Plowing with a Compact

[looch]

The gentlemen farmers that I'm familiar with are a thrifty/resourceful bunch of guys. They almost all have mechanical experience and most of them have a set of torches and a stick welder on hand. Rather than make do with a brand new comapct tractor, they make do with the rusty old AG machines that the cash crop farmers have long since traded in. One of my very close friends maintains his 20 acres with a 1965 MF 65, 65hp gas engine tractor. To see this thing sitting there you'd swear that it didn't run. But that sucker fires up on the first turn. However, this machine doesn't do any plowing or disking. The barter system is used to acquire plowing and disking services from neighbor A. Neighbor B is called upon to do the spraying, perhaps in exchange for a spring lamb. Nary a dime is spent unless it is absolutely necessary.

I live in the country and have a 90 mile round trip to get to and from work. The only places that I've seen that use compact tractors for farming are horse stables, where the primary source of income is from borders. These places buy their hay - they don't make it themselves.

 

[Alan L.]

Just because you shouldn't use a compact tractor to farm 150 acres doesn't mean CUTs aren't real tractors. Thats like saying the Toyota Corolla isn't a real car.

 

[looch]

I would say more like a moped not being a real motorcycle. It's a cycle and it has a motor...

Like I said before "<font color=blue>Anyone who doesn't agree...</font color=blue>"

 

[Mosey]

I see you already have a lot of feedback on this, but I'll add what I can. I agree that "Most people go straight to a tiller as they are reasonably affordable in compact tractor size." is probably true. I pull a 2-12" bottom plow with my NH TC29D, but I don't use the plow much. I used it to break the sod the first year for my garden and plan to extend the garden next year, so I'll use it then. I also used it last year to break the sod on top of a hill where I'm shaving it down and getting fill dirt. I didn't use it at all so far this year and probably won't. I just use the tiller on the garden and have been periodically tilling the fill dirt area to keep it loose.

On the subject a CUT being a "real" tractor, it certainly is. My Dad farmed our 100 acre farm for years with a Farmall A, which is lighter and less HP than my TC29D.

 

[ddl]

I agree with you. every piece if equipment has its purpose. when you use it for other uses, in the long run you will pay. do i use my tractor for uses not designed for, yes. but i know when damage is done, i have only me to blame. there are times when i wish i had a larger tractor, but i don't and i have to make choices on what i do. i may have to do things in a manner that will take longer than if i had the correct tool.
dan l

 

[Hoeman00]

I pull 2-14" w/ Kubota L2900.
2 wd. in dry soil.
4 wd. in WET soil.

 

[Green_in_MI]

Don't want to speak for anyone, but , I think those posters who said a CUT is not a real tractor might agree that a Farmall A is real tractor. The CUT being a recent compact utility tractor like your TC29. The older ag tractors though low in horsepower are lots tougher than the modern CUT. In a tug-of-war I am pretty sure my old JD 50 and B would drag my little diesel with comparable HP around the farm. Now if I could just get them started......and back them up without running over something. My point is that the CUT may not be a real tractor but is sure is a lot more useful.

 

[hosejockey2002]

I think Cowboydoc has a very valid point that can be applied to other types of machinery, like trucks. I'm not about to start brand warfare, so lets take for instance a Fodgerolet 350 dually with a Supermaxstroke turbo diesel. I'm sure a lot of owners of these may take offense to this, but they are not real trucks, they are just pickups. Sure if you hook one up to a Case 580 they will move it, but you're a lot better off with a real truck like a Kenworth with a 425 Cat and an 18 speed Roadranger trans. You can say the same thing about any type of machinery, for big jobs, bigger machines do the job faster and more effectively. As long as your machine does the job YOU want it to do, nothing else really matters, right?

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Your analogy is wrong. The 1 ton trucks would be the utility class and the compact pickups are the Rangers and S-10's. Would you still try to move a 580 with a S-10?

 

[cowboydoc]

I'm sure a lot of owners of these may take offense to this, but they are not real trucks, they are just pickups.


Actually you are exactly right! I have had that debate with some guys too and it never helps. They are just as fanatic about a pickup being a real truck as some guys are about CUT's being real tractors.

 

[Bird]

You guys are sumpin' else./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif Semantics; you've got to define your words. If you go by my old dictionary, a CUT is a tractor and a pickup is a truck, but it is a little difficult to compare a BX Kubota to a 9000 series Deere, or an S10 to a Freightliner./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif No, wait a minute . . . I guess the word that needs defining is "real"./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif Hmm, sounds as if you fellers are making "real" synonymous with "big", and nope, "big" isn't one of the definitions for "real" in my dictionary/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif.

 

[cowboydoc]

You are right as well Bird. I guess that's why they are defined so differently. You've got row crop, utility, and compact tractors. Then you've got trucks, pickups, and compacts. I guess it all depends on how a person defines them. I think that's part of the problem is that everyone's dictionary is a little different.

 

[MikePA]

Just like trucks and horse trailers, there's a distinction between what you can do with a certain sized tractor and what you should do.

 

[Soundguy]

To go a bit further, the semi trucks would be the 'ag' class, the 1-ton would be utility, compact would be the .5 ton class.. like f-150s, etc... s-10 and rangers, etc are sub compact... in the bx2200 or large lawnmower equivalents. Big difference in the capacities of a ranger and an f-150. If nothing other than suspension, etc.

Soundguy

<font color=blue>Your analogy is wrong. The 1 ton trucks would be the utility class and the compact pickups are the Rangers and S-10's. Would you still try to move a 580 with a S-10?

 

[Ozarker]

So does that mean my 16' flat bottom boat isn't a real boat?

 

[MikePA]

<font color=blue>So does that mean my 16' flat bottom boat isn't a real boat? </font color=blue>

Nope, just means it's not a ship. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[JohnMiller3]

<font color=blue>...means it's not a ship...</font color=blue>

Hi Mike...

Talking about ships.... (how's that for a lead-in... /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif)

Don't you think Muhammad should reserve a "ship" for a TBN cruise... say in the Gulf of Mexico... /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

 

[MikePA]

<font color=blue>Don't you think Muhammad should reserve a "ship" for a TBN cruise... say in the Gulf of Mexico...</font color=blue>

Would that be the cruise where the moderators, and a guest, sail free of charge? Yes, I agree.

 

[JohnMiller3]

Now... if any tractors discussions got real <font color=red>hot</font color=red> and heavy... such as "gear vs hydro" or "who has the best color"... or "my BS lawn tractor can pull a 6 bottom plow and at the same time operate a round baler..." /w3tcompact/icons/tongue.gif/w3tcompact/icons/blush.gif

I can hear it now... the bull horns going off... and the P.A. blaring away... Man overboard.... /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif
/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[MikePA]

The ultimate CUT Competition...The smallest tractor that can pull the following implements, at the same time, in order, starting from the back of the tractor....

1. Square Baler
2. Hay Wagon
3. 4 bottom (minimum) plow
4. 8 foot (minimum) disc
5. Drop spreader (fertilizer)
6. Seeder

Whaddya figure, 20 PTO hp oughta be enough, right, assuming the land is pretty flat, that is. /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif