Help to determine HP needed

[rmaa]

Based on what you described, my NH TC40D would be a perfect fit. 6' loader, 6' rotary mower, enough HP to easily run the mower even in really tough stuff. Hydro tranny. Easy to drive and operate.

Do you mind sharing the price range of this tractor?

We will go see all the dealers in the area. There are several Kubota dealers around, so we will check prices at others. It would have been nice if the local one had a better price, but not if they are making another $3-5K on the side!


Are new tractor prices negociable? I know that used ones are, but how about the new ones? Or is it the price the dealers gives you?

Nice part about a utility sized tractor in a farm environment is you have a tractor that is small enough to fit in the tight spots and isn稚 intimidating to drive but is really big enough to farm with. Plus with the extra lead in your pencil you can pick things up that a compact or sub compact might lift but is on the edge of calamity at every bump in the field.

Sorry, meant to ask this before, but what is the difference between a utility tractor and a compact tractor? Just the look?


Thank you to everyone who replied! It has really given us a lot to take into account! Especially when it came to the prices! Over the next couple of weeks we will be taking a look and trying out the different tractors, I will keep you posted.

 

[Grandad4]

Welcome to TBN, rmaa. You are getting good advice here so far, from what I see. We're not too far from you, and went through a similar exercise a few years ago. Ended up with Kubota, which has been great, but there are other fine equipment brands to look at also. Since you are at the beginning part of the old learning curve, here's a recommendation that you look for a dealer who will be straight up and helpful to you, in addition to finding the brand of tractor that appeals to you. There are some fine equipment dealers, some real "suede shoe types", and some that mean well, but can't tie their own shoes.

Do some quality research here on TBN and you'll learn a lot. That will help you sort out sales hype from reality and help you form a reasoned judgement of what kind of equipement will be best for you.

A few other ideas...
1) Buy a front end loader... it will be the most useful thing on the tractor. Any number of folks here will agree with that.
2) Get the 4WD... since you have the loader. Also holds resale value better.
3) Get as much size and power as you can afford, up to 60hp. With the size of your property, it will come in handy on many occasions. You can do everything with a smaller tractor, but it takes longer.
4) You'll save money if you put a package together of tractor and implements vs. buying in stages. Loader, brush mower and box or scraper blade are a good place to start. Post auger, if you want, too.

Go kick some tires, then come back with questions.

A "utility tractor" is optimized for farm use... maybe the sole tractor on a small farm or as a workhorse on larger operations, usually they are 50-100 hp. May not have all the creature comforts, although some of them are pretty plush! Higher ground clearance, longer wheelbase, heavier, uses larger implements vs. a "compact utility tractor" (CUT).
A "compact utility tractor", is designed for rural home and property management. Lower, shorter wheelbase, lighter, it is more maneuverable and has less footprint on lawns, driveways, etc. They range from 15 to 60hp. A few more convenience features, easier to operate for the non-farmer. Gotta say, there is no wimp factor, though. They are serious machines that will amaze you with what they can do.

You should be able to bargain with a dealer on a new tractor. 10-12% is not unheard of. There are some dealers that will not budge off MSRP, especially for noobies. Shop elsewhere.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[rmaa]

Do some quality research here on TBN and you'll learn a lot. That will help you sort out sales hype from reality and help you form a reasoned judgement of what kind of equipement will be best for you.

Thanks for your suggestions. I have seen that there is a TON of info on this forum, but it is really hard to find the info that pertains to me without reading hundreds of threads. There are hundreds of forums (and since we haven't narrowed down the tractor, many of them deserve to be looked at), in some of those sub-forums there are hundreds of pages of threads, threads which have hundreds of replies..... :confused2: Basically, I feel I have to be lucky to find the answer to what I am looking for, so any advise on how to narrow my search?? Any threads you recommend looking at?

4) You'll save money if you put a package together of tractor and implements vs. buying in stages. Loader, brush mower and box or scraper blade are a good place to start. Post auger, if you want, too.

I get this when it comes to buying new equipment, but we were thinking to go used for the equipment (aside from the loader of course!), especially on the mower since it will probably take a beating the first couple of rounds. But we will keep this in mind maybe as a bargaining to get a better deal on the tractor


After reading everything and some of the info I have gotten on the prices of some tractors with mowers here, I think before we hit the dealers I will try to narrow our choices down and find out what we can get for them. Then I will be better armed when we go to the dealer and we will know what kind of dealer we are dealing with. I never would have guessed that dealer had quoted us too high, so I think more research is needed before talking to them.


