Capability Questions for a 2210 w/ 4WD .... ?

[deezler]

Hi all,

Glad to have finally joined the forum after lurking for the last couple months. I just closed on 19 acres of vacant land here in Southeast Michigan, and am very excited to start getting out there and doing some work! The land is mostly former pasture that has been left to re-naturalize over the last 30-40 years; a mix of rolling terrain and some moist lowlands by the creek that runs through.

Anyway, I don't have a tractor yet myself, but I am becoming fixated on a co-worker's Mahindra 2615 that he may sell to me (sadly not a lot of good used stuff around here). But for now, I will have to live vicariously through my father's JD 2210 that he bought for general lawn mowing, trailer toting, and snow plowing. Because he mostly bought it to mow, and pull a little trailer around with, he went with the turf tires, but due to snowplowing need, also the 4WD, thank goodness. Unfortunately, he didn't see the need for the 200CX loader (can you believe that? haha).

While I might end up springing for the aforementioned Mahindra sooner than later if the finances work out right, I still think I will end up borrowing the 2210 for a few weekends of work before that happens.

My first task is to expand/extend/install the gravel driveway, so that friends can have a place to park when they come help work on clearing the land, and camp/play/etc. The first step, as hours of web-research have taught me, if I was trying to do this gravel driveway the RIGHT way, and not half assed, would be to scrape away the organic material, grade out the drive nice and wide, with drainage handling (ditches, I guess) on both sides.
While the 5' front snowplow might be of use in pushing around gravel, obviously it's not really the right solution for dirt work, and I don't want to abuse it, or the 2210, trying to use it that way. Thus I am pondering purchasing an attachment to help scrape dirt, and distribute and level gravel, and have started to zero in on a rear box blade. But because my father has no need for such an implement, I want it to be something that I can retain and use on my own CUT when I finally get it later. I know that I ultimately definitely want a larger, heavier machine than the 2210. Great tractor that it is, I have several acres worth of ground breaking, earth moving, and brush cutting to accomplish and I need more weight!


So my questions for now are then:

- Could the JD2210 pull a 5' box blade filled with gravel or dirt? Engine HP wise, can it do it without straining terribly? I don't want to buy a 4' box blade, as I know my own tractor will handle more, so why waste my time?
- How about a brush hog / rotary mower ? Can the 2210 run a 5 footer there also? I would imagine the PTO HP is a little too low....
- Is the 2210 a cat 1 3-pt? Or is it smaller?
- Traction wise, the turf tires obviously hurt me. But with 4WD engaged, should I be ok?
- Should I worry at all about the turf tires getting punctured by sharp roots or gravel? Can they handle continuous rough work, or am I going to be sorry? (follow up - how expensive are industrial tires, and how much $ to have them swapped onto the 2210 wheels?)
- Or would I need to look into chaining up the tires to get enough traction? Just the rears, or also the fronts?
- Backing up a little, am I thinking about this all wrong? Should I wait until I have a bigger machine, with a front loader, before I go punishing my dad's 2210 just to make a mess of things and end up with a crappy driveway? Note : this isn't necessarily intended to serve as the final driveway to my future homesite - mainly an access drive for now down into the heart of the parcel, where I will be skidding logs to, making a temporary campsite, and getting out of the way (and view and earshot) of my immediate neighbors.


Lots of questions, I know. I am quite new to all this - but very excited to get my hands dirty. Thanks for any insight you guys can provide!!


Finally, here's a rough map of my property. The existing driveway, or what's left of it, comes in on the north side there and flirts with the neighbor's lot. While he is a pretty cool guy and said he wouldn't mind if the drive stayed where it is, I would like to shift back over to where it's clearly on my property only.

 

[XSKIER]

Well, it took me all summer of weekends and a few evenings to brush out a one acre area. I did not move any dirt either. Using a SCUT does take some of the work out of it, but there is still a ton of hand work that us left when the tractors capabilities are exceeded. With turfs tires the 2210 will be very anemic in loose soil, you would likely want r1 tread. A 5' box blade would be too much.

