How much tractor do I really need?

[TrippleT]

Here is a link to the product counselor.

New Holland North America: Products

 

[patrick_g]

Sounds like a 50hp 4WD will suit you best. I sure wouldn't want to do any heavy brush hoggin with a 6' hog running anything less.

My brush hog is fairly HD and its gear box is rated for up to 80 PTO HP. I can deliver 39. I raise the BH way up past a 45 degree angle and back into trees up to about 4 inches or so in diameter and then slowly lower the BH and chew them up all the way to the ground. I can pull the BH through 3-4 ft tall native grass and weeds and cut it just fine. Blackberry thickets, sumac, plumb or persimmon thickets and on and on are no big deal.

Pray tell, what are you cutting with your BH that takes nearly twice the HP?

Pat

 

[flusher]

Responses to my other post have made me question the assumption that we really need a full 52 (gross) HP tractor.
We run the 6' Bushhog on the apprx. 40-50 acres that are cleared or in the process of being reclaimed. Have a heavy, ancient manure spreader, so rusted I can't read the name, that the neighbor virtually gave us...8 horses and counting-I do some rescue. Use the FEL (w/spike)for round bales, and for moving everything from large rocks to mulch and gravel. Also have a 6' heavy duty scrape blade and a 6' box blade (half mile gravel driveway... washboard summer and up to 2' snowdrifts winter). We have major hills and feel better with a 4WD. If I could get away with a smaller tractor, would be thrilled, just don't want the frustration of finding I have less than I need.

So what kind of 52hp tractor do you have?
It would help if you updated your personal info file on TBN with tractor/attachment stuff.

In the 18 months or so since I've been participating in TBN, my impression is that many others have a similar problem and solve it by having more than one tractor.

In my case I have 10 acres of flat grazing land, a puny amount compared to your spread. But even so, I've found that I need 2 tractors, a new 2005 21-hp Kubota B7510HST 4WD tractor with the LA302 FEL (bought in June05) and a pre-owned 1966 45-hp MF-135 diesel that I got a few months ago. The Bota takes care of the toting and mowing chores. The 135 will do the plowing/tilling work as I try to get my pasture in better shape. All told, I have about $17K invested in tractors and implements so far.

Don't know what your tractor budget is like, but if I had your 50 acres, I'd be looking for a 1960s vintage 70-100 hp tractor that can handle big implements and get a small tractor/FEL for work around the homestead. My preference would be a used JD 3000 series tractor.

 

[Bob_Young]

Flusher has just hit the nail on the head. The trick is in getting a couple of reliable tractors...and it's really not that hard. It's also nice if they both have Cat I 3pt. hitches. That way you can get by with only one set of implements.
Bob

 

[neverenough]

Responses to my other post have made me question the assumption that we really need a full 52 (gross) HP tractor.
We run the 6' Bushhog on the apprx. 40-50 acres that are cleared or in the process of being reclaimed. Have a heavy, ancient manure spreader, so rusted I can't read the name, that the neighbor virtually gave us...8 horses and counting-I do some rescue. Use the FEL (w/spike)for round bales, and for moving everything from large rocks to mulch and gravel. Also have a 6' heavy duty scrape blade and a 6' box blade (half mile gravel driveway... washboard summer and up to 2' snowdrifts winter). We have major hills and feel better with a 4WD. If I could get away with a smaller tractor, would be thrilled, just don't want the frustration of finding I have less than I need.

Round bales come in different sizes, and are composed of different grasses which make the bales heavier or lighter. Also, why do you need to move the bales with a loader? Do you store them in stacks? Do you have to unload them from a trailer? If the answer is no to the last 2 questions, buy a bale fork for the 3pt and get a smaller tractor. Something in the mid 40's hp range. Detailed info on the exact uses of the tractor is key to deciding the correct tractor you need.

 

[sandman2234]

The speed at which bush hogging is done is directly proportionate to the hp at the pto. A tractor with less hp will pull the same bush hog, just not as fast, thru the same stuff. With as much property as he has, no way would I want to go below 50 hp. It just adds up to too much seat time.
My 65 pto hp John Deere will turn a 6' bush hog like a toy. Hoping one day to upgrade to a batwing, to make the old girl earn her keep.
David from jax