What to buy for 200 acres

[Anonymous Poster]

I'm trying to decide what make model tractor to buy for a 200 acre new england home and wood lot. We've had other people do all the work so far but I'd prefer to do it myself. It's about 85% forest with the balance fields. The timber cuts will still be done professionally, but I need to maintain the logging roads, landings, cut the fields, and keep the place accessible year round. Keeping it accessible means snow removal and all other road maintenance for about 3/4 mile of dirt road. There is also a bunch of work I want to do around the house including building some granite/fieldstone retaining walls, building a barn, and digging/burrying a number of power, gas and phone lines in different places. There's also an old pond site that I'd like to clean out and reinstate as a pond. The forest requires constant maintenance pulling out fire wood and keeping the roads clear.

From what I've read here I think I need something in the 30-40hp range with a loader and possibly a backhoe. For the snow and road work I think I'll need a backblade.

Any suggestions on makes and models and implements?

 

[rf33]

I think that with that much acreage, you might want to look a bit larger, like something in the 50-70 HP range. Somewhat contrary to intuition, these tractors do not seem to cost much more than their smaller counterparts. With ~30 acres to mow, I would also look into getting a pretty large rotaty cutter. I have really never heard anyone with a tractor say "Darn it, this tractor I bought just has too much power, and come to think of it, I wish it had alot less ground clearance and perhaps a narrower track..." That said, there are seemingly lots of happy owners of tractors in all HP ranges here on this board. Maybe with 85% woods on the property, you might also need to consider how wide your roads - trails through the property will be.

 

[JTD]

I agree with RF33. I have a JD4700 HST for a similar property and it's certainly not too large. The largest compacts of any of the Manuf. will do but if you plan to regularly cut 30 acres or so take a good look at the 50 -70 hp tractors. The compacts are smaller which is nice when cutting trails in the woods provided the trees aren't too large. I also like the HST which is very handy for FEL work.

 

[Thomas]

If you get a chance check out the Kubota L4610..it seems to be a hot number for all round use in New Hampshire lately.
You can get a nice woods backhoe and other attachments.

 

[Egon]

Green Acres:
You have some ambitious projects in mind. Maintaing logging roads for custom logging means you can get through with a larger tractor and the other jobs all indicate use for a larger tractor. The fellow saying to go up into the 50-70 HP range is advice to seriously look at. As others have stated, the smaller agricultural tractors are most likely less expensive than compacts and the used sector should have a much greater selection.

Egon:

 

[RonL]

GreenAcres

I think you have some very ambitious projects in mind. I think you should consider a compact tractor, but instead of a backhoe attachment you should look at a used full size industrial backhoe. Find something with some life left in it. After you do all the major construction projects you could always sell it.

RonL

 

[Woodbeef]

Do yourself a big favor and look for a utility type ag-tractor.

I'd take a good look at the Valtra offerings http://www.valtra.com They are an overly built dependable line of tractors from Finland. The option list is staggering,and they are priced lower than the majors offerings. Most of the Valtra tractors in Scandinavia do forestry duty in the winter,and built to take it.

For backhoe duty,if you have that much work to do I'd consider an older TLB purchase.

 

[PaulT]

Good advice, RonL. From the jobs described here, I think I would opt for a used commercial quality TLB and a tractor. The compacts are nice, but one that was sized right for mowing 30 acres might blow your budget. If money is a concern, go with an ag tractor for the mowing/plowing duties. So, to sum up: If money is no object, get a large CUT (brand new Kubota) AND a good used industrial backhoe. If money is an issue, get a used ag tractor AND a good used industrial backhoe. If the pond is not too large, you could realistically expect to do it with a commercial TLB!

 

[cowboydoc]

I agree with Rob and everyone else. Step up to the utility tractors and get something in that 45 and up hp range. I would also get mfwd for all the things you are talking about doing.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Thanks for the advice so far. I've misled you on the size of the mowing job. It's more like 10 acres, 15 at the most. I should have done the math when I said 15% fields. Sorry.

From what I've read, I want HST, so I think that limits the options. It sounds like HST isn't available on the larger Ag tractors. Also, I only want one machine due to budget, storage space, maintenance, etc. The pond is a long term, low priority project. It's been like it is for a hundred years, so a few more won't hurt. If I have to nibble away at it for long time with a smaller machine that's OK, or I can always hire someone for the one-time big scraping job like I hire for the logging. I also think 4WD is a must for snow removal and forest work.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I'm in a similar situation. I have 375 acres, 80% woods the rest fields. I rent out the crop fields to a local farmer. With the other pastures I've installed wetlands and food plots. Also have 1/2 mile lane to maintain and a couple of ponds. As far as cleaning out the ponds, depending on size, I STRONGLY recommend that you find a local contractor with the right experience and right size equipment for the job. There is no size tractor that can compete with a large tract loader and dozer.

For me, I will be ordering a JD 4710 with HST and Bush Hog Model 278 pull-type offset 8' brush hog for maintaining the lane and mowing the fields. The HST is a real nice feature when moving through the woods because you can control your speed more precicely and helps with manuverablity.

I've researched this project over the last 18 months. Have looked at AG tractors (JD5420) and decided it's too big. Also, the implements all cost more. Essentially I mow a lot of grass and the 4710 will handle all of that. The only reason I would look at AG tractor is if I plan to plant the fields (80 acres) I rent out. Then I would need something to pull the larger plows and discs and a compact tractor would not work.

In terms of burying power lines, I've done that too. I found it much more economical to rent a mini excevator for $250/day then to buy a backhoe for the tractor. I also ditched my 1/2 mile lane on both sides with the excevator.

I've gone through most of what you want to do. Hope this helps.

 

[rancar]

GreenAcres --

You sound like you have a place just like mine. In my case, it's 158 acres -- 50 acres woods, 10 swamp, rest open pasture and cropland. I'm in the market for a JD4700 or 4710. Engine HP is 48 with 40.5 at the PTO with HST. I plan on doing a bit of everything you want to do --- removing old fieldstone walls, building new fieldstone walls, hedgerow removal, bush hogging, firewood harvest, stump removal, clearing and cleaning up old logging trails, snowplowing, etc. I wanted the largest, most powerful CUT that JD makes -- that's the 4700/4710. I've thought of some of the JD 5000 series models. While I'd appreciate the extra HP these machines have, these are just plain bigger machines that I think I would have a difficult time with in negotiating through the old logging trails. Hope this helps.

Regards,
Bob Ancar
Cambridge, NY