Newb with questions looking for guidance

[chaosrob]

Hey all, being completely ignorant of modern farm equipment I am looking for some guidance. I just purchased 50 acres of mostly wooded property that has been untouched for 50 years. It is in pretty rough shape and I have a lot of cleanup and clearing to do. I am going to build a small house on the property first, then a larger one at a later time. I will not be planting any crops or livestock. I am planning on building a couple firearm ranges on the property for my own use as well as setting up a small mill for my own purposes. Terrain is fairly rocky and has some steep hills I will need to deal with, which will be straight up and down for me on a gravel road I am currently putting in.
I am looking at the mt242hc 4wd hst premium tractor for my basic needs here. I plan to have the rear tires loaded to help with the terrain. I have zero experience on a tractor since I was a teen and that was an old Ford 8n without loader, I do have experience with skid steers.
Do you believe this to be a good light to medium duty tractor for my needs? Is there a better option whether it is another used big brand or other? Any must have implements? My gravel drive will be 2420 ft when complete so I will need to take care of that as well.
TIA

 

[2manyrocks]

How steep are the hills you plan to operate on? Not sure what slope is too much, but there is a point where a tractor might not be the best option.

 

[chaosrob]

I would guess between 12-15 degree. This is just to get access to the rear parcel the way it is split by the gulley.

 

[edgarrian]

I would rent an excavator if you can operate one. Much easier to clear trees with for the area of the house. Cut in the driveway if you have time to. Its exactly what I did. I removed stumps, de limbed and put that in a pile. Cut the trees into 10 ft logs for easy processing for firewood or in ur case mill work.

I let then burned the pile of stumps and limbs.

Once you get the property where its manageable for a tractor you will be good to go

 

[chaosrob]

Sounds like sage advice, thank you

 

[rScotty]

Hey all, being completely ignorant of modern farm equipment I am looking for some guidance. I just purchased 50 acres of mostly wooded property that has been untouched for 50 years. It is in pretty rough shape and I have a lot of cleanup and clearing to do. I am going to build a small house on the property first, then a larger one at a later time. I will not be planting any crops or livestock. I am planning on building a couple firearm ranges on the property for my own use as well as setting up a small mill for my own purposes. Terrain is fairly rocky and has some steep hills I will need to deal with, which will be straight up and down for me on a gravel road I am currently putting in.
I am looking at the mt242hc 4wd hst premium tractor for my basic needs here. I plan to have the rear tires loaded to help with the terrain. I have zero experience on a tractor since I was a teen and that was an old Ford 8n without loader, I do have experience with skid steers.
Do you believe this to be a good light to medium duty tractor for my needs? Is there a better option whether it is another used big brand or other? Any must have implements? My gravel drive will be 2420 ft when complete so I will need to take care of that as well.
TIA

You are starting in on a big project. A home site involves a lot of digging, shooting ranges do too. And a half mile of gravel driveway is a huge project by itself. 50 acres is a lot of land. All these would go better if you start with a larger tractor.

If you are able to handle normal machine maintenance and repairs, consider a used full size yellow backhoe/front end loader like you see on construction sites. Popular models areCase 580, JD310, or older Fords. Those older construction machines are incredibly durable & parts are always available. There are more knowledgeable mechanics in the construction world than there are for compact tractors.
You can probably get a decent older construction machine for the same price as the new 45 hp LS you are looking at. $30K will buy a nice one. It will do far more, last longer, and might even come with a decent size cab.

If you want to buy new, then any of the compact tractors will do about the same job. Buy from a dealer that you trust, one who has a good-looking service shop. The best dealers will have a mobile service rig so that the mechanic can come to you. Get as much HP and as many features as you can afford. You want hydraulic remotes and a quick change FEL bucket with a reinforced cutting edge..minimum.

Comparing tractors by frame weight is always a good idea, so look for tractors that weigh the most before loading the tires. If you have rocks, look for tires with upgraded sidewalls & the most ply ratings. Industrial tires do better on slopes than Ag lug type tires simply because they are wider. Don't base your decision on manufacturer's claims, particularly claims comparing loader or engine performance. Loaders and engines work about the same throughout the industry - although they are often measured differently.
Good luck,
rScotty

 

[chaosrob]

You are starting in on a big project. A home site involves a lot of digging, shooting ranges do too. And a half mile of gravel driveway is a huge project by itself. 50 acres is a lot of land. All these would go better if you start with a larger tractor.

If you are able to handle normal machine maintenance and repairs, consider a used full size yellow backhoe/front end loader like you see on construction sites. Popular models areCase 580, JD310, or older Fords. Those older construction machines are incredibly durable & parts are always available. There are more knowledgeable mechanics in the construction world than there are for compact tractors.
You can probably get a decent older construction machine for the same price as the new 45 hp LS you are looking at. $30K will buy a nice one. It will do far more, last longer, and might even come with a decent size cab.

If you want to buy new, then any of the compact tractors will do about the same job. Buy from a dealer that you trust, one who has a good-looking service shop. The best dealers will have a mobile service rig so that the mechanic can come to you. Get as much HP and as many features as you can afford. You want hydraulic remotes and a quick change FEL bucket with a reinforced cutting edge..minimum.

