Tractor Sizing TRACTOR WEIGHT as ONE (1) CRITERION in TRACTOR SELECTION

[seasled]

You have to take into consideration guys like this think they have a bull dozer, a tractor with a bucket on it is made to move material. While you can do some light digging with a tractor with a loader it isn't a bull dozer, I have a small dozer and my tractor that's twice it's size doesn't stand a chance at digging compared to it..

What most people don稚 understand is that a loader on a tractor is ment to move processed materials, if you need to move unprocessed materials, you are better served using construction equipment . Many may disagree, but a tractor is to light duty to do the the job without possibly damaging the loader, can it be done , yes, effectively No!
Flame away !!!

 

[MossRoad]

About 1990 we had some land reforested. The forester showed up with a large tree planter and a very small 4wd ford tractor. Maybe 3000# with attachment at most. We have all sandy soil. My large IH2500b 8000lb 50hp 2wd tractor loader with full cab and loaded R4 tires had lots of trouble in that sand, so I was skeptical. I knew the forester since high school, so I trusted him. He said that in the past, they'd of had to bring in a very large tractor to do our job. With the advent of 4wd in small tractors, it really changed the way they started doing things. The smaller, lighter machine with 4wd gets excellent traction, yet causes significantly less soil compaction and ground damage.

That little 4wd ford easily pulled that tree planter through the soil up and down the steep sand dunes (the steepness of the soil was why we got the trees 75% paid for by the government: erosion control project).

I think engine HP, PTO HP, 4wd, tire selection, air pressure, gearing, ground speed, soil types, etc... have just as much if not more impact as the overall weight of a machine.

My current machine weighs just 1500# with me on it. It will run circles around a conventional tractor of the same weight and even much larger in tasks such as material moving, lawn mowing, brush cutting, snow plowing, etc.... what it won't do is pull stumps, pull a dirt plow, any brute pulling power tasks, because of the way it's geared. It only has one range, as it has hydraulic motors at each of the 4 wheels. If I changed the wheel motors to larger displacement, it would be a pulling machine, at the sacrifice of top speed. My point being, while weight of a machine is important, it's not as important as getting the power to the ground. There are lighter machines that perform better than heavier machines due to the things I listed above: engine HP, PTO HP, 4wd, tire selection, air pressure, gearing, ground speed, soil types, etc...

I agree that you need to first decide on the tasks you want to accomplish. Then you have to decide how much time you want to spend accomplishing those tasks. Then decide what size implements you need to do those tasks in said time. Then find a tractor that has enough features to move those implements in the given time. Then compare that to your budget, slap yourself in the head a few times, and downsize your plans! :laughing:

Tractor weight is important, however, it's not THE most important thing. It's just one part of the equation.

 

[Tractor X]

You have to take into consideration guys like this think they have a bull dozer, a tractor with a bucket on it is made to move material. While you can do some light digging with a tractor with a loader it isn't a bull dozer, I have a small dozer and my tractor that's twice it's size doesn't stand a chance at digging compared to it..

bingo! know your limitations. the right tool for the right job.

cheap vs frugal... buy once, cry once.

btw, why the hate on mr. jeff? brings up some good points. man dosent like spinning his wheels!

 

[Diggin It]

What most people don't understand is that a loader on a tractor is ment to move processed materials, if you need to move unprocessed materials, you are better served using construction equipment .

That's part of what I use the BH for. I dig and scrape/claw natural or compacted ground into a loose pile, then turn around and use the FEL to move it where I want it.

 

[Egon]

About 1990 we had some land reforested. The forester showed up with a large tree planter and a very small 4wd ford tractor. Maybe 3000# with attachment at most. We have all sandy soil. My large IH2500b 8000lb 50hp 2wd tractor loader with full cab and loaded R4 tires had lots of trouble in that sand, so I was skeptical. I knew the forester since high school, so I trusted him. He said that in the past, they'd of had to bring in a very large tractor to do our job. With the advent of 4wd in small tractors, it really changed the way they started doing things. The smaller, lighter machine with 4wd gets excellent traction, yet causes significantly less soil compaction and ground damage.

That little 4wd ford easily pulled that tree planter through the soil up and down the steep sand dunes (the steepness of the soil was why we got the trees 75% paid for by the government: erosion control project).

