7040 Questions

ColoradoDan · Sep 24, 2010

I started another thread a few days ago asking for recommendations for a new tractor. Well, I went to my local Kubota/New Holland dealer today to look at some of their inventory. I liked the cab and the controls of the Kubota better than the comprable New Holland. The Kubota M7040 just seemed really comfortable and user friendly to me. I was impressed. I still want to check out the Massey's and JD's but, for now, the Kubota is near the top of the list.

I have a few questions regarding the M7040. My property is 33 acres with a hay pasture, pond, and hilly terrain. I have a long driveway which will need to be plowed when the snow flies in the winter (I live in CO).

I only have 18 acres of hay that I will put up myself. I would like to be able to handle round bales. Can the 7040 handle the bailing and moving of the round bales with ease? The 8F/8R should be more than enough for my needs, correct?

I was quoted $47,150 for the M7040 with a loader, cab, 4WD, and cast rear wheels. Any thoughts?

gwdixon · Sep 25, 2010

Lots of folks on here have the M7040 as well as the M8540 and a even a few M9540s.

Do a search using "M7040" and maybe refine it with "hay" or "bales" and find some users.

I don't do haying but the M7040 has plenty of guts for ground engaging work.

TripleR · Sep 25, 2010

Yes, the M7040 will work well for your needs, my preference would be for 12F/12R, but a 8F/8R should cover your needs. I wish I could have gotten the cast wheels, but couldn't wait 4-6 weeks for delivery as my Case went toes up. The price seems high as I paid less than that for my M8540 with cab, loader, two rear remotes, biggest Ag tires they offer (non radial), grill guard and 12F/12R.

Does the tractor have synchro or hydraulic shuttle shift?

I agree they are very comfortable as I just finished five days in mine.

ColoradoDan · Sep 25, 2010

Actually, I thought the price was very high. I haven't negotiated at all on the price but it was much higher than expected. I was very impressed with the tractor though.

The tractor that he priced was the only 7040 on the lot. It has the hydraulic shuttle. I thought that feature was really nice, especially considering some of my loader work that I will have after the purchase.

I want to check out the Masseys to get a feel for them. I don't know if I will even look at any JD's because of what's going on in my area. I'm not really comfortable with what I've been told.

TripleR · Sep 25, 2010

Yeah, I would certainly look at the Massey Ferguson too. I didn't consider one as I won't deal with our MF again after the unresolved problems and poor service from when my father in law bought one many years ago. They only have six new tractors at any time on their lot too. John Deere makes really good tractors, but again I don't care for the local dealerships.

Good luck shopping and I am sure once you get serious, the price will get more realistic. I would check with Barlow's for a quote as they deliver all over.

piller · Sep 25, 2010

I've got an M8540HD with 8F/8R and I like it a lot. As you can tell the Kubota M series machines are popular here and have a good reputation.

Weight: don't be concerned, you will be fine on weight. M7040HDC base weight is about 5500lbs. Cast iron rear wheels add at least 500 lbs. If you fill the rears you could add 1000 lbs, maybe more. If you add the FEL and a bucket you will add close to 2000 lbs. Do all that and you are up to 9000 lbs, how much weight do you want/need?

Price: seems high to me. I would recommend you contact Brady Barlow, Barlow Equipment in KY, for a quote. I've got the self leveling loader which is a nice option, you might also consider radial tires. I would also go with rimguard filled rears. Get the hydraulic shuttle.

Round Bales: A 70HP tractor or above is usually recommended for round hay bales. It depends on if you are making/handling small 4x4 or large 5x6 round bales. Others have mentioned this, you might want to reconsider making your own hay. Part of the reason I got the 8540 was that I also wanted to make sure that I would have enough tractor to make/handle large rounds. When we bought our farm our neighbor baled hay on our place the first two years, similar to your situation. Now I have more experience, I have looked at hay budgets prepared by several universities, and I have decided that I will not produce any hay on my land. It is less expensive to buy hay than it is to make hay for a small operation. If you purchase hay you are also buying minerals and nutrients that your animals will then spread on your farm, instead of those minerals/nutrients leaving your farm/hayfield. If you are moving large rounds with the FEL you will want a rear attachment/counterweight.

Good luck!

TripleR · Sep 25, 2010

You might want to contact ITHINKICAN regarding price as he took delivery on a new M7040 not long ago.

leonz · Sep 25, 2010

ColoradoDan said:
I started another thread a few days ago asking for recommendations for a new tractor. Well, I went to my local Kubota/New Holland dealer today to look at some of their inventory. I liked the cab and the controls of the Kubota better than the comparable New Holland. The Kubota M7040 just seemed really comfortable and user friendly to me. I was impressed. I still want to check out the Massey's and JD's but, for now, the Kubota is near the top of the list.

