New tractor advice sought

[mike69440]

"Beet juice" is great, and is the heaviest per gallon of all options, but it costs like he11!
That said, windshield washer fluid is about 1/3 the cost of "beet juice", though it does weigh about 25% less.
If it does not go below freezing in the Santa Cruz Mts., or only occasionally goes slightly below, why not use water?
Water is not as heavy as "beet juice" either, but water is FREE!
Whatever the liquid ballast, tubes should be used.
Calcium Chloride (CaCl) should NOT be used under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, ...even with tubes!

So do you just run water with a rust preventer adder in the radiator also? A little risky.

 

[IslandTractor]

So do you just run water with a rust preventer adder in the radiator also? A little risky.

Not sure what your point is but water or water plus methanol (WWF) has been used successfully as tractor tire ballast for years without problems. Rust is an issue if CaCl comes in contact with metal rims but not so much an issue with pure water or WWF. "Beet juice" is also largely water and doesn't have rust issues. Bottom line is that salt, not water, is the real enemy of tire rims.

 

[fried1765]

So do you just run water with a rust preventer adder in the radiator also? A little risky.

I did not make ANY reference to the radiator/cooling system.
I do use a 50/50 antifreeze-water mix in my cooling systems.
The engine water pump, and cooling system, needs the lubricant/rust protection provided by antifreeze.
There would be absolutely no purpose for lubricant with rust protection in tubed ballasted tires.
Liquid ballast freeze protection is obviously never required if outside air temperatures remain above freezing.

 

[mike69440]

Not sure what your point is but water or water plus methanol (WWF) has been used successfully as tractor tire ballast for years without problems. Rust is an issue if CaCl comes in contact with metal rims but not so much an issue with pure water or WWF. "Beet juice" is also largely water and doesn't have rust issues. Bottom line is that salt, not water, is the real enemy of tire rims.

Point I was alluding to is that a few days below 30F and water in tires will freeze and more than likely ruin the tire. Maybe just dilute windshield washer fluid for protection down in the 20F range.

 

[IslandTractor]

Point I was alluding to is that a few days below 30F and water in tires will freeze and more than likely ruin the tire. Maybe just dilute windshield washer fluid for protection down in the 20F range.

I've never had water freeze in a tire but my understanding is that it does no harm to the tire. Not even sure it harms the tire if you roll with it frozen for a bit but that would be the only circumstance where any damage might occur. If you just let it thaw before using, the fact that the water froze isn't such a big deal. In most cases folks who use just water are rarely going to have a prolonged or deep freeze so at worst there would be slush in the tire. Not sure you'd even notice that. It would take a couple of days of below freezing temps to freeze the water in a tractor tire.

The reason to use methanol mix or salt or beet juice is really so you can use the tractor in subfreezing temps.

 

[TheMan419]

Yeah I would use Rimguard or www in areas where temp below 32 are common. If you lived in the south water is the way to go. Cost is right. If you spring a leak it is fairly environmentally friendly.

 

[bspeedy]

OP - I, too, was much more comfortable servicing and maintaining motorcycle and automobiles before I bought my tractor. You will find a tractor very straightforward and simple to work on - unless the new ones have more going on.

If you are handy with bikes and cars, don't be concerned about the tractor repairs and maint.

Good luck.

 

[ericm979]

I drove up to Dave's yesterday. Thanks to the guys who encouraged me to do so. Ranks up there with the best dealer experiences I've ever had. Dave and his sales manager Rob took time to answer a ton of questions and to understand my needs. I'm feeling pretty confident that I can be a remote customer of theirs. It helps that they run tractors on a dyno before delivery.

I checked out and drove (in the parking lot) four models- Mahindra 2538, Branson 4015, 3725 and 3520. All HST. All had good points and some drawbacks but I liked the 20/25 series the most. I like the control ergonomics (except the rear diff lock that's on the wrong side) and the fit and finish. To me the 20/25s have the Kubota L3x01s beat hands down. Better features, ergonomics, price, and the fit and finish on external stuff is just as good. They're quieter than the Mahindra and maybe the Kubotas. They are probably more comparable to the L60 series Kubotas which I did not test drive. I did price one out however. Yow! The difference can buy a lot of implements.

I actually liked the 3520 the most even though it wasn't on my list. It seemed slightly nimbler than the 3725 and the control action was a bit lighter (which may be just individual unit variabilty or break in).
The reason it was not on my list is because its a little lower in power than I was looking at. Now I need to figure out if 29 pto hp is enough to run a woodmaxx chipper on large fir like I want or if should go with one of the more powerful models.

Dave's does Rimguard so that's what I'll be using.

 

[ericm979]

I ended up ordering a 3725, box blade and rotary mower. Top 'n tilt, smaller wheels & tires from the 3520, and rear spacers. I was going back and forth between that and the slightly less expensive 3520 and my wife said we should get the more powerful one. Ok, sure! I'm looking forward to using it to move dirt and destroy vegetation.

 

[DavesTractor]

Thanks for the business Eric. That's a nice tractor package.

For those that might wonder why he switched to the shorter tires, Eric is concerned about center of gravity and nimbleness. The 3520 R4 tires are a little smaller, yet still good size. But they are not adjustable for width as the centers are welded into the rim hoops. We have heavy duty machined steel hub-centric spacers available that give a little more width to the rear tires. I think they are 1.5" each. The result should be a more stable tractor for hilly terrain. A little wider, a little lower, and then 75% Rim Guard fill in the rear tires. A smart choice for this task.