Buying Advice Tractor or mower?

[JDgreen227]

Welcome to TBN, great place to learn things. One point however...you mention "800 feet of flat driveway to snowblow"...not knowing where you live makes it hard to judge what kind of snow removal capability you need. You can cut 3/4 acre of grass with a push mower, grass is pretty much the same everyplace, but snow is not. Give us an idea of where you are, or perhaps the seasonal snow total of an average winter. That will help a lot....and once again, welcome.

 

[aquafiend]

Hi all

Wow, lots of good info so far. Thanks.

A bit more info for those who asked:
I'm in southern Ontario, Canada. We get about 60 inches of snow per year over about 4 1/2 months. The new place is up on a hill so I'm a bit concerned with drifts (although there are good windbreaks), and as I mentioned before our drive is flat.

From what I'm hearing so far, holding out for something bigger to tackle projects in the woods is a good idea. This makes good sense to me - budget is tight now and the projects are undefined. If a longer term workable plan is something small to take care of the house and drive and something big for everything else, then I feel pretty good going smaller now.

I'm still not sure where that leaves my 'intermediate' tasks though - bush hogging around 3 acres and breaking new ground for gardens. I'm concerned those jobs are too big for a fancy mower but too small for a real tractor.

Also on sizing - my local deere dealer (no particular affiliation there, but they are the closest dealer of the big three) recommended an x320 with deck, blower, chains and weights for $7k if I only want to cut the grass and blow the snow, but as I was saying they are pushing for the 1023E (which they have 0% financing on) to do "everything".

thanks again for insights & opinions.

 

[nybirdman]

If you only average 60in of snow a year.....I would go with a dedicated mower and forget the blower(for that machine) and team that with a CUT sized tractor for the rest.I am familiar with Kubota ,so a B sized machine for the rest.With only that much snow..a rear blade and FEL should handle your snow removal chores.
We are in Upstate NY,just south of the St.Lawrence...we average about 150 in per year.Front blade and rear blade/FEL are used for our snow work.

 

[Soundguy]

get a 800$ box store rider mower for the 3/4 ac you want finish mowed.. winter's coming.. might get it for 750$. or use that money to buy a finish mower deck for the tractor listed below... all up to you if you want a tractor that close to the house.. imho..i'd get the cheap rider mower and the tractor and no finish deck..

next.. i'd get a cut class machine for the rest. 40+ac is alot of land.. but if it's all treed / woods.. then you don't want too big to maneuver.. thus.. 26-33 hp or so..

if 10ys down the line you are doing alot of pasture work.. buy an old 2wd big 50-100hp classic tractor for a few thousand dollars to do the big grunt work, and svae your cut for the lil jobs and finesse work.

soundguy

 

[rjwerth]

Well, I'll tell you that if it were me (and it kinda is as I was/am in a similar situation), I'd get a good riding mower and snow blower for now. The 1000's aren't really enough tractor to go playing in the woods or brush cutting. As far as not wasting money, take a peek at what finish decks cost for bigger tractors that are in the 30-50hp range...they aren't cheap! Plus, you probably don't want that size tractor for mowing the yard anyhow...

After you've dreamed a while as to the specifics of what you want to do in the woods can you really determine how to spend big bucks on a bigger machine (or perhaps sub some of the work out...).

Hi everyone,

Long time reader, first time poster here.

I'm in the market for my first tractor (maybe).

I have about 3/4 ac to mow and about 800 feet of flat driveway to snowblow in the winter - these are non-negotiable tasks. I originally thought I would get a mid-range riding mower with a 48" snowblower and be done with it. But the rest of the property is large - 3 acres of pasture that should be bush hogged occasionally and another 40+ woods and bush that are just asking for projects. And I would love to have something that can pull a small plow to open new garden beds and maybe a tiller once opened.

Option 1:
Get a nice mower (x300 series?) with a snow blower and save up my money for a real compact tractor in the next couple of years. Problem - will I regret not just going for a bigger machine?

Option 2:
Try to find an older garden tractor (or very small farm tractor) with a deck, blower, 3 pt and hydraulics. Problem - I'm fairly handy but not a major gear head - will the maintenance be a nightmare? Also, with the larger, older machines, I'm nervous not having roll over protection (esp being an inexperienced user).

Option 3:
Bite the bullet and buy a new (or newish) sub compact (a JD dealer near me recommended the 1023E). It's very hard to justify the cost in the budget right now but if the cheaper options end up being a waste of money it's false economy.

Any opinions and/or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[dodge man]

I have a Kubota BX, and that almost seems to small for what you need in the way of a tractor. The 60" mowing deck for mine was something like $2000, which goes a long way towards a riding mower. With that small of a yard, that might be the route to go. Front mount snow blowers for a BX are also pretty pricey. Then you can save and buy a little bit larger tractor for some of your larger uses.

 

[jenkinsph]

Sounds to me like your immediate need is for a snowblower and riding mower, I would suggest the Deere x320. Later you can save up some coins for a compact tractor.

I have an x749 and it works well enough great for mowing and would handle your snowblowing easily. But I wouldn't consider using it or the subcompacts in the woods, just not enough ground clearance.

Best setup would be a 20hp mower and a 35 to 40 hp 4x4 tractor imo and the tractor could be a good used one. Not much point is scratching up a new one in the woods.

 

[PapaPerk]

Buy a Kubota BX or B series... get the 0% financing. Problem solved! Then you will have a quality machine that will serve you for many years to come. Do it right the first time. :thumbsup:

 

[gilbertmsg]

I'm gonna side with Soundguy, find you a 20-30 hp cut. This will do your mowing and snowblowing tasks. Buy one with a front end loader, you will find it invaluable after a few uses. Sometime down the road, find a larger 2 wheel drive tractor to tackle the 40 acres. You will be very suprisied with what you can accomplish with a CUT. I think you could pull a lot of the cut timber with a good 4wd tractor.

Good Luck!!

Eddie

 

[JDgreen227]

I'm gonna side with Soundguy, find you a 20-30 hp cut. This will do your mowing and snowblowing tasks. Buy one with a front end loader, you will find it invaluable after a few uses. Sometime down the road, find a larger 2 wheel drive tractor to tackle the 40 acres. You will be very suprisied with what you can accomplish with a CUT. I think you could pull a lot of the cut timber with a good 4wd tractor.

Good Luck!!

Eddie

You got that right, NO ATTACHMENT is more valuable on a CUT than the FEL. When I finally got my JD, which was my first tractor with a FEL, I wanted to kick myself for not buying BOTH tractor and FEL sooner.