I have a few questions regarding the M7040. My property is 33 acres with a hay pasture, pond, and hilly terrain. I have a long driveway which will need to be plowed when the snow flies in the winter (I live in CO).

I only have 18 acres of hay that I will put up myself. I would like to be able to handle round bales. Can the 7040 handle the bailing and moving of the round bales with ease? The 8F/8R should be more than enough for my needs, correct?

I was quoted $47,150 for the M7040 with a loader, cab, 4WD, and cast rear wheels. Any thoughts?

About your hay;

Have you looked at the Wolagri Mini balers? You would not require a high horsepower tractor to bale, transport, and move them to feed bunks.

They offer an integral baler and bale wrapper hay baler as well as a bale only baler and a separate bale wrapper.

I spent a lot of time chatting with the east coast Wolagri distributor
about the use of mini balers at the farm days a few years ago and he uses a baler wrapper on his farm and he loves his mini baler for his farm, he uses a very small four wheel drive tractor to hay with and he no longer has to chainsaw his hay bales open to feed his animals and he has no frozen bales period, and he is able to get on wet land that has down hay on it when it has rained and can bale it quickly with no worries about mud, moldly or wet hay that has to stay windrowed longer or flipped and tedded.

And you can cut and windrow hay and bale it when the ground is wet as the tractor and baler will not sink in the mud because they are not that heavy to have to worry about it.

Any his biggest compliment about them is you can use a very very small tractor to bale hay with, I think he said is was 25 HP IH cub cadet and he uses the smaller hay equipment which is readily available too.

Having your hay custom baled is the other option of course, but handling is the major issue where the mini marsh mallows can weigh 50 pounds or less; I will admit I am lazy hay handler and when I bought Hay I always asked for light bales as it saved on the back for sure; yes it requires a bit more handling but the mini marshmallows will not go bad in the field as they are wrapped and well sealed in high quality white HDPE and now it is becoming a lot easier to recycle the HDPS baler plastic as well.

You could leave several cuttings of hay on the end of the field(s) where you could simply piuch them up and use them as you need them or simply have a round up of the marshmallows when the cutting is done as you could simply roll them in the bale wagon, stack them upright and stack them and then move them and store them vertically until they are needed for feed.

You would also have less wasted hay which is an issue with big bales too.

A kubota 2660 or B3030 would have plenty of power for a mini baler and smaller hay implements like the ones sold by Ferrari USA in California or www.earthtools.com

This would allow you to buy an upgraded cab from Laurin cabs and get air conditioning too.

You would be able to buy a rear mounted Pronovost snow blower "group 2" for the tractor as well to use with the front loader, you would be able to build mesh box sides for the loader bucket and a rear box to move the mini bales readily too.

Just a thought anyway

RFB · Sep 26, 2010

ColoradoDan said:
I started another thread a few days ago asking for recommendations for a new tractor. Well, I went to my local Kubota/New Holland dealer today to look at some of their inventory. I liked the cab and the controls of the Kubota better than the comprable New Holland. The Kubota M7040 just seemed really comfortable and user friendly to me. I was impressed. I still want to check out the Massey's and JD's but, for now, the Kubota is near the top of the list.

I have a few questions regarding the M7040. My property is 33 acres with a hay pasture, pond, and hilly terrain. I have a long driveway which will need to be plowed when the snow flies in the winter (I live in CO).

I only have 18 acres of hay that I will put up myself. I would like to be able to handle round bales. Can the 7040 handle the bailing and moving of the round bales with ease? The 8F/8R should be more than enough for my needs, correct?

I was quoted $47,150 for the M7040 with a loader, cab, 4WD, and cast rear wheels. Any thoughts?

Dan,

The one duty you mentioned is something that you might consider regarding your gear selection: snow. The major drawback to limited gearing is if you ever decide to operate a pto snowblower. The folks in my neck of the woods seem to regularly have issues if they do not have a low enough gearing to match the throwing capacity and snowload. The 12/12 would give you greater flexibility in that regard.

My tractor (5030) is smaller than what you are examining but it because it is HST it is "infinitely" variable in that duty there is always a sweet spot.

Since an HST is not available in your size range (Kubota), the more latitude you build in with more gear selections the greater flexibility you will have.

Gary51 · Sep 26, 2010

I don't know what current tractor prices are like, but that is well over what I paid for my M9540 4WD with cab, loader, and 2 extra remotes.
I had to buy my tractor at a time when other transmission options were not available and had to go with the 8/8 trans. I love the tractor and its capabilities but I HATE the 8/8 trans in this size tractor. I bale 500 bales a year and I am constantly riding the clutch and gearing up and down when stating bale cores and rolling. Even when cutting hay, it's difficult going from areas of bermuda into sections with bahia which require a slower cutting speed. This size tractor should never have a 8/8 trans as the type of work done with it require more ground speed options.
Other than the trans, I think you will be surprised at how much power and work the Kubota can do.

