? on What to Buy?

[dewitt]

Just getting 16 acres - 9 of which is woods. Need to mow about 5 acres, have 900 ft drive gravel, what do you recommend - tractor size and equipment. Looking for new - Kubota dealer 2 miles away but can get to Cub, Massey & New Holland - what do you guys think?

I am in Michigan - middle of state - need to also plow snow! <font color="blue"> </font> davidd@lymansheets.com

 

[SWB]

It will, of course, depend on your budget. My own bias would be something in the 30-35 HP range in 4wd and hydro. All are good manufacturers so that you should factor in which tractor is comfortable for you and which dealer you like the best.

 

[kozak]

dewitt,

Welcome to TBN.

Ditto what SWB indicated. Would get Front End Loader & if you can swing it a rear snowblower. Will need additional remote hydraulic connections for snowblower. If you can't fork out for snowblower right away can always get a rear blade & use it & the FEL to remove snow. If you do go with 35 to 45 HP tractor & get FEL, will need counterweight on back. (i.e. either filled rear tires or cast iron wheel weights, or just large concrete bucket connected to rear 3 pt. hitch or some other similar set-up.)

Excess tractor weight is a negative during spring & fall months when mowing grass due to relatively soft ground conditions which the tractor will marr / compact up. Even removing counterweights, size of this tractor class will still be an issue. Not sure how close to the house you plan on mowing. That's why some opt out for the R4's (industrial type) tires. Middle of the road between turf & ag tires.
Depending how wet & MUCKY it gets especially during the spring months, may need to also consider a smaller garden or riding lawnmower style tractor IN ADDITION to the tractor you are considering for the larger tasks. As SWB indicated, can also consider a class 2 boomer (29 to 33 HP) which is one size smaller than class 3 (35 to 45 HP NH) & therefore lighter.

Bolt on forks for the FEL are pretty handy as are hooks welded onto bucket for attaching chains.

Good Luck on Your Tractor Hunting & Keep Us Posted.

Vic

 

[3RRL]

Hey dewitt...
Don't know if you're limiting your selection to those you've mentioned or not, but if you get a chance to check out some of the Chinese tractors, you may be able to get a larger 4wd tractor, more hp and more implements for less or about the same price.
I know this from personal experience and ended up going that way. I got a 55hp 4wd tractor, FEL, 7' backhoe, 7' boxblade, 6' brush hog and a post hole digger all delivered to my property for about the same price as a NH with loader and delivery. The Kobuta with loader and backhoe I looked at was Way more, although it was HST.
The implements I got rounded out about everything I needed for my 27 acres. (No snow where I'm at) so I thought it was a tremendous deal....just a thought.

 

[aesanders]

Couple questions for you...

What is your Budget?

Is the mowing for around the house lawn mowing or are you mowing fields?

Are you planning on clearing any woods or just working the cleared land? Any future plans you are considering?

What is the terrain like? Is it hilly or flat? Do you have many trees you're mowing around or wide open fields or lawns.

I personally like many tractors by Kubota, Massey and New Holland. I don't follow the Cubs much anymore, but I'm sure they have some decent models. With a little more info on your property, I would be able to give you some suggested models I would consider.

 

[ronjhall]

Welcome to TBN. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Having a Dealer 2 miles away can be very expensive. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
For mowing lawn I would consider a <font color="orange"> Kubota </font> B series tractor. Light weight for mowing. Yet large enough to do some of the bigger task.
My B2910 (replaced by B3030 and economy model B7800) with a 72" MMM will cut about 2 acres per hour. This was important to me when I bought my tractor. This is a lightweight tractor with lots of power. I use it to snowplow my 200' of drive plus a neighbors road that is over a 1/4 mile long. It's the top end of the B series size tractors. Other models to consider are BX and smaller B tractors.
My dealer also sells the Massey line of tractors. He sells a lot of them. But not familiar with sizes.

 

[dewitt]

Budget - about $15,000 - $18,000
mow around house - probably 3 acres
no clearing off woods probably will go in woods to bring out some downed trees
terrain is flat - is planted grass - some small slops nothing to steep.

Any thoughts?

 

[SWB]

If it is just for mowing and pulling logs from the woods, you could probably go with a smaller tractor. I personally favor at least a small 30 hp unit since you can get mowing done a little faster and have more pulling power of logs out of the woods. In that price range you can get 4wd, hydro, FEL and mower. Do drive the ones you are interested in and operate them. Don't discount comfort since you will probably spend more time on the tractor than you anticipate as you find more chores to do once you have them.

 

[dewitt]

I did get quotes on the following including loader, finish mower, back blade - Kubotas
7610 - 24 hp $15,950
7800 - 30 hp $17,900

The 7610 has 50 hours on it.

What do you think?

 

[cag]

Dewitt I also think Kubota B series would be a good fit for you,I look closely at the B3030 the only issue I had with the tractor and the reason I didn't buy it, is at the time I tried the tractor I found it to rattle and vibrate, there was talk here on TBN of these issues, I don't know if they've been resolve, they probably did as kubota is known to stand behind there product, if you decide to look at the BX series then I would suggest for you to look at massey GC2300 series great little tractor...cag