Starting Over

[thunderworks]

( I posted this on the main forum page before I realized I should probably put it in the Kubota section)

We lived on a beautiful 80 acre farm for nearly 20 years. It was a labor of love. When we bought the ground, it was overgrown, abused, ignored . . . but we saw the potential and had a vision. We turned it into a truly beautiful place. I learned to drive farm equipment and worked my butt off to make our vision real. I bought a used Kubota L5030 tractor, box blade, mowers, grapple, etc. and felt it was the right scale for what I needed. I spent a lot of seat time on the tractor and it served me very well.

My wife and I are now in our 70's. We sold our beloved farm (and all the equipment) a few years ago and moved into town. Our town home is wonderful, but I really miss the country. We won't ever live in the country again - it's simply too much at this stage of life - but we just bought 30 acres of land, 10 miles from town. I want to build a pond, small cabin, recreate a Kansas prairie using native grasses and forbs, etc. My"wish list" might get accomplished before I die. It might not. But I'm going to see how much energy and time I can muster to fulfill my current vision for this recreational property.

I don't want, nor need the same scale of equipment that I used at our farm. The level of maintenance will be entirely different. I will hire a professional to build the pond, but I need to be able to clear brush out of the woods, mow trails in the timber and around the prairie field, mow around the eventual pond, etc. I'm looking at a machine similar in scale to the B2301 (Kubota). I'd use a field mower rather than a belly mower. Get a light duty loader with a grapple and bucket.

Does anyone have advice to offer about the limitations that a small machine like the B series Kubota's might impose? Can a tractor that small really get a lot of work done? . . . of course I suppose my own 70 year old plus body imposes far more limitations . . . so it's probably a stupid question.

I'm excited about this project at this phase of my life . . . we close on the ground purchase October 15th.

 

[robbyr]

I don't have a recommendation for ya. I have a Mahindra. Don't think it's a stupid question as I'm sure someone will have good advice. You seem to be excited about the next chapter so I bet you do well. Good luck!

 

[JWR]

Wow do I feel a brotherhood with you ! I'm 78 and my retirement is very much about "back to the farm." I do a monthly trip of 3 or 4 nights to my 100 acre farm in the hills of WV and about 80 miles from there my "cabin" near the ski areas in WV. Tractor wise I use a BX2200 here at home in So MD, some B2150s at each place in WV and one brute of a MF2660 for doing the heavy lifting of cutting brush, grapple work with fallen trees, etc. My tractors range from too small to do what you describe, to almost right with the old B2150s and too big with the MF2660. All that said, my thinking is that you need a little bit larger than the B2301. Not drastically larger but a few hundred pounds more and more oomph. I have no feel for the dollars but I like the LX2610 or LX3310 for your described circumstances. See the Messicks video at

which I think is instructive.

I think you want to comfortably run a 6ft bush hog, have at least one remote for hydraulics, and for sure a skid-steer compatible loader frame to swap buckets and grapples, etc. The 26 to 33 hp range gives you better flexibility in what all you may do there in the rest of your tractor operating years. One nice machine that you won't have to replace in the next 15 years and covers all your likely tasks. I am definitely biased in favor of Kubota in this size tractor (though I used to have a JD 4800 that was just about flawless.)

After you get settled with the new property I suspect you will want some kind of tool for clearing overhanging branches, reaching a bit more over those pond banks, etc. I suggest a Lane Shark FEL mounted hydraulic powered cutter for those things and the 2301 is too small for that.
You have worlds of experience so I'm preaching to the choir here, but that's my suggestions.

 

[jeff9366]

My wife and I are now in our 70's. We sold our beloved 80 acre farm (and all the equipment) and moved into town. Our town home is wonderful, but I really miss the country. We just bought 30 acres of land, 10 miles from town. I want to build a pond, small cabin, recreate a Kansas prairie using native grasses and forbs, etc.

I'm looking at a machine similar in scale to the B2301 (Kubota). I'd use a field mower rather than a belly mower. Get a light duty loader with a grapple and bucket.

I owned a Kubota B3300SU, a predecessor to the LX3310, for several years. Not enough weight for 30 acres. Tires are tall and the tractor is rather tippy on other than flat ground. Do you need the costly mid-PTO standard on a 'B' ? Your sense of balance and reaction time is not what it was. I fear the instability would be a significant danger. (I am age 74.)

I bought a used Kubota L5030 tractor, box blade, mowers, grapple, etc. and felt it was the right scale for what I needed.
,
I recommend a tractor of the same weight as the L5030 = 3,700 to 4,000 pounds for thirty acres.

In an economy tractor a Kubota MX5200. In a deluxe tractor a Kubota L5060, a contemporary iteration of your L5030.


