First Time CUT/sCUT Implement help? [For Landscaping]

[johnnydel29]

Hi There,

Nice house & property. I was in the same position a few years ago - built a house on a 5 acres, and left w/ all the landscaping to complete, thankfully we are done. He is what I would suggest. Get the tractor, definitely. Hire a good dozer operator and have the lot graded off, exactly how you want it. After the dozer is done, finish off w/ your new machine. I know your anxious to use your new machine to finish off the ground work, and of course, it is a good way to justify owning it to the wife . The lot seems to be pretty rough at this time, especially if there are ant hills, brush and saplings around. Your machine will be working pretty hard and perhaps taking some abuse and it won't be easy b/c of the hills. A good dozer operator can do what you need done in less than a day, effortlessly. At the time, I bought a JD 2305, box scaper & rake. Attempted to do some of the ground work and found myself taking more time than expected to complete it. I then hired a good dozer operator, and the rough work was done in less than four hours, and I finished off w/ my little JD.

You can probably get a good dozer & operator for less than $500.00 for the day. Even less maybe if you find someone looking for extra work on the weekend and evenings.

 

[korydz]

I'm not sure why you're shying away from loading your tires. If you're worried about calcium chloride all over over the ground, there are alternatives. I got my chains at tirechains.com. The 2 link ones work great and they weren't expensive.

I use my rear blade, not the box scraper, of snow. This year I got lucky in that it rained and froze before it snowed I had a good base to work with. Otherwise the trick is to run the blade backwards the first time to get a far less aggressive pass and get a good base established. From there you may want to shorten your top link to get a less aggressive bite. This effectively reduces the angle of attack to the ground and lets the blade ride on the packed snow without digging in. The downside, as I've found, is that when the snow gets deeper, it doesn't peel off the blade as effectively. The real solution of course is a hydraulic top link, but the adjustments really don't need to be made very often, and you can likely find a happy medium and leave it there for the season.

 

[BarryinMN]

The profile of R4 are generally wider with less sidewall than R1's which puts the machine closer to the ground.

 

[Bassicfun]

Johnnydel29- I think we have the major stuff done that a dozer would be necessary for, I'll do some work myself, and see where things end up, if it seems too much I'll gladly rent one and I have a free operator in the family.

korydz-I've spoken with multiple dealers in the area, some that personally have been doing this over 40 years, and they suggested not doing it, and personally I'd rather do wheel weights, that can never be drained from a puncture, easier to remove if the weight is not wanted on a lawn someday, etc.

BarryinMN- I understand that thought, the R4 seems to have the same aspect ratios as turf, but the more bar-type tread, to me that sounds perfect for my situation, I do not see ground clearance as any issue for my application(s).

Thanks for all the responses, all thoughts welcome (ok within reason!)

 

[jnjpream]

Well, I'm in the same boat right now. Just in the begining stages of doing my landscaping on a 3 acre lot with my bx22. One thing that I will never regret spending the money on is the Top-N-Tilt setup. I use it with my box blade to cut all kinds of contours and slopes, and it is a must to do fine control on how the blade cuts or smooths.

I spent about $1000 on the setup and it included dual tilt cylinders so I have maximum control over the blade angles. Hands down the BEST grand I have spent on the tractor.

I tried using the box blade and back blade w/o the TNT, and it was a serious pain in the butt. Every time you want to change from cut to smooth, or change the pitch in any way you had to get off, grab the wrench, change the link lengths, get back on and hope you got it right. Basically, I spent more time off the tractor setting up the stupid attachments than I did actually using the tractor.

If you want the parts list, or would like pictures of what it can do, just let me know..

Jeff

 

[mjncad]

I have R4's on my JD 4200 and I wish I had gotten the R1's. The R4's traction on snow and ice is not real good. Plus R1's will give you more traction for your ground engaging implements.

 

[Bassicfun]

Any & all pictures of the top and tilt would be great!! Both of parts, the whole setup as well as action thoughts! Thanks!!

 

[jnjpream]

I just started a thread on the TNT for the BX. Hopefully the link works, if not the title is $1000 TNT in the Kubota Owning/Operating forum. Sorry, it's long winded but I wanted to get all the info out there.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/145306-1000-tnt-dual-tilt-bx22.html

 

[MarkV]

Bassicfun welcome to the forum. Nice place you built.

I am going to apologize in advance for bringing the loaded tires up again. You do sound like you have made up your mind against them so this is just food for thought. After all you did say it was your first tractor and you were looking for advice. I am surprised that multiple dealers in a state that does a lot of farming would recommend against them. They have been the standard for many years on the farm. Generally the arguments against loading the tires are rusty rims, to much weight for finish mowing and environmental hazards if they were to leak. Golf course lawn doesn't sound like and issue for you and both of the other issues are easily solved with the use of the proper materials. I use water and environmentally friendly, animal safe, anti-freeze because I can do it cheaply and easily at home. Wheel weights will work but they are expensive and you mentioned keeping cost down. My tires have been loaded for 10 years without issue and many have had theirs loaded much longer. Do add which ever kind of weight. It will make all the difference with your hills and snow removal.

MarkV

 

[Bassicfun]

Thanks MarkV.. I may consider it, more interested in talking implements to get the job done, then turning this into a loaded/unloaded thread. Thanks for your input!