Here's my recommendation: Head up to Aeschilman's, pick up an old tractor loader backhoe, get your heavy work done, trade it back to him, pick up a tractor for mowing and snowing.

 

[RoyJackson]

I'd suggest going with a bigger tractor...that 2210 isn't going to do well with a 5' box blade. Not so much the horsepower, but that's a pretty light weight machine. You'd run out of traction pretty quickly. Same think applies to the plowing.
In fact, the 2210 is probably too small for any of the tasks you've described.
Those turf tires are just going to make a bad situation worse, IMHO.

XSKIER has the right idea...but even when that work is done, I think you'll want a bigger tractor then even the Mahindra.

 

[deezler]

Arg, that's what I was afraid of. Thanks for your replies, guys.

Only problem is, I have no money, and borrowing the 2210 is free (mostly).

I see on tractor data that the 2210 is under 1500 lbs? Holy crap, that's lighter than I thought. However I would be running it with 4WD at all times, the front blade on, and a box blade on the back. I guess I could consider going with a 4' box blade for the 2210 and selling it after I am done with it.

The Mahindra 2615 that I am looking at is a full 1000 lbs heavier though.

I am probably going to end up visiting some local dealers soon to see what kind of packages and incentives they could throw at me. With a few grand down, I could probably end up with payments around $200/mo, right? Hoping I can fit that into my finances once the dust settles a bit. If I wanted to grab a 30 HP TLB with a 16' trailer 5' box blade and 5' rotary mower.... am I nuts to hope for ~$20k in total? Would I be stuck with Korean/Chinese tractors at that price?

 

[RoyJackson]

Arg, that's what I was afraid of. Thanks for your replies, guys.

Only problem is, I have no money, and borrowing the 2210 is free (mostly).

I see on tractor data that the 2210 is under 1500 lbs? Holy crap, that's lighter than I thought. However I would be running it with 4WD at all times, the front blade on, and a box blade on the back. I guess I could consider going with a 4' box blade for the 2210 and selling it after I am done with it.

The Mahindra 2615 that I am looking at is a full 1000 lbs heavier though.

I am probably going to end up visiting some local dealers soon to see what kind of packages and incentives they could throw at me. With a few grand down, I could probably end up with payments around $200/mo, right? Hoping I can fit that into my finances once the dust settles a bit. If I wanted to grab a 30 HP TLB with a 16' trailer 5' box blade and 5' rotary mower.... am I nuts to hope for ~$20k in total? Would I be stuck with Korean/Chinese tractors at that price?

I'd give up the backhoe attachment...that would add a good 20% to the cost. Cheaper to plan your work and rent, or contract out.
$20K for a 30 HP tractor/loader, trailer, 5' box blade and rotary cutter...that's going to be tough, if buying new. Do you have a truck that can handle the towing weight?
It can't hurt to hit a few dealers and see what they have...both new and used. Be very very cautious about buying an off brand. You might well not have any dealer/parts support a year down the road. It also depends how you are with doing your own maintenance. The compact tractor business is very competitive...not all brands are going to survive. This especially applies to the re-badged Chinese tractors.

One machine I recommend you look at is the Deere 3005 (used to be the 790). You can get the tractor/loader for $15K-$16K with Deere financing (60-72 months) which would keep your payments to less the $200.
These are good solid machines and can handle both the 5' box blade and rotary cutter.

 

[deezler]

Yeah.... I've kind of been dreaming of a medium sized backhoe, as I have 800 feet of utility trench to dig, and I would imagine that will cost almost as much as the backhoe itself to contract out. Plus a lot of tree stumps to uproot, and maybe a pond to dig someday.,...? I know they aren't cheap. My buddy/future nieghbor has the same situation, so we were going to join forces on the purchase.

