Tractor Sizing 3016 vs 3616 vs 4010

[millsan1]

Hello all. Long time lurker, second post.

I own about 15 acres in eastern PA. All heavily wooded (14" - 24" trees) and steep (25%+ grade), except for the driveway and house. Not a blade of grass to cut, thank god.

I have a lot of deadfall and brush piles from past storms, etc.

I have zero tractor experience, but using this and other sites, I am coming up to speed. I have operated backhoes and other equipment.

Projects:

Brush cleanup
Log hauling to central location for splitting, sawing, etc
Trail cutting (will be all side slope, so lots of digging)
Some excavation around the house to improve drainage, dig out an area to make a patio, etc,

I have looked around and pretty much have set my mind on a Mahindra. Looked at a bunch of tractors before coming to this decision, and did a lot of research.

I will be getting an FEL and BH.

Right now, I believe the 3016, 3616 and 4010 are my primary choices. They are adequately heavy, thinner profile and have good lifting capacity.

I do not think the Max is the right tool, given the amount of digging and trailblazing I need to do. I am sure it could do the work, but the time to do so will probably be prohibitive.

Here is what I have so far, all HST, FEL and BH all pre-negotiations:

3016 $26,500
3616 $28,000
4010 $26,000

The 3016 and 3616 are brandy dandy new.

The 4010 is a leftover, but will still qualify for new warranty etc. It has 50 hours on the clock. Dealer used it around the dealership.

I am leaning hard toward the 4010. Price, size, capacity.

My only concerns right now are that the 16 series seem to be much more popular, and the 10 does not have a mid mount attachment in case I ever want to put on a snowblower in the future.

From what I have read, the 4010 is narrower also, which is good for getting between trees, but not as good from a stability standpoint with all the side slope cutting I have to do.

So what say you, oh gurus of tractor wisdom?

 

[arrow]

Far from a guru but I can give you my 2 pennies as I use a 3016 for logging and snow removal. If you put a 4010 next to a 16 series, it will dwarf the 16's. They use larger tires and are a bit wider as a result. I cannot fathom how Mahindra takes measurements but you can see with your own eyes the size difference. A 25% slope is 1/4 of 45* angle. Not too bad but I have these degrees at my place and would never consider a load of any sort in the fel. or the 3 pt. traveling sideways on these slopes. You may want to explore getting a logging winch if stem gathering becomes prevalent.
The 30 and 36 are the exact same frame. I believe the extra hp on the 36 aides in pto driven equipment and hydrostatic drive. The 3016 gear I have digs virgin soil very well especially with a tooth bar which i would consider getting if you are doing cuts. As you cut, grade degrees become less of a factor as you create "flat land" for the tractor to travel on. I am also leaning toward the 4010 and price has little to do with it. I simply think it is a stronger machine. One thing to look at on the 4010. If you look underneath, there is a "protrusion" right before the rear axle that looks like a 3/8" screw hanging down. I don't know why it's there but I would look to fabricate a plate of some sort to protect this area of the tractor that looks like it could get damaged quite easily in the forest.
A snow blower is a consideration if you are having to remove snow with few "dumping" areas on your property. I use a snow pusher fabricated to my bucket attached to logging hooks along with a rear blade. One bolt on each side and I can log when there is snow on the ground w/o the side plates. This has worked well for me to clear a 100' driveway and about an additional acre of landing area. I have areas to put snow but with snow pack approaching 3' here, I am getting concerned about where I'd put another 20" event.
Be sure the 4010 is indeed a new left over and not a return. I also purchased my tractor as a "left over" that was used around the dealership but it had only 6 hrs on it. Whatever you get, be sure to load the rear tires.

 

[dpb800]

I think you will be happy with anyone of them. However I suppose I would go for the larger tractor especially as it is priced right. I've been extremely happy with my 3616.

 

[millsan1]

Thank you for the replies. Nice looking tractors!

I think I stated the grade incorrectly. I have a 200' drop in 800'. It is pretty steep. I will def be getting other implements, including tooth bucket and grapple.

Unless the literature is wrong, the 10 is actually shorter (2") and narrower (3") than the 16. It is 10" taller, however.

My issue, as far as snow goes, is that I have 1/4 mile driveway. I currently plow, with my ATV, but it is a lot of work to make sure the drive stays open. First snow of the year, I plow 2 feet wide of the drive to make sure I have room all season long.

Thanks for the heads up on the weak spot, will def look at that.

 

[arrow]

No, you stated the "percentage" correctly (200/800) is a 25% grade. When i took a ruler to the identical size tires on the 4010 and 3616 (43's) the tires on the 10 were larger even though the number sizes on the tires were identical. I couldn't figure that one out. Mahindra states my bucket drop is supposed to be 2.4 seconds. In actuality it is over 7 seconds. I take all of their measurements with a grain of salt. None the less, let's give Mahindra the benefit of the doubt. The size differentials mentioned will not make a wit of difference in the woods. The bucket on the 4010 I saw was 72". The bucket on the 16's were 60". That can make a difference. You want a narrower implement on the front for woods travel. The best implement for long drive snow runs is a plow as long as you have some place to put the windrows. The difference with plowing with a 4010 measured against an ATV will be rather staggering.

 

[bajabum]

Any of them Tier 3?
That could save you some $$$ in the future.

 

[millsan1]

Any of them Tier 3?
That could save you some $$$ in the future.

Yes, they are all tier 3.

 

[millsan1]

No, you stated the "percentage" correctly (200/800) is a 25% grade. When i took a ruler to the identical size tires on the 4010 and 3616 (43's) the tires on the 10 were larger even though the number sizes on the tires were identical. I couldn't figure that one out. Mahindra states my bucket drop is supposed to be 2.4 seconds. In actuality it is over 7 seconds. I take all of their measurements with a grain of salt. None the less, let's give Mahindra the benefit of the doubt. The size differentials mentioned will not make a wit of difference in the woods. The bucket on the 4010 I saw was 72". The bucket on the 16's were 60". That can make a difference. You want a narrower implement on the front for woods travel. The best implement for long drive snow runs is a plow as long as you have some place to put the windrows. The difference with plowing with a 4010 measured against an ATV will be rather staggering.

I will be making a trip to the dealer this week and will put both machines side by side and giving each of them a run. Thank you for the info, I will definitely check out the details on these machines, in person.

 

[millsan1]

.....Whatever you get, be sure to load the rear tires.

This is one item I have not figured out yet. Can anyone give me a simple idea of what this means? I have seen it all over the place, but can't quite figure it out. I ASSUME it means putting some liquid in the tires, but not water, as that would freeze in winter and rust the rims, right?

 

[oldpilgrim]

Mahindra states my bucket drop is supposed to be 2.4 seconds. In actuality it is over 7 seconds.

When you say "bucket drop" are you referring to the main loader arms or the dump? My arms drop like a rock but the bucket curl is slower than I'd expect...not bad, very useable but just not what I hoped it would be. If I keep the rpms up to about 1800-2000, it's decent. I've never timed the main load arm drop but I suspect the 2.4 is close.

I changed my bucket out to a 66 inch. 6 inches doesn't seem like much bit it greatly increased the capacity due to it's greater depth and height. It didn't affect my ability in the woods at all and carries a lot more snow.

I found the 60 inch original bucket just too small.

Anyone want a very little used 60 inch SSQA bucket?

This is one item I have not figured out yet. Can anyone give me a simple idea of what this means? I have seen it all over the place, but can't quite figure it out. I ASSUME it means putting some liquid in the tires, but not water, as that would freeze in winter and rust the rims, right?

correct.