Thinking about buying a BCS 853DE

[alaxsxaq]

Hi, I'm new here and in the market for a new tractor.

I have a 10 acre property which is about half hillside with the bottom land floodplane along a stream. I have an old Yanmar 146D with a belly mower that I use to keep the lawn areas mowed and it works well for that. I started looking at small tractors for brush mowing, tilling, plowing and other uses, but realized that most of them would be more of a problem on the hills than my 146D which isn't useable on the steeper areas. That brings me to the BCS line which seems more useable on hillsides. I'm looking at picking up an 853DE with a 30" tiller, 26" brush mower, and 28" snow blower all of which a local dealer stocks and which looks to run me about $7200 which seems like the going rate. A couple of questions.

- any disadvantage to the larger tiller? It is only $70 more than the 26" and adjusts down to that size.
- are the flail mowers useable on hills and worth the extra $300-$400?
- does the single-stage snow blower work well in eastern US snow conditions which tend toward the wet or icy rather than dry and powdery?

Anyone have the BCS 853 with the Yanmar diesel that has put a good deal of use into it? How has it been in your experience?

Thanks for any replies.

 

[jim_n_nh]

I can answer a few of your questions. I have a 720 with a snowblower. The snowblower is a single stage that turns at about 1200 rpm and works better than most dual stage, I have dealt with southern NH snow successfully. I also have a rototiller that works great. On mine I can remove the outside tines and the shroud can be moved inward to make it narrow. It is a very well designed product.

 

[jperry507]

I have an 850 with 30" tiller, 48" sickle and, 48" sweeper. Each attachment is top notch. I use the tiller at 30" for initial tillage and then narrow it to 26" to cultivate between rows.

How do you like the Yanmar?

 

[otus_branch]

If you are going to go diesel, I would recommend wheel extensions, and then the 31" Brush Hog available from Earthtools. I imagine that the 853 can be a little tippy on hills even with the wheels turned all the way out. I have two older, similar models (one 850 with the Kohler gas, and the other 850 with a Lombardini diesel). The gas model has just the (standard - 5x10x20 I think) wheels turned out, and the diesel has 5" (i.e.- 2.5" per side) extensions too (plus larger wheels: 5x12x22 I think). Both sets of tires are solid-foam filled, so weight helps. But still, the wider diesel is much better on hills.

With its 'wide stance' (no relation to Sen. Larry Craig ;-) ), my diesel power unit caught all sorts of brush around the axles and engine when pushing the 26" Brush Hog. I now have the 31" Brush Hog for it, and the combination with the 850 diesel makes it a hill-mowin' MACHINE.

-otus

 

[alaxsxaq]

I have an 850 with 30" tiller, 48" sickle and, 48" sweeper. Each attachment is top notch. I use the tiller at 30" for initial tillage and then narrow it to 26" to cultivate between rows.

How do you like the Yanmar?

I've looked at BCS at the PA Farm Show for years and was always impressed with the quality. Never got to see one in action. My local dealer has everything in stock and a whole lot of other things like flail mowers, so I'll get to look it over well before buying and can consider a fairly complete range of attachments.

As for the Yanmar, my 146D has been super reliable. The original mower deck was not very durable and one of the bearing towers broke, but the tractor worked so well, that I spent $1500 for a new Yanmar mower deck about 8 years ago - this one is much nicer and built much stronger. The dealer I bought the mower deck from said I should expect over 3000 hours on the engine before it needs major work - I have half that now and the tractor is 25 years old, so I expect I won't be replacing it for a long time yet as long as I can get parts.

 

[farm23]

I have the 853 with the Lambardini diesel and use the 30" tiller all the time. Here in the mountains of NC hills plus rocks are the norm. The 853 with extended wheels does a good job. I also have the rotary plow and love it.

 

[alaxsxaq]

I've been debating gas vs diesel and was looking at the BCS America website and noticed that the Yanmar 10hp diesel engine option isn't listed there. I wonder, does anyone know, was that dropped from the 2009 line?

In general, I wonder if it is worth the $800 ($1200 if I forgo electric start on the gas engine) extra for the Yanmar diesel? I imagine it will last longer than the gas engine and use less fuel, have better power characteristics, but be harder to start in winter. I'm figuring that this is a 20 year purchase - would the durability of either engine be a factor in that time-frame?

 

[mn_voyageur]

I purchased my 853 earlier this year. I was impressed with the ease in breaking new ground for my garden with the rotary plow.

The tiller works beautiful. I cultivated between the rows for a few weeks and then planted green manure to help with the weeds.

I recently ordered the chipper/shredder and the 38" mower deck.

My only advise is to go with the electric start, regardless of the engine you purchase. This advise came from an "older" farmer. As he told me, "The easier the tractor is to start, the more likely you will shut it down before reaching in."

I break a sweat quickly, and enjoy working outside, but the farmer was right. With my little 20" lawn mower, I "bungee cord" the safety handle. With my BCS, I let the kill switch do it's job and just turn the key, when I am ready to go.

Just my 2 cents.

Mark