Thoughts on new Ventrac 4520?

[johara1]

I would bet he can sell your tractor right now if you decide on the 4520, besides you have to wait on the attachments that may never come to next year. The hydraulics on a Ventrac are a sick chicken...... if you don't use the weight transfer they are near worthless to pick up anything..... BTW check out the fuel usage per hour on the different engines and also check out what one will work steep slops the longest...... Jim

 

[Otgaugres]

I would bet he can sell your tractor right now if you decide on the 4520, besides you have to wait on the attachments that may never come to next year. The hydraulics on a Ventrac are a sick chicken...... if you don't use the weight transfer they are near worthless to pick up anything..... BTW check out the fuel usage per hour on the different engines and also check out what one will work steep slops the longest...... Jim

Thank you for your reply and opinion. You are right, my dealer could sell the 4500z my name on it with no problem. He is more than willing to do that for me. The MSRP on the 4500z went up $1525 since I made my deal. Plus all the accessories and upgrades went up as well. If I should wait on the 4520, I’m sure my dealer would sell the tractor and attachments at the new price and put the extra money in his pocket.

You speak as if you have first hand experience with the Ventrac…I do not, excluding my test drive and demo. Honestly, I’ve watched virtually every Ventrac video available online and I’ve not heard complaints about the hydraulics being weak. Not to say they are not out there, I’ve just not heard of them. Obviously Ventrac felt they needed to be upgraded or they wouldn’t have went to the trouble.

I’ve weighed my intended use and attachments I’ll be using and honestly I’m not sure I want to go in for another $3-4k in base tractor cost plus the undefined waiting period. As I’ve stated, the majority of my use will be with the ToughCut, finish mower, and Aerovator. I’m getting the power bucket too, primarily for mulch and light dirt work around the lawn.

I’ve got other machines, so a lot of the work that some owners may do with their Ventrac, I’ll cover with other equipment. I’ve got a JD 4066R and a CTL so I don’t see myself ever getting or using the loader on the Ventrac. Same goes for 3-pt attachments. I’m not even getting the 3 pt on the Ventrac. With my CTL, I don’t ever see myself doing any substantial grading work with it either.

Thanks again for your input…Brian

 

[prs]

The Ventrac hydraulics are no match for a full sized or even a compact farm or industrial sized tractor. That said, I have had no problem lifting heavy black oak logs or bucket loads of wet clay dirt/mud. The hydraulic output does struggle when lifting the boom arm mower and trying to steer at the same time. The new model is purported to have "more efficient" hydraulics, whatever the h377 that means. Like you say, I have another tractor for heavier jobs. I am foolish enough to far exceed the rated slope tolerances on some jobs. The time limitations as to how long one should maintain such severe slopes exceed my need since I encounder lesser slopes regularly where that "clock" resets. The Z is a beast of an engine. I reckon all the choices are good; it is great to have choices.

 

[johara1]

Funny that you can lift all that weight when it's only rated for 500 lb. a 6 cf. bucket with a struck capacity what equals 666 lbs of bank dirt let alone heaped...... add the weight of the grappler and it will lift less ...... Jim

 

[prestond]

That said, I have had no problem lifting heavy black oak logs or bucket loads of wet clay dirt/mud.

Same here. No problem lifting heaped buckets of dirt or full buckets of rock (grapple installed) with my 4500Z.

 

[prs]

I think I cheat the system. ;-)

The bucket slides under the load at ground level. The front main hydraulics give a bit of lift even as it stalls out, but then the curl cylinders roll the bucket back giving a bit of ground clearance. At that point, with the weight further back, the main system will usually provide a bit more lift. Sort of like how curl break-out function is usually the strongest function of a back hoe. All of that aside, the hydraulic capacity and power are anemic as compared to other most tractors. I also have a grapple installed. The grapple function would be better/easier IF the load (particularly logs) would fit back further into the bucket or if some forks were to be fitted to the bucket. That is, the grapple tends to have an under bite.

prs

prs

 

[Otgaugres]

I think I cheat the system. ;-)

The bucket slides under the load at ground level. The front main hydraulics give a bit of lift even as it stalls out, but then the curl cylinders roll the bucket back giving a bit of ground clearance. At that point, with the weight further back, the main system will usually provide a bit more lift. Sort of like how curl break-out function is usually the strongest function of a back hoe. All of that aside, the hydraulic capacity and power are anemic as compared to other most tractors. I also have a grapple installed. The grapple function would be better/easier IF the load (particularly logs) would fit back further into the bucket or if some forks were to be fitted to the bucket. That is, the grapple tends to have an under bite.

prs

prs

Are you talking with the power bucket or the loader?

 

[prs]

Power bucket with grapple.

prs

 

[Otgaugres]

Power bucket with grapple.

prs

Thanks. I’ve got a grapple for my 4066R and my CTL. Won’t be using one on my Ventrac. When covering the realm of attachments that Ventrac offers there are bound to be compromises compared to other more robust equipment. For example, I’ve got a harley/power rake for my hi-flow CTL. I can’t imagine the Ventrac model on a 4500 or a 4520 can compare to the work output I get with my CTL. Ditto for the loader attachment. The versatility however is great for people with limited equipment. I want it primarily for mowing and lawn maintenance for areas too rough or too sloped for my zero turn.

 

[johara1]

Same here. No problem lifting heaped buckets of dirt or full buckets of rock (grapple installed) with my 4500Z.

I'll bet anything you want to bet you can't lift a full bucket of bank dirt without using the weight transfer...... I've run equipment for too long and operated for over 50 years to not know how to get the most out of a machine.... Jim