Buying Advice What size Tractor for a 60 acre tree farm??

[Codeman317]

My family has a 60 acre tree farm that is heavily brushed in and thick with trees. We currently have a 68' Massey Ferguson 65hp tractor with a beat up 6', 1" blade brush hog and it struggles. We have a few small pastures, but we want to clear up more land and cut down some of the thicker brush. There are some decent sized hills on the property (our current tractor's brakes no longer work...) and a lot of what we would like to do is clear thick brush, manage what we have previously cleared that keeps growing back, and make more trails and open areas.

So far we have looked at a Kubota L4600, M4700, and now looking at a New Holland TD80 with a 7' brush hog. We looked at some John Deere's, but for the dealers near us, I think it would make more sense to go with a Kubota or New Holland.

My question would be, what would be a good size tractor to go with for our farm?

I'm wondering if the larger New Holland with 7' brush hog might not be agile enough to go between the dense trees, but it could also be a help to get more done quicker. I know we at least need a 6' brush hog and preferably one that can cut 2" thick brush, but we also want to make sure the tractor has enough hp in the PTO to handle it as well. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[jeff9366]

I'm wondering if the larger New Holland with 7' brush hog might not be agile enough to go between the dense trees, but it could also be a help to get more done quicker. I know we at least need a 6' brush hog.

I recommend a Rotary Cutter not quite as wide as rear wheel tracks for passing between trees and cutting brush on slopes.

Inevitably, you have to reverse from time to time. You can get a heavy RC utterly caterwhumpus at times, with the tractor through tree gap and the mower not through tree gap, to the point where you might have to dismount mower to free the tractor. So I recommend a slightly narrower operating width than rear tire width. If the tractor passes, so will the RC.

For tearing out brush close to tree and minor grading on slopes add a Ratchet Rake to your FEL bucket.

LAND PRIDE/OWNED BY KUBOTA: https://www.landpride.com/ari/attach/lp/public/specs/312-783s.pdf

 

[BRMyers]

Here is a guide from Kubota's website (it is for the Grand L series tractors), but it might help you decide on what size tractor you need to pull the implements you would like.

https://www.kubotausa.com/docs/default-source/lp-pdfs/04-grand-l-series-lp-implements.pdf

Found the one for the M series Kubota:

https://www.kubotausa.com/docs/default-source/lp-pdfs/06-m60-series-lp-implements.pdf

 

[jeff9366]

So far we have looked at a Kubota L4600, M4700, and now looking at a New Holland TD80.

L4600 is a discontinued Kubota model. It has a Category 1 TPH, probably not heavy enough for your applications.

M4700 is a discontinued Kubota model. It has a Category 1/2 TPH and good weight: 3,800 pounds.

NH TD80 is a discontinued NH model imported from Turkey. It has Category 1/2 TPH and good weight: 6,200 pounds. May be pretty wide for orchard rows. I would have concern about replacement parts in the years ahead.


If your budget will stand $30,000 I suggest you shop current Kubota MX5200 and MX5800 models, both with a Category 1/2 TPH and good weight: 3,800 pounds. Operating a heavy duty RC weighing 1,000++ pounds requires ample tractor engine horsepower.

KUBOTA: https://www.kubotausa.com/products/tractors/economy-utility

VIDEO: Kubota MX series walk around and features by Messicks. | MX48 MX52 MX58 - YouTube

WILL YOU BE BUYING A TRACTOR WITH A LOADER?

 

[ericm979]

Get a heavy duty rotary cutter if you're going to be cutting 2" brush. I agree with Jeff about a slightly small cutter. My tractor's got a 70" tread width and I picked a 5' cutter for manuverability. 7' will stick out a long ways. I can move the 3pt to one side so one edge of the cutter lines up close to the outside edge of a tire.

A lot of my brush is way beyond a rotary cutter's capacity so I do a lot of clearing with a small chainsaw, grapple and PTO chipper.

 

[Codeman317]

Thank you for the info! The ratchet rake looks like a great idea.

