Buying Advice Questions about potential purchase, not sure where to start

[rumwrks]

What are your thoughts on a tractor versus skid steer?

Both are good of course if you have unlimited money.... There are more low cost implements for a tractor and it's a lot easier to find them used, and tractors are generally cheaper to run and fix as well.

Skid steers have more hydraulic flow and pushing/lifting power so they can run some implements a tractor can't easily (I'm generalizing a bit here..) but things like a heavy forestry shredder on the front end of a skid steer is just going to work better/faster than a comparable tractor implement. And yes your dad is right you can push more dirt and lift more weight with a skid steer.. but again .. does that actually matter for your use case. Skid steers are also more agile, which can be pretty useful for things like cleaning stalls (until someone gets the thing somehow stuck in a stall so bad you have to take apart half the barn to get it out... but i digress..).

If you needed to push in small roads, or move a lot of material.. then.. a skid steer might make sense. But from what usage you've described the cost/benefit tradeoff is more towards a tractor.

brush hog versus flail mower

Again it's all trade offs.. The flail will leave a nicer cut path in grass areas, doesn't take as much room/stick out as far behind the tractor, and technically you can usually get a touch wider cut with the same HP, you can also get one that will offset a bit to the side of the tractor which is nice for fence lines. OTOH brush hogs are tough as hell (at least the good ones), pretty simple and generally fairly cheap to maintain (new blades are cheaper anyway... and you can sharpen them a few times as well..) and you could get a good one used on marketplace or craigslist for under a grand in the size you'd want. I rarely see used flail mowers, basically never small ones especially (there are some ag sized ones I've seen which whooo $$$$$), and a new one is $3k+. I think brush hogs are a little more forgiving in rough terrain as well. So.. yeah.. "it depends on budget and use case".... For you... probably a 48" brush hog and you're good to go.. or maybe a small flail mower . Look for one with lots of cross bracing, thick metal, and a decent looking gearbox.

question about brambles

Once you have a tractor you can start wrapping a chain around them and ripping them out. Then once the young delicious shoots come up in the spring put some goats on them.... then you'll spend all your time chasing after and yelling at the goats and will forget about the brambles entirely...

 

[rScotty]

What are your thoughts on a tractor versus skid steer?

In addition, what is your position on a brush hog versus flail mower - another distinction that my dad asserted was better - and I didn't have enough information to refute other than a brush hog was the implement that was always used when it was cleared.

Thank you everyone for the insight and discussion. I'm reading through everything that is being posted and am learning so much!

This is an old, old argument. Skid steers have their uses, but don't even start to go there. Stick with your original plan.

Understandably, you will want some reasons....OK, just to start, they are made for different jobs. Skid steers are made for work on the flat and with a helper. That is why you see them being used for road repair. Tractors are for fields and with one person doing the work.

Skid steers will lift more for their size, but they aren't any more stable....and stability is what limits either one. Besides, most any 30 hp tractor will lift and walk away with a ton in the bucket. What do you expect to be carrying??

More: Instead of sitting above a towed implement like a tractor does, a skid steer has the implement in front at face level and being pushed. That means that skid steer operators are always driving into a cloud of their own making that a tractor is leaving behind.
You don't realize it yet, but you will be on and off of the tractor more than you can believe until you run one for chores.
Tractors are made for easy access; skid steers involve climbing over the loader to get to the seat.

In use, a tractor's longer wheel base and having weight distributed at the ends instead of the middle mean it does far less pitching motion on rough terrain.
Skid steers in your price range do not usually have a 3pt hitch or a PTO or extra low gearing - all those things are essential.... not to mention the ride and the seat comfort.
Then there is the price difference or how hard it is to find a good one. That is easy for used tractors; but close to impossible for used skid steers. And SS implements cost double or more.

On bush hogs vs flail mowers I don't know. I've always used bush hogs. A five foot bush hog is standard and good used ones cost a thousand or two. You can generally sell one for what you pay if buying used. The nice thing about used 3pt mplements for tractors is there are lots out there and most will work even if they look rough. So try both if you can, but I bet you'll end up with a bush hog for dealing with vines like brambles.

Back to the tractor vs skid steers and mowing, here is something to think about: Mowing with a bush hog or flail means that debris from golf balls to bottles to rocks and parts of branches gets hurled in all directions and without warning. Some of it always escapes & can be slung clear out of sight in a hurry. In a tractor you tend ot sit above the line of fire....

Good luck,
rScotty

 

[California]

Fattylumpkins, listen to rScotty. His relevant experience goes back many decades. I've learned a lot from him.

 

[WayneGasMan]

Hi All, been following these forums for quite a while - always good to great advice. My 2 cents worth for this lady is - if you get a bucket, (who wouldn't?), get a 4in1!! I run a little old Kubota L1500 DT with a 4in1, and even though operation is slow, it is very handy. My main helper is an Australian Kanga miniloader with a 4in1 (and several other attachments). The 4in1 bucket is many more times more useful than a standard loader bucket. I can do things that I'm sure Kanga didn't envisage. Find some Youtube videos and you will see what I mean. Best wishes and good luck.

 

[Soloz2]

For your use case I think a subcompact like a BX or 1 series JD will be perfect, but u might want to look up a size or two just to get a feel for size. Tractors are directly capable to their size and weight. The heavier they are the more muscle they have for projects like moving dirt, pulling bushes out of the ground etc.

For moving wood, what is the form of this wood? This was one of my primary purposes for buying my Kubota B2601 and I got a 3rd function and grapple for it, but honestly if you are moving cut rounds or split wood the bucket is easier. If you need to move piles of brush or logs then the grapple is worth its weight in gold! So if you can easily cut the wood into smaller sizes for moving you won’t need a grapple.

