tacticalturnip
Elite Member
Very nice! You must be happy to have her home.
Is a subcompact under 25hp enough power?
- Thread starter TN8Man
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I have ten acres and I first had a JD3520. I soon discovered it was to small so I upgraded to a JD4320. It is 48hp and it is way better. I can make roads and clear my land very easily. If you have acres get the biggest tractor you can afford.
FPGT72
Silver Member
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2023
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- 138
- Tractor
- Kubota BX
There is a pretty large bias against smaller machines. They are nothing but a lawn mower, or you will do better with a shovel. Personally I think they can live in their very biased world.
I live on a flat 13ac, and have had a BX25D from roughly the moment they first came out. It is currently sitting at 700 hours and I don't use it to mow, but I do have the deck. I have used it to pull the box blade and now land plane with no issues. Dug up a great backstop for my range, moved concrete and gravel by the bucket full. It has been all the machine I have needed.
I live on a flat 13ac, and have had a BX25D from roughly the moment they first came out. It is currently sitting at 700 hours and I don't use it to mow, but I do have the deck. I have used it to pull the box blade and now land plane with no issues. Dug up a great backstop for my range, moved concrete and gravel by the bucket full. It has been all the machine I have needed.
CliffordK
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2013
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- 2,068
- Location
- Eugene, Oregon
- Tractor
- Toro D200, Ford 1715, International 884,
For my 2¢.
I have my Ford 1715. Rated at 26 to 27 HP. It does a lot of what I need, although I would like a little stouter loader (meaning also more weight). It'll brush hog OK. Tilled OK. I have seen the temperature light come on at times, perhaps if I was pushing the RPMs high.
Mom had a 30 to 40 HP Deere (not quite sure of the model). It did well for almost anything. It shrunk to a Kubota BX2380. It wasn't my idea, and I wasn't asked for an opinion. 21.6 HP. I haven't used it much, but it it couldn't pull a wooden post out of the ground without concrete. And my nephew complains it lacks power for brush hogging. It will do OK for light duty work, but nothing major. I'm experimenting with flailing mowing now, and It isn't even worth trying on the Kubota.
I'm not quite sure why there seems to be so much difference between the Ford and the Kubota.
Yet, if it was me, I'd choose something in the 40+ HP range.
I recently snagged a Landini Trekker 60F. About 60 HP, and amazingly powerful for a tiny package. And it should climb walls... as long as they aren't muddy walls.
I have my Ford 1715. Rated at 26 to 27 HP. It does a lot of what I need, although I would like a little stouter loader (meaning also more weight). It'll brush hog OK. Tilled OK. I have seen the temperature light come on at times, perhaps if I was pushing the RPMs high.
Mom had a 30 to 40 HP Deere (not quite sure of the model). It did well for almost anything. It shrunk to a Kubota BX2380. It wasn't my idea, and I wasn't asked for an opinion. 21.6 HP. I haven't used it much, but it it couldn't pull a wooden post out of the ground without concrete. And my nephew complains it lacks power for brush hogging. It will do OK for light duty work, but nothing major. I'm experimenting with flailing mowing now, and It isn't even worth trying on the Kubota.
I'm not quite sure why there seems to be so much difference between the Ford and the Kubota.
Yet, if it was me, I'd choose something in the 40+ HP range.
I recently snagged a Landini Trekker 60F. About 60 HP, and amazingly powerful for a tiny package. And it should climb walls... as long as they aren't muddy walls.
jyoutz
Super Member
The difference is the Ford is a compact tractor and the Kubota BX is a sub-compact.
CliffordK
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2013
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- 2,068
- Location
- Eugene, Oregon
- Tractor
- Toro D200, Ford 1715, International 884,
Ahhh, so subs are designed to be sunk in the ocean... got it.
wawajake
Veteran Member
The difference is 5 hp between your bx example and the ford.....so 20 % .....I have a 25 hp BX2660, it has no problem with 48" brushhog, 9 inch post hole digger, ,60 inch rear finish mower, wallenstein wood chipper, 52 in snow blower, I remember one day at my daughters new build house , I spread three dual axle dumptruck loads of gravel with the 48" FEL to make her driveway , pretty significant workout in my opinion...... so maybe it is more comparable apples to apples comparison to your Ford maybe......just smaller wheels of course. .....( or maybe it's the operator)
jyoutz
Super Member
You wondered what is the difference between the two. Two different classes of machine.
Indian Territory
Silver Member
- Joined
- Feb 23, 2020
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- 106
- Tractor
- New Holland PowerStar 75
Depends on what you're doing of course, but for the way we use tractors weight is as much a limiting factor as horsepower. Without enough weight, the implements want to steer the tractor, rather than the other way around. For us this happens mostly with ground engagement. You can't draw straight beds if you can't steer. Weight in the bucket helps, but with small tractors the buckets are limited in capacity. I've been told on this site that 75 hp is enough for small scale farming, but I'll never own less than 120 hp again. But that's for berry farming, which involves using large tillers on a lot of acres, and also pulling a raised bed maker. For mowing you could get by with much less. Lots of riding lawnmowers fall in the 25 hp range. Problem is, though you can buy little implements for little tractors, most of them are not worth owning. This is especially true for box blades, etc., where weight is essential. Just my two cents based on my experience of course.
