Buying Advice Looking for suggestions on a compact tractor

[Frozen001]

Hello all.

I am considering purchasing a compact tractor for my personal use. I have just over an acre of land that we are having a house build on. The land is heavily wooded with a bulk of the trees less than 6 inches in diameter. For the house build, I am not having the land totally cleared, so one of the main uses will be to help me finish the clearing and landscaping. Also living in central NY, I want to use it to clear the snow, as well as perform the needed mowing down the road.

I am thinking something in the mid 20-30 HP would be a good size. I looked at a 30hp Massey Ferguson a couple of days ago, and like the size of it. Am I in the right ball park as far as size goes? If so, I am considering tring to save some $$ and go with something used, and figure I could get a used one with the front loader and a backhoe for around the price of a new one that does not have the backhoe.

Not being a tractor expert, I am looking for some opinions. I like the idea of a mid mower, but do not know if that limits my options.

Thoughts?

 

[LindenBruce]

Take a look at the Mahindra MAX 28. It is a small but power house tractor great for getting around the tight confines of your wooded property. You can use a mid mount mower (MMM) and you can also get a backhoe for it too. Although I think with the MMM you would need a 3 point backhoe but don't quote me on that. I'm not sure both could be done at the same time. Maybe someone with info on this will chime in. I hate to give you bad info you know.

You might also consider the LS J2030H. Another excellent tractor by all reviews and well suited for your needs. B.

Mahindra - Mahindra Tractors - Heavy Duty, Value Packed Tractors. Built Tough to Last with a 5 year Warranty

LS Tractor USA

 

[Sysop]

I love my new Mahindra, so I'd second the vote for them. Not sure I'd go bellymower though. I like having clearance when doing other things and a belly mower seems like it would be more difficult to attach than a good old 3 point finish mower. Your terrain might be better for a belly mower, but on my land even a tiny 42" Deere lawnmower can get high-centered on the deck...

 

[scoutcub]

1 acre?

Maybe check on a Yanmar SC2450. 24 HP, loader, backhoe, and you can have the mmm on at the same time. For me, I wouldn't go to 30 HP for 1 acre....
good luck!

 

[Frozen001]

1 acre?

Maybe check on a Yanmar SC2450. 24 HP, loader, backhoe, and you can have the mmm on at the same time. For me, I wouldn't go to 30 HP for 1 acre....
good luck!

Yea I know one Acre seems like small amount, but I will have a fair amount of land work to do on it, and I figure I can also use the tractor to help mow a 3 acre plot that a club I belong to has. An For me I would rather have a bit more tractor than needed that too little. One of the things about the smaller size tractors that backhoes seem "tiny", although I will probably use it mostly for digging out small stumps.

 

[nikdfish]

We recently bought a JD 1025R FILB as a "house" tractor (we already had a 3038E for working a seperate 20 acre property) for use on a mostly wooded 4 acre home site.

It came with a 12" bucket on the backhoe but I picked up a ripper & thumb from Bro-Tek specifically for working with fallen timber & stumps. The ripper is great for smaller stumps and gets them out with a lot less dirt moving than would be the case with the bucket. The thumb is handy for lifting wood for cutting and lifting / loading stumps.

Only 30 hours or so on it so far, but it has removed a couple dozen stumps (most <= 6"), lifted & moved a half dozen or so fallen trees, cleared and graded a 1300 sq. ft. parking area then spread 24 tons of gravel on it, not to mention use of the FEL to load a dozen or so pickup loads of cuttings & woods litter. No mower on it. That can wait til the spinsteer sst 18 gives up the ghost...

The price tag, new, was $19500 after rebates & incentives. Bro-Tek thumb & ripper were about $720 delivered. Pricey but lets a couple of 60 year olds get a lot more done with a lot less pain! JD did 0% financing for 60 mos w/ 10% down.

I believe the mid mount mower for the 1025R can coexist with backhoe, but I didn't really look closely at the issue as I wasn't planning on using it for mowing. The backhoe is easy on & off (& so is the h120 FEL), but you do have to remove the lower 3pt hitch arms to mount it. If you want to use 3pt equipment, you need to drop the backhoe, pin on the lower arms & attach the linkages to the rockshaft arms & the anti-sway linkages. Maybe a 15 minute job. A plus is that the 3pt hitch was built with position control.

Nick

 

[AdamCanterbury]

I am also searching for a tractor. I would highly recommend the Kioti CK series. It would fit your needs perfectly. In my opinion, the Kioti is the heaviest made compact tractor on the market. I have looked at them all in the past week or so. The 1500 series in the MF is also good. I am considering the 1635 Massey. Good luck in your search.

 

[oldballs]

You might consider a new machine dedicated to the heavy stuff and a used one for just mowing. Switching implements, especially the heavy ones, can really be frustrating and time consuming. And picking a used mower might be easier than trying to pick single machine that does it all.

 

[PsRumors]

I second the thoughts at looking at the 1025r from Deere. I've only had mine a week but have been very impressed with its capabilities on our 5 acres.

In 2004 I bought a 4410 for the big clearing but now for maintenance and the last half acre that needs work, heavily wooded, the 1025r FILB seems to be the right choice.

 

[jeff9366]

I tractor with a Kubota B3300SU; 33-hp/1,900 pounds/4-WD. I think 30-hp is about what you need.

Front End Loader (FEL) is essential.

You will be able to pull 60" implements with a 30-hp/4-WD tractor.

Are you SURE you have enough trenching/excavating to really need a Backhoe?

It is such a pain to wrestle Backhoes on and off the tractor.....and you cannot use the three point hitch with the Backhoe on.

Use your existing mower for the limited area you want to maintain in turf around your house.

Use a Bush Hog/Rotary Cutter or a Flail Mower for your maintenance of the balance.

Living in Florida I am no snow expert, but check out Ratchet Rake's SNOW EDGE in LINK:

http://www.ratchetrake.com/video_snow_edge.shtml