Compact Tractor: Help making the right decision

[ismilelots]

I agree with most of the others. We're on 25acres (15 acre field and the rest pasture and house). We had a 25hp and it did more than I expected it to. Very happy with it. I only recently traded up to a 35 only because we started to do less field crop and more hay and the 25 worked pretty hard with the haybine and the lifting.

 

[DaveK OR]

For 90% of the work you will do, the 25HP will be far more than enough. The question of weight and horsepower comes in when you have to tackle that remaining 10%. Will you need to lift or tow something that is rather heavy? Will you want a backhoe that can easily do more than a narrow slit trench?

In my case, I ended up with a 30HP Bobcat (CT230), and it has worked well for me on 30 acres of hilly, wooded property. In hindsight, however, I would rather have spent just a bit more and added 5hp with the CT235, and it would have made a big difference with a handful of the jobs I've had to do.

 

[ljjhouser]

Hi all!

Long time lurker, first time poster.

Help me decide if 25hp+/- is enough or if I should be aiming higher (35-ish).

i only have about 5 acres and it’s mostly flat, with a swale here and there, and a gently sloping hill or two. We’re getting ready to transform what used to be entirely pasture into a mix of orchard, pasture, and large garden. Most of my regulars tasks will be mowing, tilling, grading and maintaining a long gravel driveway and footpath, and clearing/hauling brush, feed, fertilizer,etc.

My thinking is that I can get this all done with a loader, box scraper/ripper, mower deck, and tiller. Probably buy and resell a used auger for orchard planting and refencing some of the pasture.

Do you think I’ll be satisfied with the smaller end of the compact tractor range? or should I step it up and hit higher into the 30+ hp range?

Also, not sure if you are seeing this in your parts of the country, but where I am you’re not getting much of a discount going used? Should I bite the bullet and go new or target a low hour used model to save a couple thousand dollars?

thanks in advance for all of your help!

I made the search for a good used tractor also and had saved $15K for it. I looked for almost 2 years. At one point, I thought I found a New Holland for a reasonable price. It was fifteen years old and looked good online - price $15000. Went to the dealer to look at it. As I walked up to it, I saw faded paint, severly cracked tires - all four, I stepped onto it, pushed down the clutch, and it went to the floor. I asked my wife "can you see a connected to this pedal or spring?" She replied, there is a spring hanging down. The hour meter was broken and unreadable. I guess there was a reason the salesman did not bring a key out with him.
Good tractors are somewhat hard to find. I stopped by the Kubota dealer on the way home. As I pulled up, I was met by the manager. I told him I was looking for a good 50 hp used tractor. "Don't have anything like that." He then offered to show a new L4701. We looked at it and went thru it's features. I finally thanked him and told him that I had a pretty good idea what this tractor cost and I can't afford it. He replied, give me the 15k down and Kubota will finance it for about $250 for 5 years 0% with insurance included. That ended the used tractor search. I love my new tractor (2017).
If you purchase a new one, inquire about the insurance. Kubota insures against theft, rollover repairs and operator damage if used in normal operations. If it cannot be repaired, they replace with NEW model (not a used).
Also remember, check the rating of the FEL and pto operation. I use my box scraper on the road a lot. The dealer added the box blade in my deal.
I also think buying a used tractor is good if you can find one. I would not purchase a tractor if the dealer is so far away you cannot use their service when needed.
My 4701 is 47 hp. I have never regreted having too much hp.
Also, decide if you want gears or HST.

Hope you find a great tractor at a great price. Larry

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

You will do fine with a 25 HP class COMPACT tractor. You will have greater weight, traction, and capabilities with a compact size.

I would steer away from the subcompact, even the larger subcompact sized frame for your tasks, both now and future from what you describe. They are great tractors, and can do what you describe, but for a few thousand more, you are in a different class altogether.

 

[jjp8182]

I'd second the sizing implements & time to your tasks and then letting that drive the tractor sizing (that and identifying any hard limits you have; things like total machine height/width, heaviest loads the loader will need to lift without breaking the load down) - should help reduce the potential for having to buy a second time to get what you wanted/needed the first time. ....

