Need to buy Tractor - B or L

[MMH]

Need to buy Tractor - B or L Series???

I need to buy a used tractor. Let me start by defining my needs:

• 
  
  1. I have 6 acres - combination of woods & open (field/lawn) - very hilly (western PA)
  2. Will have allot of brush hogging work to do (will want to get allot of what is wooded in to lawn/field)
  3. Will want use an acre for hobby farm use
  4. Will have to maintain gravel driveway approx 300 feet long

Now, the big additional tasks to get my home into shape:

• 
  
  1. Adding an addition to my house -1000 sq. ft, excavation for full basement (9 ft. deep). Thinking about excavating myself (obviously would need backhoe if I decide to do this myself)
  2. Need to pour 2000 sq. slab in front of garage. Allot of box blade digging/grading to do. Also, moving ALOT of material (dirt -48 yds, gravel - 38 tons, etc.)
  3. Will have to add a fence (post hole work)

So, looking to buy a tractor, justifying it's cost on the labor savings of the initial projects. If I do the excavation, the backhoe is a must. Seems like there are alot of B21's out there, and these seem to be most reasonable cost wise. Next it seems that there are a fair amount of L's w/ backhoes. The B21 & L is alot heavier than a B (like a 7610 for instance). However, other than the backhoe, I think that long term a B would better fit my needs. Should I hold out for a B or, would an L be too larger later on. Would the B21 be too much like a construction machine & not enough of a general tractor? If I get a B, is it heavy enough to do excavation work?

 

[CompactTractorFan]

I would go with the L series.

 

[Verticaltrx]

In reality digging a 9' deep basement is way beyond the scope of any of the tractors you mentioned. I would rent or hire out for that portion of your work. Aside from that a B-series should do everything you mention just fine. I have a B3200 and with R1 tires, a tooth bar and some ballast on the back it is a pretty good little digging machine. I have done some excavation for small buildings with it, but nothing like you are describing.

Since you mentioned a used tractor, I would go with a B2910 or B7800. If you do a fair amount of bush hogging this size tractor will power a 5' cutter pretty well. This size tractor would be fitted with a 7.5' digging depth backhoe (if you decided on one), and uses mostly 5' implements (box blade, scraper blade, etc). It should do everything you described well, although maybe not as fast as one of the larger L series.

 

[brain55]

Re: Need to buy Tractor - B or L Series???

I would say L-series also. All of that work could be done with a B, it would just take longer. As far as digging 9' deep for the basement, you don't dig all 9' sitting on the side of the hole, you dig your way down and leave a ramp to drive out. Could this be done faster with a Bobcat or excavator, probably. I depends on what your goal is. If you are the type that wants to look back and have the satisfaction of knowing you did the work by yourself, or do you want to pay to get it done as quickly and as efficiently as possible? I say find an L39 with a backhoe, get a boxscraper, mower, and post hole digger and have fun. I personally like the satisfaction of doing a job myself with my own tools if I have the time to do it.

Brian

 

[crbr]

Re: Need to buy Tractor - B or L Series???

I need to buy a used tractor. Let me start by defining my needs:

• 
  
  1. I have 6 acres - combination of woods & open (field/lawn) - very hilly (western PA)
  2. Will have allot of brush hogging work to do (will want to get allot of what is wooded in to lawn/field)
  3. Will want use an acre for hobby farm use
  4. Will have to maintain gravel driveway approx 300 feet long

Now, the big additional tasks to get my home into shape:

• 
  
  1. Adding an addition to my house -1000 sq. ft, excavation for full basement (9 ft. deep). Thinking about excavating myself (obviously would need backhoe if I decide to do this myself)
  2. Need to pour 2000 sq. slab in front of garage. Allot of box blade digging/grading to do. Also, moving ALOT of material (dirt -48 yds, gravel - 38 tons, etc.)
  3. Will have to add a fence (post hole work)

So, looking to buy a tractor, justifying it's cost on the labor savings of the initial projects. If I do the excavation, the backhoe is a must. Seems like there are alot of B21's out there, and these seem to be most reasonable cost wise. Next it seems that there are a fair amount of L's w/ backhoes. The B21 & L is alot heavier than a B (like a 7610 for instance). However, other than the backhoe, I think that long term a B would better fit my needs. Should I hold out for a B or, would an L be too larger later on. Would the B21 be too much like a construction machine & not enough of a general tractor? If I get a B, is it heavy enough to do excavation work?

