Buying Advice What to pick 32 - 51Hp.......

[andyz171]

I have 12 acres of land in South Louisiana and it is about to be cleared with dozer. I am going to buy a 4X4 tractor with HST transmission and I am getting a Kubota but I cannot make up my mind on which one as a first time tractor owner and operator. The major question I have is what size should I go with and should I opt for smaller tractor with numerous features (L3240 HST Grand) or larger with bare bones features (MX4700 HST) or finally middle of the road (L4400 HST or L4240 HST Grand). I will be getting a front end loader w/quick detach bucket, a 5-6 ft bush hog and a box blade to start. Ag tires or Industrial..... eventually land will be a nice yard with grass.

The plan will be to keep land cut with bush hog until we develop it to be ready for home site then get finishing mower. I will be busting open an existing pond, letting it dry out for a few months and then digging a new one (where I want) and filling old one in with dirt from new. There is a old brick house and old barn on the property that I want to salvage the brick, the slate roof tiles, the old cypress wood from house and barn. I will use the loader to move all this material. I will eventually build a driveway and maintain it with boxblade. And I already have a buddy hitting me up to help him build food plots on hunting lease so bush hogging and disc.

So I have been looking at tractors between 32Hp and 51Hp, I am historically rough on equipment and just don't know if I should believe salesman trying to sell me a Kubota L3240 Grand saying it's enough Hp.... This thing has tons of features but I can get other tractors with 44Hp or 38Hp for same or cheaper price but they basicly have the HST transmission and that's it. Also the smaller ones have class 1 hitches but the larger ones have class 1 & 2 hitches, should this worry me? What should I do, what should I think about??? Options are all 4X4 with HST and tractors I have quotes in hand from multiple dealers for the following: L3240 Grand, L3800, L3940 Grand, L4240 Grand, L4400, MX4700, MX5100. HELP ME!!!!!!

 

[Kyle241]

All are nice machines. Have you driven each model? I would suggest you take a seat on each and find which fits YOU right. If you can afford the extra HP then go for it as it will likely make your tasks easier. To me, the HST Plus is the big extra when going the Grand L route. I am sure the L4240 would be a very nice machine with all the extras. If you want/need max HP then go to the MX5100 which is essentially the MX4700 with turbo.

 

[devildog1]

Comparing the Grands vs the others is completely different. Grandl's weight in more have higher fel lifting along with higher 3 point lift capacities then the plain L's. Just the physical size of the Grand L's is quite a bit larger then the plain L, you need to go look and see.
DevilDog

 

[LD1]

Normally, I say get the most that you can afford.

But since you are only talking about 12 acres, and eventually having it be a nice finished yard, I would tend to steer you toward smaller. Sure, a MX will be nice to have NOW, but in the long run, I think you are going to find it TOO big for doing routeine chores on your 12 acres. Whereas a smaller model like the GL, or even a smaller L3200/3800 would be a better fit in a few years.

So in the long run, if you can manage to get buy with a smaller one, I'd go that route. But I agree that you really need to go to the dealer and test them out. And then only YOU can make the decesion wether all the bells and whistles of a grandL are worth it. To some people, it is, for others, it isn't. Thats why they sell them both:thumbsup:

 

[David_Kb7uns]

With that acreage I say smaller frame GrandL, L3240, L3540 or L3940. Small enough for mid mount mower but enough heft to do serious tasks. The features of the Grand L are good for a first time operator anmd make things easier overall.

David Kb7uns

 

[Baby Grand]

Andyz121-
I don't know much about what grows on 12 acres of brush hogged land in south La, but I imagine you'll want at least a 6 and maybe a 7 foot cutter if you're going to have to cut it frequently. If what grows is dense, an L3240 may be a little lacking for that size cutter against long, dense field grasses. Maybe get an L4400 (used?) for hogging and heavy earth moving (pond), then trade it in for a smaller tractor when you get things sorted out and start finish cutting all that acreage.

 

[TripleR]

As is so often the case, the tractor needed to get your property to where you want it and the tractor you need to maintain it are two different things.

I have found it preferable to get a good size tractor for tractor stuff and focus on tasks rather than acreage and something separate for maintenance, especially lawn maintenance.

If this is not possible, go with something smaller and rent a big machine for the tasks the smaller machine won't handle.

Another option is buy a big used tractor to get everything in order then sell it to buy the right size for maintenance.

My preference in Kubotas is for the Grad L for the reasons mentioned.

 

[kub32guy]

I have a l3240 and my main task is a 7ft. box blade for my have mile drive and it does very well. With a set of forks I believe it would handle your lumber moving tasks very well. But with filling in a pond and your future mowing needs I think the extra HP and loader capacity of the L4240 would be a much better fit for you. As far as the tires go, I think turfs would be best if future needs are mainly mowing....although not ideal for the disc work for your neighbor. Hope this helps.

 

[alaskakubota]

After owning a bx 18, 3130, and now the 5740, I can say that the extra horsepower is sooo nice. It makes blowing snow and pulling loads so much better. ONly downside is with the logsplitter. I use just a little more fuel. The tractor frame in the grands is pretty darn close through the whole line. I never once in my life said I wish I had less HP. The 3130 was a great tractor, but I just had to use low range alot when moving heavy loads in mud. Most of my clearing was in mud too. I mean two years of mud. I wish I had this 57 three years ago. I too was looking at a bigger tractor for quicker clearing but someone asked the question about what do you do with it when you are done clearing. That is what sold me on this tractor. May take just a little longer to clear, but maintaining will be much nicer. Also, the R4's dont tear up the grass as much as i thought they would. I think with turf tires I would pull my hair out unless all i did was cut grass.

 

[andyz171]

So here are a couple pics, once again I'm just going after the small trees and under brush, not certain with what to do with the house. Anything the tractor with the bicket or grapple/root rake can't budge will stay. It's an old horse farm, I'm not making it a horse farm so all horse concerns are appreciated but I'm not going that route. I've found a Kubota L5240 HST 4x4 (2008 - 400 hours) with quick detach loader that I'm really leaning towards right now.