Brush hog is one any of them can do. HP and machine size will dictate how wide you can go. Most will run a 4-5’ wide brush hog or flail mower, but your dealer will help you out with this. I would want a bit more power than you think you need for cutting thick or wet stuff, but going slow any will suffice.

A subcompact can till and move around dirt, but especially when moving dirt the larger machine will do it significantly quicker and easier. My B series will lose traction trying to dig into root filled dirt, where an L would probably cut through a lot easier.

Pallet forks are something to consider. Any time I have to get something large or heavy, I throw a pallet in the back of my truck and then just lift the pallet out with my tractor so I don’t have to move everything twice!

Will you need to move snow? It can be done with the bucket, but it’s a pita. I did that and now have a snow pusher on order.

Try both machines out. Distance to the dealer is less an issue than actual service. Near me JD is the closest followed by LS then MF and it goes outward. I shopped all the brands except LS as I bought my cub cadet from that dealer and will never go back lol. I bought a Kubota as they were the best dealer and I have no concerns about sending my wife to grab something from them.

 

[WinterDeere]

...get a 4in1!! I run a little old Kubota L1500 DT with a 4in1, and even though operation is slow, it is very handy.

Aren't 4-in-1's pretty heavy, when mounting on machines that only have ~600 lb. lift at the wrists? They also require a 3rd remote channel plumbed up to the end of the loader, something not common to sub-compact tractors, especially if shopping used.

Not saying it's not an option, or even a good one, just factors to consider.

 

[macdoesit]

Any tractor other than JD, they are moving to Mexico, that means JD employees out of a job and cheap Mexican labor. I'll never own a JD.

 

[skiff]

I currently have a BX23S and a Massey GC2400. Both with front end loaders and Kubota has a small backhoe. Also have 3-point rototiller which I use a couple of times a year. Had a Kubota B2150 which I used for a 5-acre horse property in the past with pretty much every attachment. I sold it as a package when I moved from VA to NC. Both the Kubotas and Massey have been good to me.

One recommendation which I dont think has been made is to give consideration to getting attachments on/off. They are heavy and can be difficult to maneuver. All manufacturers make quick connect devices which make things much easier. But that doesn't mean they are easy. For example, I have a drive over mid mount mower on my BX and it can be a bit finicky. The standard BX front-end loader is very tricky to get on and off. You should try them at the dealer.

Also I'd recommend hydrostatic (basically automatic) versus geared tractor. As far as size, a BX frame will do everything you need. The implements are smaller (4' bush hog versus 5') so jobs just take a bit longer. But smaller is sometimes also better for some jobs such as mowing.

Also consider maintenance. Keeping fluids changed at recommended intervals is key to tractor longevity. None of the routine maintenance is difficult to do but if you are not inclined to do it yourself then you may want a means to get the tractor to the dealer.

 

[Runner]

For your use case I think a subcompact like a BX or 1 series JD will be perfect, but u might want to look up a size or two just to get a feel for size. Tractors are directly capable to their size and weight. The heavier they are the more muscle they have for projects like moving dirt, pulling bushes out of the ground etc.

For moving wood, what is the form of this wood? This was one of my primary purposes for buying my Kubota B2601 and I got a 3rd function and grapple for it, but honestly if you are moving cut rounds or split wood the bucket is easier. If you need to move piles of brush or logs then the grapple is worth its weight in gold! So if you can easily cut the wood into smaller sizes for moving you won’t need a grapple.

Brush hog is one any of them can do. HP and machine size will dictate how wide you can go. Most will run a 4-5’ wide brush hog or flail mower, but your dealer will help you out with this. I would want a bit more power than you think you need for cutting thick or wet stuff, but going slow any will suffice.

A subcompact can till and move around dirt, but especially when moving dirt the larger machine will do it significantly quicker and easier. My B series will lose traction trying to dig into root filled dirt, where an L would probably cut through a lot easier.

Pallet forks are something to consider. Any time I have to get something large or heavy, I throw a pallet in the back of my truck and then just lift the pallet out with my tractor so I don’t have to move everything twice!

Will you need to move snow? It can be done with the bucket, but it’s a pita. I did that and now have a snow pusher on order.

Try both machines out. Distance to the dealer is less an issue than actual service. Near me JD is the closest followed by LS then MF and it goes outward. I shopped all the brands except LS as I bought my cub cadet from that dealer and will never go back lol. I bought a Kubota as they were the best dealer and I have no concerns about sending my wife to grab something from them.

Although I (sort of) recommended looking at a JD 1025R or whatever the current subcompact from them is, I have to say that I do have one reservation about this:

I don't know if this is a recurring problem or not, but I seem to remember some folks with that model on here having problems with the rear PTO's breaking while running a rotary cutter (brush hog). This was years ago, and I don't even know how widespread this was, but it's always been in the back of my mind about that model and one reason I'm glad I went with the next size up for our property.

Again, not meaning to talk down the JD subcompact, because I like the idea of using one on smaller property, but that one issue has always stayed in my mind.

Don't remember ever hearing of such problems with the Kubota BX series.

 

[GeneSimm7]

John Deere and Kubota are both great tractors. If you get a backhoe be sure to get it with a thumb. Get 4-wheel drive. Get loaded tires. A cab is a nice luxury if you expect to use in very hot or cold weather.. Of course get a loader. Finally, decide what is the maximum/heaviest tractor you can afford and then buy the next larger one.