I have my dad's '95 F150 with 302 V8 for towing. Not the strongest runner, but gets the job done if you take it easy (I think rated for 7500 lbs towing?).

Should be able to do all my own maintenance in the future. I don't have all of the tools or a good garage space yet, but I am a mechanical engineer who likes to learn, and frankly, a cheapskate.

The only "off brand" I was really considering was Kioti. No way on the Branson, nortrac, or other bullcrap brands.

I guess the box blade and rotary mower would be pretty commonly found used equipment on craigslist, so no reason to bundle those in up front. Arg, so many options.


So my real question for right now is : if I can't afford the size and quality of tractor I want right now, would the 2210 with 5' front blade and 4' rear box blade still help me spread enough gravel to make a useable temporary driveway? Will I be able to push a pile of gravel for a couple hundred feet, or is a loader really required to move it to where I need it? Or could a good dump truck driver go slowly in reverse while dumping the gravel?

 

[deezler]

A package like this would be ideal:

ARTEC

Sorry to be posting about this in the JD forum, haha.

 

[Jamming]

One machine I recommend you look at is the Deere 3005 (used to be the 790). You can get the tractor/loader for $15K-$16K with Deere financing (60-72 months) which would keep your payments to less the $200.
These are good solid machines and can handle both the 5' box blade and rotary cutter.

The machine I just bought a few weeks ago, and it has better than I expected. Great machine for the money. I bought a 300 loader with replaceable bit the tractor and counter weight for 17k all in,taxes inc. so it was less than 15k for package.

 

[JD 4520]

Deezler - I agree with Roy, you will end up doing more maintenance on a small rig like that for the job at hand than renting the right tool. Use the 2210 wisely and invest in the right equipment either rental or purchase and don't invest in something that won't work for you. That is a worse financial mistake and won't get the job done as needed.

 

[deezler]

I appreciate the insight, guys.

I definitely agree that I don't want to invest in something too small to do what I need. But I am not really talking about that, my dad already has the 2210 ready to go to work (unless you really feel strongly that I will break it and have to invest in repairs!!). I know it's wayyy too small and light for my needs right now, but if the alternative is nothing, or waiting months longer to get a proper machine, I still get the feeling that I will end up borrowing it a few times and trying to at least make some progress out there. Ya know? Who knows, maybe the first time out there will teach me the hard way that it just isn't going to work.

 

[GGB]

To answer your questions, the 2210 is a Cat 0/1 3PT hitch. So be sure to check for sure regarding any attachments that they will work. I'd strongly suggest only buying Cat 1 Quick Hitch Compatible equipment, as it will make it much easier to change attachments quickly. Not a necessity, but I'll never not have one. Mine is the Land Pride, which gives more flexibility that the JD Quik Hitch I had before.

On my 2210, I can dead stop it pulling too much gravel with my 4' Land Pride Box Blade, even in low/4WD. And that's with either the turf tires or ag tires. So while you may be able to do what your wantling to do with your Dad's 2210, it's going to take a lot of time unless the ground is really soft.

I've also got a 4' IMCO brush mower, and would not want to go bigger. Again, you can probably pull a 5' brush hog, it will be painfully slow. And be very careful with any pto driven equipment on a 2210, as there are plenty of horror stories on other threads about busted rear end housings because someone didn't have the slip clutch set properly, or didn't use the right shear pin. Walk everything you are planning to cut first-you don't want to hit something you don't know about (Wonder how I know that?) Don't try to cut down anything bigger than 1" sapplings or you're probably asking for trouble. You definetly don't want to break your Dad's pride and joy!

My 210 FEL is great, but again, it's really designed for lighter duty than what I am guessing you'll be wanting to do. With any FEL, just be very careful not to overload, and be cautious about turning even with a load carried low.

