Buying Advice Bought a farm, looking for a tractor...and help choosing!

[CompactTractorFan]

What was the comparable model prior to '05? The power on the 3320 looks like the same as the 955 but is obviously a bigger tractor. What advantage would I have going with something like that?

BTW, it doesn't have to be green. I like green, but orange may work well too

I'm not sure about comparable models...The reason I suggested them was because I was not familiar with the 955, and they were the ones I could think of off the top of my head. Anything in the 30-40hp range should work fine...:thumbsup:

 

[jenkinsph]

I think you would be better served long term to buy the right equipment for your needs, "The first time". If I had a budget of $10k and a new to me property with two houses I would first get the mower and tools to get the home lawns in good shape. Make sure you get a good mower that will hold up to a 5 acre lawn. This is usually more appealing to the wife too.

Then take the time to assess your tractor needs when you get caught up. It may mean more money which wouldn't shock me at all. I have had a bunch of tractors and have read about so many here on TBN who have upgraded that I would caution you to spend the time to do more looking before selecting based on your current pricing.

 

[curdy]

I have a small JD L118 (42" deck) that I can probably get by on for a season or 2 if I had to. Also, I should stress that the 5 acre figure is what I think will be the max we'd finish mow eventually, not necessarily what we will be mowing in the next 2-3 seasons. For now, until I establish where exactly we'd like the lawn boundaries to be, I'd say I'm looking at more like 3 acres.

It was such a chore at our last place mowing just 2 acres with it. There was a couple of different reasons for that, but one in particular was the hours I worked away from home gave me very small windows of opportunity to get it done. One little rain at the wrong time and it would really make it a long job when I could get back to it. I work from home now, so if I fee like mowing for an hour or two, I can go do it :thumbsup: I think there's little doubt in my mind that I'll want a bigger and faster mower (ztr) at some point, but roughing it for a bit with the L118 wouldn't be the worst thing. Plus, my oldest son is 8 now...he could be mowing with it in a couple of years if it holds up well. Its certainly easy enough to operate. He'll have to get over his urge to run one of the cats down with it though.

Something that would be really helpful is to hear some more details about what you guys think I should keep in mind for the tractor needs (beyond what tasks I already have in mind). 'If you're thinking of doing (___), you'll want to really consider getting something with (___).

 

[bigbull338]

i know people that has a 5+ ac yard.an they mow the front yard an backyard side an along the driveway with the riding mower.an then mow the rest with tractor an finish mower.an they do that once a week.

 

[TripleR]

i know people that has a 5+ ac yard.an they mow the front yard an backyard side an along the driveway with the riding mower.an then mow the rest with tractor an finish mower.an they do that once a week.

We did that for years with a Husky riding mower and Ford NAA with Caroni RFM. We even did it a few times with a Case CX80 with 8' RFM.

 

[Soundguy]

imho.. finish mowing 5ac of yard would be brutal. I like to bushhog just fine.. finish mow though.. NAAh...

 

[bigbull338]

finish mowing is fine for a yard.an id do that.but i heard of a guy that traded his 3yr old 10ft bushhog shredder in for a big finish mower to mow his pastures with because he wanted the manicured look.

 

[Soundguy]

my pasture would eat up a finish mower in about 1 mowing after I hit all the ant mounds, and horse apples and cow plops there! that's why it's a pasture.. not a football field..


soundguy

 

[grsthegreat]

too bad you don't live near me in idaho. I have the perfect 4x4 tractor for you. its a john deere 870 loader, 1996 vintage. its served me well since i bought it new in 96. i take care of 30 acres ...mostly trees , with it. it has 28 HP, 4x4 and can lift 1000# with the loader. i have mower, snowblower,post hole digger, rototiller,spring tooth harrow and sprayer for it. it has served me very well. However after all these years of moving snow in the winter, i decided to switch to a Kioti dk45se hst CAB tractor. take delivery of it in 3 days...cant wait. needless to say i need a new snowblower ...but i can use alot of my other impliments. If you have lots of trees (i could not tell in your description) i could highly recommend the Jimna 3 point wood chipper. ive had mine for 3 years.....LOVE it. great machine for the money. I was planning on selling my old JD870 with snowblower and rototiller in the near future.......guess its time to take some pics and email craigslist. As far as the budget of $10k goes, keep looking , there will be good used tractors out there. mine will probably list for about that. And i personally would not go less than 25 HP if you need a loader.

 

[rustedduck]

Your property and needs sound very similar to what I have. Considering
your budget, I would go with the riding mower for around the house.

Dont get caught without enough tractor. 35 to 40 hp is probably fine.
Yes, you can survive without 4x4, but youll probably regret it.

When i was looking for a used tractor, hst was on my list of needed
items. The tractor i found (Kubota 4310) had gst instead of hst.
To date I have not regreted the gst.

It took me a year of looking before i found the tractor the suited my
needs, at my budget. Keep looking with an open mind as far as your
needs.