Buying Advice Calling Tractor Gurus!!!

marxman · Jun 13, 2011

Hi Everyone,

As with many other people on this forum I''m looking for some advice in buying a tractor. I have just purchased a house on 14 acres of land. 1.5 acres is "lawn" surrounding the house, currently I have a craftsman lawn tractor which may be able to tackle this area at first.

Outside of this area is a barn that used to house horses and goats, an over grown pasture which is fenced in. This area has tree growth but is accessible. I plan on keeping goats, sheep, llamas... some form of small farm animals. There as also a driveway about 200-300 feet of dirt road.

My primary needs for a tractor are:

1) snow removal - I live in New England.
2) brush cutting - in the areas out side of the lawn, there is an old overgrown cart path that I wish to reclaim and use
3) finish mowing - possibly... if the craftsman can't handle it
4) moving rocks - opening parts of an old rock wall
5) driveway / cart path grading
6) other tasks that you do on a small "hobby" farm

I have been looking at whether to get a tractor or a big bore ATV. It seems to me that a tractor will make these tasks easier. Also the PTO will mean any implements won't need another engine.

I think my initial purchase would be the tractor with a FEL. Bearing in mind I would be willing to spend up to about 15k, but hoping to spend nearer to 10k. What size in terms of HP should I be looking at? Would a JD or Kubota Sub Compact be too small and underpowered for my needs?

Thanks in advance for your input, like I said I'm new to tractors so any advice you have would be great.

marc

boggen · Jun 13, 2011

*shakes head no to ATV* they are very nice to get around on. and for say spot spray or say spraying a fence line to keep weeds down. or check on animals in a pasture. but there be a big difference between ATV and good tractor.

a FEL to me would be automatic.

any tractor can work, but bigger the tractor is, the more you can do in a shorter amount of time. but within reason. the implements you will use can also determined size of tractor you will want.

rest are mainly 3pt hitch implements....
--rotatory cutter (many call bush hog) or a fail mower (both geared towards cutting heavy brush / aka tall weeds)
--rear blade some times call rear grading blade. normally you can rotate it and if need be use the 3 point hitch and adjust one or both arms some to angle it some as well. ((clear snow, and grade driveway / lane))
--box blade, ((good at tearing up ground and moving dirt to different places, but more to the point much easier to get nice level roadway, or say lawn after you tore it up or like, also helps fill in pot holes and smooth them out in a road way))

--rock sled, goto scrap yard find a old ""metal"" hood from a vehicle. turn it upside down. hook a chain on it. and then low on tractor. and you have a rock sled

--if need be perhaps a belly finishing mower or a 3pt hitch finishing mower.

for fencing....
--3pt post hole digger ((for posts))
--fence stretcher comes in handy for wire mesh fencing.

--3pt backhoe can be extremely nice and very handy, though it is a pricey little item and ranks in price just like a FEL and bare bones tractor. and a backhoe can make or break some deals. due to extra cost to say custom fab a third party backhoe to a given make/model of tractor.

there are times when live stock do die, pending on regulations in New England, you may or not be able to bury them. For me i have to burry live stock X distance away from water supplies, X distance from this and that. and i have to burry the animal so deep. and after dirt is back on. there needs to be just enough slope of ground over burial site. i bring this up due to yes you can do it with FEL, but backhoe makes it easy.

backhoes can do a lot of moving of dirt. and can be used to pickup things as well. (tree, brushes, dig out stumps, put in trenches for gas, water, electrical, etc...)

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i would caution animals, there is a lot of upkeep, and need to know. and pending on what they need to eat or they can be feed year long. hey, various types of grains. etc... a bigger tractor might be wanted to handle say pulling a hay baler with hay wagon behind that, or perhaps a grain mixer or grain auger to get grain into a silo / grain bin.

if ya planting a garden / food plot or like, a plow, disc, harrow, planter, and like can all have different HP requirements to pull them. granted higher HP the better.

