Buying Advice 4720 tractor

[davel745]

I am interested in getting a 4720 tractor with a loader.

I would appreciate any comments you-all care to give.

I plan to do some brush hog work, skid logs for firewood, Till a garden area. Harvest hay, Mow 6 acres of lawn, and maintain my driveway and dirt roads around my property.

Dave

 

[eepete]

Hi davel745 and welcome aboard! :welcome:

You can go to "My Home" and fill in where you are, that will help people help you. For example, knowing where you are might help when people chime about a cab version. Some questions:

What's your total acreage, and what's the total you "keep up" with?
How big are the hay fields you'll be working with?
What sort of hay equipment do you have?
How long are the dirt roads?
What's the terrain of your property?
Do you have any implements now, and what about other equipment?

I like my 4520, the extra HP on the 4720 just didn't make sense. But it might for you depending on your hay equipment. I upgraded my seat to the air cushion seat for $600, and that made my 4520 $2K less than the 4720. $2K for 6 more HP didn't make sense (but I don't do hay).

Anyway, I suspect if you can provide a little more data all sorts of 4x20 owners will give you their thoughts.

Pete

 

[radman1]

The 4x20 series, IMHO are a bit big for finish lawm mowing and the weight could be a bit of an issue if you desire a pristine lawn. I have a rfm for my 4520 but use in in areas not adjacent to the house.

Like eepete, I upgraded to the air ride seat on 4520. I didn't feel it was worth giving JD the extra 2K for reprograming the computer.:laughing: My 2009 4520 has 60 hp, same as the older 4720s. The 4520 has more hp than traction.

 

[Cidertom]

I will second the power vs traction issue. I don't know if the 6 or so HP would make a difference in haying or not. However, if it is a cab model, you will need more HP for the do-dads it has.

 

[msmud]

Just curious, why do you feel you need so much power? Could a 4120 or 3720 do these jobs for you? Would save some money.

 

[Sam Marsh]

Watch the front axle where it bolts to the wheel, ive had 3 leaks and 1 shelled axle, so has my friend. The front axles are junk, I am thinking of trading brands. All ive owned is JD and all 4xx0 series have had axle problems.

 

[mjncad]

Welcome Dave.

Look for posts by Jenkinsph as he has a 4520, which should be close enough for comparison.

 

[AKfish]

Watch the front axle where it bolts to the wheel, ive had 3 leaks and 1 shelled axle, so has my friend. The front axles are junk, I am thinking of trading brands. All ive owned is JD and all 4xx0 series have had axle problems.

Really...? All 4xx0 series? That's the 4000 and the 4010 and the 4020 series. And personally... since 2003 I can only recall a handful of posts.

That's not to say that you don't have a legitimate problem - but a "blanket condemnation" might just be a bit "over-the-top" - IMO!

AKfish

 

[jenkinsph]

Watch the front axle where it bolts to the wheel, ive had 3 leaks and 1 shelled axle, so has my friend. The front axles are junk, I am thinking of trading brands. All ive owned is JD and all 4xx0 series have had axle problems.

I have two of these and an am happy with mine. Ain't buying that these axles are junk and haven't seen where there is a collective issue with these front axles either.

 

[davel745]

Thanks all for your input

I have about 45 acres and a lot of it is steep, I would like to Brush hog it maybe 30 acres. The hay isn稚 to much. Most of the guys around here use around 50 hp tractors.

I would like to plow two bottom fields I have, around 10 acres. I would like to plant a couple acres of corn and a few acres of vegetables.

I need to skid around thirty to fifty trees, to cut up for fire wood. I plan to use the loader to pick up the trees and cut the firewood off the ends. I have about one-half mile of drive way to maintain half of it is steep.

I have about one million things I could use the tractor for.

Best regards,

Dave

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

If you going to hay I'd go with the 4720. Are you planning to square bale or round? Personnally I feel even the 3000 series are too heavy for finished lawn mowing. If I drive over the lawn with my loader rears an bh I get wicked soil compaction. If your planning on square baling the 4520 will be a fine choice also. You may also want to look at the 5000 series but you give up the hydro and I feel the fit an finish are nicer on the 4000's.

