Will need used CUT for many uses. Help me focus.

[PineRidge]

Sounds like a perfect place for a TN75 cabbed new Holland with heat and air conditioning. It would be home, home on the range. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Cliff_Johns]

Have you considered doing the snow plowing with a good truck (which I'm thinking you need anyway) and then sizing your tractor and implements for everything else? Just a thought.

Cliff

 

[colestin]

My, you guys can rally to a guy's aid! Thanks for all the help.

Cliff_John, I did consider a blade for the deisel 4X4, but this is a hilly place. A plow would just create a channel for the snow melt, and then you have 2-foot deep ruts down the road. A blower helps avoid this. So I hear from the natives. Pine's TN75 would truly be nicer than the house... and cause marital problems!

Most of you say to go for more power. I would, and will, go with more HP if it comes available, but like John_Mc says, I need to go between trees. It may be 220 acres, but I'll mow less than 5. I'll plow none at all. I'll move firewood in the bucket, and don't mind making two passes at a snowy road (will my story change once I'm experienced?).

We got an offer on our current place today, so I'm looking serious, now! There's a NH TC30 with less than 300 hours on it in Medford. It's expensive. But it's available now, when I may have money. I just don't see the older, larger, tractors for sale here. I'll look harder! Scared of Chinese machines, I'm looking for used Blue, Green, Red, or Orange.

 

[colestin]

Man, you folks have got me thinking now. I will use the TC30 as a starting point and call or go to all the local dealers to see what they have. The Kubota dealer tells me that used machines are rare around here. Local Nickle ads coroborate this. Besides Kubota, there are dealers for NH, JD, Janmar, Kioti, in the local area (within 150 miles). Within 50 miles, it's just JD, NH, Kubota, and Janmar.

 

[Ledgemere Farm]

I would go for a Utility Tractor. Something like a JD 5105.

 

[ByronBob]

I do 625 feet of driveway with a loader and it can take a few hours. With 3 feet of snow I would have to park at the road. I'm building a pulloff area at the end of the driveway now because of that very issue.

A 30hp will do it although time will be the issue. It could take you all day to do that much with a smaller machine so the bigger the better of course. Do you own a snowmobile /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
A bulldozer might even be better for the snowcovered driveway issues and buy the tractor later to mow with

 

[colestin]

Hmmm... lots of suggestions to chew on here.

I did more homework. The New Holland TC30 already sold. In it's place was a TC33. I had drool problems. Very nice. Almost no hours, almost list price.

So I went to the Orange dealer. He said "Oh, the TC33 is 33 horses with 3 cylinders. Our B78 is 30 horses with 4 cylinders", as though I should be impressed. He then claimed that his sales numbers needed to be higher before some dealer convention and offered to sell me the B78 with a Woods FEL for 16K.

I drove toward home. Passing by the Green tractor store I noticed a veritable sea of green, identicle tractors, so I pulled off to gawk. A voice behind me drawled "You want one, or all fourty?". He explained that the Factory had made the mistake of putting two different brands of tires, front and back, on a whole bunch of these tractors (the model had a 79 in it, I think). Because of the tire mis-match, these 27-horse, manual tranny, Tonka look-alikes were heavily discounted and could be had with FEL for $13,900.00.

I am not sure what to think about Tractor sales guys at this point. But I sure like the looks of NH tractors (haven't driven a single one yet).

 

[riptides]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( But I sure like the looks of NH tractors (haven't driven a single one yet). )</font>

Then compare brands of similar tractors to the NH and go get some dealer seat time. You may like the looks, but it may just feel wrong for you sitting in it. A lot of us were swayed to one brand or another just by ergonomics alone. Get seat time!

-Best of luck!
-Mike Z. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Rch]

colestin, if hilly and snow, an agriculture set-up so the wheels can be widened for stability may be important. Some tractors that come with R4's have only a fixed width altho I've seen R4s on ag set-up on the dealers lot. I get along in snow with 4WD ag ( R1) tires without chains. On some set-ups, especially fixed width, there is no clearance for chains. Chains may be necessary with the amount of snow your talking about but they are a pain in the gluteal cleft. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[John_Mc]

Excuse me if I missed it in an earlier post, but in what part of the country are you living? People might be able to tailor their responses to your area, and/or recommend dealers for you to visit. If you fill out your user profile, this will help.

John Mc