Help selecting a tractor.....

pashworth · Feb 23, 2005

Hello all,
I am interested in purchasing a new CUT, either Kubota or JD. I have done a considerable amount of research on JD tractors and feel that they are more expensive than the comparable Kubota. So a Kubota it is!

Here is my situation..... I own 5 acres of relatively flat farm land type property. Just finished building my shingle style house, but the property leaves a considerable amount to be desired.
Below is a partial list of what I expect to do with the selected tractor.
Mow approx. 4 acres of grass week (2-3 times a week when it is thick)
Start a large vegetable garden (had a small one last year)
Install 800 lin. ft. of fence (already did 1660 lin ft. with rented machines)
Numerous rock walls
Remove brair patches
General yard cleanup (yearly)
Spread numerous loads of top soil and seed
Trench power and water to new shed (200 ft.)
Trench power to light poles along driveway (750 ft.)
Trench downspouts to a centrally located drywell pit
New garden beds
I could go on but I think you have the idea.

What size / model tractors do you think will adequately help me complete these jobs? All opinions are welcomed.

Thanks,
Paul

grandad · Feb 23, 2005

Welcome to TBN! You'll find plenty to learn from here if you spend a little time reading the current threads and you can also dig into the archives for more than you ever wanted to know about tractors.

I would think one of the mid-size CUTS like the Kubota B series, with 24-30 hp would do nicely for your needs. Your acreage is reasonable and you don't have hills, so you would probably find your work could also be done by one of the smaller BX sub-compacts, but it would just take longer.

Your biggest limiting factor seems to be mowing 4 acres 1+ times a week. You'll need something with at least 5ft. cutting width, and a 6 or 7ft finish mower would be even better. If you have a small mower, it will take longer than you would want to spend, unless you have a lot of spare time on your hands. At the other extreme, bigger tractors like the Grand L series are much heavier and may not be the best choice for mowing a lawn. But, they can sure do the other heavy work! Final thought on mowing is whether your 4 acres is mostly open space or has trees, fences, etc. that require tight maneuvering.

The "trenching" chores you describe will either require you to add a backhoe or rent something like a DitchWitch for those tasks. The backhoe will add quite a bit to the cost of your investment ($5,000 and up) and you would probably find it cheaper to do the rental. However, a backhoe is a really useful piece of equipment if you can afford the investment.

If you read just about any of the threads here on this topic, you'll find a chorus of recommendations about how useful a front-end loader is. Believe it... every word! Makes your tractor more useful than you could imagine.

Many JD fans say the cost issue is a regional thing and there are some locations where green dealers beat the orange dealers on the prices of comparable units. No doubt that's true, but it seems more common to hear it's the other way around.

Just my opinion, but doing business with someone who is honest, reliable and fair counts for a lot, and I wouldn't choose brand or dealer solely on price. I'd pay more if I thought the product and the dealer were worth it.

You might be able to get one of your dealers to bring a demo unit out to your place for a few hours so you could get a feel for how the unit fits in with your property.

Best of luck, and enjoy the shopping!

JimMorrissey · Feb 23, 2005

Pash,

If you can afford it check out the new 3030s. They're not on the Kubota site yet but should be soon. There are some recent threads in this discussion list about the machine. It looks perfect for what you describe; not too big and not too small.

A loader (as stated) is manditory and backhoe (new design for the 3030) is great if you need it/can afford it. The 3030 with a loader and backhoe is going to be a really nice machine. -Just a thought.

shoppintractors · Feb 23, 2005

<font color="blue"> If you can afford it check out the new 3030s. They're not on the Kubota site yet but should be soon. </font>

Ask and ye shall receive. The B3030 is now on the Kubota website.....

Don

ronjhall · Feb 24, 2005

Cutting 4 acres of grass can be time consuming. My 72" MMM can cut about 2 acres per hour. Where do you live that lawn would need cutting 2 to 3 times a week? My B2910 (B3030 replaces it) has no problems cutting a weeks growth even at fastest growing time of season.
Do a Search on TBN for B2910 and B7800. These 2 tractors are same size as B3030. Make sure you set DATE TIME beyond one week. There is a lot of information here on capabilities of these tractors.

indebt · Feb 24, 2005

If you want to mow 4 acres more than once a week I would look at the B series around 25-30 hp. You may also want a 7 or 8 ft rear finish mower. I would also consider a FEL .

rpeter · Feb 24, 2005

Welcome to TBN

I am looking to buy my first tractor also. I am leaning towards the B3030. However I am wondering why you said you were only looking at Kubota or JD? There are many other brands that will do just as good a job, some at a lower price /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif From what I have read on TBN you need to put your seat on as many tractor seats as you can before you start narrowing down your choices.

This whole tractor buying thing is fun isn't it /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

pashworth · Feb 24, 2005

Thanks for everyone's input! I was specifically not specific on any implents that I had in mind, so that I could hear everyones opinions without jading them. The reason that I stated that I was looking at JD and Kubotas is that each of the dealerships are within a 20 minute drive (and well respected). Actually, I graduated high school with the owner of the Kubota dealership. I met him today to discuss my options.

What do you think about the prices on the following machines?
B7610HSD,turfs, 61" HD FEL = $13,700
B7800HSD, turfs, 61" HD FEL = $16,000
B3030HSD, turfs, 61" HD FEL = $18,300
60" MMM = $2,300
BH for B7610 = $5,900

We did not get into any more specifics than the list above (BH bucket size, actual FEL model number.....)

I am leaning towards the B7800HSD....

Any thoughts and comments are greatly appreciated!!!!
Paul

Tom_H · Feb 24, 2005

You mentioned a lot of trenching. Do you need a backhoe or prefer to rent a trencher? You could get a BX23 which includes FEL and BH (you can't get it without them) for the price you gave on the B7800 with FEL.

If I were spending your money /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif, I'd get a B3030 with FEL and BH. If price is too much, I'd consider a BX23.

Are you going to have 4 acres of lawn or is a good part of it hay? If hay, a rough cutter (brush hog) would be a good $800 investment. If you have 4 acres of flat lawn and not many trees, a set of rear ganged mowers could be a possibility (they are fair sized and you have to think about where to store them). Check Horthern Tool and Equipment web site to see an example; you can find them at other places as well.

frank_f15 · Feb 24, 2005

The BH is a really nice thing to have, but after you did your trenches what use will u have for it? you stated the cost at $5900.00 you can rent a trencher for a lot less than that. other than that i would go with something at least 24hp. is snow removal a consideration? might be a good idea to fill in your profile a bit so we can get an idea of your needs

WELCOME TO THE FORUM /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif