Need help on purchase

[chris1976]

Hi all! Chris here, need some help on what to buy. Getting 35 acres in WV (hills) with about 12 acres cleared. Will be doing a lot of mowing, food plot for the deer, garden, and driveway maintenance mostly. I'm pretty much decided on a b2650 with FEL and 60 mmm. I have many questions so I will be asking them in the comments as well as now. All the help is much appreciated! What tires? Dealer says turf because the industrial aren't very good on hill sides. Fill tires or counter weight? I think I need one or the other but was wondering if the filling of tires would rob power when I'm doing other things. Keep in mind I'm new to tractors so take it easy on me lol more questions will come in comments thanks again!!

 

[Omega Woods]

I don't think the B2650 is large enough for your place. Fill the tires, no loss in power from that since the weight is transferred to the ground.

How much will need mowing?

 

[chris1976]

About 10 to 12 acres are cleared, house, barn, couple of buildings, garage, 2 ponds which equal at least 2 acres, and driveway take out of the 10 to 12 acres so I'm guessing 7 or 8 acres of mowing

 

[moship]

I'd consider moving from B to L-Series and preferably a Grand L. You won't regret having greater FEL capacity, weight and HP.

 

[chris1976]

I'd consider moving from B to L-Series and preferably a Grand L. You won't regret having greater FEL capacity, weight and HP.

My reasoning for the 2650 was mmm and no dpf. And it's going to be a lawn mower over 90% of the time. I want a bigger one but didnt know if it would be over kill.

 

[mddorange]

:welcome:
To TBN Chris. We are glad that you joined.

You came to the right place as we love to spend other people's money. :laughing:

With that much land and with the hills and other things you are looking to do, I would be looking at an "L" at a minimum. The L will give you a wider stance and more stability on the hills. Yes, get the tires filled and it won't really rob you of power. With a FEL you will want 4wd and get the QA bucket.

Be sure to test drive different tractors before you buy to get a feel of what you will be using.

Post some pictures of your land and keep us updated as you go.

Congrats on the land and new tractor when it comes.

 

[chris1976]

:welcome:
To TBN Chris. We are glad that you joined.

You came to the right place as we love to spend other people's money. :laughing:

With that much land and with the hills and other things you are looking to do, I would be looking at an "L" at a minimum. The L will give you a wider stance and more stability on the hills. Yes, get the tires filled and it won't really rob you of power. With a FEL you will want 4wd and get the QA bucket.

Be sure to test drive different tractors before you buy to get a feel of what you will be using.

Post some pictures of your land and keep us updated as you go.

Congrats on the land and new tractor when it comes.

Thanks ! I will!! And I like I said I'm new to tractors and thought the 2650 would be more than enough lol

 

[mddorange]

Look at the L2501 if you must stay away from the DPF.

I would get a seperate mower for the 1 to 2 acres of close property and a flail mower for the other acres.

 

[prof fate]

35-40hp
R4 should be fine, but turf are good too - better in snow not as good in mud.

Consider a rear mower - much easier on/off and you can go 6 or 7'. Or maybe a good brush hog..I got a bush hog 6' on my kioti CK3510 and it's damned near a finish mower.

Getting near to items with a rear mower is a challenge. But a nice zero turn is perfect for htat, for aroudn the house.

I'm working a 25 acre horse farm and 25 hp just isn't gonna be enough - you can go a full foot wider on implements with 35hp and it's not that much more money.

Kioti's 35 and 40hp CK models have filters but no DEF.

My reasoning for the 2650 was mmm and no dpf. And it's going to be a lawn mower over 90% of the time. I want a bigger one but didnt know if it would be over kill.

 

[oosik]

Those dam fed regs and DPF. Ideal size would be either 50 hp Grand L or M5060. You will find the wider stance and heavier tractor of great advantage in hilly country.

Fill the rear tires with Rimguard, windshield washer fluid or recreational anti-freeze. Get a FEL and bucket to start and a finish or rotary mower for the 3-point.

You will want 4WD and at least one rear hydraulic connect out back.

A little B2650 and a mid mount mower is going to take forever to mow 7 or 8 acres and its not going to be that comfortable either.

Check out as many different brands as possible, sit on the tractors, grab all the controls, how does it feel/fit, drive them around the sales lot if they let you. Have the sales person introduce you to the service manager and have him show you around the service area. What kind of a feeling do you get from the service manager and his shop. Remember - whatever you purchase - you just might have to deal with the service department.

The one thing a lot of new people don't understand - buying a tractor is not like buying a new auto. You will buy a new vehicle every 3-4 years - national average. With proper maintenance a new tractor will last the remainder of your life - even if you are only 25 right now.

Think hard about what you want to do ten, fifteen, even twenty years from now. Think hard, plan wisely, purchase with care - grasshopper.

AND BTW - - Welcome to TBN and the forum.

 

[jeff9366]

My reasoning for the 2650 was mmm and no dpf. And it's going to be a lawn mower over 90% of the time. I want a bigger one but didnt know if it would be over kill.

The B2650 has 26-horsepower. It is fully Tier IV compliant, which probably means B2650 has a DPF.

The demarcation is 25-horsepower. Therefore models like Kubota's L2501 "cheater" have 24.8 horsepower.


B2650 is a very well equipped tractor.

 

[jeff9366]

About 10 to 12 acres are cleared, house, barn, couple of buildings, garage, 2 ponds which equal at least 2 acres, and driveway take out of the 10 to 12 acres so I'm guessing 7 or 8 acres of mowing.

MOWING CALCULATOR:
Mowing Calcuator | How many acres can I mow in an hour

Operating a 60" mower you will mow at 1-1/2 to two acres per hour if the land is smooth and grass 24" or less in length.