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anything in above that you will need vs want to have?

for my on 80 acres. 20hp would be bare min. and that would be slow doings. 30hp ok, 40hp would be about right as descent min for me and let me get things down in a reasonable amount of time. but this is me. and puts me in CUTS and Utilty class HP tractors and more so into a higher UTILTY class tractor for me. and SCUTs way to small for me. and i am going to guess SCUT's to small for you as well. CUT's be kinda boarder line.

the weight of tractor can be important factor. and when ya move from say riding lawn mowers and SCUTS to say CUTs and then into Utilty tractors the sub frames are different with higher ground clearance. this ground clearance can be a big thing and getting through mud and snow. other words think of a car that seats a couple inches off a ground vs a truck that seats 1 foot off the ground. the truck more likely to go through some descent deep snow vs car that would be stuck. the tractor needs to be geared for all terrain year round so you can do what needs to be done.

there are plenty of other things. but above comes first to mind.

flusher · Jun 13, 2011

marxman said:
Hi Everyone,

As with many other people on this forum I''m looking for some advice in buying a tractor. I have just purchased a house on 14 acres of land. 1.5 acres is "lawn" surrounding the house, currently I have a craftsman lawn tractor which may be able to tackle this area at first.

Outside of this area is a barn that used to house horses and goats, an over grown pasture which is fenced in. This area has tree growth but is accessible. I plan on keeping goats, sheep, llamas... some form of small farm animals. There as also a driveway about 200-300 feet of dirt road.

My primary needs for a tractor are:

1) snow removal - I live in New England.
2) brush cutting - in the areas out side of the lawn, there is an old overgrown cart path that I wish to reclaim and use
3) finish mowing - possibly... if the craftsman can't handle it
4) moving rocks - opening parts of an old rock wall
5) driveway / cart path grading
6) other tasks that you do on a small "hobby" farm

I have been looking at whether to get a tractor or a big bore ATV. It seems to me that a tractor will make these tasks easier. Also the PTO will mean any implements won't need another engine.

I think my initial purchase would be the tractor with a FEL. Bearing in mind I would be willing to spend up to about 15k, but hoping to spend nearer to 10k. What size in terms of HP should I be looking at? Would a JD or Kubota Sub Compact be too small and underpowered for my needs?

Thanks in advance for your input, like I said I'm new to tractors so any advice you have would be great.

marc

YOu could find a 4-5 year old Kubota B-series SCUT like a B7510HST (21 hp engine, 17 hp pto, 4WD, power steering with FEL for less than $10K (a 2005 7510HST was my first tractor bought new for $12,600 plus tax). But with your acreage, I'd shoot for a used CUT with 30 hp engine with FEL to squeeze into your $15K budget.

mjncad · Jun 14, 2011

Welcome Marxman.

I think you're going to be hard pressed to find what you want at those price points; but at least you east coast boys have plenty of used equipment choices unlike those of us in the Rocky Mountain states and points west.

Keep the Crapsman lawn tractor for the lawn, and when it eventually pukes, get another lawn tractor for that purpose.

I don't have any ATV experience; but I wouldn't even consider one for any serious work on that amount of land you have. Use it for chasing down the critters, getting the mail, and for recreation.

Others have already given you good advice.

TripleR · Jun 14, 2011

Boggen pretty much sums it up, we have a 700 cc Yamaha Grizzly and 660 Rhino and love them, but they simply can't come close to a tractor. We rarely need a back hoe, so we rent one.

I would be looking at something along the lines of a B Series Kubota with 25-30 HP or its equivalent in one of the other brands, all make good tractors.

Depending on what I can find, I buy new or used.

Good luck.

nwngunner · Jun 14, 2011

You can get an atv and do alot of work with them. Pulling a trailer to put in your fencing, using your winch to stretch the fence. Useing the quad to pull cut down trees over to the burn pile ect ect. I have had tractors long before i had my quads and i wouldnt give up my quads for anything. I have a small rough cut mower that i like over my 7foot brush hog on the tractor. I can get in alot more places with it. How ever there is no replacement for the tractor.

Alot of work sounds like you would be better off with a skid loader then a tractor its self.

RoyJackson · Jun 14, 2011

I'd look for a Deere 4300, 4400, 4310 or 4410. Maybe a Deere 990. They're all late 1990's through mid 2000's tractors and are priced around what you want to spend ($15K).
Good machines, all of 'em.

