Grillo G107d and Implements - Worth it for a long drive?

jtmurphy · May 30, 2017

Hey everyone,

I am looking at a used Grillo G107d with implements - Berta single rotary plow, Berta 26" Flail Mower, Rinaldi R2 24" Power Harrow, Grillo tiller (not sure on the size), and dozer blade. Advertised at $2500. i am very happy with the implement list, and it really would be just what I'm looking for. The problem is, they are a 6.5 hour drive from where I currently am. I have contacted the seller, and they have no ability to bring the equipment any closer for a meeting, though they did offer me a discount for coming so far (have not discussed how much yet).

What do y'all think? It seems like a good deal to me, but I wanted some input before I spend 13 hours in a truck with the potential of being dissapointed.

Any advice/help/input welcome.

jcraftenworth · May 30, 2017

don't even hesitate. use your truck, rent a truck, buy or borrow some folding metal ramps and ratcheting tiedown straps (and bring some bungie straps/rubber strabs to secure the ramps to the truck so there are no accidents) and get your butt over there asap. the implements alone are worth significantly more than the price of the whole package. 12 hrs ain't nothing, those tools will last decades. If this is up on craigslist, if you don't hurry, someone else most certainly will, and you'll be kicking yourself. used modern ag grade 2 wheel tractors are hard to come by, and most I've seen, the people want virtually retail price for used gear. The g107d has all the bells and whistles, brakes and locking differential, and runs all the best implements. Only difference between it and the g110 and above are pto stoutness and engine hp. as long as you follow joel at earthtoolsbcs.com's advice for what size implements to run, no problems in your future.

I had to drive 6 hrs round trip to the twin cities, and for less desirable implement bonuses for my soilworking purposes (got a sickle and bush hog mower). I would have preferred a setup like the one you describe, that's turnkey market gardening or homestead gardening right there, from breaking tough sod to making perfectly formed and groomed raised beds.

eta: just looked up specs on your 830. Looks like you'll be gaining 2-3 hp if you have a stock engine (nice!) and you get the extra working speed in the soilworking/trailerpulling direction (rear pto) which imo is better than the 830, which has the reverse arrangement. Unless you need backup redundancy and two tractors, you can sell your 830 for 1500-2000 and be far better off, imo. the 830 has the new bcs style, so if it's possible to use grillo implements, you would need adapters, joel sells these I believe. Farmerboybill is more versed than I on the pto differences and compatibility.

CodeMonkey · May 30, 2017

I would drive that far for that deal - and it is a deal.

I paid about that much for my Grillo 107 gas with a flail and a sickle mower and it was a lot closer. Had I not jumped on it he would have sold it to another guy who was second in line after me.

jtmurphy · Jun 4, 2017

Just got back with the tractor and implements - boy am I glad I took y'all's advice and did it - they are in great condition, and I am very excited to have them! Long day of driving, but totally worth it. Now to decide if I want to sell the BCS 830 or just start accumulating a collection....

jcraftenworth · Jun 4, 2017

a wise decision. do you have an unneeded mower or tiller to sell with your bcs? Seems like people usually want to till or mow with them, so that may help with resale. But if you find the right customer that sees the pto potential, you could probably sell it without attachments as well.

jtmurphy · Jun 5, 2017

Yea, it does have a tiller - I have seen the same thing that you have, that people generally prefer them with an implement. Seems to help them understand that they can actually do something with it. And, of course, I would sell it with the tiller, since I don't very well need 2.

There is some temptation to keep it because I could end up with a larger engine (the transmission can handle up to 13 hp, essentially making it an 850/852) than the the Grillo has now, but I am not sure that I will need the extra power for anything. Plus, if I find BCS implements (much more common where I live), it would be a lot easier to use them. But it also would be nice to recoup some of the cost of the Grillo. Still thinking about it.

jcraftenworth · Jun 10, 2017

jtmurphy said:
Yea, it does have a tiller - I have seen the same thing that you have, that people generally prefer them with an implement. Seems to help them understand that they can actually do something with it. And, of course, I would sell it with the tiller, since I don't very well need 2.