Comparing tractors by frame weight is always a good idea, so look for tractors that weigh the most before loading the tires. If you have rocks, look for tires with upgraded sidewalls & the most ply ratings. Industrial tires do better on slopes than Ag lug type tires simply because they are wider. Don't base your decision on manufacturer's claims, particularly claims comparing loader or engine performance. Loaders and engines work about the same throughout the industry - although they are often measured differently.
Good luck,
rScotty

Indeed it is a large endeavor but I am optimistic . Those things certainly have some oomph behind them, pretty powerful machines. I looked but for something that wasn't clapped out it was quite a bit more cash than I am wanting to pay, and their weight is pretty substantial. I am cash paying for everything and it is piling up quickly, as would be expected. Great advice on the dealership portion, I would guess that would be pretty helpful.

 

[rScotty]

Indeed it is a large endeavor but I am optimistic . Those things certainly have some oomph behind them, pretty powerful machines. I looked but for something that wasn't clapped out it was quite a bit more cash than I am wanting to pay, and their weight is pretty substantial. I am cash paying for everything and it is piling up quickly, as would be expected. Great advice on the dealership portion, I would guess that would be pretty helpful.

We built our place. Lots of TBNers have. It may be worth a search for a used yellow full size machine. Consider talking to a maintenance shop foreman directly. There are probably more nearby than you know. Small towns, schools districts, churches, local utilities, and shopping centers - any place with their own maintenance shop are all better bets for used equipmant than dealers or construction companies.

Small towns are especially good since they buy new equipment using grant money, and are often required to sell used machines at public bid. Stay away from commercial auctions.

IMHO, paying cash and building your place yourself is one of the great adventures. My bet is you can buy a good full size machine for less than the cost of a new compact 4wd. The compact 4wd is great to have after you get the big work done, but using one for construction makes them get old quickly....

 

[etpm]

As an owner of a Case 580CK and a Yanmar YM2310 I can say for sure that the little Yanmar is too small for an initial tractor and that the Case is a great machine that would be very good for developing a home site. Maybe not the best for putting in a 1/2 mile long driveway though. For that maybe rent a machine more appropriate or hire someone who knows what they are doing to put in the driveway properly. But when it comes to digging ditches, moving dug up dirt, installing a septic system, or putting in short driveways, maybe 200 feet long, the Case machine is great. I put in a driveway through the woods, put in a septic system, dug all the ditches for water, power, and phone, and moved yards and yards of dirt and rock with my Case 580CK. When I bought it I had never sat on a backhoe, never dug a ditch, and never installed a septic system. In fact, I knew nothing about septic systems. Zero. That Case machine still serves me well and it is a 1970 vintage machine. It is not the best machine for doing stuff in the woods though. But machines that are great in the woods are probably not the best machine for developing a homesite. I think you need to consider what you are gonna be doing in the woods, how often you will be needing a machine for that, and how much you will be doing with a machine around your homesite once you are living there. My Case is big and is cumbersome for many of the chores I do around the place, especially when close to the house. The backhoe always needs to be considered because it sticks out so far behind the tractor. That's why I love the smaller Yanmar. So I really need both machines. Maybe you will end up with two machines.
Eric

 

[Squirrel's242]

I have the MT242 Premium non-cabbed version, got it a couple months ago. The tractor was bought to be a big muscle for land maintenance and work instead of manpower. I have about 5.5 acres hilly, wooded property with an older log cabin and need-replacing several outbuildings. Until this point it was hand tools, power tools, rented equipment and a useful Kioti UTV. I have over 30hrs my tractor now from moving dirt, boxblading the 100yd driveway, pulling tposts and now digging post holes for perimeter fencing.

From where your property is starting at I think you should be looking in heavier machinery, like a skid steer/CTL or excavator. Like rScotty said up there. I say that because you described rocky terrain and steep terrain. I don't think the MT242 by itself will be enough weight or muscle to deal with building a road in those conditions. The tractor will probably be ok "in conjunction with", but starting from scratch, I'd choose heavier equipment for the bulk of the ground work or tree work(specifically targeting stump removal, you can process trees fine otherwise).

As for tire ballast, I'm in the process of doing that now. I've got everything put together as far as hoses, fittings and fluid - just need a free day to fiddle with it. So far I've done all the above work without ballast. It was sketchy in a couple areas. I do not recommend doing that for long term survival. The tractor loader is rated to lift ~2500lbs and it easily lifted the unballast rear with a box blade. I think the loader manual specs wanting close 1500lb IIRC. The tractor weighs in at 3300lb. Online calculators say I'll be putting in 42gal per tire. But IDK if that 42 for full tire volume or 75% to the tire valve. Either way adding 693-924lbs would be better than none. Depending on the work, I may add a ballast box or build a shelf on the box blade for weight.

Anyway, I'm rambling. Long winded short, look at heavier machinery but I do support the the MT242, I got one and so far so good. What I wish were different, higher flow for FEL work. I like that CTL/skid steers and excavators do that. You can use heavier land work attachments.