TripleR · Sep 26, 2010

RFB said:
Dan,

The one duty you mentioned is something that you might consider regarding your gear selection: snow. The major drawback to limited gearing is if you ever decide to operate a pto snowblower. The folks in my neck of the woods seem to regularly have issues if they do not have a low enough gearing to match the throwing capacity and snowload. The 12/12 would give you greater flexibility in that regard.

My tractor (5030) is smaller than what you are examining but it because it is HST it is "infinitely" variable in that duty there is always a sweet spot.

Since an HST is not available in your size range (Kubota), the more latitude you build in with more gear selections the greater flexibility you will have.

In checking the web site I did not see the 12F/12R for the M7040.

RFB · Sep 26, 2010

TR,

You are right. I checked the spec page and was surprised to not see a 12/12 offered.

I cannot imagine performing tasks that require precision or speed-matched-to-task without a broader selection of gearing. Snowblowing is one of those tasks that requires a "constant speed propeller" regardless of ground speed.

ColoradoDan · Sep 26, 2010

RFB and Gary51 - Thanks for the insight regarding the gearing. I believe you have to step up to the 8540 in order to get the 12/12 transmission. I wish that wasn't the case.

I spoke with the Kubota dealer on Saturday after looking at other tractors. They are now aware that they will need to sharpen their pencil in order to get my business. We'll see how they do.

I believe the Hew Holland 4030 and 4040 have the 12/12 transmission standard. They will be giving me a quote for these as well. I liked the cab and controls of the Kubota better than the New Holland but I did still like the New Holland overall. Right now the 7040 is at the top of the list though.

TripleR · Sep 26, 2010

RFB said:
TR,

You are right. I checked the spec page and was surprised to not see a 12/12 offered.

I cannot imagine performing tasks that require precision or speed-matched-to-task without a broader selection of gearing. Snowblowing is one of those tasks that requires a "constant speed propeller" regardless of ground speed.

I know what you mean, it surprised me too. We don't have enough snow around here to bother with, but we pull a DS1260 rotary cutter through some pretty rough stuff in the hills and I do a lot of gear changing to find the right one to match the load/terrain.

rjkobbeman · Sep 26, 2010

Although I have no hard data to back it up, I have heard 1st gear in the 12 speed is the same as 1st gear in the 8 speed. The same goes for 6th gear in the 12 speed is the same as 4th gear in the 8 speed. You just have a couple more in-between. Don't know if it is true or not... but that is what I read somewhere.

I have the 12 speed in my M8540 and love it.

Verticaltrx · Sep 27, 2010

If you are planning on round bales you need to decide on the size of the bales before you decide on the size of the tractor. 4x4' or 4x5' bales (700-1000lbs) would be easily baled and handled by a 7040. If you stepped up to 5x6' bales you really need a 100+ hp tractor to bale efficiently.

We pull a 4'x4' Deere 446 round baler with either a JD 2550 (65 hp) or a Kubota M9540 (84hp). Either tractor will handle it with authority, even the 65hp JD will pull it along at 5-6mph in moderate hay. The 12x12 hyd shuttle tranny and the cab on the 9540 does make baling much more pleasant however. I don't think the 8x8 trans on the 7040 would be a deal breaker though, our JD only has a 8F/4R syncro trans and we've used it for all manners of hay making for the past 25yrs.

MtnViewRanch · Sep 27, 2010

My only input is that I feel that any tractor that has a cat 2 hitch should have a minimum of a 12x12 transmission. Even if the 8x8 has the same low, middle and top speeds, it does not seem to me that you would have enough in between choices for what these machines can do. I have a 12x12 trans and wish that I had a 16x16.

Just my opinion

Gary51 · Sep 28, 2010

MtnViewRanch said:
My only input is that I feel that any tractor that has a cat 2 hitch should have a minimum of a 12x12 transmission. Even if the 8x8 has the same low, middle and top speeds, it does not seem to me that you would have enough in between choices for what these machines can do. I have a 12x12 trans and wish that I had a 16x16.

Just my opinion

EXACTLY- That's my one disappointment with my M9540. My old tractor blew up on me in hay season and I had to buy NOW. My old tractor was the same HP and was a 16 speed and could match it well to the job. With the 8 speed it seems I never have the right speed for the windrow or cutting conditions. My problem is most of my work would be best between L4 and H1. To elminate stopping the tractor constantly to shift between low and high range, I have to accept a speed alittle too slow or too fast. Throw in some areas with pocket gophers and wild hog digs and you find yourself riding the clutch a lot.
The rest of the tractor is great and works well for the job. (Except for the idiot that put the cup holder BEHIND the drivers seat position)