Need Advise On New Tractor

Anonymous Poster · Aug 27, 2002

Need your input regarding the purchase of a first tractor. All input will be greatly appreciated.

Scenario:

Five acres in the mountains of NC
About 1 acre in lawn (reasonably flat) and the other four acre balance are steep and wooded
About 500 feet of gravel road to maintain

Potential uses for myself and possibly commercial small jobs after retirement:

Primary: Landscaping
Secondary:
Grass cutting
Transporting logs
Lot clearing
Small pond excavation

Attachments that may be used:

FEL (maybe 4 in 1 bucket)
BH
Box scrapper
Front blade
Rear blade
Tiller
Rotary mower
Forks

Equipment being considered:

Kubota
BX22
B7500
B2410
B2710

What would you suggest and why?

MossRoad · Aug 27, 2002

People probably get tired of me for suggesting <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.power-trac.com>Power Tracs </A>to eveyone all of the time, especially when they specify other brands..... so I won't /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif (but it would be a good choice /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif.)

I looked seriously at the BX and it was a great machine. Don't know anything about the other models of Kubota.

Since you mentioned commercial use, that is why I mentioned the above mentioned... the ease of changing implements which would be a big advantage to a professional landscaper. Good luck with your search /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

bmac · Aug 27, 2002

Sorry, I can't help you with a tractor recommendation. I'm still a tractor-owner wannabe myself. However, I can tell you that from reading posts on this site for several months, anytime someone mentions pond excavation (and by this I mean building a pond), they have been advised by the experienced users that this is not a task for a compact tractor. If you are referring to something else, please forgive my misunderstanding.

Good luck with your tractor purchase.

Anonymous Poster · Aug 27, 2002

Mossroad - Thanks for the feedback.

I have been to the PowerTrac web page and have printed out a lot of the info. Looks like a very interesting piece of equipment.

My reservations about the PowerTrac is lack of dealers for parts and service, limited user info. (I have been to your web site and was very impressed), lack of a diesel in small units and unknow resale.

I will be doing a lot of FEL and BH work and would have to purchase the PT-2425 to be able to have the BH. The relative low lift hight of the FEL would be a problem as I would be loading materials in to either a pickup or dump trailer.

I may try and get to the PowerTrac plant prior to making a final decision.

Anonymous Poster · Aug 27, 2002

Bemc - Thanks for the feedback.

When I talk about pond building I am talking about constructing damns in a creek that originates on my property and then runs through my property to the river. I am planning to create a series of small ponds. This creek has steep sides so I will not be doing much excavation except for possibly widening the sides and digging footings for the dams.

I would be interested in hearing from anyone who had done this.

MossRoad · Aug 27, 2002

I completely agree with your reservations /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

And I also considered the back hoe issue. I figured I couldn't justify the cost of the implement for the limited times that I'd use it.

At least I was able to narrow my choices to the BX and the PT425. You have narrowed your choices down to 4 Kubotas!

Now you have a tougher decision than I did. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif Keep us posted.

Anonymous Poster · Aug 27, 2002

HI,

Been there, done that...as they say.

I started with the thought of buying a BX22 and took delivery of a B2910 about 2 weeks ago. Just clocked 20 hours today. 18 of them backhoe/loader hours.

3.7 acres here. Maybe 1 acre grass.

I think for my needs I ended up just where I should be. I still feel a desire for a L3010, but think that would have been too much for my little plot.

The work this B2910 can do is pretty amazing, at least compared to my pick and shovel...

I am happy I went with the 2910 over the 2710, over the B2410, over the B7500, over the BX22...a split second decision after I decided on a B2410. I though the B2910 would be too much for my property size, but now I know it is not. I think I made a mistake by buying the Woods 60 inch rear discharge RFM though... I should have got the 72 inch one, as the extra 6 inches overhang on each side would have been better. Water over the dam...

Today when I was doing some clearing of a brush pile I kind of wished for a bit more loader power...but all in all I am really happy that I did not go smaller than the B2910.

Depends on your pocketbook, but if you can afford it and plan on doing more than just cutting grass, go larger rather than smaller and be happy in the long run.

That's my experience anyway. Only 20 hours of seat time, so take it for what it's worth...Don't forget to buy a tooth bar for the front loader bucket, by the way...

You don't list the B2910...for the slight additional cost over the B2710 you get some nice extras...OK, the additional cost is only slight if you can afford it...but you get over 10 percent more HP and other nicesities for much less than a 10 percent price increase over the B2710. So if you get up to the B2710 as a possibility, give the B2910 some thought.

Times are tought here at my place. Been so busy using and greasing my new baby that I don't have time to properly wash and wax her!

Bill Macher in Pgh, Pa...sometimes...

earthmaster1 · Aug 27, 2002

I looked at alot of different tractors, but ended up with a Mahindra 2810, take a look if you can before you buy, i'm not shure if there are any dealers but here there dealer locater.
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://mahindrausa.com/dealersearchmiles.html>http://mahindrausa.com/dealersearchmiles.html</A>

Kodiak · Aug 28, 2002

Your specified needs indicate a lot of future excavation/landscape work. Until this last year those were the predominant uses that I have had compact utility tractors for. Having had the only Cut with a small backhoe on an island in Alaska for a good many years, has shown me the ins and outs, do's and don'ts, capabilities and limitations of these small tractors. Especially in regards to excavation work.

Lets start out with loader requirements. You already stated the need to be able to load over the side of a small dump truck. Minimum side height say 80", to be able to load to center add at least 12", now your talking 92", 100" would be better. Second a heaped 60" bucket of sand or some other dense material and your talking close to 1000lbs or more. Anything smaller and your talking increasing your amount of work time many fold. Also make sure you get a heavy duty bucket, standard buckets are easily turned into a pretzel. then you need a tractor with enough frame weight/size to handle that type of load. Yes you can always add more weight, but will the axles, loader mounts, etc handle it. As well as the hydraulic source. Also with a 4n1 bucket a loader with a 1000lb minimum lift capacity should be considered to compensate for the weight of the 4n1 bucket.

Under attachments you show BH, I'm assuming that to be a backhoe and not a brush hog. Most tractors in the 29/30 horsepower have enough hydraulic power and weight to handle a good 7.5' subframe mounted backhoe easily. you can put a small backhoe on a smaller tractor, but you will shake the tractor around an awful lot, its limited. Also for strength and longevity I would suggest a subframe mount.

Now if BH stands for brush hog, then the question is how big? Under 25 pto hp I think your looking at 48". Over 25 pto hp well then probably 60". It depends on what you have to maneauver around and how fast you want to cut. as well as the cutters extension beyond the width of your rear wheels.

For finish mowing I think you could add about 12" width to the above hp requirements.

You didn't mention if you would be comfortable with a gear tranny or a hydrostatic transmission. Something important for your decision.

Now this is just my opinion, take it as you please. I think your looking at tractors that are to small for your needs. My suggestion would be to look into the @ 30 hp range. The kubota B2910 although powerful enough may be limited as your loader lift hieght and max weight lift capacity. The L3010 and possibly the L3000DT might be better. Also the New Holland TC29's and TC33's as well as thier economy model TC30's would be ideal. Then there are some makes like Kioti, Branson, Mahindra and Long that are making some very strong tractors these days.

I for one went with a New Holland TC29 this spring. Size weight and power it is ideal for my needs, which match many of your needs. I did however go with an aftermarket Woods 1012 loader, for more max weight lift capacity (1200lbs versus 850lbs) and a matching tried and true Woods 7500 backhoe. Altogether this seems like it would be an ideal pkg for your needs also.