Dumb questions from a "city boy"

[ericsink]

My family and I are moving from our 1/3 acre place in a subdivision to
five acres just outside of town. We will *probably* end up with ten
acres, as I am trying to purchase the lot next door. For now, it's
five for sure. I'm shopping for a compact tractor, and looking for
advice.

So far I like the looks of the BX2200. Everybody here on this website seems to love
theirs. I drooled over the JD4000 series for a while, but the price
difference is quite substantial. Nobody has given me a good reason to
go for the beefier grade of tractors.

I want 4WD and HST transmission. I want the ability to use a variety of attachments in the future. The ones which interest me now are the MMM, a snow blower and a tiller. I've read enough posts here to understand that everybody thinks their FEL is the greatest invention since sliced bread, so I am starting to think I'll want that item as well.

I'll be mowing at least three of those acres as a finished lawn, maybe
all five. If we get the other lot, I rather doubt I will probably
leave it as something other than lawn grass.

One of the first tasks, of course, is to convert this land from a corn
field into a lawn. Can a compact tractor do this? What attachment(s)
do I need?

What is a box scraper anyway?

The driveway will be 450 feet long, all gravel. We don't get a lot of
snow here in central Illinois, but every now and then we get pounded
with a bunch. My pickup truck won't have much trouble driving over
it, but I'll definitely need a way to clear the land for the wife's
minivan. A friend told me that snow blowers are considered far more desirable than a mere plow, and I noticed that their pricing reflects that. I may find myself dealing with 450 feet of snow a foot deep. What kind of power do I need for something like that?

We plan to have a garden. I'm not yet sure how big, but we want to
have sweet corn. I've got a 5HP Troy-Bilt tiller, but I was toying
around the idea of getting a PTO tiller for the tractor instead.

I want to do my own landscaping. I don't think we're going to do
anything major. There is a possibility that we'll need to put in a
stone creek across the front lawn, since we've got a drainage swail
that goes through there. My wife mentioned something about a
retaining wall once.

I'm thinking about having a one-acre pond put in on that second lot,
but I assume that digging such a beast is WAY beyond the capabilities
of a compact tractor. The guy next door put one in and the folks who
did it brought some very big yellow dirt moving equipment.

I've dreamed a little bit about putting in a gravel or chipped path
around the entire property, for walking or jogging. I assume that a
compact tractor is capable of that sort of task, although I don't
really know which attachment(s) I would need to get that job done.

Bottom line: This thing is going to get used for lawnmowing, more than
anything else, but I do want the flexibility to try and use it for a
variety of other jobs.

The local Kubota dealer has a BX2200 in their inventory, and I'm
getting hints that I can get a good deal on it. I don't have a
specific price quote yet.

I talked to the local John Deere folks, and the JD 4200 looks very,
very nice. But the price range is really a lot higher. The 4100 is a little more affordable, but that tractor just doesn't look appealing to me. It is very obviously not related to the rest of the 4000 line.

Money isn't the biggest factor here, but it is definitely a
consideration. I don't want to buy more than I need, partially
because I've got so many other projects clamoring for our money. And,
my wife is suspicious that I am buying a big toy. She might be right.
I figure I'm going to spend at least $12k and less than $15k. I *might* end up spending more, but I need a good reason, for both me and my wife. The
reason the JD is scary is because it looked like I could spend $20k
without blinking an eye.

So I'll take any advice I can get. Given the story above, am I going
to regret getting a BX2200? What alternatives should I consider?

 

[Bird]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

Ericsink, I really don't have an answer for you. The BX is a fine machine and I think you'd be happy with it, but I also think you'd be even happier with a little bigger tractor, especially if you get that other 5 acres. I had a B7100 and was happy with it for the most part, but now have a B2710 that's even better. You can do most of the jobs with the smaller tractor; just takes longer.

Bird

 

[John_Mc]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

Ericsink - One thought to save some money: if you don't get snow all that often, you might consider skipping the snowblower (at least for now). If you don't mind spending a little extra time, snow can be cleared with your FEL. Or, if you don't mind driving backwards to plow, a rear blade is cheap compared to a snow blower.

