new kubota L39

exfn · Dec 16, 2005

hi,
we have a 100 acre ranch in northern california that will require irrigation work, tree planting, road grading, mowing, fence construction. need one "do all" tool without having to buy three different tractors. we'll be working maybe 20-40 of the 100 acres, as the rest is in timber.
priced today new L39 with backhoe attachment and front loader $34,000 plus tax. Also looking at the L3130, and L44, but this seems to be more substantial tractor.
after reading and researching should be able to do what we need it to do....trying to get some opinions from all of you.
thoughts on prices, types of tractors?

_RaT_ · Dec 16, 2005

I'm a big fan of trenhers for any kind of irrigation work, fast and clean. Their drawback is they are pretty much single purpose which is why I rent one when I need one. If on any kind of side slope, a ride on trencher is mandatory which means either you have a 3/4 ton truck or have it delivered. The L39 is a good tractor. It does some things great and some things "so so" If mowing is in your plans, skip the L39. If lots of dirt work either digging or loading, I can't think of a better compact.

MarkV · Dec 17, 2005

I only have about 100 hours on my L39 so it is still new to me. It is a very stout machine with plenty of power for the jobs you mentioned. The backhoe is extremely capable and will out perform the backhoes available for the other tractors you mentioned. The loader capacities are also greater which is a big plus. I don’t find it hard to mow with although I would prefer an HST transmission if my mowing were mainly in tighter areas. Also the price you were given is about the same as here in the South.

The L39 is heavy at 7000 lbs with the backhoe attached so take your towing equipment into consideration if you will be moving it by trailer often.

Welcome to the forum.

MarkV

JimMorrissey · Dec 22, 2005

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( we have a 100 acre ranch in northern california that will require irrigation work, tree planting, road grading, mowing, fence construction)</font>

It depends what kind of mowing he's talking about, which he didn't specify. If he's talking delicate lawns then any large tractor is not the tool, but he said ranch, so I doubt they're fine suburban lawns in a development. To mow one would drop the bucket and remove the hoe, add the 3pt hitch and go. No larger tractor is very good at mowing finished lawns, they're too heavy. If you have nice lawns you'll need a lawn mower.

The L39 is more than a dirt mover. The hydraulic flow available allows for all kinds of attachments unavailable on CUTs. Any hydraulic Bobcat attachments that work on the smaller machines (not high flow) will work on the L-39, which can be readily had at most rental shops. The front leveling loader is excellent for work with forks and it blows away a loader of similar size class. It owns a diesel that's easy on fuel. I can't think of a finer machine for all that you mentioned aside from finish mowing. The loader is made for a hydraulic post hole digger. The 3pt hitch works just like a CUT with a rear blade or a box scraper. I've got a 72" scraper and it works fantastic. The hoe is perfect for planting trees. You can trench all day with this machine. I've done it. I've also moved mountains of earth with the hoe and loader. It's an amazing utility machine that's not too big or too small, can be easily pulled with a 3/4 ton pickup and I think the price is right. By the sounds of his post, I believe he's most interested in a tractor, not a lawn mower. No, it's not perfect, but nothing is for every category of daily work on one's property.

I don't consider this a true "TLB". It's a utility machine and that's how Kubota markets it. They call it a "Utility Series Tractor". I'd have to agree with that description. I've put close to 250 hours on mine since April. It's a good machine.

aesanders · Jan 5, 2006

Not to steal the thread but I have a quick quesion on the skidsteer attachments available for an L39.
Will a skidsteer snowblower work on the loader of an L39?

MarkV · Jan 6, 2006

We don’t use many snow blowers here in Georgia so this is a bit of a guess. I’ll bet that a blower needs the high flow hydraulics offered on many skid steers. I don’t think the L39 would have enough flow.

MarkV

_RaT_ · Jan 6, 2006

I am sure MarkV is correct.

kubotaman68 · Jan 6, 2006

hi there,
there is a place in maine called nutron manufacturing that can make a hydraulic drive motor to match any flow rate, the only other concern would be having sufficient cooling capacity for the hydraulic oil being used to operate the blower

JimMorrissey · Jan 17, 2006

Before you can be sure you need to check the flow requirements of the blower is question. See if they match up. You need to consider the load and the speed at which you want to work. Certainly the L39 will carry and spin the blower, the question is how big a blower are you talking about / how much snow will it handle and at what speed will you want to travel. Is this for personal use or semi-commercial use? I believe the loader will provide about 12gpm. I've been thinking about converting my PTO blower to hydraulic and seeing what it can do. Maybe something temporary so I don't ruin the 3PT capabilities before I'm sure.

You might want to consider putting a blade on the front with hydraulic control and have a blower on the back for the larger snowfalls. That'll let you clean the light falls up quickly with the blade and also clean up and scrape after the blower clears the main path.