Getting 35 acres in WV (hills) with about 12 acres cleared, 7 or 8 acres of mowing. Will be doing food plot for the deer, garden, and driveway maintenance mostly. I'm pretty much decided on a b2650 with FEL and 60 mmm.

What tires? Dealer says turf because the industrial aren't very good on hill sides.

Fill tires or counter weight? I think I need one or the other.

Load the rear tires 1/2 to 3/4 with liquid for operating on hillsides. You will still need 500 pounds Three Point Hitch counterbalance for max FEL lifts.

Most tractors sold with Loaders are equipped with R4/industrial tires.

Consider setting the wheels as wide as possible IF YOUR PROPERTY IS REALLY HILLY.

In terms of tires, is snow traction a consideration?


Kubota B5-Series tractors, B265 & B335. Review and functions | Messick's - YouTube

Kubota Tire Choices: Why it Matters - YouTube

 

[prof fate]

While I don't like the complexity of emmissions equipment, come over and I'll show you diesels before and after DPF and such - I don't like the smoke and smell of dem old oil burners, no sirree.

Messicks did a video on kubota and says the DPF filter will need 'cleaned' manually in 3000 hours. Cost he says is $300-400. Hmm...says that's on trucks too. Well, on IH / IC buses it's $900...and 10-15% of them have issues (bad sensors we're being told...)

Keep the revs up (1800min..but if you have HST you should do that anyway) and get them hot..5 min runs to feed a horse in mid january won't do well...not sure how I'm gonna handle that.

 

[chris1976]

MOWING CALCULATOR:
Mowing Calcuator | How many acres can I mow in an hour

Operating a 60" mower you will mow at ~~two acres~~ per hour if the land is smooth.


Fill the tires with liquid for operating on hillsides.

Most tractors sold with Loaders are equipped with R4/industrial tires.

So I can easily mow it in a day with a 2650 which is fine with me because I'm retired. I know a bigger machine would be faster but is it mandatory for what I'll be doing? Remember no big projects just maintaining what it is.

 

[chris1976]

I thought I had the tractor figured out but u guys changed that lol now I dont know what to do

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

I thought I had the tractor figured out but u guys changed that lol now I dont know what to do

Will this be your first time owning a property with large acreage? Also, how long is your driveway and how steep?

 

[chris1976]

Will this be your first time owning a property with large acreage? Also, how long is your driveway and how steep?

Yes and its maybe 125 yards long and pretty flat and gravel

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

Yes and its maybe 125 yards long and pretty flat and gravel

Random thoughts from another newbie, collected largely from TBN, which may or may not be useful.....

Arguments FOR buying bigger:

Literally everyone here on TBN says "buy one size up."

Even if you don't think you'll need to touch the wooded areas, are you sure you'll *never* decide you want to make some nice walking trails? How about when a big tree comes down and takes 10 trees with it? Or you decide you want to level an area for a new garden. Or get a big load of dirt, or gravel, or whatever to spread. Bigger is better there.

You have a fairly long driveway, which even though "pretty flat" will still need maintenance. This will be quicker if your tractor can easily pull a minimum 5' wide box blade. A couple of years ago I couldn't quite pull the trigger on a "real" tractor, so just put a small 4' rear blade on my garden tractor. I graded my driveway with it but it took about 3 weeks. This has definitely given me an appreciation for the benefits of size.

If you have very hilly terrain, or rough terrain, or both, more weight and larger tires is better.

If you're mowing large open fields, bigger is def better.

Over the years, I've found that my projects have tended to multiply, and have also become more ambitious. This may or may not be the case with you.

ANY tractor feels huge if you're used to lawn tractors. I believe that causes a lot of us newbies to buy too small.

Arguments AGAINST buying bigger:

If you need to work around buildings, flower beds, trees, and through trails, a smaller tractor is more maneuverable.

You can hire out the occasional big jobs (I've done that).

A large tractor will suck at mowing your yard. It will compact your ground and you'll have to remove the FEL if you've got tight spots. I managed to take down a newly planted crabapple when mowing with my tiny 4' blade attached, and that was just a garden tractor. IMO even the tractor you are currently considering is a tad big for finish mowing the lawn. If you go big, make your wife happy and get a dedicated mower for the lawn. You can't beat a yard tractor or z-turn for mowing.



You might think a large tractor with a MMM can "do it all." However, a MMM will get caught up on uneven ground, protruding stumps, rocks and even small piles of dirt (ask my garden tractors about that ), just no clearance. So you'll need to remove it for "real" tractor work. And they're a pain to take off. And it will suck at mowing too.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[majorwager]

Jeffy

Why do you label the 2501 a "cheater." The law is specific for emissions over and below the emissions threshold. Your characterization is unwarrented to imply kubota has circumvented the law.

Certainly the regulators anticipated some ratings would approach the limits, you must be very naive and alone in your thoughts, if you believed otherwise.

EDIT: Chris,
Trust your instincts, others will spend your money w/o ever having seen your property. Some will even offer advice w/o actually owning a tractor. I have owned and farmed for many years w/ tractors of many stripes and descriptions. One of the favorites was a Cub Loboy, 184 w/ mmm, 4 cylinder gas, about 18 hp, mowed lawn and pastures, no issues.

 

[PaulL2]

Jeffy

Why do you label the 2501 a "cheater."

For me, a rating like 24.8hp might be a bit too cute....and maybe it's really making a bit more. Which I'm fine with. Either way, sliding just under the limit is kinda "cheating", but not in a negative way, more just pushing the limits/boundaries.

BTW, I thought the limit was a bit over 26hp? The B2601 and the BX2680 don't have emissions equipment I think?