4410, 990, 4120, 4320, 4520, 4720...Which One?

[FLDave]

Mike,

Some questions if you would be so kind to answer:

How's your 4310 handle the MX6?

When you lift it does it seem stable or do you pretty much keep it on it's tail wheel?

When your turn on your PTO can you feel the engine "bog-down" while the blades are gaining inertia?

How many acres do you brush-hog at a clip and what would you guess the time per acres is?

I'm sure I could use the 4410 to finish mow but my concerns were that I'd be wearing the heck out of it with a 6' medium duty rotary cutter.

Tim,

I'm just in a position where one's a bit small and the others are a bit large. You see, I have no trees on my property. Not a single one. I will need to move dirt and gravel but it is not hilly or full of sticks and logs. It's just flat pasture with a few cross ditches that I'm going to need to fill. Maybe I'll reduce my actual yard to about an acre or so then I could get a disposable used lawn tractor for the kids to use for finish mowing.

Thanks,

 

[Sadler]

Dave--I just took delivery of a 4120 with MX6 and a LandPride 72" RFM. I've used the MX6 without front weights or loader, and the tractor is definitely tail heavy. I'll keep the loader on, or get front weights. I've mowed my (far from perfect) lawn with the RFM, and had no problems with tearing the grass up. I have R4s. And the prices you list are very close to what I paid for the 4120 and loader. I am very pleased with the tractor so far.

 

[FLDave]

Thanks Sadler,

I guess I was hoping that everyone would say thet the 4410 with a LX6 rotary cutter would be fine /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif. It would save me a lot of money /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif. The 4410 with the 430 fel would cost me $3,500.00 less that the 4320 with the 400X fel /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.

The problem I have is that I believe the 990 would be the correct size with its 35hp PTO. It is a good sized tractor that probably wouldn't tear the yard up with a rear finish mower either. It's a good solid gear tractor with a good engine but the 4410 and 4020 series have the HST and are more comfortable to drive. My wife loves the seat assemblies on the hydro models.

I was just wondering if I was going to be able to pasture mow that much quicker with a 4320 as opposed to a 4410. The 4320 can take the MX6 which I think would be overkill for my pastures because it's all grass with some weeds (but no brush) while the 4410 can use the LX6.

I guess I am in tractor limbo /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif. Anyone have any expertise in pasture mowing with a 4410 (or a 4310 for that matter) and how many hours it takes to cut 5 or 10 acres?

Thanks /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif,

 

[timb]

Dave,

I compared the LX6 to the MX6 side by side on the dealers lot. There's a big difference in apparent beef. While I have no real need of that heavy of a rotary (the LX would have been more than fine where I'm cutting our fields) I decided I'd rather have the extra durability. I don't think I could hurt the MX6.

Mike is running his MX6 on his 4310 with good results. A 4410 could only be better, hp-wise.

I have found with this very wet fall we've been having (nothing wants to dry out) my R1 tire-loaded 4710 with the loader is really sinking in now. I've been moving bucket fulls of old bricks around - and have made a real mess of the damp areas where I've traveled over more than once. (What a blast and thank goodness for 4wd. With our old Ford NAA under these conditions I'd just get stuck, and that's no fun at all).

In my opinion - to get the most use out of a CUT the size and power of the 990, or 4120-4720, you'll need ballast to get all that power to the ground - and that's going to leave you with a heavy little tractor. Not one I'd plan on using around a decent lawn very much doing 'regular' mowing duty.

 

[FLDave]

In my mind I have narrowed it down to a 4410 OR a 4320. I would like the 4410 to work out because its less money /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif, it is more maneuverable /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif, and I may be able to finish mow with it (Finish mow when the ground is dry of course!) /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.

What I want to know is: What difference would there be cutting using a LX6 on a 4410 or a 4320? I mean, would they both cut about 2 acres per hour? If there is no sizable difference in cutting speeds/times then I'll go with the 4410 and have extra money for other implements. If there is a big difference then I'll have to get the 4320.

Any thoughts?

 

[Sadler]

Dave--take this with a grain of salt since I am a total newbie on this board, but in my search I tried to size the tractor for the size jobs I had to do, and in my case with 40 acres and lots of un-maintained land to clean up, I opted for the larger frame 4120. Reading about your situation, I think I would have gone with the 4410 or waited for the new 3 twenty series, and as you said bought more implements.

I plan on trying to use the 4120 for finish mowing, but not when wet, and my "lawn" is really just close cut tall fescue and dandelions, so maybe I'll get away with it.

 

[FLDave]

Thanks Sadler, as I said I only have 15 acres of just flat pasture, nothing in comparison to your 40. My house isn't complete yet and I already have the property divided into 4 parts.

Sometimes I think I put way too much thought into things but this is kind of a big deal for me. I grew up in the early 70's mowing my parents 1 1/4 acres in Connecticut with about 12 fruit trees, numerous berry bushes, a garden, and some spruce trees (amongst numerous other obstacles) with a push mower. I never even had a self-propelled push mower until recently nevermind a riding tractor.

I'm trying very hard to "kill two birds with one stone" as the saying goes. I figure I will have to work hard on shelling the 800' driveway, building a barn pad, and filling in my cross ditches...but after that it's pretty much finish mowing (I'm not one for perfect lawns just groomed ones), bush-hogging, and looking for projects.

I would love a 4120, 4320, or even a 4520 but I want to make sure a 4410 will or will not work for me first. I'm trying to induce any 4310 (rockyridge, etc.,...) or 4410 owners to tell me how a LX6 (or any other 6' rotary cutter) works with their machine. I am trying to see if a 4410 (with a LX6) will cut almost as fast as a 4320 (also with a LX6). After all they both are running their PTO shafts at 540.

It's always easy to go bigger but I want to make the right choice. Who knows, maybe the right choice IS bigger?

Any Thoughts?

 

[kevinro]

Dave,

Sounds like you are going to be mowing forever, and constructing for a short time. Buy a machine that is good at the mowing. Rent a machine that is good for the other. A small tractor is the wrong tool for digging a pond. You can rent a full sized track hoe for about $350 a day, and be done in a day.

I have a JD 4500 that I used for building my house. I have R4 tires. It does a fine job around my 20 acre forest where the 4000 douglas fir trees fall at a rate of 1 or 2 a week. This is a big machine. With loader and backhoe, it weighs just over 6000lbs. I can't see myself mowing with it. I have seen golf courses mow with it (lawn tires), but they are pulling around a 20' wide mower.

Kevin

 

[Joe1]

You might want to consider the 990 over some of the others because it will do the basic jobs you intend just like the others. If you can live without the HST, the difference between that and the same HP 4120 would leave you $3,200 to purchase a dedicated mower later when you need it. The 990's been around a long time and is as reliable as a rock. Trying to finish mow with any of the tractors you described would be questionable on a soft lawn. You could go with R4 tires on the 990 and get a decent garden tractor or ZTR later when you really need it, and keep the 990 for pasture work.

A 990 would be a decent compromise over the others if you wanted to rent a backhoe rig for foundation work or the super heavy duty stuff, and you wouldn't be left with a tractor possibly larger than you would need later on. When your daughter get's old enough to operate a tractor, she shouldn't have much trouble dealing with the clutch. The tractor is so slow at idle in the lowest gears (forward or reverse) it's hard to get in trouble while learning. My wife parked mine in the garage the night I got it home. She'd never been on a tractor before, and backed it in without a problem.

Just my 2 cents. I'm slightly prejudice since I own a 770, an older version of the 990's baby brother the 790.

Good luck on the tractor and construction.

Joe

 

[Dave4410]

Did you order the 4410 FLDave?