I cannot find anywhere that has them in stock. According to my local dealer, it could be until October before they get any back in stock. This is a problem because I'd like to get the grading issues and all this other stuff sorted out before the weather starts to change. With a 1 year old and a 4 year old who are constantly running all over the place, I don't want to have to spend days at a time on the tractor getting all of this done before we start getting crappy weather. So the sooner I can get my hands on the tractor, the better.
Finally, the Mahindra is another one that has caught my eye, and I really like it. It's a little lighter than the 2025r, and has a little less horsepower, but I think that it would work great for what I need it for.
Right now, I'm leaning towards the Massey as my number 1 choice, followed by the Mahindra, then the JD, and lastly the Kubota.
Again, I've got to this point with nothing more than just reading, comparing and looking at pricing, etc. My wife's grandfather swears by Massey, but I've also spoken to several that swear by any one of the other tractors.
Some final thoughts - one of the other big bonuses for the Massey and Mahindra is that they have 84 month zero percent financing. While I hate to finance stuff, my wife and I just recently paid off our house so I don't have a whole lot of money sitting in the bank to throw at a tractor. So the flexibility with an 84 month zero percent loan is big. The Massey seems to check all of the boxes that I have - as does the John Deere - the difference is the possibility of lower monthly payments (although more of them), as opposed to the JD, and the Massey is in stock at my local dealer. The Mahindra is in the same boat, the only knock in my opinion is the fact that it is a little less in the horsepower department (which I'm not sure would make much of a difference). It's also a bonus that the Massey, like the JD has individual forward and reverse pedals.
So that's where I'm at. If anyone could offer any advice, talk me out of any of them or talk me into any of them, I'd greatly appreciate it!
Thanks!
Bill