Start with the tractor and mower (and FEL if you go that way... there's a reason people are so nuts about them). A box scraper is very useful for landscape work (you can get a decent 6 foot model for less than $1000 new). It's also useful for maintaining a gravel driveway. Some of this could also be done with a simple rear blade, but it will take longer. Remember, you can rent some of the attachements you may need, and this could help with not having all of the expense "up front" as you see how much you are useing various pieces, then consider buying.

And yes, building a 1 acre pond is probably not something you want to tackle with a compact tractor.

 

[ronjhall]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

Ericsink
I have a B2910 that is the same size as Birds tractor. Just has 3 more horsepower and a few creature comforts. I also had a B7100 before I bought my 2910. It would take me about 3 hours to cut my lawn with the B7100. With the 2910 I can cut in less than 1 hour. I also have less trimming because the MMM sticks out the side of tractor far enough to get under shrubs. Do I need a tractor the size of mine to maintain 4 acres? No. But being able to put a 6' MMM on the 27-2910 series tractor was one reason I considered this size tractor. Ease of changing attachments was another consideration.

 

[MReeter]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

Eric,We have owned both a B2710 and a BX2200.These are both excellent compact Tractors.We also own 10 acres,from my experience I would recommend buying something a little bigger than the BX.A B2410-2710-2910,the loaders on these models have a lot more capacity and the 27/29 will accept a 72" MMM.We live just West of you in N.W.Mo. and we've not had a single snowstorm that I could'nt handle with a loader and rear blade on the 2710,or the 2150 we had before it.If your going to do your own landscaping,the loader is a MUST along with the rear Tiller.When hooking up implements on the 3-point hitch,the BX can be a real pain.The 3-point arms on the bigger B-Series are MUCH easier to work with.I would think that right now there would be some good deals to be had,and the terms are very good now also.It's a tough decision,we've all been there,the best advice I've seen posted here is to buy the biggest you can afford.

 

[frank_f15]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

ERIC:from your post ,i don't imagine u get all that much snow, so i think u might be well advised to save the$$$$ and just use the fel when u need to move snow. also u may want to consider jumping up a bit in size of tractor. the 2200 will do what u want but . mabey a a b2410 or 2700, would be a wiser choice?with 10 acres u will find more things to do with tractor, so a little extra beef won't hurt./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Alan L.]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

I have 24 acres and I haven't even touched 12 of it yet. I have a B2710 and wish it was even bigger. BX2200 will do all the work, but will take more time.

Alan L., TX

 

[Boondox]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

Ericsink -- The only dumb thing you could do is not seek advice and end up with the wrong tractor. Since you're seeking advice here, you'll make an informed decision. It might turn out to be wrong, but it won't be dumb! /w3tcompact/icons/tongue.gif

I have 150 acres, but only seven of it is cleared, so I started with a B1750 at 20hp. It was a great mower and snow plower, but since my land is full of rocks...and since I needed the tractor to move logs and mass qtys of dirt...it just wasn't enough tractor for me. I loved the mmm and the rear blade (if the snow's not too deep reverse the blade and drive forward to avoid removing all your gravel). The FEL was way underpowered, however, unable to handle anything heavy. It was more like a wheelbarrow up front.

I now have an L3010. Probably way too much tractor and $$$ for you, but I'd definitely consider the 27/2910. Another option to consider is getting a smaller tractor for routine maintenance stuff, and renting a big boy for the heavy work.

Good luck. Pete

www.GatewayToVermont.com

 

[glennmac]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

eric,

I have 11 acres. I mow 3 and brush cut another 4. Also do related projects.

I was unfamiliar with tractors and bought a BX2200. It was great for the finish mowing, but I found it unsatisfactory for the digging, lifting and pulling tasks. I traded it in after 3 weeks for a 2910 with 6' midmower and a 5' medium duty brushhog. I can fisnish mow with it faster than the BX and a lot more comfortably.

There are many times when I wish I had a larger tractor for the lifting tasks and the ability to use larger implements, but the 2910 is really better for me for finish mowing.

I would recommend larger than the BX for 10 acres.

 

[snowman]

Re: Dumb questions from a \"city boy\"

For the snow removal part of the question, since you already
have a pickup truck, the best solution may be to just put
a plow on it; they cost around $2,500 for the minute mount
6' blade. That cost is not too far off from a front mount
snowblower.

Since you don't get huge amounts of snow, you shouldn't
have to worry about needing to push back high banks of
snow.

It's much nicer sitting in a heated truck and making a few
passes than chugging along in an open tractor.