Only other thing to be wary of is when it comes to loaders the lift capacity is highly advertised (though not always clear whether it's measured at pivot point or forward of pivot point), but lift height and reach both at ground level and at full lift height make a difference.

 

[Mart5130]

Hi all!

Long time lurker, first time poster.

Help me decide if 25hp+/- is enough or if I should be aiming higher (35-ish).

i only have about 5 acres and it’s mostly flat, with a swale here and there, and a gently sloping hill or two. We’re getting ready to transform what used to be entirely pasture into a mix of orchard, pasture, and large garden. Most of my regulars tasks will be mowing, tilling, grading and maintaining a long gravel driveway and footpath, and clearing/hauling brush, feed, fertilizer,etc.

My thinking is that I can get this all done with a loader, box scraper/ripper, mower deck, and tiller. Probably buy and resell a used auger for orchard planting and refencing some of the pasture.

Do you think I’ll be satisfied with the smaller end of the compact tractor range? or should I step it up and hit higher into the 30+ hp range?

Also, not sure if you are seeing this in your parts of the country, but where I am you’re not getting much of a discount going used? Should I bite the bullet and go new or target a low hour used model to save a couple thousand dollars?

thanks in advance for all of your help!

I decided on a CK3510 HST Kioti- 35 hp. I have 5.5 acres and mow about 2 with a 3pt finish mower. Also got a bush hog to clear around some woods and a grapple fir tree work. Tiller for the garden and box blade for grading etc. Probably a bit more hp than I needed but I also pull stumps with a stump bucket. So I’m kinda happy with the extra HP

 

[Mudfarmer]

I have farmed livestock and managed my tree farm with 25 hp CUTs safely for 40 years. Advantages: light enough to tow with a standard pickup and cheap trailer, small enough to get between trees, big enough to be stable on rough ground and hills, power-full enough to mow 10 acres of variable terrain a couple times a year. I've even cut hay, raked and bailed with a 25 Hp Ford 1700 in the past. New diesels over 26 HP require an elaborate emissions system which are problematic enough that my Kubota dealer only stocks the B series up to 2650.

 

[CoyPatton]

The best thing to do is get on the tractors and test them out.
This way you will have hands on testing really the only way
to find which tractor you are comfortable with as if you don't
do this when the tractor is delivered you may have some
choice words for it if you just go by hear say!

willy

My concern with this suggestion is that mist newbie tractor owners will feel most comfortable on a smaller machine (SCUT) because it will feel similar to a riding (non-ztr) mower, when the projects they wish to do are not well suited to these machines. (Yes, they will get many of the jobs completed). They use and are limited to smaller size implements (sometimes a cat 0 or cat 1 limited implement which is not compatible with the next up tractor most of the time).
I do encourage folks to sit in the seat and work tractors but only after doing some research. Once they have decided on several issues, then test out the machine. Some things to decide about—need implement size (if you need 8’ implements it is foolishness to look at tractors that 5’ would overload them!). —Loader lift capacity: this is more difficult to assess because of how specs are presented, but needs to be done. It is foolishness to look at a tractor that specs say 600lbs at the pins to 1.5 meters when you know you need to lift 1200 lbs to dump into a dump trailer.
One last point you know you need traction for snow, a lighter weight scut just may not do what you need.
Likewise if you plan to mow your yard with the tractor, you don’t want a 60 ho machine—lighter is now your desire.

 

[scaredychicken]

I have a 2018 Kubota BX23S (tractor, loader, backhoe) that is perfect for my needs, and the confined spaces on the property. I have extra implements also ... rotary mower, grapple, small auger, box blade. It does everything that I need. It would probably be just fine for you also.

However, if I had more open and level areas, I would be looking at a larger machine, B or L series. The limits that I see with mine are the capacities for loader lift, auger size (pretty small), fork lift options, and wood chippers options.

Go bigger, if you have that option.