Matt

 

[ejb17]

I have a 2009 4520 w/60 gross hp and like others could not justify the extra cash for 6 more hp. That being said it is an awesome machine. No lack of power and the ehydro makes life easy. No front axle problems and I use 4wd a lot-especially all winter. I believe the front axles are made by Dana/Spicer so a lot of history and plenty of support, although probably not made in the US.
I brush hog, pull a 17' rear tri-deck finish mower, snowblow with a older rear JD blower and use the loader to move firewood. Mostly level though.
You wont be disapponted with a 45 or 4720 IMO.

 

[jenkinsph]

I think the 4520 will work for you as well as the 4720 will. I will suggest a cab tractor as IMHO they are more pleasant. Either of these two tractors should be a good match for your work. Might want to consider an MX8 pull type if your fields are open.

 

[ddivinia]

I am interested in getting a 4720 tractor with a loader.

I would appreciate any comments you-all care to give.

I plan to do some brush hog work, skid logs for firewood, Till a garden area. Harvest hay, Mow 6 acres of lawn, and maintain my driveway and dirt roads around my property.

Dave

What kind of hay and equipment?

D.

 

[RedHawkRidge]

I have a JD4700, year 2000 (I think). Under most work situations, the 47 hp rated engine is capable enough (mowing, FEL, 6' box blade, etc). There are times when mowing uphill with a 84' finish mower that it bogs a little.
If I were to go with a new CUT, I'd probably go 4520, although I always like to get all the power available, i.e. 4720, if the premium wasn't in the "silly" range.
I had major leakage in the front axle seals on the 4700 this year, and cost me $700. Am having similar oil leaking in the axle of my X595 garden tractor -- although I found the oil level has been higher than recommended, so maybe the oil was forced thru the seals.
jim

 

[Rob-D]

Hi Dave and welcome!

Have you driven the 3x20 and the 4x20 tractors? I agree with the size issue for mowing, maybe with a RFM it might be nicer.

Rob

 

[Double6]

I have the lower horsepower open station JD 4120 in the 4000 series with PowrReverser & a 400CX FEL. I do lots of loader work & use my BB on our long road, it's done everything I've wanted it to do.
As all the 4000 20 series use the same engine, I went for the lowest HP as the pricing for the higher HP are out of line. I can probably get a flash on the computer to up the HP if I want in the future.
It has been a good tractor, no problems thus far.
I can't say anything about the mowing, don't own one, but I can see where the cab option would be nice in that type of work.

 

[Sam Marsh]

I have two of these and an am happy with mine. Ain't buying that these axles are junk and haven't seen where there is a collective issue with these front axles either.

You must not use yours for dirt work or very hard at all. The stealer told me i should of bought a bigger tractor. But was happy to sell me that one at the time. If you dont use yours that often you wont have the problem till its out of warranty, then when you spend $5800.00 for a front axle. you'll say the same thing as me. John Deere knows there is a "collective" problem it is taking a month to get axle parts, and dana wants all axle parts shipped back to them.Oh by the way I have 2800hrs on mine first axle problem happend at 300hrs.the one I had before that had 3000hrs and 2 axles, 4600 before that had 3500hrs and 4 seals on each side replaced. That makes just my problems "collective" i think.

 

[Rob-D]

You must not use yours for dirt work or very hard at all. The stealer told me i should of bought a bigger tractor. But was happy to sell me that one at the time. If you dont use yours that often you wont have the problem till its out of warranty, then when you spend $5800.00 for a front axle. you'll say the same thing as me. John Deere knows there is a "collective" problem it is taking a month to get axle parts, and dana wants all axle parts shipped back to them.Oh by the way I have 2800hrs on mine first axle problem happend at 300hrs.the one I had before that had 3000hrs and 2 axles, 4600 before that had 3500hrs and 4 seals on each side replaced. That makes just my problems "collective" i think.

I've looked at several front axels in different models. Pressure builds up from heat and pushes the gear oil through the seals.

Open your filler cap after you've been running the tractor hard and you'll hear air escaping. It's not a gear problem, hypoid gears have been running for years and hundreds of thousands of miles. It's a lack of gear oil problems. Makesure to check your front box often. Run that thing dry and it's toast!

I'm making a vent for the front axel in my new tractor.

Rob

 

[woodrr]

dont let that hp mess u up

my 4320 has plenty hp and more than tires can hold..it got 378 hrs and had battery problems and bent both ft cyl 2 times then got a cyl with bigger rods and all is good

great little tractors with lots of get er dun in them