LS?

[Jchonline]

That's definitely on the high end of what I'm thinking. $25K max spend is also what I'm thinking. While being able to handle heavy bales would be great I'm not sure that's the mainstream of what I'll be doing. I also need to finish mow 2-3ac and some of that is on a slope. I also like the smaller size to get into tight places. We'll see.

What do you consider a heavy bale? A tractor that weighs 2800lbs is going to have a hard time with a large round. If you arent moving them regularly long and uneven distances you might be fine with appropriate ballast. The problem with large rounds is how far they stick out and change center mass on a small machine.

Transmission on the MT240E is shuttle, not HST. Are you ready for that change?

Have you gotten any quotes yet?

In general LS should be a great machine, I would not hesitate to buy one if I had a reliable dealer in my area.

 

[coloradotrout]

Thanks for all the info. Does the MT240 get the extra HP above the 235 by adding a turbo?

I'm just looking at simplicity. My theory is simple is better. Adding a turbo, another thing to fail, might not be worth 5 hp. It looks like the 230, 235, and 240 have the same engine displacement, so something is adding the 5 and 10 hp.

I'm planning for 20y/5000 hours.

 

[coloradotrout]

What do you consider a heavy bale? A tractor that weighs 2800lbs is going to have a hard time with a large round. If you arent moving them regularly long and uneven distances you might be fine with appropriate ballast. The problem with large rounds is how far they stick out and change center mass on a small machine.

Transmission on the MT240E is shuttle, not HST. Are you ready for that change?

Have you gotten any quotes yet?

In general LS should be a great machine, I would not hesitate to buy one if I had a reliable dealer in my area.

Heavy bale. Good Q. 5' round is what I'm thinking but not a lot of moving. Lifting onto/off of a trailer and maybe 100 yards of travel.
I'm going with HST, so MT240HE or 235HE
$22.5K for the 40; $21K for the 35 is one quote I got.

That's about my limit. A 3 series might be good for some situations, but 70% of what I do is mow a lawn, brush hog in the woods with not a lot of turning radius, and grade my 1/2 mi driveway. The other is till a riding arena. The arena work might be better with a 3 series and some other implements, but not sure I can justify the cost. Open to ideas though.

 

[coloradotrout]

Where does the HP come from?

I was looking at the specs. Most MT2 and MT3 use the same 114.7 cu in engine. Somehow they are going from 30 to 57 HP on the same displacement.

 

[Jchonline]

Heavy bale. Good Q. 5' round is what I'm thinking but not a lot of moving. Lifting onto/off of a trailer and maybe 100 yards of travel.
I'm going with HST, so MT240HE or 235HE
$22.5K for the 40; $21K for the 35 is one quote I got.

That's about my limit. A 3 series might be good for some situations, but 70% of what I do is mow a lawn, brush hog in the woods with not a lot of turning radius, and grade my 1/2 mi driveway. The other is till a riding arena. The arena work might be better with a 3 series and some other implements, but not sure I can justify the cost. Open to ideas though.

See if they can demo loading and unloading a bale of that size from a trailer your height before you buy it. Just drop a bale on your trailer and take it to the dealership...let them do the rest.

 

[Jchonline]

Thanks for all the info. Does the MT240 get the extra HP above the 235 by adding a turbo?

I'm just looking at simplicity. My theory is simple is better. Adding a turbo, another thing to fail, might not be worth 5 hp. It looks like the 230, 235, and 240 have the same engine displacement, so something is adding the 5 and 10 hp.

I'm planning for 20y/5000 hours.

PTO tasks? Might help the tiller and mowing.

 

[Bearsixty7]

What do you consider a heavy bale? A tractor that weighs 2800lbs is going to have a hard time with a large round. If you arent moving them regularly long and uneven distances you might be fine with appropriate ballast. The problem with large rounds is how far they stick out and change center mass on a small machine.

Transmission on the MT240E is shuttle, not HST. Are you ready for that change?

Have you gotten any quotes yet?

In general LS should be a great machine, I would not hesitate to buy one if I had a reliable dealer in my area.

The MT240HE is Hydro.

 

[Bearsixty7]

Heavy bale. Good Q. 5' round is what I'm thinking but not a lot of moving. Lifting onto/off of a trailer and maybe 100 yards of travel.
I'm going with HST, so MT240HE or 235HE
$22.5K for the 40; $21K for the 35 is one quote I got.

That's about my limit. A 3 series might be good for some situations, but 70% of what I do is mow a lawn, brush hog in the woods with not a lot of turning radius, and grade my 1/2 mi driveway. The other is till a riding arena. The arena work might be better with a 3 series and some other implements, but not sure I can justify the cost. Open to ideas though.

I think you can haggle and get the MT240HE for maybe 21.5-22K which is worth it to me.

I really think they should just drop the MT235 from the lineup.

 

[Bearsixty7]

See if they can demo loading and unloading a bale of that size from a trailer your height before you buy it. Just drop a bale on your trailer and take it to the dealership...let them do the rest.

The MT240 will handle a bale up to about 1800-1900 no problem, I just wouldn't want to do it very often or for very far as the front axle/bearings aren't that big and it would sure wear them out faster than on an Mt3 or 4.

 

[coloradotrout]

The MT240 will handle a bale up to about 1800-1900 no problem, I just wouldn't want to do it very often or for very far as the front axle/bearings aren't that big and it would sure wear them out faster than on an Mt3 or 4.

Brings up a point. Are normal wearables like bearings a common part? Timken? National? SKF? etc or some proprietary part available only via dealer or manufacturer?