Thanks again!

 

[Dr_Zinj]

A 6 foot mower will cut 20% faster than a 5 foot mower. So if it takes you 2 hours to do a field with a 6 foot mower, you can do the same field in 2 and 1/2 hours (minus 6 minutes) with a 5 footer.

Depends on whether time or money is more important; as well as if you get a certain amount of enjoyment just driving the tractor and hogging the field, or if it's just drudgery.

(Me, there's just something about the smell of newly cut field, neat lines, and a job well done.)

Oh, and a CUT is to tractors as a PC is to computers.

 

[Jerry/MT]

After reading everything and some of the info I have gotten on the prices of some tractors with mowers here, I think before we hit the dealers I will try to narrow our choices down and find out what we can get for them. Then I will be better armed when we go to the dealer and we will know what kind of dealer we are dealing with. I never would have guessed that dealer had quoted us too high, so I think more research is needed before talking to them.


Thanks again!

You're geting a lot of good advice here.

To give you some idea of asking prices, you can use Used Tractors For Sale at TractorHouse.com: John Deere Tractors, used farm tractors and farm equipment, tractors for sale, Case IH, New Holland, Agco, Kubota to get an idea of what some low hour used tractors are being marketed at. When a dealer quotes a price for a new tractor, you can then have some idea of what you might be able to find in a low hour used machine for comparison. There are also tractor"blue books" that will give you some idea of average used prices butIi like tractorhouse better because there are pictures of the machine for sale and a pretty detailed descrition of the features on most machines.

As far as brand, find a good dealer by asking around your neighbors who farm. Then you'll have to integrate price, features, and dealer performance to make a decision. In general, JD will be the most expensive but have good dealer support. NH, Case/IH, MF are good machines and are generally more competitively priced and also have good dealer support. If they have been around for some time, all the better.

Use this forum by doing search for tractors that may have problems. All machines can have a "one off" problem but some have chronic problems and they should be avoided at all cost. You want to use the tractor not constantly be working on it. So search this forum when you narow downyour choices.

Be wary of the new imports. I was interested in TYM but they franchise dealers who have no shop facilities and then they are gone 6 months later and the nearest dealer is 300 miles away. They give a 5 yr warranty but what good is that when there is no dealer nearby to support it. I'm sure there are dealers that carry several brands, including the the S. Korean machines who have been around for a long time and that's who I would look to buy from if I was going to buy one of these. If you live in the eastern half of the country, this may not be an issue for you, but it is out here where I live.

Be patient, take your time, be sure of your needs, allow for some future growth in requirements, and be analytic in your approach, ask lot's of questions and you'll narrow it down to just a few models. When you get to that point, then start the price negotiations. Don't rush yourself or make an emotional choice.

Good Luck.

 

[EFC]

Are new tractor prices negociable? I know that used ones are, but how about the new ones? Or is it the price the dealers gives you?

Sorry, meant to ask this before, but what is the difference between a utility tractor and a compact tractor? Just the look?

Depends how the dealers sells his tractor. Some dealers love the car dealers approach where they put a high price out and dicker it down (actually I think this is customer driven). Some dealers put out fixed pricing that is lower but not negotiable. I prefer to buy with fixed pricing so that is how we sell ours. I dont know af anybody sticking to MSRP. The key is to shop the tractor first the deal second. I see people shopping the deal all the time and they could almost care less about the tractor. The deal wont matter if it is the wrong tractor for the job. This is a tool not a luxury. Also some dealers do package deals and some dont. Best to buy what you absolutely need now and down the road you will know what is really important and what you can live without. The package deal never pays for the implement that sits unused. This is something you can usually negotiate. For example ask for a 5 or 10% discount on implements for the next 12 months.

In our end of the world it goes, Sub compact, Compact and Utility. I attached a pic showing all three for frame size reference. Utility typically has a shorter wheelbase than an Ag tractor of the same horsepower (John Deere 4000 series is Utility and 5D/5E series is Ag or Mahindra 35 series utility vs. the 30 series Ag) because it was designed to turn tighter and be less intimidating to operate. Ag has a longer wheel base for doing a better job using tillage and hay equipment where the shorter the tractor the bumpier the ride. Everybody uses different terminology so it is key to sit on the different models.