As far as Kubota...also great machines, but I don't know enough about their model numbers for specific recommendations...the Deeres I wrote about above range from 27 to 34 PTO HP. You'd want the same power from a Kubota.

Since you live in New England, you'll probably find prices are higher in that area. You might want to look further south (northern PA, southern New York State) for better prices (don't forget to calculate transportation costs).

Good luck!

bigbull338 · Jun 14, 2011

the best thing you can do is try an get the right tractor for you the 1st time.now that could mean that you have to spend more than you want.when im looking to buy something i know what the max amount i can spend is,an i know what itll get me.

IslandTractor · Jun 14, 2011

A small to mid sized used compact utility tractor is within range of your stated budget. Ideally for a property your size you might want 30hp or so but I would not hesitate to buy a 20+hp CUT which can clearly do the work albeit a bit more slowly. I would steer you away from what are called sub compact utility tractors or SCUTs. Those are useful in a few acres but have limitations that would quickly frustrate you with 13 acres I think. The Kubota BX line and the JD 2300 and I think 2500 series fit into that category.

There are a number of very good brands you might look for in addition to the well known Kubota and JD. New Holland (NH), Kioti, Mahindra, Cub, TYM and a number of others are equal to the task and almost always less expensive mostly because of lack of brand name recognition (by folks like yourself for example). Check out tractor dealers within a reasonable radius to see what your options are for dealer support. If you can change oil and trouble shoot basic issues yourself or if you can trailer the tractor then your options will increase. If you need turnkey service you may have to stick with higher priced JD and Kubota offerings.

Keep an eye on Craigslist. I'm in Eastern MA and I see lots of good low hour tractors for sale. If you use a program like SearchTempest to screen for "tractor" in the farm and garden section for a hundred miles or so around you will find good used tractors quite frequently. $10K is on the low side but for $15K you can get a 3-5 year old Kubota B series. Unless you are very handy with a wrench I would stay away from "old iron" even though those 1950's Fords etc are excellent bangs for the buck.

To give you a specific recommendation, my first tractor was a Kioti CK20, a 21hp CUT with FEL. I got it from a dealer with about thirty hours on the clock (trade up) and the cost of the tractor/FEL was $10K. That little tractor did a huge amount of work and was tough as nails. The equivalent Kubota is the B7510 which is also excellent but will cost about $2K more for an equivalent age/hour example. The Kubota B7800 is great and might be in your budget. Kioti CK25 and 30 also. Similar JDs would cost more used. The JD790 and 4000 series are closer to 30hp but might be in your budget and they are all very fine machines.

Again, screen your local tractor dealers and identify possible used tractors on Craigslist. Post more specific questions back here once you have identified some candidates and I'm sure you will get lots of useful advice.

Grandad4 · Jun 14, 2011

Never figured I qualified as any kind of "guru"; least of all a tractor guru. But Boggen's comments seem spot on to me. A subcut might "do" your work, but it's just too small and chores would take forever. A new 30-40 hp, larger sized CUT would have your work requirements covered like a blanket, but you won't find a new one from the top manufacturers in your price range.

So your options seem to be a) go smaller and work both it and yourself a little longer and harder; b) go with a secondary brand and maybe get more size and horsepower for your money; c) go used. I guess you could also consider the great financing packages available now on new equipment. There are obvious pro's and con's to each approach, of course. What makes sense for one person may not work for the next guy.

Also, ATV's are great for what they do, but I once watched a neighbor on his ATV spraying dirt all over the place trying to pull a log that was child's play for my BX subcut. Your chore list has "tractor work" written all over it.

TripleR · Jun 14, 2011

Grandad4 said:
Never figured I qualified as any kind of "guru"; least of all a tractor guru. But Boggen's comments seem spot on to me. A subcut might "do" your work, but it's just too small and chores would take forever. A new 30-40 hp, larger sized CUT would have your work requirements covered like a blanket, but you won't find a new one from the top manufacturers in your price range.

So your options seem to be a) go smaller and work both it and yourself a little longer and harder; b) go with a secondary brand and maybe get more size and horsepower for your money; c) go used. I guess you could also consider the great financing packages available now on new equipment. There are obvious pro's and con's to each approach, of course. What makes sense for one person may not work for the next guy.

