Bigger is Not Better

[MikeTipton]

There is a definite group on the board who always say "bigger is better" whenever anyone is contemplating the purchase of a tractor. I thought about this crowd today as I watched my wife navigate our BX24 between the oak trees, dogwoods, and daffodils in the front yard as she distributed dirt so we could try to grow some grass. I was manning the rake to do the final distribution and leveling of the dirt. She would have had a lot trouble with a larger unit!

Mike T.

 

[woodchuckie]

I to couldn't do what I bought my L 2800 for If I had a bigger tractor except maybe the 3400. I make and maintain trails for walking and small vehicles and have lots of thick and low hanging growth to contend with.

 

[Bob_Young]

You're right Mike...certainly under your circumstances. The big tractors are better when there's plenty of space to maneuver and a need for the HP/size/weight. Otherwise less is often more. Around the obstacles often found on residential properties (trees, bushes, buildings, fences, flower beds, mailboxes, parked vehicles, birdbaths and koi ponds), big tractors are like bulls in china shops.

The guys who have it difficult are those who can only afford/justify one tractor and need to do both yard work and field work with it. Whatever they get, it won't ever be totally satisfactory for both.

I expect Glowplug will be by shortly to straighten us both out.
Bob

 

[jbrumberg]

Mike T:

Welcome to TBN ! I agree with everything so far in these posts. For 20+ years I struggled with snow removal with my "little" Ford 1100 with a dozer blade, but had no difficulty with brush hogging my sloped 8 acres of field (had a low center of gravity) and "lawn" or tilling my gardens. I had to cut the trees up relatively short in order to drag them out of the woods, but the tractor was very manuverable in the woods. With my NH TC29DA I have to be a lot more cautious brush hogging the slopes for fear of rollover (higher center of gravity ), but I can mow the field much more quickly (~2 hours less time ); tilling is about the same amount of time as I have to approach the task differently due to decreased manuverability; my 1.3 mile "commute" to till another garden takes about the same amount of time which may be more a function of geared vs HST and respective attachment weights due to the hills; but the biggest difference is how well my new tractor moves snow (FEL vs Blade and 29HP vs 13HP)- what took me 4 - 6 hours I can now due in 2 - 3 hours . My biggest challenge now is to widen all my old tractor paths due to the bigger/taller/longer size of the
"29" and the ROPS/FOPS so I can get back into the woods again. I agree that any tractor purchase is a series of tradeoffs between size and use. I would say (IMHO) that one should try to get the most HP for the tractor class frame size, but I am in no way a tractor HP junkie. Jay

 

[RoyJackson]

We like to spend other people's money too!

 

[jbrumberg]

We like to spend other people's money too!

I agree ; I would also like to spend more of my/our own money, but "She Who Must Be Obeyed " will not let me. My knees and elbows are starting to get a little raw from all my grovelling and kowtowing (as well as whining, dinner, etc. ) I am doing trying to get a box blade for some new "projects" . Jay

 

[Highsmith]

This is such a well-timed post.

I was visiting my future homesite these past few days and was thinking how much I really needed 2 tractors rather than just one if I wanted to do things well. Otherwise, I would have issues trying to buy the one "compromise" tractor. It seems that the only things that really require horse power/weight/pto are FEL for round bales and the future truck farming.

As I walked around and daydreamed about all my future chores, I realized the truck farming was way down the road. And I remembered my grandfather almost always used the square bales and never owned a FEL.

I am really leaning towards a smaller tractor for my initial purchase. This would help me with all the moving of junk, fenceposts, road maintenance, and cutting. I can save the large tractor purchase for a few years down the road when I am done with the improvements and ready to work it.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

The bigger is better theory is usually applied to the same size class of tractors. If you are looking at a TC 35 then if you can swing it go up a few hp to the TC 40 or 45. Same size tractor just more horses. I have never heard someone complain about having too much hp in a compact tractor.

 

[Z-Michigan]

Very timely post, and I agree with all the comments. I've had my 5105 for just over a month now. It and the Kubota M5040 were what I focused on, as they were the only tractors large enough to do everything I was thinking about. I'm now finding that the big tractor does two things:
1) Makes a lot of tasks go very fast, which is mostly a good thing.
2) Is clumsy inside smaller areas - in particular I'm finding it slightly clumsy inside a 1 acre pasture.

I'm also finding that it's not necessarily faster for everything. In hindsight I could have done what I really need with a 30-40hp tractor, and saved some $$. Only drawback is that I couldn't really bale hay or move large round bales with one - but so far I'm not doing either, and after looking at some used hay balers I doubt I'll ever be buying one.

My two cents - look at all sizes that might work for you, but don't go bigger just because it's possible or there's an off chance you could use it some day. Figure out the size you really need, and then go slightly larger if the extra size won't hinder your tasks. If it will, buy exactly what you think you need.

 

[texasjohn]

Highsmith, I looked at your profile... 500+ acrs near Luling... I know your area a little.... I respectfully suggest that with that acreage you'll discover you need a 50 HP tractor or better. It's the mimimum for round bales, yes.

However, I've discovered that a FEL is GREAT for numerous other chores.. and makes work go so much faster:
Pull old fence posts
drive metal fence posts with bottom of FEL (PM me if you want to know how)
handle 3PH equipment of sufficient size to cover the ground... and with that acreage, you need to cover ground!

I truly couldn't see a significantly smaller tractor being the right answer in your case. I, also, initially considered a significantly smaller tractor, but happenstance put me into my current equipment and I now realize that I'm able to get things done multiple times faster than with a smaller tractor. My earlier tractors were in the 30 HP range and kept fighting me all the time. And, in some cases, there are things that only a 50ish HP size tractor can do without extreme effort.