Buying a cab tractor

[Tomtint]

I decided that it's time I get a cab tractor. It will be primarily used for snow removal on a commercial lot. Looking at the 47 and 54 60 series. .. These things are 50+ k.....I know they are two entirely different machines but for 50k, I can get a real nice used Cat 420 or Deere 310/410 which would be far more capable. I have a L3700 SU TLB that I'm going to keep for other tractor work. Does anyone have experience with the L series pushing a 9 foot snow box ?

 

[TSO]

My buddy picked up a super HD 7' snow box and we played with it one day. He has a L3540 (35 HP) and I have a Massey 1648 (47 HP). Mine handled it a little better, but the snow, while deep, was pretty light. I could probably handle a lighter ditty 8 ft box that wasn't able to hold as much volume, but not if the snow gets much heavier.

The biggest problem is weight & weight distribution ... When the push box fills up, it causes traction loss and makes turning nearly impossible. Straight runs are ok if you can get traction. I think that's the limiting factor with these sized tractors.

FYI, the L4760 specs about identical to my 1648... And the L5460 has a few more HP, but the weight is the same.

Also, FYI the actual pricing, at least here in Mich, should be closer to $41k -$44k for those.

Vids:

L3540 https://youtu.be/AdSMD08kd3E

1648 https://youtu.be/yxir9jFUkM0

 

[Tomtint]

My buddy picked up a super HD 7' snow box and we played with it one day. He has a L3540 (35 HP) and I have a Massey 1648 (47 HP). Mine handled it a little better, but the snow, while deep, was pretty light. I could probably handle a lighter ditty 8 ft box that wasn't able to hold as much volume, but not if the snow gets much heavier.

The biggest problem is weight & weight distribution ... When the push box fills up, it causes traction loss and makes turning nearly impossible. Straight runs are ok if you can get traction. I think that's the limiting factor with these sized tractors.

FYI, the L4760 specs about identical to my 1648... And the L5460 has a few more HP, but the weight is the same.

Also, FYI the actual pricing, at least here in Mich, should be closer to $41k -$44k for those.

Vids:

L3540 https://youtu.be/AdSMD08kd3E

1648 https://youtu.be/yxir9jFUkM0

That's a pretty big snow box, looks like it bounced the back of the MF off the ground. Any idea what it weighs?

 

[TSO]

That's a pretty big snow box, looks like it bounced the back of the MF off the ground. Any idea what it weighs?

Oh yeah, it bounced both of the tractors ... Mine has wheel weights, his tires are loaded. The L3540 just couldn't lift it with as much force so i don't think we caught the bounce on film.

I think we figured it at around 1400lbs. It's 7 ft wide, 4 ft deep x 4 ft tall, I think it's 3/8" steel.

 

[pmsmechanic]

Vids:

L3540 https://youtu.be/AdSMD08kd3E

1648 https://youtu.be/yxir9jFUkM0

Interesting to watch these two video's. There are a lot of conversations on this forum about how R-4's need to be chained in snow and yet both of you were able to make your engines work before running out of traction. I'd love to swap a set of R-3's on one of these tractors and see the difference.

 

[TSO]

Interesting to watch these two video's. There are a lot of conversations on this forum about how R-4's need to be chained in snow and yet both of you were able to make your engines work before running out of traction. I'd love to swap a set of R-3's on one of these tractors and see the difference.

It's worth mentioning that we both siped/grooved our tires. Definitely an improvement over standard R4's. Also, we have lots of weight on them. I have 540 lbs of wheel weights and that back blade weights almost 1000 lbs. He's got probably 800 lbs of fluid and a couple hundred lbs with his back blade.

 

[George2615]

Oh yeah, it bounced both of the tractors ... Mine has wheel weights, his tires are loaded. The L3540 just couldn't lift it with as much force so i don't think we caught the bounce on film.

I think we figured it at around 1400lbs. It's 7 ft wide, 4 ft deep x 4 ft tall, I think it's 3/8" steel.

That's a big and heavy pusher box. Mine is 7'6" wide but only about 30" high and weighs about 800 lbs. That 1400 lb. box would work better on a full size industrial tractor but may be too big for yours. I don't have the bounce with mine.

 

[pmsmechanic]

It's worth mentioning that we both siped/grooved our tires. Definitely an improvement over standard R4's. Also, we have lots of weight on them. I have 540 lbs of wheel weights and that back blade weights almost 1000 lbs. He's got probably 800 lbs of fluid and a couple hundred lbs with his back blade.

And both of you have cabs.

 

[TSO]

That's a big and heavy pusher box. Mine is 7'6" wide but only about 30" high and weighs about 800 lbs. That 1400 lb. box would work better on a full size industrial tractor but may be too big for yours. I don't have the bounce with mine.

Yeah it's built for heavy skid steers, definitely not for CUT'S. He practically stole it off Craigslist, otherwise wouldn't have bought it.

 

[peterc38]

FYI, the L4760 specs about identical to my 1648... And the L5460 has a few more HP, but the weight is the same.

Also, FYI the actual pricing, at least here in Mich, should be closer to $41k -$44k for those.

Looks like your Michigan pricing is better than our New England pricing. The best price I got on a L4060 cab was $40,000