I know my needs...I don't know what tractor!

[rawley]

Hi All,

I have been using these forums for a while as a great tool to help me find the right tractor for my needs. The forum has help out a lot, but I still have some questions.

First off, my needs. Currently we have about 8.5 acres of land that is 6.5 cleared and 2 100% timber. There is a good chance we will also aquire another 7 acres of adjacent land that is 100% timber. The 6.5 acres that is cleared will eventually need to be all finished mowed once the house is build and construction is complete. Prior to construction starting, I want to use the tractor for a lot of the prep work. I want to use the tractor to put in the culvert for road access, excavate(box blade?) the top soil for a 1300' driveway, grade/level the 1300' driveway, potentially fill in part of a small pond for driveway reasons and also ditch the driveway in some areas for water drainage. I would also want to use the tractor for tilling a smaller garden, helping clear trees, haul misc. items in loader and help out with general landscaping needs. In the winter, I will be using it to clear the snow on the 1300' driveway...either by blade or snowblower.

Whew...I think I cover about everything. I am mainly looking at Kubotas and John Deere as they are both easily serviced in my area. As of now, I am leaning towards the kubota side. I am just unsure how much tractor I need to handle my needs. I am not concern with the amount of time it takes the tractor to do the job(within reason) as long as it does the job as it should. I started out with B series(2620ish) but am now wondering if an L would be what I am needing. My max I am looking to spend for the tractor and attachments(loader, finish mower and box blade) is 20K. Whether I buy used or new will depend on the tractor I need where it fits into my 20K budget. A local dealer has a 1999 Kubota L3710 HST with loader and 1600 hours for $12,000. The tractor is definitely showing the 1600 hours of use with a torn seat, dented up loader and worn(50%) looking ties. They also have a pretty good looking used 2000 Kubota L4310 HST with no attachments and with 2,300 hours for $8,500. Is this a good price for either of them? I am not finding a whole lot of used tractors showing up in my area. I am thinking I could go new if the B series would work out for my needs.

Thanks for all the help on this!

Ron

 

[KU Gator]

Hi Ron,

I have a B2920. I am working on 12 acres of similar property. I use a 5' rough cut mower which is handles ok and a 5' belly mower that I use more now I am keeping it cut on a regular basis. It does a good job with those. I mow about 6 or 7 acres with it in about 4 hours. I have a 5' box blade which is pushing its limit. The manual recommends 54" which is a little harder to find. I haven't used it a lot, but you have to adjust how much you are trying to do with each pass or you run out of traction with industrial tires. I have not loaded my tires because I trailer it to our property and did not want the extra weight in trailering. I have done a fair amount of hauling brush and dragging trees that were pushed over by the previous land owner and have got it done, although there are times I would have liked to have had something heavier like a small L. If you could locate a used B7800 which is a 4 cyl that preceeded the B3200, it might be a good compromise and give you some heavier tractor, but still small enough to get in woods.

Good luck in your search.

 

[Egon]

You have a lot of different jobs to be done and also you will need attachments for those jobs.

For the construction phase a larger tractor is advisable, perhaps even a used industrial type with a backhoe.

For the maintenance portion the small Kubota B series should field a suitable sized tractor that will handle all your needs.

Sorry I haven't been able to specify a tractor but at this point you may have to do a lot of thinking as to priorities.

 

[ChuckinNH]

My thoughts are with Egon on this one. I just came in from using my B2620 with a 4' box blade in heavy, and wet clay. I have loaded R-4's and used all the power, and traction I had doing this task. a (I was making a small drainage swale that could be easily mowed) If your soil is lighter as in more loam, or gravel a tractor like mine would cut in the driveway though it would take a while. It's amazing how many bucket loads of dirt you will remove on just a small area! Still, a larger B, or an L certainly wouldn't be too much for your initial tasks. With only 85 hours on my tractor, I'm still learning about using the "quarter inching" on the 3pt for tasks like box blading. So far, I'm still wishing it had position control, but there would be a learning curve anyway. If you want to keep the cost, and size down, I would look for a used Kubota B2410, B2710, or B2910, or a JD the same size. I have seen both used, and in good shape at dealers around here just recently........ and wondered where they were when I was looking. Good luck with your shopping, and have lots of fun using it when you find one!

Here is the little job I did this afternoon. The area is about 50-60 ft. long. The other dirt in the picture was dug up by the wild boar the other night.

 

[dodge man]

I kind of agree with the others in terms of starting out with the L and moving to a B at a latter date. It also sounds like you could use a back hoe, they are pretty pricey but might be worth the money for some of the projects you have in mind. If you are trying to find a used tractor with a backhoe, it will be harder to find. A used construction type backhoe-endloader would also be a good thing to start with and sell later. They aren't as versatile, in terms of mowing and such, but they are a serious machine and will get alot of work done, plus if you get a good deal, you might sell it for what you have in it, and then buy a smaller tractor after you get your house built.

Good luck in your search.

 

[herd]

QUOTE: ". They also have a pretty good looking used 2000 Kubota L4310 HST with no attachments and with 2,300 hours for $8,500. "

Maybe it's just me or maybe I am not informed enough, but $8,500 for a unit with 2300 hours sounds too high. How many HP is the L4310?

 

[slate mike]

I would think about renting some fairly heavy stuff to get the initial work done and then buying a 30'ish HP machine and attachments for the maintenance. It's amazing what the bigger equipment can get done in a very short time. Just my $0.02 worth.

 

[rawley]

QUOTE: ". They also have a pretty good looking used 2000 Kubota L4310 HST with no attachments and with 2,300 hours for $8,500. "

Maybe it's just me or maybe I am not informed enough, but $8,500 for a unit with 2300 hours sounds too high. How many HP is the L4310?

To answer your questions, the L4310 is a 43HP tractor. Hours seem high, but don't they practically run forever? Or is 2,300 hours considered a lot for this type of tractor?

So here is another twist I am thinking about. I am thinking about renting a dozer for doing the driveway excavation. In my area, I am able to rent a dozer for a week for around $1,200. That should be enough time to do the majority of the excavating and grading. Would that then allow me to go for the "smaller" B series to handle the remaining tasks?

Thanks!

 

[GPintheMitten]

So here is another twist I am thinking about. I am thinking about renting a dozer for doing the driveway excavation. In my area, I am able to rent a dozer for a week for around $1,200. That should be enough time to do the majority of the excavating and grading. Would that then allow me to go for the "smaller" B series to handle the remaining tasks?

Thanks!

That sounds like a good idea assuming you know how to operate the dozer or can learn quickly. A dozer is a serious tool, make sure you don't get into trouble.

Also when you are shopping for a B tractor, consider getting used and if you buy a flatbed trailer, you could shop further away and possibly find a better deal.

 

[KU Gator]

Your plan of renting a dozer or having someone come in and do it makes a lot of sense. If I was ready to build on our other property, that is what I would do. If you don't have the skills, having someone come in and do it may be more cost effective, especially if you have or will soon have a tractor to come in and do the finish grading so they don't have to spend a lot of time with that. I took my B to our other property a couple of weekends ago and spent a lot of time pulling out some 2" diameter underbrush that could have been done in short order with a dozer. But because I am not ready to build, I'm not in a hurry and it kept me entertained for a few hours. Having grown up in a family where you do it all yourself, there are good points to that, but sometimes it makes more sense to just hire it out, get it done, and move on.