MossRoad - "Or you could just get a Power Trac and be done with it"
I've put a lot of thought into a Power-Trac ever sense I read the post
Compact Tractors are Designed All Wrong. At the time I stated "I just looked at the Power Trac web site and there are a lot of things I like about it, but I don't see it replacing my Boomer. Some implements work better on the back such as a moldboard plow or tiller or you would be driving on the plowed or tilled ground. Other implements will work well in the front at times, but will be better in the back at other times, such as a landscape rake when making the final pass before seeding grass or you would compact the soil after raking it. So, the ideal tractor would have to be bi-directional, like the New Holland TV140 discussed earlier. The small tires on the Power Trac and the low profile are great for mowing on slopes, but the lack of ground clearance would cause problems. I would bottom out in several areas. Also, the small diameter tires will not provide as much traction as large diameter tires."
So, I would still need a tractor and I can't afford both a Power Trac and a tractor (the ideal situation would be to have a good ZTR and a tractor, but I can't afford both of those either). I need to be able to plow, till, mow yard, mow brush and small trees, load heavy stuff into/remove heavy stuff from a pickup, landscape, push/remove snow, and pull/drag heavy stuff.
I can see where a Power Trac would be real nice in a lot of situations. The Power Trac would handle the mowing and a lot of the landscaping and snow removal. But, the small tires and lack of ground clearance would be a problem for some of the uneven terrain I get into. Those small tires would be a rough ride for me too, since my "yard" and fields are not all that smooth. I don't see how the Power Trac is going to work well for tilling, since the tiller needs to be on the back. Also, a tractor is much better for plowing, loading heavy stuff into/removing heavy stuff from a pickup using the FEL, and the grunt work of pulling/dragging heavy stuff. Also, I don't see any offset mowers for the Power Trac. I have a ditch and few other areas that I use my sickle bar mower to mow, or else I have to do it the hard way with a string trimmer.
Having to go to Virginia to buy one and only getting a 1 year parts only warranty is certainly a couple of strong deterrents!
I admit I may be just trying to do too much with a single machine. In retrospect, I probably should have just bought a good ZTR for the mowing and then an old used tractor for the heavy stuff, but I was trying to avoid buying anything used because I wanted something I could just put to work and not have to work on.