You might even want to look for a package deal from someone who is trying to downsize or moving back to town. If you buy Green, you'll pay a little more, but you'll probably be able to move it or trade it in on new equipment and come out in good shape, and will have a better idea of what you really need. And I'd seriously consider having a well respected road contractor do your drives, as it's going to be challenging to do grades, crowns, ditches, and culverts right if you've never done any of this. I've got just over 11 acres here at home, with about 1000' of gravel driveway to maintain. I've also got a 4' Land Pride Grading Scraper that really works well to maintain it after the winter and spring rains, and again, I wouldn't want to try pulling a 5'.

But for mowing-I love it! My 2210 handles the 62" MMM very well. Yes, I could probably save time with a zero turn mower, but I can't do any of the above with a ZTR. And someday, I'll upgrade to a 2520 or 2720, which will ride a little nicer because of the larger tire/wheels. But first, I need a bigger machine up at the big farm. Just bigger toys!

So, be careful, go slow and take your time. You'll get there, even if it takes awhile. I tell my friends when they wonder why I spend so much time on my 2210 that it's cheaper than a shrink! Good luck with your new projects.

 

[JD 4520]

I appreciate the insight, guys.

I definitely agree that I don't want to invest in something too small to do what I need. But I am not really talking about that, my dad already has the 2210 ready to go to work (unless you really feel strongly that I will break it and have to invest in repairs!!). I know it's wayyy too small and light for my needs right now, but if the alternative is nothing, or waiting months longer to get a proper machine, I still get the feeling that I will end up borrowing it a few times and trying to at least make some progress out there. Ya know? Who knows, maybe the first time out there will teach me the hard way that it just isn't going to work.

It sounds like you have a demanding scope of work for the 2210 at the moment so is it possible to rent a backhoe or excavator or pay someone you know to do a couple of good days work focusing on the tough stuff that would wreck havoc on your 2210. Once that is done, then do the easier work with you 2210 and perhaps purchase the right box blade for the job. Hate to see you tear up you machine and end up spending too much on repairs and maintenance.

 

[jenkinsph]

First, on the driveway find out who is the best dump truck driver you can get and have him tailgate the driveway for you. Good drivers can make it alot easier to finish up even with a small tractor such as your dads.

I used my x749 today which is about the same hp, weight and same size tires as the 2210. Pulled a 4' boxblade without any problem loaded with dirt but it was working pretty hard. I wouldn't recommend a 5' boxblade for this size machine.

I agree with others that the best thing to do is buy a new tractor (base model) with the present 0% 60 month financing if your budget will allow it. I don't think you can buy an older tractor to fix up for less money /month. I would recommend a basic 40 hp no frills tractor such as the Deere 4005 or 4105. Then look around for some good used 5' and 6' implements.

I wouldn't buy the Mahindra because it is too small for your needs. I would also be very judicious about what I tried to do with the 2210 for the same reason.

 

[deezler]

Ok. This thread has been really helpful - appreciate it guys.

I still have a sliver of consideration for buying a 4' box blade and 4' rotary mower for my dad's 2210 and borrowing it a few times, then convincing him to pay me back for the attachments. But! There is no denying that I have hard work planned for whatever tractor I end up with, and breaking or hurting my dad's 2210 would be a terrible, terrible thing. It is in pretty mint condition since all it really does is mow his 2.5 acres and plow the drive when it snows. I would cringe at using it to break ground on my really over-grown lot. I would imagine that brush hogging out a couple acres of uneven ground is going to result in several broken shear pins.....

So! I shall be test driving tractors over the next few weeks and see if any obvious deals come to the surface. The idea of a 4 or 5 year powertrain warranty on something new is quite appealing. And I think I can get at least a few grand together on a down payment, thus hopefully keeping the monthly's to ~$200. And with something new, I can spec it out how I want it - 30-35 HP, more ground clearance... etc.

 

[JD 4520]

Deezler you are now on the right path...too easy to get distracted by what is right in front of you and not see the real picture. Let us know in a month or two what your new tractor looks like! Remember, renting the right equipment for a short time is also a good option to get the major work done.