As for the models, we don't mind something used as long as we can get parts or service if/when needed. We have a New Holland/Mahindra Dealer and a Kubota Dealer pretty close, so that clears up the parts and service issue, but as far as getting used inventory in for around $20K max, it's kind of a waiting game.

I wish I could say that we have trees growing in orchard rows, but that couldn't be further from the truth unfortunately:laughing: Our farm is pretty dense forest in most parts, and while we did harvest some trees last year, we are still dealing with plenty of big and little trees scattered everywhere, low stumps, and tons of briars and brush. So with that being said, I feel that the New Holland will just be to big and bulky for some areas, but good for others. It's a toss up... and a PTO Chipper is also a great idea.

We will also be getting a loader with the tractor regardless of which one. We found that a loader is almost a necessity out there!

Thanks again!

 

[jeff9366]

Are you primarily shopping new or used?

What is your tractor budget?

 

[Codeman317]

Pretty much used at this time for as close to $20K as we can get.

 

[fishheadbob]

A loader on the front with a mower on the back will make for a long machine and take away a lot of the agility you are looking for. Major manufacturers make orchard or vineyard tractors 60 hp and up (they usually have an N in the model designation like 6500N) but aren't normally loader compatible as they're narrow and tippy. Also they almost always have cabs as they do a lot of spraying; that wouldn't be ideal in the woods. $20k with a higher horsepower requirement, loader, big brush hog, might limit you to something with an awful lot of hours.
I wonder if your requirements and budget make your ideal tractor a very hard to find combination. Good luck shopping.

 

[searcyfarms]

I really can't disagree with anything anyone has said. Just some random thoughts. Many New Hollands and Case are rebadged LS, use to be Shibaru. You will pay less for an LS.

I have 4', 5', 6' and 10' foot cutter; couldn't give me a 7',takes a lot of power and it's ungainly, to me at least.

Don't be afraid of a good used tractor, I couldn't afford a new one until I was in my 60s. Find a knowledgeable friend to help you weed out the really bad ones, figure out the cost of getting it mechanically sound and go from there. You may want to leave your info with a couple of dealers.

My favorite flatland woods tractor was our low to mid 60s Case 955 and my favorite woods tractor on our hill farms has always been a 1987 MF375 72HP MFWD.

Ok I will candidly disagree, this is NOT a job for a tractor = heavily brushed in, thick with TREEs - seriously guys, I would NEVER take a 20K$$ tractor into that mess it will come out looking like a 5K$$ unit when you get done with lots of repairs needed likely.

Go rent a Skid Steer with a unit made for Brush Demo, the BEST would be a rotary as it gets right down to the dirt - or contract someone to do it.

IF you have LOTS of work and are doing it in a slow manner, buy the skid steer, do the work, then resell it and get your tractor after you have cleaned it all up to maintain it, they hold their value but you will likely not want to part with it. It will not be cheap to hire it out.

I have used one of these and they are a true BEAST they take a good sized machine to run. I ran it on my Volvo MC110 and it will take out trees that you cant imagine.

https://vailxseries.com/xseries-brush-cutter/ yes even hardwood we have mostly that around here.

They are made right here in the good ole USA also. I rent it from time to time as needed for clearing CRP land that people dont maintain and let grow up.

You can clear very tight areas with that and its out in front where you can see it well and maneuver it. You also are clearing what you are driving thru before you get to it rather than kinking your neck trying to back over things because you dont want to tear up your 20K $$ tractor.

I have done a lot of brush clearing from ditches in fields, waterways, timber, take your pick, if you want to take out the entire things, dozer/excavator, if you want to save some and make paths, cleanup, get a SS and front brush cutter/mulcher. I personally like mulching because it leave less STOBs that will puncture tires later. The mulchers cost more so its a trade off.

Forget a tractor until you get it cleaned up is my ever so humble opinion.

Spend the 20K on a good SS with A/C rent the mower or spend 15K on the SS and buy a mower for 5K.

You do not have to have High Flow either on those mowers, my MC110 puts out around 22gpm and runs it well. Dont try to run it on a small machine it will beat you to death. A track machine works better.