Buying advice for small land-owner in New Hampshire

[nhbubba]

Hello all. Been lurking for a bit now and starting to feel serious and informed enough to start a thread. I realize these "advise" threads are probably a dime a dozen. But an opportunity to BS about tractors, spend someone else's money and maybe set a newb straight. Sound like fun? Read on.

I have about 3 acres of mostly flat, sandy, wooded land here in southern NH, not far from the coast. On this land I have my home, a paved driveway (about 200' long), a small shed and about 1/4 acre of grass. The rest is wooded, mostly eastern pine with some oak and maple hardwood mixed in.

Our landscaping is pretty horrible; bad grass, bumpy lawn, lots of overgrown trees. I also have 2 small children. We have always valued traveling with the kids prioritizing at least one "big" trip per year. Now due to covid most of that is shut down. Fortunately we live in a pretty choice part of the world, so all is not bad. Now that we are spending so much time at home we are considering investing in the landscaping. I am quickly discovering that I am not 25 anymore! I am considering a tractor to save my back and get these projects done faster.

Immediate project list includes:

Excavate for a new patio
Level and replanting the lawn
Trenching in an irrigation system
Trenching for drains for new roof gutters
Cutting and maintaining a bicycle pump/BMX style track for the kids. Maybe big enough so dad can rip a mini-bike through it?!
Leveling a pad for an above-ground pool
Pulling some stumps and rocks from the yard
Till a garden

Maybe, just maybe one day doing the site work and digging footings for a 2-car detached man-cave!

Regular chores I'd like help with include moving firewood and pellet fuel and clearing snow from our driveway.


Right now I am leaning towards a ~24-26 HP machine. I do not need mid-PTO. I'd like a smaller machine that would fit in my shed. I started my search with Kubota so I know their line-up best. I'm thinking B2601 or B2650. The L-series is too big and the BX doesn't have the loader capacity I want. Kubota also appeals as the brand has a great reputation and resale is easy and quick. With the new LX series due out I am wondering if right now isn't a great time to buy a B50 series.

Kioti is now on my radar after a friend had a good buying experience recently. I'm liking their CX or CK2510. Maybe a CK2610, although I wonder if that is too big. I love the hydraulic and loader specs on these.

Mahindra is my 3rd cross shop. I guess the Max26 or 1626. Haven't learned enough about these yet.

I've ruled out LS and Massey due to local dealer support. I like the Massey lineup, but there just aren't any dealers right local. LS appeals less and has only a very small dealer.
Deere was on my list but the local dealer has a bad reputation. Also everyone I talk to insists they just aren't price competitive around here for some reason.


Option wise I think I am interested in a tractor with loader and quick-detach bucket. We also want (although arguably do not need) a backhoe. I figure buy it with the tractor to finance it and hoes seem to make machines move very easily 2nd hand if we change our minds about this in a few years. We would also like a mechanical thumb with the backhoe. And a set of quick-detach forks. That's about it.


Implement wise I want a rear-blade for help clearing snow. I've been turned onto the bolt-on "edge tamers" for the bucket; those seem worthwhile for the price. And a "ratchet rake" for the bucket for clearing light brush.
Down the road I may be interested in some sort of tiller or plow. The smaller (ie B2601) machines really appeal because they take smaller, less expensive implements.
Also down the road I may be interested in a rear, 3-pt snow blower. My neighbor currently clears with a ~30 HP B-series and just a rear blade and his loader. I figure I'll start there. But I'd like a blower one day. Rear mount is good 'nuf given the price of front-mount blowers.

Mid-mount mowers are too expensive and too large for the small yard we have. We will keep the small mower we have. In fact we see no need for mid PTO at all.

Anything else I should be shopping for or looking at?

 

[Diggin It]

Mid PTOS are good for things like snow blowers and power brooms.

 

[cdaigle430]

All I know is go for the tractor with the BH and mid mount. The tractor is the least expensive component compared to the attachments. As far as attachments you may not need one or even know if it exists or if a new one will come out later-but you will def. increase you attachment inventory later-even if its 10 years.

I started out with a subcompact with loader and BH and I was certain it was all I needed. 10 years later I know have cab, forks, box blade, post hoe digger, rear mount snowblower and soon rake and tiller.

tractor is the easiest component to replace and I say that because if your tractor dies-you still have the attachments and they will work with any other brand tractor.

He\she who has the most attachments wins

 

[fried1765]

All I know is go for the tractor with the BH and mid mount. The tractor is the least expensive component compared to the attachments. As far as attachments you may not need one or even know if it exists or if a new one will come out later-but you will def. increase you attachment inventory later-even if its 10 years.

I started out with a subcompact with loader and BH and I was certain it was all I needed. 10 years later I know have cab, forks, box blade, post hoe digger, rear mount snowblower and soon rake and tiller.

tractor is the easiest component to replace and I say that because if your tractor dies-you still have the attachments and they will work with any other brand tractor.

He\she who has the most attachments wins

If you are EVER planning to use a snow blower, you NEED to get a cabbed tractor!