The other part I left out which is the most important is to sit on everything. Tractors are not cars and each one is going to fit differently. Some will be awkward and some will fit like a glove. The right and wrong tractor cost exactly the same

Buck

 

[jake98]

On the first page you mentioned the tractor dealers near you, and Kioti wasn't among them. Their US headquarters is in your area, I would think there must be some dealers nearby. You should do yourself a favor and check them out as well. Great machines and one of the best deals out there in tractor per dollars. And don't believe that with 25 hp and a 5' brush hog you can only cut easy low grass, I've mowed brush 5' high with bushes and saplings, and it's about the only time I've ever used anywhere near full power.
Enjoy!

 

[JDgreen227]

We are looking to purchase a new tractor and are getting conflicting advise from dealers on what the best size tractor is for the job we need it for.

We have 30+ acres, though only about 15-20 of it is cleared. So far we have only been able to bush hog it once a year by borrowing my parent's tractor, so saplings do rapidly appear. Once we get our own tractor we will be able to keep it down to pasture quality and no saplings growing. So the main function of the tractor will be for bush hogging the 15 acres until our horse population slowly expands, after which the uses will turn to some bush hogging and dragging fields. Other uses, though not as frequent as bush hogging, will be drilling holes for fence, moving dirt with box blade and minor use of the FEL.

The land is kind of hilly, (rolling ) and the soil is mixed, with some parts clay, some gravel, some rocky, and regular topsoil, depending on what part of the land you are on. Not really any significant snow around here, so not worried about that.

The bush hog we will get after we get the tractor since its size will be determined by the HP, though we were thinking a 5 foot bush hog will be fine. Same for the box blade.


Hmm, any other details needed for giving advise? From the dealers, we got advise as low as 25 HP and as high as minimum 40 HP :confused2: Obviously we don't want to get too little and wish we had more, but would hate to have a bigger tractor than we really need. Ideally we would like to spend under $25K for the tractor and FEL. The tractors we are looking at and have dealers in our area for are Kubota, Massey Ferguson, New Holland, and maybe JD.

Thanks in advance

Go with 30 hp, better a few more than a few less. My 4210 has 28 gross, and only rarely have I wanted a few more HP, but those times I wished I really had it. It will chop waist high weeds with the 5 foot brush hog, but has to work kinda hard. I would advise at least 90-95 cubic inches if you plan to do a lot of full throttle work.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Without being to specific could you supply the general location ,state or province. Snow fall and length of drive. Possible condition of the unusable parts, trees, ponds. New and now for the hard part, how much are you willing to spend. If you purchase wisely you will have the tractor for many many years.
Craig Clayton

I'm pretty sure that he said that he wanted to stay under 25K. But then I could have misunderstood.

Hmm, any other details needed for giving advise? From the dealers, we got advise as low as 25 HP and as high as minimum 40 HP :confused2: Obviously we don't want to get too little and wish we had more, but would hate to have a bigger tractor than we really need. Ideally we would like to spend under $25K for the tractor and FEL. The tractors we are looking at and have dealers in our area for are Kubota, Massey Ferguson, New Holland, and maybe JD.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Horses were mentioned. I have no idea how big or how many stalls you might end up having, but my thinking is that it would be nice to have a tractor to clean them out and that will be no easy chore with a tractor that is 6' wide. I'm all for bigger tractors, I have several, but I ended up getting one that has 32hp and is 5' wide so that I could get into tighter spaces and so that it would be easier to get up close to fences and whatnot. Think about all that needs to be done and will need to be done on a regular basis. While the bigger tractors are indeed nice, I'm thinking that the only place that it would be a lot better is the bush hogging. For the money that you have said that you are willing to spend, you could get a 25-35hp tractor, front end loader, bush hog, rear blade, box blade, Top and Tilt for you 3pt hitch. Maybe even a post hole digger. This would be a very good start for you.

If you can, try to think about the different stuff that will need to be done now and in the future around your place. Maybe some roads, driveway, trails, fencing, all these things will help to determine what size and implements you will need to get it all done.

Good luck and keep the questions coming.

 

[bigbovine]

Qoutes as of this month with FEL and 4x4
JD 3032E $18,000 HST
MF 1529 $16,500 HST
MF 1533 $17,500 Synch Shuttle
MF 1540 $19,500 Synche Shuttle
Kubota 3400 $18,000 Manual
Kubota L4400 $20,000 Manual
Kubota MX5100 $26,000 or $25,000 (Can't remember) HST

By the way, I was giving serious thought to the MF until i kept going back and looking at them. Happened to drive by a Kubota today and the salesman actually talked to me. The Kubota I ussually try to see that is closer to home, the salesmen will not give me time of day. The salesman talked to me for about an hour. I may have been sold on the MX5100. Until now I didn't even consider the HST because the two tractors(JD and MF) I tested, both times I pushed the wrong pedal to start and went backwards(Not natural Position in my opinion). The MX5100 is bigger than I planned, but it is a beast on power, even with the HST, and the HST is very easily operated and no mistaking which way you press for forward and backward. BTW this is for personal use, tractors on the farm I can use if I need bigger. But the MX5100 will make a great backup tractor on the Farm. The area I am looking at is about 8 acres rolling. Any of the ones I qouted will out perform the Ford 2910 (40 HP) 2wd that I currently borrow.

