Narrowing my tractor choices

[art]

Part of any chore is having the time to do it! To have five hundred acres to play or work with would be exciting but I wouldn't want to be married to it! I'd very well be looking at a 100 horse tractor with a big batwing mower for doing the mowing and towing stuff out of the way that a used larger TLB couldn't move as well. At best a five foot brush hog can only mow about three to four acres and hour!
There are compacts that are designed for a chassis life of ten thousand hours! I'd have trouble recommending that purchase to you or anyone for what you are looking at having for a work load.
A larger farm tractor that's used should be about 10,000. and still reliable enough to get your work done. The backhoe that of coarse has a HD loader on it for the digging chores should be under 15,000.

 

[Z-Michigan]

I am thinking 50-55 HP is adequate for any and all 6' implements. Please correct me if I am wrong.

I think that's too general a statement. Some 6' implements require far more power than others. For instance, a 6' light duty brushhog will have all the power you can use at 50hp, but a 6' heavy duty (the kind that cuts 3" trees) would be marginal. Similarly, if you wanted a turnover plow, a 6' wide would be 4 or 5 bottom, too much for a 50hp tractor. OTOH a 50hp tractor will easily handle a 7' or even 8' rear blade or rake, cultivator, etc.

50hp would probably handle a 7' disc but nothing wider. As for a drag harrow, you will have no problem at all pulling an 8x8', and could pull nearly twice that size if you wanted.

 

[texbaylea]

Highsmith

You have received a lot of good advise but I would add: 1. get a quick attach adapter for the loader, good for bale spear, different buckets and pallet forks; 2. go 4wd as it will be extremely valuable for loader work; 3. don't discount the value of a cab, that area can get extremely hot and dusty.

Vernon

P.S. Almost forgot get R4's to fight off the thorns.

 

[Iowachild]

Skip the farmtrac, same with mahindra. The other manufacturers are good and established, you'll be able to get parts 20 years from now. I bought an off brand tractor about 15 years ago, now I can't get parts and it's a boat anchor.

Care to elaborate?

 

[Kendall69]

I bought an off brand tractor about 15 years ago, now I can't get parts and it's a boat anchor.

Same goes for name brand stuff. Some manufacturers refuse to keep, or manufacture parts after 10 years in some cases. I have an older Kubota, 80, something. When it was 10 years old I needed front end parts, and all the dealers I contacted gave me a resounding " nope" I called Kubota headquarters and explained my frustration " WHAT!!!, after 10 years Ican't get the parts I need" " sorry" But they did look up the numbers and came up with something that " might work". Same with a Ford 450, I called for an appointment for a lousy tune up, and they refused to even take it in fo ran appointment, said they do not work on vehicles over 10 years old WHAT!!!. I had to scream at the service manager and explain "what do you mean you can't get parts" I will bring in the plugs, and wires from NAPA, if it's too difficult for you - he let me come in.

I think Federal law says they have to keep parts for 10 years, after that they could care less.

 

[frank_f15]

ABOUT FARMTRAC we have dealer in town have looked at them a few times( just stoped in) they seem like they are heavly built . if i was really looking to purchase i might look hard at them. They do seem a bit cluttered tho.

 

[BarryinMN]

Same goes for name brand stuff. Some manufacturers refuse to keep, or manufacture parts after 10 years in some cases.

I think Federal law says they have to keep parts for 10 years, after that they could care less.

Thats part of the story -- for some classic cars, parts div can go back 20-30 years. Availability of manufacturer parts will also cost a huge premium, which opens the door for aftermarket suppliers into niche volume replacements. Want a freshly rebuilt '65 Mustang?

I replaced the exhaust pipe on my JD A ordered it from the local dealer & came in on normal delivery cycle 2-3 days. Cost $80. Found the same thing aftermarket at a two cylinder club meet for $30. Live & learn.

Intending to keep a machine for decades makes a warm & fuzzy, but in reality the cost to repair may outstrip it's economic market value. I found a JD radiator cap in a agricultural junk yard cost was free, owner said come back & buy something next time. Value was even better when I found out aftermarket caps are selling everyday of the week for $40-50.

Best way to assure parts decades into the future is pick a machine that set a new benchmark and as a result had huge production volumes.

 

[wolc123]

If you are looking for value, and not "fancy shmancy", I would look at Mahindra for sure. They are one of the worlds largest tractor manufacturers and come from the same country as those economy JD's you are looking at. I think final assembly is done in Texas. These tractors outweigh most of the competition which is a big asset for moving round bales, etc.. I would go as big in hp as you budget allows, 60-75 if possible. Skipping the 4wd and cab will let you buy quite a few more horses. A canopy does a good job with that hot old summer sun and does not rob hp like an A/C cab. I bet you could get around 10 more horsepower and 1000 or more pounds in a Mahindra for the same money as the other models you are looking at.

 

[Z-Michigan]

As far as parts, John Deere is the definite leader in keeping parts available and having them easy to get. And I can't name how many posts I've read about difficult parts availability for Kubotas that aren't very old (or in some cases, are brand new). I think the runner up in parts availability would probably be New Holland, based on their volume and length of time on market (as the successor to Ford/NH).

I would also say that for any major brand, I would have a much greater expectation of getting parts 10+ years down the road for an ag type tractor than for a CUT.

As far as Mahindra - I would look at them. Look really close. They get good reviews, but I personally haven't seen any in person. I was skeptical of Kioti when I heard about them, but after seeing some up close I was quite impressed - but lack of a nearby dealer (and concerns that the dealers in my state didn't sell enough to necessarily keep the line) kept me from getting one. I think if you look closely at a lot of different tractors you will start seeing significant differences that the marketing hype skips - ergonomics for practical use items, like the hitch draft links, stabilizers, drawbar, how easy/difficult it is to refuel and where the filler is located, etc. Things that aren't "sexy" but make a big difference in how pleasant the tractor is to use and how well it will hold up. There are also some things that look bad but make no practical difference - specifically straddle type platforms, which seem like a throwback but in actual use, at least in my experience, the transmission tunnel doesn't get in the way, and I like sitting low enough to see the front end more horizontally than vertically.

 

[LoneCowboy]

so, had an interesting experience yesterday that might help shine some light on your situation
Went out to look at this old farm. 60 acres, used to run irrigated pasture (and raise horses), with the drought, they lost water rights, it all dried up and at this point it's basically just weeds. He wants to start renovating it.

I told him, you should start over, there's nothing to overseed, come in, rip it up (it's good dirt, strangely enough, with no compaction), put in a cover crop, then rip it up again in the fall

he asked me "can you do that?"
sure, i can do it, but it will take 1/2 the summer. I can do the small areas (inside paddocks) and such, but really, you should just take to your neighbors and let them do it. You'll get a much better price.
so we agreed
now I agreed to maintain it (because by the time it needs mowing, my TN75 will be here, I hope), but a 5 footer is just ridiculous
and that's for 60 acres

just my experience.