 

[nhbubba]

A cab is not in the cards. Way outside the budget.

I could consider a soft cab someday. Or some gross homemade solution. I'm exactly that kind of guy.

All I know is go for the tractor with the BH and mid mount. The tractor is the least expensive component compared to the attachments.

So you're saying go for a smaller machine with more toys attached (ie BH) over a larger machine?

I see you are rocking a sub-compact. Do you wish you had more loader capacity? Probably my biggest fear. I am so sick of lifting things using a comealong, rigging, or my back!



Messick's says that the 3-range axles the Kubotas have is key because he is a fantastic salesman. Kiotis are 2-range. Do we agree/disagree?

 

[cdaigle430]

A cab is not in the cards. Way outside the budget.

I could consider a soft cab someday. Or some gross homemade solution. I'm exactly that kind of guy.



So you're saying go for a smaller machine with more toys attached (ie BH) over a larger machine?

I see you are rocking a sub-compact. Do you wish you had more loader capacity? Probably my biggest fear. I am so sick of lifting things using a comealong, rigging, or my back!



Messick's says that the 3-range axles the Kubotas have is key because he is a fantastic salesman. Kiotis are 2-range. Do we agree/disagree?

Cabs no issue, I bought a universal soft cab from Berco for less than 400 USD-is easy to install and take off. The only time I every wished I had more loader capacity was when I was removing snow banks along the road threatening to crush my 13 green giants. Why, because I had to scoop up the snow then travel 400 feet to dump it. took a looong time...but then again even a 5 or 6 foot bucket would not have helped much more. I intended on making a bucket extender to increase snow capacity but....bought a 60 inch Woodmaxx snowblower instead.

I think the key word for what your looking for based on what you described in your original post is an "Estate Tractor".

 

[Bullwinkle123]

Immediate project list includes:

Excavate for a new patio
Level and replanting the lawn
Trenching in an irrigation system
Trenching for drains for new roof gutters
Cutting and maintaining a bicycle pump/BMX style track for the kids. Maybe big enough so dad can rip a mini-bike through it?!
Leveling a pad for an above-ground pool
Pulling some stumps and rocks from the yard
Till a garden

Welcome to TBN. I used its advise to get my own tractor setup earlier this year for in So. VT. Hope you find what you need.

Unfortunately the first thing I would point out is that several of the things you want to do are NOT really best serviced by tractors, especially smaller ones, namely the items labeled 'excavating', 'trenching', and stump pulling. Yes you can do it, but a tractor isn't the best tool unless you're considering a model with a backhoe. Certainly the others are good though, leveling, tilling, and such. Though if you're tilling a small garden again, maybe better to buy a small walk-behind tiller, because at least for my garden, there's no way I could get my tractor in there without a substantial revamp of the whole garden plot and fencing.

I bought a Kubota because the main tractor dealers in my area were 2xKubota and 1xDeere, and I wanted something that would have better potential resale value (which means local service opportunity), sounds like you're thinking similarly.

The only other advice I might offer in my relative newb status is to consider tractor weight for applications where things are going to pull back (plowing/tillling, tree pulling, rock pulling, etc), and a 5-PTO-HP/Foot minimum guideline on snowblowing and brushhogging applications.

No other advice from me, our applications are pretty different. Good luck. For me, my favorite and most used things are my bucket and grapple. My least favorite is my rear blade, but I'll just chalk that up to me still trying to master it. I'm having a devil of a time getting the crown right on my gravel driveway.

 

[dodge man]

I switched from a subcompact, a Kubota BX to a compact, a JD 2025r. I like the bigger tires and the larger chassis and the larger end loader bucket. It seems no matter how much you can lift you wish it was more. Most tractors you are looking it will have mid pto even if you don’t want it.

 

[NHYanmar]

I live very near you and know the area dealers. Kubota dlr is top notch, JD dealer is excellent, but his service and tractors are very expensive. kioti dealer is a one man operation, and has already changed brands(formerly yanmar)recently. I think your Kubota 2601 pick is solid, but you will still probably hit $30k for that tractor new, with a loader and hoe. I would consider a straight front blade for the loader, for snow removal. The 60 inch works well for me, even when the snow is super heavy and wet. that blade width does not cause my tractor to push sideways, or steer incorrectly when pushing. I would opt for turf tires and get a set of vbar snow chains for the rears. if your driveway is dirt or crushed stone, you can attach a section of metal ipe to the blades cutting edge, to prevent plowing up the driveway material.The rear blade is NG for snowfalls over 6 inches. using the loader bucket for plowing is a PIA and too slow. my driveway is 300 ft long, all flat, and mostly paved. I have a yanmar 186d 4wd tractor/loader and a 60inch pin on, snow blade. combined unit weighs around 2000lbs.

 

[Katahdin]

I suggest visiting New Boston Truck and Equipment before you buy, they are a Massey and Yanmar dealer but a big enough shop to service all brands. They're about an hour inland from the coast.