I think engine HP, PTO HP, 4wd, tire selection, air pressure, gearing, ground speed, soil types, etc... have just as much if not more impact as the overall weight of a machine.

My current machine weighs just 1500# with me on it. It will run circles around a conventional tractor of the same weight and even much larger in tasks such as material moving, lawn mowing, brush cutting, snow plowing, etc.... what it won't do is pull stumps, pull a dirt plow, any brute pulling power tasks, because of the way it's geared. It only has one range, as it has hydraulic motors at each of the 4 wheels. If I changed the wheel motors to larger displacement, it would be a pulling machine, at the sacrifice of top speed. My point being, while weight of a machine is important, it's not as important as getting the power to the ground. There are lighter machines that perform better than heavier machines due to the things I listed above: engine HP, PTO HP, 4wd, tire selection, air pressure, gearing, ground speed, soil types, etc...

I agree that you need to first decide on the tasks you want to accomplish. Then you have to decide how much time you want to spend accomplishing those tasks. Then decide what size implements you need to do those tasks in said time. Then find a tractor that has enough features to move those implements in the given time. Then compare that to your budget, slap yourself in the head a few times, and downsize your plans! :laughing:

Tractor weight is important, however, it's not THE most important thing. It's just one part of the equation.

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Guess I’m one of those people that doesn’t know the importance of weight.

 

[Dranrab]

bingo! know your limitations. the right tool for the right job.

cheap vs frugal... buy once, cry once.

btw, why the hate on mr. jeff? brings up some good points. man dosent like spinning his wheels!

Jeff would be much more influential if he would substantiate his assertions. He became petulant when I asked him to. While I am new to this forum, I am far from being new to internet forums. Every forum has their version of Jeff. Experienced, highly opinionated, unnecessarily defensive and tends to the adversarial.

 

[Threepoint]

My apologies for a reply that may have come off as curt. I am grateful for the well thought out post you provided. My attention was divided while I was reading it and rather than wait and respond in full, I fired off a quick response to let you know I had read it and would follow your suggestion.

Looks like this is sorted out with Atsah. In case others haven't seen it, I thought I'd go ahead and link to your recent thread that reflects some of the additional due diligence you've already been doing in your tractor shopping. https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/buying-pricing-comparisons/416334-things-looking-orange.html

 

[MossRoad]

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Guess I’m one of those people that doesn’t know the importance of weight.

I know I have excellent traction on my hikers due to weight.

 

[atsah]

I know I have excellent traction on my hikers due to weight.

Ya but is the weight over the hikers or out in front?

 

[MossRoad]

Ya but is the weight over the hikers or out in front?

More out front, I'd guess. A high center of gravity, too, yet still good on side slopes. I think its due to the size 13 tires.

 

[atsah]

:laughing:

 

[LouNY]

I know I have excellent traction on my hikers due to weight.

Mine tend to sink down to deep in the softer stuff,
maybe I need to get rid of some ballast:laughing:

 

[Dranrab]

Looks like this is sorted out with Atsah. In case others haven't seen it, I thought I'd go ahead and link to your recent thread that reflects some of the additional due diligence you've already been doing in your tractor shopping. https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/buying-pricing-comparisons/416334-things-looking-orange.html

To tie those two machines in with the weight thread here, and to explain why I am trying to get the importance of weight sorted out, the Kubota is just about the lightest in its class and the Kioti is far and away the heaviest at about 600 pounds heavier.

 

[atsah]

To tie those two machines in with the weight thread here, and to explain why I am trying to get the importance of weight sorted out, the Kubota is just about the lightest in its class and the Kioti is far and away the heaviest at about 600 pounds heavier.

Yes Kioti makes heavier tractors, it makes them better at some things and not at others.. Can you outline exactly what you are planning to use the tractor for? I may have missed it, if you don't mind telling us again.. Did you look at the Massey 1526 at all or are you looking only at the orange tractors?

 

[Dranrab]

Yes Kioti makes heavier tractors, it makes them better at some things and not at others.. Can you outline exactly what you are planning to use the tractor for? I may have missed it, if you don't mind telling us again.. Did you look at the Massey 1526 at all or are you looking only at the orange tractors?