In complete agreement here. We used a BX2200 or BX2660 for this for several years to get out of driving one of our "real" tractors from another farm and you can probably find old posts of mine in support of it. In spite of the fact I am retired, there is such a thing as too much seat time.

We kept our BX2660, but finally decided to buy another tractor to live here with it.

OK, I am getting as much seat time as I use to, but I am getting a lot more done.

If I had to have one tractor, it would not be a SCUT.

lil_country · Jun 14, 2011

I'm no Guru, but I think I have exactly the tractor you should get. I have 10 acres, a few animals, and do just about what you list. I have a Kubota B3030. It is 30 hp with a FEL, 4wd and hydrostat transmission. All of those have been essential for me. Most of the time, the tractor is more than I need, but there have been times when I probably would have over worked or broken anything less. The hst is essential for FEL work, and also with the rear finish mower I have used on my lawn for the last 4 years. However, I recently bought a lawn tractor for mowing because I got tired of changing back and forth from finish mower to brush hog during growing season. I don't know how I managed without a FEL before I got this. I use it mostly for lifting or moving heavy things - it has saved my back. I recently trimmed a lot of trees, and used the fel to push the limbs into piles and move the piles around. I plowed 1 mile of road during a couple of heavy snows last winter using a 6' angle blade. I lived for over 20 years with a lesser tractor and no fel. I've had this tractor 4 years, and it is the best investment I have made.

It will cost a little more than you indicate you want to spend, but I assure you it will be worth it. (Oh, and get the industrial tires.)

idaho2 · Jun 14, 2011

One item that was not specifically mentioned in any of the prior posts is hydraulic remotes. At the minimum two for any implement needing hydraulic assist.

MIKE R · Jun 14, 2011

You will defiantly will want axillary hydraulics, like idaho2 stated. You will also like to get a loader and 4wd. Did you consider the Massey Ferguson 1500 or 1600 series. From what you plan on doing with the tractor a hydrostatic transmission will do you just fine. Spend the extra money and get exactly what you want. It will be worth it.

a330driver · Jun 14, 2011

Roy ..Check your PM

IslandTractor · Jun 14, 2011

MIKE R said:
You will defiantly will want axillary hydraulics, like idaho2 stated. .

Agree but those can pretty easily be added afterwards. Key is getting the best tractor for the buck to start with. Bonus if it comes with a couple of rear remotes but most sub 30 hp tractors tend not to have those as standard. About $300-400 for a kit to install and about an afternoon to accomplish the mission at least on Kioti's.

ChuckinNH · Jun 14, 2011

Well, I have 13 acres, and have owned both a sub cut, and a small CUT so I guess I'll throw in some comments. The minute you talk about reclaiming fields, and old roads, you should move beyond the sub-cuts. They are tough beasts for sure, but quite fragile in the rough stuff underneath, and lack the size, and ground clearance you really need for what you have planned. I have a small Kubota B series now, and it has worked out very well for me on my land. I have moved rocks, made compost, rough mowed with a rotary cutter, chipped brush, worked on my trails through the woods, etc. with mine. It, and possibly the next larger B series Kubota, or any other tractor that size would be the limit I would want to mow finished lawn with, and actually, I'm not too sure I want to finish mow with mine. If I had planned from the beginning to have a backhoe I would have started with the larger B series since there is a meaningful step up in backhoe performance from mine. If I had planned on mostly finish mowing I would have chosen a BX, and held my breath a lot in the rough stuff, and I've found my B to be so much more stable, and useful off the lawn that I doubt I would ever go back there for all around use though as a companion to a larger tractor you just can't beat a sub-cut as TrippleR has found along with others. In your particular case I would look for a new / used B7800, B3030, or another brand that size. I only mention Kubota numbers because that is what I'm most familiar with. A used "L" series sure wouldn't be out of the question either, just forget about mowing lawns with one, and I would forget about that anyway. Every now, and then a 3pt implement will give you a hard time when installing, or removing. I was having such a time recently, and also had been thinking about getting a mid mounted mower for it, and it occured to me that not only do you have to worry about the hassle of mounting the mower, you have to reinstall what ever you have been using all week on the back every week when you mow............ naw, don't think so, and it sure doesn't sound like you will be wanting to leave the finish mower on all summer either. Keep them separate, and you will be a happier person.

marxman · Jun 14, 2011

WOW you guys are awesome! Thanks so much for all the feedback / opinions. I went and visited a john deere and a kubota dealership today and have taken the SCUTs out of my list. The BX and 1000 series lines just look too small.

