Hello,
I have a 10 acre parcel in coastal BC with about 1/2 the acreage cleared. The 5 cleared acres quickly overgrows with brambles (blackberries), broom, and heavy grass. The land is undulating and gently sloped. There is almost no flat "lawn". My needs are primarily for brush and heavy grass cutting, fence mending, light tree clearing, light to medium landscaping, driveway maintenance, and general property upkeep. I outsource heavy logging or serious excavator work to locals with skills and equipment. Our local tractor dealer is Kubota. Current post Covid prices in Canadian dollars with Canadian taxes are horrifying. I am weighing a
BX23S tractor loader backhoe plus brush hog VS a B2601HSD with loader backhoe and brush hog. The bigger machine with the extras listed is over $60,000 Canadian with taxes. The
BX23S is a chunk less. Any advice or wisdom considering acreage and stated needs? Other than helping on a farm as a teenager I have no serious tractor maintenance skills (I do know how to use a grease gun)
Thanks
The "go big" vs "go small" argument always seems to be a central issue whenever someone asks advice. Some of this depends on the kind of work you want to do: you aren't going to be doing heavy duty logging with either choice you mentioned, but you also mentioned you'll be contracting out such heavier work. (However, I've seen some pretty impressive work done with an ATV, and those tractors will certainly pull more.)
A lot of this is personal preference: what is your budget, and what is your personal trade-off between spending more money (larger equipment) or more time (making more passes with smaller equipment).
I own 144 acres and manage it with a 2001, 33 HP New Holland TC33D. I brush hog several acres an several miles of trails on my own property, and grade a 1/4 mile gravel driveway. I also do some trail maintenance and mowing on another 115 acres of conserved working forest which is cooperatively owned with 15 other families in the area. However, is set up for small-scale forest management: I have a 3 pt hitch logging winch for the back, a forestry grapple for the loader, belly pan & limb risers, and a forwarding trailer (hydraulic, self loading).
For the logging work I probably should have the next frame size up and a 40-50 HP tractor. However, my current tractor can get in to places I could not with a larger tractor, so there is a trade-off. If I were starting over, I'd probably have gone up to that size, but what I have works, I just have to do my work in smaller bites.
With 10 acres, for the work you describe, between the two you mentioned, I'd be going with the
B2601. The
BX23 is a nice subcompact, but I suspect you'll outgrow fairly quickly. The small tires and lower ground clearance can be an issue. An L2502 or an L3302 might be a nice option, but I'm guessing they are a lot more $$.
For the uses you describe, anything larger sure seems like overkill to me. However, that's just my own personal trade off between $$ and time spent on a 10 acre property.
I agree with others who recommended just renting a mini excavator when needed. I bought a used backhoe (and a new subframe) for my tractor. I used it off an on initially, but just don't have much ongoing use for it. It sits gathering rust now. If you see an ongoing regular need, it might be worth considering, otherwise just save the money.
www.tractorbynet.com
