Need to know more about you: how many acres? current uses for the FEL? Future uses for the FEL? Mowing? How many acres of weeds that get rough mowed? How many acres of lawn that get finish mowed?
For example I have 10 acres of flat grazing land consisting of 7 acres of weeds that get rough mowed and about 3/4 acre that gets fine mowed. The rest of the property is covered with buildings and driveway.
Last June I bought a 21-hp Kubota B7510HST with the LA304 FEL (48" wide, about 800 lb lift capacity). Cost: $12,600 plus tax, 10% down, 0% for 36 months. I added a King Kutter 4-ft rotary mower (aka brush hog, slasher) for $650 from Tractor Supply Co. Also have a 4-ft KK box blade ($375 from TSC). For fine mowing I have a $1000 Huskee riding mower (42" cut, 18hp engine) from TSC.
It takes me 8-11 hours to mow the 7 acres of weeds depending on how wet and how tall the crop is.
I've used the FEL and box blade to excavate for paver block walkways and patio and to cut fire breaks along the fence line. And I'm constantly moving sand, gravel and dirt around the place with the FEL.
I need to till the 7 acres of weeds eventually. I could have this done, but what's the fun in that. The
B7510 is too small for any type of plow/disc work. So I'm in the market for a used 40-50 hp tractor to handle this type of work.
I figure I have somewhere around $16K invested so far in equipment to handle the work around my place.
I went though the same agonizing put and take exercise before deciding on the B7510HST. It helps if you can visualize clearly what you need now and what you'll need 2-3 years down the road. Most people soon discover that their first tractor is too small.