Personally, regardless of the tractor that you buy (and I do realize that this is a cost savings plan toward the purchase), I'd hire an excavating contractor to do this work and be done with it. I take nothing away from your skills or good intent of the usefulness of the machine, but an experienced and well-equipped contractor can come in and get this done in minimal time. Just sayin' $0.02

Then a B series should serve you well.

.

 

[Grandad4]

If digging your basement is the only major excavation project pending, you can hire it done for a fraction of what the backhoe costs. The 9ft BH on our large L series easily digs burn pits, septic tank pits, etc., that are maybe 1/4 - 1/3 the size of the basement you're planning, so it is certainly possible to do it, but it would take a lot of time. That's because the bucket on a tractor BH is very small compared to the one's on larger equipment (full-sized TLB's, excavators, etc.) and the BH can't relocate the spoils very far from the hole. If time and budget are not critical and you'd have other uses for the BH, you'd need to look at "L" sized tractor models to get enough backhoe for the job.

Otherwise, models the size of the B series would do your work, and probably fit the size of your property pretty well. I'd think carefully about the B21's though. They are tough little construction-type TLB's. Great for dirt work, not so much for mowing and other ag-oriented work. One might be just the ticket for your "construction phase", but will be limited for other work later on. Of course, you could buy one now and swap it for something else later.

 

[rswyan]

Re: Need to buy Tractor - B or L Series???

If you are buying for your long-term needs, and particularly if you are considering buying and financing a new tractor, go with the one that better fits what your eventual needs are - which sounds like the B series.

We have 16.5 acres with about 5 acres of lawn - mowing that lawn was to be the primary function of the tractor - but there were plenty of other secondary projects to do as well: ripping out around 750' of old asphalt driveway, relocating the driveway to another area (extensive topsoil removal), clearing and cleaning acres of woods, building a pad for a 3000 sq ft polebarn, etc, etc.

I probably have easily excavated and/or moved over 500,000 lbs, of material (dirt, gravel, asphalt, and manure - over 125,000 of manure alone) with our little B2910 .....

If you are in a hurry, and need to get it done fast, consider purchasing a larger used unit and reselling it later ... and then purchasing a machine more appropriate for your normal needs and uses. If your schedule is more relaxed, then buy the size that fits.

Don't forget - you can also rent proper equipment to accomplish certain tasks and it's surprising how much you can accomplish in an 8 hour day with an rental: around here you can rent a 10' mini-excavator with a 2' bucket for around $200 per day - I'd guess you could excavate a 30' x 30' area to a depth of 10' in a day or so (depending on what's below) - provided you have some help and a way to remove the spoil (dump truck/cart/trailer)

 

[medicshawn]

Unless you need the size of a B series to get into tight places (trails through the woods etc) get the L. Also the B21 the loader doesn't come off. The normal tractors you can remove the loader. Might be helpful for cutting duties. I would also look for an L series that has the Skid steer quick attach for the loader. This would be helpful for moving putting on pallet forks to load/unload supplies. Grapple for cleanup, auger for the front. It might also be helpful to know if you have any other specific neds. Will it be lifting large hay bales to feed horse or cattle? Then your lift capacity might be important.

 

[lawn_king]

You need an M! You can never be too rich, too thin or too much tractor!

 

[TripleR]

Very good advice and I find myself agreeing to a point with all opinions to some extent.

I seem to fall into the category of thinking no matter how you slice it, this is in the end a question without a satisfactory answer as I believe what you describe is a two machine endeavor whether you buy and sell or hire someone else or rent equipment.

What it is going to take to get you from point a to point b is not what you are going to need from point b on.

Just my opinion.