There is some temptation to keep it because I could end up with a larger engine (the transmission can handle up to 13 hp, essentially making it an 850/852) than the the Grillo has now, but I am not sure that I will need the extra power for anything. Plus, if I find BCS implements (much more common where I live), it would be a lot easier to use them. But it also would be nice to recoup some of the cost of the Grillo. Still thinking about it.

if you're buying a new implement from earthtools, I think they just ask you what you have, and put on whatever adapter it needs. grillos can run all the implements, what is it just a few bcs mowers don't work on grillo because of the way grillo does the pto and reverse or something. and if you buy an implement that is set up for a bcs pto, I think you can get the adapters from joel at earthtools to run them on grillo. but adapters aren't cheap when you have a lot of implements, so I'd go all adapted to run on grillo, and sell the bcs 830. My bcs has the same pto as your grillo, I run the 30" grillo tiller, 10hp gas, no problems. but we have nice soil it's not clay, I've never worked in clay. I think more hp would only really be useful for the most powerful woodchippers
and that one specialty soilworking implement that I have no interest in running. the reciprocating spader. more hp and weight would be useful for a traditional moldboard plow, but the rotary plow is much better imo and is not as much of a HP hog.

jtmurphy · Jun 10, 2017

I actually just talked to Joel about this, and the real potential problem is the clutch on the 107d - it is not built to handle some of the high torque implements, and the one that specifically I am thinking of is a flail mower large enough to mow cover crop on 30" raised beds. He says even the 26" mower is a stretch on the 107d, so going to the 34" (currently the only size above 30"), or waiting for the 30" that is eventually coming from Berta would both require using a machine built to handle the high torque of that implement (whether a larger BCS or a larger Grillo).

CodeMonkey · Jun 10, 2017

I run a 28" Berta flail mower on my 107 gas.

The previous owner had not adjusted the clutch correctly and the clutch was always partially disengaged so it started slipping and I had to send the clutch to Joel for a rebuild. About $100 later (maybe less - I forget, including shipping) I had a rebuilt clutch and it works fine, but I have to keep an eye on the clutch cable.

I do a lot of brush mowing in rough ground, so I am always stopping and starting a lot, which means the clutch gets a real workout. Even if I have to rebuild the clutch every other year, it still gets the job done. Mowing a crop would be easy by comparison as I would not need to use the clutch near as much and there would be a lot less wear.

But for a 30"+ mower, that would probably be too much for my gas engine and clutch.

jcraftenworth · Jun 10, 2017

I would think a cover crop is never gonna get really woody. It's gonna be irrigated and lush, and you don't want it going to seed so it'll be chopped at less than it's full height. I bet the 107d can do the 30" in those market garden conditions. The berta flail has an adjustable discharge baffle, so if you are bogging down and having throuble, you can also adjust it to chop the material less.

this is kinda like the discussion I had about the 30" power harrow. I was told that I may be underpowered at 10hp. But then I press further, that I have a rotary tiller to till deep and till in fertilzers, and that the power harrow will never go deeper than seed planting depth, 2 inches at most. It's a luxury tool for seeding and making perfectly groomed raised beds. Then they sales guy admitted, my machine would run the harrow in those conditions just fine. It all depends on your mowing or tilling conditions.

To be honest, if I inherited a 26" berta flail, I would not buy a 30", I'd make do, unless I found a buyer that would pay an honest price for the 26" berta. I'd probably just aim to cover crop seed at 26" in the center of my 30" raised beds. I try not to plant on the edge of the raised beds anyway because of soil sloping and erosion and difficulties weeding etc. So those 4" we're talking about never get planted. Also, the tilling or power harrow process will send some of the green manure material out over the entire 30" bed if you work the entire 30". Or suck it up and make two passes with the flail. It's a market garden not a huge farm field, making two passes wouldn't be the end of the world if you're set on 30" cover crops.

The real mystery to me is, why does BCS sell two different flail mowers that are the same width? really strange!