am i on the right track?

[whitearrow]

hello fellas,i am on the verge of the purchase of a jd 5203 and a bush hog 286 rotary cutter for bush hogging two 25 acre fields.i want a gear tractor that i won't have to worry about,as far as going to the barn and cranking and doing a full days work.the reason that i am going with a gear tractor is twofold in that they are cheaper and i think more reliable cause they have less moving parts.i know that it is going to take me a while to bush hog 50 acres with a 6 foot hog but i wanted something that i could also take in the woods too.the bh 286 is just as wide as my rear tires on the jd 5203.i am planning on getting a 6 ft disc and box blade later for deer plots and gravel road maintenance.i guess that i just wanted to get some feedback from you guys as to whether i am totally off base with this project,tractor and brush cutter.i will not be doing any baling of hay or anything like that nor will i be doing any fel work,i don't think.
thanks,
whitearrow->>>---------------------->

 

[RonR]

I'm not familiar with either your tractor or mower, but I did some math, and if I did it right, you might want to think older and bigger for the same money. Or maybe not............

50 acres = 2178010 sq ft. Divide by 5.5 ft (doubt you can cut EXACTLY 6 ft) yields 396000 ft, which equals 75 miles.

Not allowing for turn time, Trees, other obstructions, breaks, maintenance, fueling, and not knowing your ground condition, if you can travel at:

6MPH = 12 Hours
5MPH = 15 Hours
4MPH = 18 Hours
3MPH = 24 Hours

Tractorin' is fun, but mowing with a six footer becomes less fun, faster. I've mowed pastures as a kid with a six footer and it was BORING............

Best wishes,
ron

 

[Robert_in_NY]

That setup will work fine. The great thing about owning your own equipment is that you can do as much or as little when you want. We chop between 50 and 60 acres each year at least once. Some of it gets cut twice. I use a TN65 which is the same frame size as the JD you are looking at and I cut with a 6' chopper also. When cutting around the trees or near the fence post of our pens I don't have to worry about the cutter sticking out past the wheels which I am sure was one of your thoughts. You will be fine with that setup.

As for gear/hydro, it doesn't matter and you don't need to justify your decision. You write the check and that is all that matters. Anyway, there are no hydro tractors in the Utility class. I think the largest hydro made under 100 hp is the JD 4720 or whatever number they are using now. And that is still just a big compact tractor.

When I first bought the TN it was to do exactly what you want to do. We would plant about 6-10 acres of food plots each year and fix up our roads and pastures. Eventually I got into haying and wish I had bought a bigger tractor at first but this class of tractor will work with almost anything you can imagine. Good luck.

 

[LBrown59]

I'd go with a HST
faster & less tiring mowing around obstacles .

How about a tow behind offset mower in addition to the 6 foot mower to give you a wider cut?


I have a BX23 with a 60'' mower and a MTD with a 46'' belly mower
When my wife drives the MTD and I follow her with the BX23 we get a 9 foot wide cut.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

He is talking about brush chopers and chopping fields, not mowing his 50 acre lawn. When it comes to brush chopping, you put the tractor in gear, set the throttle and sit back and steer. Most of brush chopping is out in the open cutting pastures and fields. And he already said he wanted a gear so there is no reason for anyone to suggest he do different.

 

[cowboydoc]

If time isn't a factor that setup will work like a charm. For a 6' mower you are probably overpowered unless you are thinking of running other equipment down the road. You are right on the 5203 it is bulletproof and will last decades with just the required mainenance.

 

[WhyNot]

If it were me and it isn't I would look at used equipment like RonR said you might be able to find a larger tractor with 2000 or so hour's on it maybe one with a cab for what you would pay for a new one but then again I can understand wanting a new one too /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif check out Machine Finder to get an idea of what is out there.

 

[whitearrow]

cowboydoc,why do you say that the tractor is overpowered?the 5203 isn't but a 48 horsepower pto tractor.the bushhog 286 needs at least a 40 horse pto tractor to run it.i was thinking about the 5103 but it is a 43 horse pto tractor.i would rather have a little more horses than just have enough.is that not the way to think,am i not looking at that right?this is my first tractor purchase so i don't know everything,and am willing to learn from you fellas.
thanks for the replies,keep 'em comin',
whitearrow->>>------------------->

 

[Robert_in_NY]

The pto ratings for that brush chopper are if you are trying to cut down brush the size it was designed for. If the only thing you are doing is cutting fields with no brush then it is a little overpowered. Either way, the tractor and cutter you have selected will work well together as I said, I have the same setup but different brands.

 

[cowboydoc]

I stand corrected. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif If the minimum hp is 40 then you are right on with your tractor choice. I didn't figure a 6' mower would take that much hp. I've got a 4600 JD, 30 some hp, and run a heavy duty JD 609 mower on it in some really rough conditions and never run out of power. I was just using that as an analysis. But you are right both of those cutters call for 40 hp minimum.