LS MT240E or MT342

[Nutcracker]

New to the forum. Never owned a tractor, but did use my brother n laws ford tractor to rototill 4 acres a few years back. That is my first and only tractor expierence. . I looked at Mahindra & Kubota, but since the LS dealer is only ten miles from my house and is a reliable shop, I am leaning that way. I plan on using a finishing mower/maybe a rotary mower to mow 6-8 acres of fields/lawn. I have ten acres of grass, hay or weeds. No brush. I probably will need to mow a couple times a month, maybe more. Will use a rototiller on 2 acres in the fall & 2 acres in the spring. Will use a cyclone pto fertilizer spreader. Probably will not use the FEL much at all, snow, driveway maybe. I already talked to the dealer and he says he likes the HST best as he sees less trouble with them, I think he said they was idiot proof, but I don't hear well. So on that advice, I am going HST. The MT240E is around $23000 & the MT342 is around $28000. I like the idea of five grand less on the MT240E but, do not want to let that make my decision. Which one should I get? Thanks in advance.

 

[Torvy]

New to the forum. Never owned a tractor, but did use my brother n laws ford tractor to rototill 4 acres a few years back. That is my first and only tractor expierence. . I looked at Mahindra & Kubota, but since the LS dealer is only ten miles from my house and is a reliable shop, I am leaning that way. I plan on using a finishing mower/maybe a rotary mower to mow 6-8 acres of fields/lawn. I have ten acres of grass, hay or weeds. No brush. I probably will need to mow a couple times a month, maybe more. Will use a rototiller on 2 acres in the fall & 2 acres in the spring. Will use a cyclone pto fertilizer spreader. Probably will not use the FEL much at all, snow, driveway maybe. I already talked to the dealer and he says he likes the HST best as he sees less trouble with them, I think he said they was idiot proof, but I don't hear well. So on that advice, I am going HST. The MT240E is around $23000 & the MT342 is around $28000. I like the idea of five grand less on the MT240E but, do not want to let that make my decision. Which one should I get? Thanks in advance.

The MT345E would fall in between those two. You would get the bigger frame of the MT3 series without the bells and whistles. 'E' is the economy version.

 

[Nutcracker]

True, never thought about that. thanks..

 

[Bearsixty7]

Love my MT240HE so far, I'm at ~180 hrs. I have used the backhoe a lot, I've used a 5' Bush Hog BH215 Brushhog on the deer lease, A Terraforce 62" tiller in the garden, A 6' 3pt Disc on the deer lease, A 60" EA grapple a few places and it has performed great. If the MT3 line is in the budget, go for it, you won't be disappointed.

 

[Mrsig]

Can't help you pick but my MT225 has done a ton more for me than I thought it could with no problems I just hit 110 hours so far.
Good luck on your pick and enjoy your new LS I am.

 

[ZetorSteve]

I too have a MT240HE. My 11 year old daughter is a novice operator as yourself and has no problem using it confidently with my direction. It has plenty of power to run a 6ft cutter and handle many other jobs around the farm.

My only concern with the MT342 is a bigger frame with basically the same pto power of the MT240. Less power per pound. The MT342 is better suited for extensive loader work. You have a lot of mowing to do quite frequently which means you would benefit from more pto hp. Yes, the mt240 with a 6 foot cutter would do the job but take awhile. A MT357H would allow you to use a light duty 10 ft cutter to tame the grass quickly and often.

Now, on the other hand the MT3 is a bigger footprint of a tractor. When tilling it is ideal to completely till past your wheel tracks to do so efficiently to not compact your just tilled land with the tractors tires. Meaning you would need a wider tiller. This is where the MT240 will be a better fit. A smaller 6ft tiller would be a perfect fit and be more manageable in tight spaces. Also, lower initial cost.

Basically it comes down to how quickly you would like to get your chores completed. The MT240 should be a good fit for all the chores you listed. I personally would not get a MT342 over a MT240 unless I was doing strictly loader work.

 

[Nutcracker]

I too have a MT240HE. My 11 year old daughter is a novice operator as yourself and has no problem using it confidently with my direction. It has plenty of power to run a 6ft cutter and handle many other jobs around the farm.

My only concern with the MT342 is a bigger frame with basically the same pto power of the MT240. Less power per pound. The MT342 is better suited for extensive loader work. You have a lot of mowing to do quite frequently which means you would benefit from more pto hp. Yes, the mt240 with a 6 foot cutter would do the job but take awhile. A MT357H would allow you to use a light duty 10 ft cutter to tame the grass quickly and often.

Now, on the other hand the MT3 is a bigger footprint of a tractor. When tilling it is ideal to completely till past your wheel tracks to do so efficiently to not compact your just tilled land with the tractors tires. Meaning you would need a wider tiller. This is where the MT240 will be a better fit. A smaller 6ft tiller would be a perfect fit and be more manageable in tight spaces. Also, lower initial cost.

Basically it comes down to how quickly you would like to get your chores completed. The MT240 should be a good fit for all the chores you listed. I personally would not get a MT342 over a MT240 unless I was doing strictly loader work.

View attachment 725425View attachment 725426View attachment 725428

Thank you for the well thought out response. What is the widest measurement of your MT240HE & that rotary hog. I need to consider where I am going to store a tractor & currently the only unoccupied space I have with a roof, is the end bay of my carport which is only 86 inches width between post. Most likley the mowing implement will be attached 90 percent of the time. Just something for me to consider. Thanks

 

[ZetorSteve]

The hog is 77" at it's widest point. The widest point on the bare tractor is 68" with the R4 tires.

 

[m5guy]

I have a mt357. Love it. Get as much hp in whatever frame size you choose. I run a 6ft tiller and it covers the tracks. Spend a little more and get a cab. Best $5k extra I ever spent.

 

[Torvy]

Steve is right, if you are not really planning on using the loader, the only advantage is the up tick in PTO power. The 345HE has about 10% more PTO HP than the 240HE. Another consideration is that if you are mostly doing mowing work, the HST is not really worth the money unless you are constantly changing directions. Shuttle shift will allow you to 'cruise' at a consistent speed. HST is another $1000 or more. If you are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with manual transmission, that is another story. The hst also bleeds another 2HP off of your PTO..5%. May not matter with your mower, but tilling 2 Acres I'd want as much PTO HP as I could reasonably afford. The 345 is going to be almost 75 inches wide. Wider and heavier is more stable and safer. That may be important depending on your land. You should be able to park it with 10" of clearance. With a 6' tiller you only have 1.5 inches on either side. I would not go bigger than that as there are other ways to avoid compression, like offsetting your tiller.