Specialty Tractor

[presnewt]

Let us know how this all works out.

I will. I am trying to consider as many options as possible. They include getting a similar machine (another Steiner or a Ventrac), getting a traditional tractor (probably will not get to all the areas on my property I need to cut), and getting something like the Italian specialty tractors which are great on hills. Each has its pros and cons. I am looking at prices of all options.

 

[CADplans]

I had two dealers tell me where I mow was too steep for a zero turn,,
then one day I ran into this Gravely 24G,, at a yard sale.

It was used, needed a little work, after I went through it, it mowed everything I wanted mowed for over a decade.

My dream was a Steiner/Ventrac,, but, the price kept me away from them.
The 24G Gravely is perfect on steep slopes, 24HP, 72" mower.
The mower weighs about 800 pounds, and really anchors the tractor to the ground on slopes.

I thought it was the best machine, other than a Steiner.

THEN, I happened to see a JD 4105 at a dealer, they did not want to sell it because "it needed MAJOR repairs".

I begged them, and they finally sold it to me.
They believed the hydrostatic drive unit was shot, the tractor went WAY faster in reverse, than forward.

I decided I could live with it,, the tractor seemed strong otherwise.
The tractor had only been used for 3 years, then sat a 4th year at the dealer.
(The tractor had been used daily for 3 years to clean out a dairy milking barn.)

When I got the tractor, there was still manure packed up underneath.

One day, I was greasing it, and noticed the hydro linkage seemed out of adjustment.
The manure had caused the hole that held a pin to elongate. pushing on the pedal did not move the hydro lever as far as it was supposed to.

There was a threaded adjustment to allow for the slop,, I adjusted it.
The tractor instantly had forward speed that equaled the reverse speed. All was perfect.

The owner traded in the tractor because they thought the hydro unit was shot.
The dealer did not try to fix it, because they did not think they had a mechanic that could fix it.

I fixed it,, in 15 minutes,, with two wrenches, a pair of pliers, and a new cotter pin.

Don't give up hope on the Steiner,, it may be something simple.

My 4105 is such a perfect mower, I have completely given up dreaming about a Ventrac.
It sticks to hillsides like glue.

 

[Vineroper]

Presnewt,
We have a lot of steep ground to mow here in the Red River Valley in North Texas, and I did some exhaustive googling on slope mowing options. We ultimately decided to purchase an Altoz tracked zero turn mower. I believe it is the only tracked zero turn on the market. They are expensive, but so far we have loved it. We bought both the all terrain deck (which is heavy duty and uses hinged blades like a brush hog) and the finish mowing deck. We have been able to mow some very steep and very wet stuff that we had to weedeat in the past, so it is saving us a lot of time/labor. And of course like any zero turn it is fast as hell. Altoz makes a utility plow and spreader for the machine which they advertise for moving snow, but we don't need those. We already had two Kubota Narrow PowerKrawler tractors for use in our vineyards, and a gearmore flail mower that we can pull behind them, which is painfully slow compared to a zero turn. We also pull a 14 foot landpride batwing shredder behind the Kubotas for the larger pastures. Some ranch owners around us are starting to use the larger zero turns -- particularly the diesel Kubotas and Scags -- as an alternative to a bat wing (but of course those aren't really usable on steep slopes). We have a 10 mile mountain bike trail that we need to mow also, so for that we would like something real narrow and tough that can be lowered to the ground, so we are considering a Canycom brush cutter, which has only one US dealer -- in the Northwest. These are 4 wheel drive brush cutting slope mowers that are pretty impressive despite their name and their looks, and powered by a Honda motor so you know they're reliable. Here's a video:

. So the Altoz and the Canycom are two options that you might not have come across, but which you might should consider depending upon your slope steepness and acreage and if you don't need to use traditional tractor implements on your property. Hope this is of some use to you.

 

[TooCents]

Glad to hear the mower is working out for you. I still like the versatility of 3pt attachments on the hydrostatic Antonio Carraro 4400. This is the only picture I could find on steep grades but I am confident that this AC machine will slide before it tips and with a balanced design, all I have to do is apply a wee bit of "lift" to the mower and & I have an incredible connection to the slope.

 

[Williy]

Perhaps its a simple fix and they don't
want to do the fix so they can sell you
a new one???

willy

 

[harrydarwen]

Turning radius like no other and a very low profile. Factory quality control is second to none. Prices seem reasonable.

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[woolyAcres]

Glad to hear the mower is working out for you. I still like the versatility of 3pt attachments on the hydrostatic Antonio Carraro 4400. This is the only picture I could find on steep grades but I am confident that this AC machine will slide before it tips and with a balanced design, all I have to do is apply a wee bit of "lift" to the mower and & I have an incredible connection to the slope.

I've got an older version (same model) of what TooCents has. I bought it used 4 years ago. I've had no trouble at all with it in the 300+ hours I've put on it. Incredible machine! And it's reversible so 3PT can be in front (as in his pic) or behind like a traditional tractor. I use it both ways depending on the application. Only down side is a loader is not an option.

I've slid my down steep (but very short) hillsides usually in wet conditions where the turf tears free under the tires. Unnerving but I've never thought it was close to rolling. Including sliding off icy road into 4' deep ditch. The 'passanger' side wheels slid off the road and the machine got hung up because the belly came to rest on the shoulder. When trying to get it unstuck it was clear it wasn't anywhere close to tipping. It would have just continued to slide 'upright' to the bottom of the ditch.

 

[hornett22]

Not being pissy, just don't understand your comment. If the dealership cannot fix it and I cannot fix it, then for all intents and purposes it is unfixable. They are the ones trained, they are the ones I have already paid for the repair work. At some point, it is time to move on from a machine that does not work. If this was a car and the certified mechanics could not keep it running then I would be a fool to keep driving that car in hopes it will all of sudden get better. I have been trying to fix this model for five years. I have done a lot of the work myself (I am an accountant, not a mechanic) but things like hydraulic or engine problems are above my paygrade. If the experts can't fix it, then it is time to move on.

Just because it's the dealer, that doesn't mean they're competent. See it all the time in both tractor and automotive .