Need help on Right Tractor For a Grapple.

[AuburnAlum]

I need some advice on the right tractor for my primary use of a grapple. I know that they are heavy and tough on tractors. That will be my primary use for the machine. Secondary would be the loader for moving dirt, mulch, etc. No mowing of lawn as of yet. I have just shy of 14 acres that is heavily wooded and would use the grapple to clear much of the deadfall and move cut down trees. Also clearing some trails.

Now for my questions:

In speaking with a friend who is a professional farmer and a neighbor who also is a farmer they stated that 50+ HP would be needed for a grapple. Even a high 40s HP would be pushing it. I was trying to stay in the mid perhaps high 40 HP for my budget. Is this the experience folks have had here?

Now I apologize for starting any religious debate on this question:

Both of these folks advised against Kubota. One individual "hated":thumbdown: his Kubota and sold it after a year. The other said that the Kubots 'just did not live up to expectations and did not last". They both recommended that Massey was tougher and longer lasting. Bottom line question, are there folks here that have grapples on Kubota's that have put them through the ringer?

With regards to the dealer, the dealer I am purchasing from has both Massey and Kubota. (The Local John Deere dealership is out of the running)

Thanks again in advance!

 

[nybirdman]

A lot depends on the size of the grapple;there are "light duty and weight"grapples and full on heavy duty that would require a fairly large and heavy tractor.
I chose to add a "thumb&tooth-bar" to the factory heavy duty bucket and it works well for "me".
With 14 acres I wouldn't think you would need a commercial grade grapple and a 50+HP tractor.
As far as knocking Kubota;anyone can have a bad experience with any brand,they are just a machine made by man.I think you would find more positive posts on this site for Kubota than negative.

 

[AuburnAlum]

A lot depends on the size of the grapple;there are "light duty and weight"grapples and full on heavy duty that would require a fairly large and heavy tractor.
I chose to add a "thumb&tooth-bar" to the factory heavy duty bucket and it works well for "me".
With 14 acres I wouldn't think you would need a commercial grade grapple and a 50+HP tractor.
As far as knocking Kubota;anyone can have a bad experience with any brand,they are just a machine made by man.I think you would find more positive posts on this site for Kubota than negative.

Thank you. I like the Kubota tractors and gut is pulling me that way. As far as grapple I like this although it may be heavier but more solid: Heavy Duty Root Grapple For Skid Steer

 

[gladehound]

Are you sure that you want a tractor? For the uses you specified, a tracked skid steer might be better suited with the benefit of giving you more protection from falling debri

 

[k0ua]

Well, here are the facts. People put grapples on Little Kubota BX SCUTS, and get a lot of use out of them.. So the "you need 50 horse minimum" is crap. So is the Kubota's are junk is also crap.

NOW, that said, of course a larger tractor will be able in general to operate efficiently a larger grapple, have more lift capability and more stability with large heavy grapple loads. So with that line of thinking why not a 100 horsepower tractor? or maybe a 200 horsepower tractor? See where I am going with this?

It is just how much money you have, how big the jobs are and how much time do you have. I have a 35 horsepower tractor and a grapple. Do I have a toy? I dunno. you tell me. I can pick up about 1430 lbs or so. Lots of 40 horse tractors can lift well over 2000 lbs. Is that enough for your needs? You tell us.

Are Kubotas built lighter for a particular horsepower rating than some other brands? Yes they are. It is a design philosophy. Kubota feels if you want more weight, add ballast. Other brands build more weight into their basic design. An example would be my Kioti, it is heavier than the many of the Kubota's with the same horsepower rating. BUT Kubota also makes a line of heavier tractors with more features called their Grand L series. Kubota is one of the more popular brands of compact tractor, based on sales units and customer satisfaction.

So, bottom line. a smaller tractor than 50 horsepower may well be all you need, or maybe not. You need to decide how much you need to lift. But to say that a grapple cannot be effective on a smaller tractor is just not correct.

 

[k0ua]

Thank you. I like the Kubota tractors and gut is pulling me that way. As far as grapple I like this although it may be heavier but more solid: Heavy Duty Root Grapple For Skid Steer

Don't forget that the heavier the grapple is the more that it subtracts from your lift power, so the useful load you can lift is less. Also don't forget that the type of steel a grapple is made from greatly contributes to its "toughness" There is a huge difference between standard A36 steel with a psi yield rating of 36,000 pounds differs greatly to hi strength 80,000 lb steel. What I am saying is that all steel does not have the same strength. Go watch a bunch of EA's videos about there in house made grapples, and watch some of the abuse Ted puts their grapples to.

 

[AuburnAlum]

Well, here are the facts. People put grapples on Little Kubota BX SCUTS, and get a lot of use out of them.. So the "you need 50 horse minimum" is crap. So is the Kubota's are junk is also crap.

....

So, bottom line. a smaller tractor than 50 horsepower may well be all you need, or maybe not. You need to decide how much you need to lift. But to say that a grapple cannot be effective on a smaller tractor is just not correct.

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Thank you very much for the advice! Great pics too!

 

[newbury]

I need some advice on the right tractor for my primary use of a grapple. I know that they are heavy and tough on tractors. That will be my primary use for the machine. Secondary would be the loader for moving dirt, mulch, etc. No mowing of lawn as of yet. I have just shy of 14 acres that is heavily wooded and would use the grapple to clear much of the deadfall and move cut down trees. Also clearing some trails. <snip>

How big is your budget?
How big are the trees?
Is this a projec that needs to be done SOON or at your leisure?
what type of trees?
Is the 14 acres pine regrowth from a clearcut 10 years ago or old-growth hardwood forest?

A 50 HP Kubota

for $12K would work just fine, that's what I've got.

But I expect you could easily get by with smaller.

 

[AuburnAlum]

There is no urgency for the purchase at my leisure. Budget is flexible, just concerned as I started at 19K now looking at around 30K+. Mostly hardwoods (oak, hickory, and some clusters of short and Virginia pine) and the short needled pine are the weakest and most prone to fall. The land used to be a tobacco farm about 50+ years ago. Picture below of what it looks like and what has fallen and would like to move.

 

[SDT]

Doing serious work with a grapple bucket will require a properly sized tractor. How big of a tractor will depend upon what you want to do and the weight of your grapple bucket.

There are thousands (if not tens of thousands) of folks using grapple buckets with Kubotas, no doubt many more than do so with Massey Fergusons.

FWIW, I have experience with both Massey Ferguson and Kubota as well as grapple buckets.

I currently own three Kubotas, two bought within the last two months to replace 2007 and 2012 Massey Fergusons after a very bad experience with Massey Ferguson and their dealer lasting several years. I'm 66 years old, have bought many new tractors, and have otherwise been around the mountain many times. I have never been treated so badly as I have been by Massey Ferguson and their dealer.

Never again.

SDT

 

[Citydude]

Just for reference, I have a 25 horse powered L series Kubota tractor with a grapple for 23 acres of wooded, steep terrain. It does fine for my needs. I really don't need more horse power as much as I need weight. Loaded rear tires and counter weight off the 3 point is a must with a grapple.

 

[k0ua]

There is no urgency for the purchase at my leisure. Budget is flexible, just concerned as I started at 19K now looking at around 30K+. Mostly hardwoods (oak, hickory, and some clusters of short and Virginia pine) and the short needled pine are the weakest and most prone to fall. The land used to be a tobacco farm about 50+ years ago. Picture below of what it looks like and what has fallen and would like to move.

View attachment 452293View attachment 452294View attachment 452295View attachment 452296

Ain't nothing there I could not pick up with my little 35 horse tractor and small grapple. All day every day.

 

[k0ua]

Just for reference, I have a 25 horse powered L series Kubota tractor with a grapple for 23 acres of wooded, steep terrain. It does fine for my needs. I really don't need more horse power as much as I need weight. Loaded rear tires and counter weight off the 3 point is a must with a grapple.

These are very important points. You need weight. I have the loaded rear tires, and keep 800+ on the 3pt when doing loader work.

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

Kubota MX4800, Done everything I've asked of it.

 

[TripleR]

Pretty much what everyone else has said, my brother has a grapple on his Kioti CK27 and I have one on my L5740HSTC as well as M8540HDC and all work well.

The whole Kubota, Kioti, MF etc. is junk is ridiculous all make good machines.

 

[newbury]

<snip out the ****>
Kubota MX4800, Done everything I've asked of it.

Now that's just down right tractor ****!

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

Now that's just down right tractor ****!

And gratuitous too, I know! But I just can't help myself!

 

[newbury]

Pretty much what everyone else has said, my brother has a grapple on his Kioti CK27 and I have one on my L5740HSTC as well as M8540HDC and all work well.

The whole Kubota, Kioti, MF etc. is junk is ridiculous all make good machines.

Kubota is notorious for being light. But then it's always easier to put pounds on than take them off.

And OP - take a serious look at Ted's grapples from Everything Attachments, they are constantly evolving.

 

[gladehound]

There is no urgency for the purchase at my leisure. Budget is flexible, just concerned as I started at 19K now looking at around 30K+. Mostly hardwoods (oak, hickory, and some clusters of short and Virginia pine) and the short needled pine are the weakest and most prone to fall. The land used to be a tobacco farm about 50+ years ago. Picture below of what it looks like and what has fallen and would like to move.

View attachment 452293View attachment 452294View attachment 452295View attachment 452296

Don't feel pressured to escalate your budget. Stay with an amount you are comfortable with. A small 20hp CUT with appropriately light grapple and a chain saw to get stuff to a size it can handle will do most jobs. Going larger from there just means less cutting.

Small machines have a maneuverability advantage. Larger machines have a stability and ground clearance advantage. I've found these cancel each other out in the woods. I can get some paths with my 20hp where my 45 hp wont fit. I can go other routes with my 45 hp that the 20hp doesn't have the stability or ground clearance for. I've been able to get to anything I want to get to with either of them, although it may be with different approaches.

If you have any real big logs or rocks to move, you may need a grapple that opens wider, which will probably also be heavier, which means a larger machine.

I suggest you just go out and start looking at machines within a budget that you feel comfortable with. That may help you hone in on what you like. My 20 hp will do 90% of the jobs I do with my 45hp - just takes more of my time and energy. I'm sure 70hp UT would be that much faster. However, I never feel like I'm wanting for more with the 45HP tractor. I always wanted for more with the 20HP tractor. I skipped the 30 hp range because at the time I was shopping, the loader performance on the 40+hp tractors was much better than those in the 30hp range and I didn't want to buy a 30 something hp tractor and still want more.

Since this is your first tractor, it will be hard for you to know what would really work well for you on this property. As you get more experience with any tractor and with your property, you will come to know what you really want in a tractor (or other machine). For this reason, I think it really makes sense to to keep the budget reasonable and buy a used tractor with QA loader. This will give you the experience to know what you really want before you spend big money. If you buy and sell well, you won't loose much if anything on a used tractor.

 

[gladehound]

Now that's just down right tractor ****!

I've always thought the MX series was one of the better looking tractors! How do you make the pictures appear big in the thread rather than having to click on them to open?