I took a good look at the JD 2320 / 2720 (for some reason there are no 2520s left in New England) and the Kubota B2320 / 2620 / 2920 / 3300SU ... and in a moment of weakness the Kubota L3200

Most of these come in new with a loader a little over my stated price points, but like I've read It's easier to do less with more.

As suggested I am going to look at other brands, New Holland seem to interest me. Also I will look for closest dealerships in the area.

Thanks again for all the info, I'll be sure to post an update when I have chosen one.

boggen · Jun 16, 2011

some additional things to think about.

a bare bones tractor vs next size down tractor with full options added on. to get approx same price.

many additional add-ons, can make or break it for me. nice comfy spring or like seat. that can help take the freaking 1" to higher speed bumps. if it was not for a nice seat. remember tractors do not have any sort of suspension in them. so when you go over that little rock / log / through that dirt hole. you fill every single little thing! *ochers*

having additional hyd rear hook ups min 2, is almost need for what you want or will need to do,

with say TNT (top and tilt) for 3pt hitch as well. the hookups yes. but the TNT can make a good amount of difference to in over all time you do in say grading drive ways. you do not need TNT but if ya getting older and hoping on / off tractor to adjust 3pt hitch arms and top link all the time. it can get rather time consuming and rather hurting the old bones.

for me, working in very morning or at night. is almost a must. and that is "rear work lights, and front work lights" i am not talking about front head lights like a car or truck, (tractor should have these at least) but the front and rear work lights. do come in very very handy. for example just about done finishing up something for good. and work 30 minutes longer past night to finish it up. then having to load everything up and take it back to the shed. those lights are just TOPS vs trying to hunt things down with a flash light. the lights are normally up on the ROPS (roll over protection system) or if cab on the very top of the cab pointed down around tractor. most of these lights i have seen. seem pretty easy to adjust with just climbing up on tractor and giving a slight tug in direction you want them to shine.

your tranmision and clutch options.
shuttle shift ((lever possibly near stearing wheel or peddle perhaps) to quickly go from forward to reverse without ever having to push in a foot clutch peddle and change gears. it is a big time saver, and foot saver. when i say foot, after being on a tractor to a point were it feels like your foot has been cut off from pushing in clutch so many times. ughs. as far as time. it takes time to come to a complete stop push in foot clutch and change gears, being able to use a lever or peddle to just go from forward to reverse without doing a full complet stop saves a lot. well your manually most likely says you are suppose to come to a complete stop before going from forward to reverse or vice vs. but once ya run tractor for awhile you can get pretty good at a nice smooth transaction without a full complete stop.

I honestly do not need road gear. since tractors do not go out on the road. but having ability to have say hi and low gear, and then another shifter for say 1-4 for a total of 8 possible gear settings for forward and same for reverse. can give you a lot of options to really fine tune how fast you go and use the power of the tractor when doing stuff.

with notes from my last reply and others. your most expensive stuff will be tractor itself the FEL and backhoe. all other implements / add-ons. are small change to them majority of the time. though they all can quickly add up!!! there are a variety of third party options for say rear and front work lights, rear remotes. that can be cheaper at times. but you need to be half way mechanically inclined to be able to do some of these things yourself for addon's most of it, is fairly pretty simple once ya understand this and that. but if you do not know. it can be a rather steep battle at times.

for me, left and right brake split peddles are a must. i can to easily get into situations were they are needed. and for me the peddles need to be on one foot while the other foot operates the throttle or something else.

your 3pt hitch implements. one can slowly obtain over the years and as time and cash allow. word of advice on implements, plan to have a nice spot to set them when not in use if there not in the shed. then make sure you have flat ground without grass and weeds growing up and around them. rear work lights come in handy hooking / unhooking ((hint hint)) at night. and would advise spending time making an area if need be for implements. ((night and day difference)) both on hooking / unhooking them, but also maintaining them (greasing, and like)