As you probably know, now is a terrible time to buy a tractor. Prices are very high, new or used.

 

[Roadworthy]

I like my L2501 for the sheer simplicity - no added emission controls and enough weight to handle my five foot rotary mower. PTO power may be marginal for a mower that size and you may wish to up the power for that reason. I mow ten acres of desert weeds so power is not an issue.

 

[rScotty]

I'd get a small Kubota TLB with a thumb for projects, and a separate machine to mow the lawn - or hire that done.

 

[Have tractor did travel]

Jeff, JWR, you, and I, all doing the same thing. I'm 77 and we've been on this derelict former dairy farm for 2 years with good progress being made. We've leased out the pastures, which has served to make the equipment I have, suitable. The leasing may end next year, in which case my 5' aerator, and brush hog, would be too small for efficient work. But driving a tractor is fun, so I won't rush to buy the appropriate bat wing brush hog, for example. (I mention this, not to steal your thread, but by way of explanation of my situation as it duplicates yours.)
Don't be reluctant to hire help. We can't do what we used to do, and there are lots of hard, boring jobs, suitable for hired help. I just bought the mini-ex to ease the job of fence line clearing/maintaining. I've done it with boots on the ground, and think I'll like it a lot better once I get my forestry mulcher delivered.
Check out my listed equipment. I've found those 32 hp (appx) tractors to be fine. But that may change if I evict the herdsman.

 

[Jerry/MT]

( I posted this on the main forum page before I realized I should probably put it in the Kubota section)

We lived on a beautiful 80 acre farm for nearly 20 years. It was a labor of love. When we bought the ground, it was overgrown, abused, ignored . . . but we saw the potential and had a vision. We turned it into a truly beautiful place. I learned to drive farm equipment and worked my butt off to make our vision real. I bought a used Kubota L5030 tractor, box blade, mowers, grapple, etc. and felt it was the right scale for what I needed. I spent a lot of seat time on the tractor and it served me very well.

My wife and I are now in our 70's. We sold our beloved farm (and all the equipment) a few years ago and moved into town. Our town home is wonderful, but I really miss the country. We won't ever live in the country again - it's simply too much at this stage of life - but we just bought 30 acres of land, 10 miles from town. I want to build a pond, small cabin, recreate a Kansas prairie using native grasses and forbs, etc. My"wish list" might get accomplished before I die. It might not. But I'm going to see how much energy and time I can muster to fulfill my current vision for this recreational property.

I don't want, nor need the same scale of equipment that I used at our farm. The level of maintenance will be entirely different. I will hire a professional to build the pond, but I need to be able to clear brush out of the woods, mow trails in the timber and around the prairie field, mow around the eventual pond, etc. I'm looking at a machine similar in scale to the B2301 (Kubota). I'd use a field mower rather than a belly mower. Get a light duty loader with a grapple and bucket.

Does anyone have advice to offer about the limitations that a small machine like the B series Kubota's might impose? Can a tractor that small really get a lot of work done? . . . of course I suppose my own 70 year old plus body imposes far more limitations . . . so it's probably a stupid question.

I'm excited about this project at this phase of my life . . . we close on the ground purchase October 15th.

I'm going on79 years old next month and we sold our irrigated cattle ranch in Western Montana and bought 43 acres of ground, 25 acres of tillable ground and 18 acres of timber. It is in the Palouse of North Idaho. It's a neglected piece just like our Montana ground when we bought it. We brought that back to productivity and we intend to do the same with our new place. Getting our shop and house built has been a real struggle because of Covid but we are up for the challenges.
Neither my wife nor I are ready to sit in a rocking chair and look out the window. We can't work as hard as we did but we can work smarter. I think the activity keeps us mentally sharper and the work keeps us in shape and healthy.
As far as a tractor for your new property, bigger is better but if you buy new you will have to deal with the Tier IV machines if you go over 25 engine horsepower. These machines are not the most reliable because of the emmission requirements. None of our tractors are Tier IV and I have had professional large ag producers offer to buy our tractors because they are not Tier IV.

Based on my experience, a tractor in the 40-50 hp class would be a better fit. The small machines are good for getting in tight quarters but they are made for light duty. I would also want it to be non-tier IV. I realize that opinions are like belly buttons....everybody has one. This is mine on this subject.

Good luck on your new project.

 

[Jchonline]

We probably aren't going to tell you anything you don't already know. My gut says the B is too small for that property, but I am sure you can make it work. You know what it takes to do this work, just remember the B is a very light machine.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

I would look at the Kubota L3301 or 3901; that's about the smallest I would go. I had a B2620 at my cabin for a few years, much too small for most work in my opinion. Good luck and congrats on staying in the game...