I think I covered all the ground in this thread. https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums...tions-post5497214.html?highlight=#post5497214

I am wide open on what I am considering. The front runners just happened to be orange. Today a Yanmar took the lead. I have a follow-up to do with my local JD dealer, but I don't think that one will end up being competitive. I sent a write up of all my best deals to my closest dealer to give him an opportunity to compete with them. He's a friend of sorts and said he'd beat any deal out there. I'd prefer to do business with him even if I have to spend a little more. I'll probably have a new tractor within two weeks.

Then I'll dive into safety. I am a safety professional by trade and pretty **** about it.

 

[atsah]

Okay so I read through it.. My recommendations would be to plan on purchasing a box blade and a ratchet rake. Whichever tractor size you choose should do okay but the smaller tractors will be less capable due to the word "weight", I know weight again, for tearing out roots etc..

IMO, I would buy the largest under tier 4 tractor I could buy, oh wait, I just did a few months ago and I find it to be much more capable than my SCUT was with three more HP.. The Massey 1526 is a fine tractor, it has three ranges and auto throttle which I like, it's kind of a deluxe model with a MMM PTO.. I would have bought one over my Deere if I had dealer support close by..

 

[cathy liebchen]

I think I covered all the ground in this thread. https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums...tions-post5497214.html?highlight=#post5497214

I am wide open on what I am considering. The front runners just happened to be orange. Today a Yanmar took the lead. I have a follow-up to do with my local JD dealer, but I don't think that one will end up being competitive. I sent a write up of all my best deals to my closest dealer to give him an opportunity to compete with them. He's a friend of sorts and said he'd beat any deal out there. I'd prefer to do business with him even if I have to spend a little more. I'll probably have a new tractor within two weeks.

Then I'll dive into safety. I am a safety professional by trade and pretty **** about it.

Get a Kubota M7060 and you won't need to wonder what if ever

 

[Dranrab]

Okay so I read through it.. My recommendations would be to plan on purchasing a box blade and a ratchet rake. Whichever tractor size you choose should do okay but the smaller tractors will be less capable due to the word "weight", I know weight again, for tearing out roots etc..

IMO, I would buy the largest under tier 4 tractor I could buy, oh wait, I just did a few months ago and I find it to be much more capable than my SCUT was with three more HP.. The Massey 1526 is a fine tractor, it has three ranges and auto throttle which I like, it's kind of a deluxe model with a MMM PTO.. I would have bought one over my Deere if I had dealer support close by..

Just to give you an idea of the root base I am dealing with, this pic shows what was cleared out in the areas I need to work. I did have a bud come through with his big Kubota and work quite a bit of the roots out already. There's not a Massey Dealer anywhere near me that has decent stock.

I also have a half mile walking path around the perimeter. It's not too wide and in spots it's a but twisty, that's part of why I am looking to go as small as I can get by with.

Here's part one of the larger cleared areas. It had some decent sized pines that were ground down to dirt level with a forestry mulcher. I have the stumps marked and will obviously try to avoid them. Knowing me, I won't be 100% successful with that venture.

 

[Diggin It]

Get a Kubota M7060 and you won't need to wonder what if ever

OP is asking about sub $20K machines. You're pushing one closer to $40K. Are you offering to pay the difference?

You seem to do this a lot. It's like you don't even read the threads before you advertise for orange.

 

[atsah]

Just to give you an idea of the root base I am dealing with, this pic shows what was cleared out in the areas I need to work. I did have a bud come through with his big Kubota and work quite a bit of the roots out already. There's not a Massey Dealer anywhere near me that has decent stock.

I also have a half mile walking path around the perimeter. It's not too wide and in spots it's a but twisty, that's part of why I am looking to go as small as I can get by with.

Here's part one of the larger cleared areas. It had some decent sized pines that were ground down to dirt level with a forestry mulcher. I have the stumps marked and will obviously try to avoid them. Knowing me, I won't be 100% successful with that venture.

That's some pretty nasty, thick looking brush.. I would buy the ratchet rake and work at it if I had to but I think you will find it will take you a long time will a small tractor clearing brush.. It doesn't look to be rooted all that bad so a lot of it might drag right out, IDK, I like the dog and watch out for snakes..