 

[picker77]

Wow. Location means a lot, I suppose, but I just bought a new 3032E with 305 loader and drawbar a few months ago for $15,700 plus tax (I don't have a farm exemption ), using JD's zero interest @ 36 mo.

I'd expect some differences based on region of the country, but $2300 difference seems a bit much on a small tractor buy. FWIW, I could have had a 3038E/305/drawbar for $1100 more under the same deal, and he had several of each on the lot. All 3032E/3038E's are HST, BTW. Seems your JD dealer wants you to make his Mercedes payments for him for a while.

 

[bigbovine]

The John Deere dealer that quoted this is always high. Comes that way in their part of town. There are 5 JD dealers within 30 mins of me and I had priced things years before and they were always about $2,000 higher than the others. They just happened to have what I wanted to look at, and after what I saw in them I knew I didn't need to go to any of the others for pricing. The Kubota I can probably get cheaper from the dealer close to me, but I wouldn't give them the money because I literally cannot get them to talk to me. Even the parts desk(were one of the owners son's works at) called up a salesman and after 5 min waiting, I walked out of there for the last time. I just happened to be driving by this other Kubota dealer after going to another MF dealer(2 hour drive) to see a 1540 in person. After discussing things with the salesman (who came outside in the cold on Christmas Eve) for about an hour, he finally talked me into driving their HST which I had decided I didn't want. The smallest one on the lot with HST was the MX5100 and I wish I had never done it. Spoiled me for what I normally use. But I would say for the size the original post was asking about, Anything in the 30-40 HP CUT range would work. Since I have access to several tractors and a skid steer, I don't have to worry about getting a one size does all tractor. But if I were going to do 10 acres and possibly a horse barn(which we also work) then I wouldnt get too big, because I feel that even the MF1529 would be "big" for horse barn kind of work but doable.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

they were always about $2,000 higher than the others.

And why are they still in business??? :confused2:

 

[TRR]

I've run a 5 foot Rhino SE5 bushhog on my L235 (23.5 HP) for years mostly in 1 to 2 foot tall stuff and on occasion 6 foot tall. The tall stuff was a little much for it but managed 3 acres of it. It would have been nice to have 30 HP for a 5 foot hog though, even for the shorter stuff. As for cost you should be able to get up to a 40 hp tractor with a FEL and bushhog brand new for under $25K. Definately get a 4WD, even if you get turf tires, the extra traction will be worth it when you need it. (Only use 4WD when it's needed, not full time - saves wear on drive train and tires.)

 

[rmaa]

Qoutes as of this month with FEL and 4x4
JD 3032E $18,000 HST
MF 1529 $16,500 HST
MF 1533 $17,500 Synch Shuttle
MF 1540 $19,500 Synche Shuttle
Kubota 3400 $18,000 Manual
Kubota L4400 $20,000 Manual
Kubota MX5100 $26,000 or $25,000 (Can't remember) HST

This is great! Thanks a lot, it really helps!! :thumbsup:

 

[RobertN]

Mine is used... It was a consignment sale. 450 hours, $13,500. Not even broken in yet

Do you mind sharing the price range of this tractor?

 

[bigbovine]

Just as an update, I went back to Kubota dealer and this is what I may be getting.
MX5100 HST
4x4
FEL
Box Grater
Rear Remote
Tires filled(Some Kind of Methanol mix or something, said it was kinda like the
stuff you clean windows with)
All this for 28,000 out the door, tax and all.

 

[EFC]

How did it feel when you sat in the seat?

 

[TripleR]

Just as an update, I went back to Kubota dealer and this is what I may be getting.
MX5100 HST
4x4
FEL
Box Grater
Rear Remote
Tires filled(Some Kind of Methanol mix or something, said it was kinda like the
stuff you clean windows with)
All this for 28,000 out the door, tax and all.

Congratulations on your new tractor, I am sure it will serve you well.