90% of my tasks, 424!?!?

[Suilenroc]

Just joined! Looking to make my first tractor purchase... Long story short, I'm looking at the SA 424. I'd like to hear from existing owners and or knowledgeable people on the 424s limits.

Duties in order of frequency.
-Finish mowing 2acres of lawn.
-Brush hogging roughly a mile of trails of existing trails (potentially more to come).
-maintaining 1000ft uphill gravel driveway
-Firewood
-Gardens and food plots
-snow removal on the drive if it ever snows again!

Initial investment in:
424w loader
60" finish mower or MMM...???
60" rotary cutter
60" tiller
60" back blade
60" landscape grader

The dealer thought I would be fine with 60" implements, but some have told me to stick with 54"...????

My property is 18acres, mostly hardwood forest, 2 acres of pine, house sits on the ridge top, landscape falls away fairly gradual but I'd consider it Hilly non the less. Southeast Ohio!

90% of my tasks are listed here, the other 10% I can get with skidsteer and 50hp tractor I have access to when I feel like loading and hauling. I'm looking for something light but still effective. Load the tires or not? My other consideration is the JD 2025r. I'd love to hear some experience, good the bad and the ugly.
Thanks!

Ps, I believe I've read most threads on the 424, but want more input on how it handles implements and comments on whether I should upsize or not!?

 

[CADplans]

We have a JD 855,, virtually identical engine rating,,,

TractorData.com John Deere 855 tractor engine information

It mows 3.5 acres with a 60" deck, in under 2 hours.

I would consider it "small" for maintaining 1,000 feet of gravel driveway.
We have a larger tractor for that.

Drop the loader when mowing,, or plan on replacing parts.

 

[Suilenroc]

Thanks CAD. Finally got to drive one of these along with its bigger brother, yt235... I liked how the 235 handled compared to the 424. Not that much bigger but felt like I was on a tractor. The 424 made some pretty awful sounds while running it in low. Whinny, there didn't seem to be a sweet spot on that unit to get it to calm down. The loader responded better on the 424 than compared to the 235. Both machines were fairly comfortable, much better controls on the YT... The 424 controls seemed dinky, more like a child's toy than a lawn tractor. Both these tractors seemed so much better on paper and at the expo than sitting in the seat. I really like the dealer, might give them another look and drive before I change plans but the JD 2series seem worth the money at this point.

 

[Suilenroc]

Definitely going JD, new 2038r. I really liked the thought of owning a yanmar but after much time in the seats there really wasn't much to debate. The JD 2 series is the real deal compared to the 424. There are several red flags with the yanmar, no diff lock, high rpms and extremely soft operator controls. I know the 2038 isn't apples to apples with the 424, but looking at a yt235 as well I am still drawn to JD. All in all the little extra $ to get it right seems $ well spent.

 

[CADplans]

That will be a nice machine.
First off,,, DO NOT bring the tractor home (at all) without fluid in the rear tires.
Even with fluid,, you will need a ballast box on the 3PH for lifting anything heavier than mulch.
Second,,, buy the loader and mower,,, BUT,
avoid the other purchases, until you are ready to actually use that attachment.

The second rule does not apply if you are doing a financing bundle.

Start a new thread in the JD section of TBN,, so you can get some good advice on which attachments.
A 2038R should easily pull a six foot RFM,, and,,, maybe even a seven foot.

 

[blueredboy]

My customers love the 424 because of the additional ground clearance. It should handle 60" attachments well. We have some a 60 rotary cutter, blades, and other attachments and they all work on it well. The yanmar has longer 3 point arms vs the other brands which will make it easier to hookup. The tiller may be the only attachment you may have to go smaller tha. 60" depending on the brand.

Also on the deer 2025 it is going to have a yanmar engine in..... yanmar builds their own engines, axles, transmissions which is more than any other brand can say.

Hope this helps.