Tractor Buying Advice for 1 acre Lot

[Stussy1035]

I am looking for some buying advice and if a sub compact tractor will be to large for my needs now and in the future. I tend to buy things that keep them for life. I am wondering if a sub compact tractor will be overkill and I should get something such as a John Deere X700 or X500 series. I currently have an old Craftsman 1994 GT6000 garden tractor and I was looking for a loader / Johnny Bucket to do the work below. I came to the conclusion that I could not find a loader for the tractor and it would still be limited in that it does not have a locking rear differential and not 4 wheel drive.

So I started to look at Sub compact tractors and trying to justify the cost and if it will fit my needs now and in the future. I would like to own more land in the future. It seems like I am always working in the yard and not much is getting done because I am trying to do it with manual labor and I have a lot of projects that I would like to complete. I had some quotes for the landscaping, just to remove the debris from the above ground pool area, and bring in dirt and remove the deck, rock and dirt they quoted $8,500. This does not include any of the actual landscape work which will be approx $15,000 which will total about $23,000 if I were to hire someone to do all of the work.


I have the money to spend, but trying to justify the cost and will I get my use out of the tractor. Is a sub compact tractor to large for a 1 acre lot in the future. I tend to wrench on my own tractors, cars, do oil changes, and maintenance. I am not looking forwarded to another item (tractor) to keep up, repair and maintenance, so not sure how much work or how often the tractors break and require repairs? I would like to have an all electric tractor with electric attachments as it seems simpler and less maintenance but there really do not exist yet and it will probably some time. So it would be new for be working on diesel engines, dealing with hydrostatic trans and fluids, etc.



Any advice would be greatly appreciated with the size of tractor to fit my current lot size and needs below.

Lot Size: 1 acre, would like to own more land in the future but not sure if it will happen.
I live in northern IL so we get some snow. I currently have a newer Ariens snow blower for our 75' driveway.

Current needs and projects:
1. Move and fill in above ground pool that was removed and turn it into a vegetable garden. There is about 30 yards of rock, dirt that needs to be moved and compost / soil that need to be brought in to turn it into a vegetable garden.
2. there is a above ground deck that needs to be removed, and rocks under deck that need to be removed, to make room for a patio.
3. Landscaping around house bushes and rocks need to be removed, ground needs to be regraded and new landscaping installed.
4. I have several trees that need to be removed, large logs of 30" dia that need to be split and wood piles that need to be stacked

Long Term Needs:
1. Mowing most of the lot. the lost is mostly grass with 10+ trees, landscape bushes, etc.
2. Moving tree trimmings and brush to the front for our annual brush pickup.
3. vegetable garden work (size 30' x 30' currently), maybe using a Brinly-Hardy Plow, cultivation disks, etc
4. Laying down mulch around landscape
5. any future projects


thanks again for any advice and help.

 

[atsah]

I would buy the SCUT for what projects you have outlined. Small enough to move around in small areas and more than enough capability for your needs, I think you would be glad you did..

 

[dodge man]

I agree, I'd also look at SCUT, something similar to the Kubota BX line, but everybody make similar model.

 

[LMychajluk]

I would agree. Something like a JD 1025R or Kioti CS2510 can be had w/ a loader and, if you think you need it (will you be digging often?), a small back hoe along with a mid-mount mower (check to see how the MMM attaches w/ the back hoe if you want both - some models may not allow you to have both attached at the same time). The loader bucket can be replaced with a small grapple (48-55") as well, which may come in handy for the brush cleanups, and the PTO will allow you to run a small tiller for your garden and maybe a chipper for your brush. You didn't say where you are, but you could also mount a snow blower to do your driveway in the winter.

Check out Tractor Time with Tim on YouTube for some of the stuff you can do w/ a relatively small machine.

 

[jeff9366]

VIDEOS (2) : Are Sub-Compact Tractors "REAL" Tractors?? - TMT - YouTube

John Deere 1 Series VS. Kubota BX Series - YouTube


If your garden in approximately the same 30' X 30' space each year a Cultivator should suffice for soil prep and weeding until plants are 9" high, the ground clearance of a BX or most other subcompacts.

 

[Navvet]

I bought an X495 24hp Diesel and have never regretted it. These are true Deere workhorses.

They are available with 3 pt hitch, rear PTO and front hydraulics and a 62" mowing deck. This is my go to yard machine.

I use a 6' landscape rake for gravel and dirt leveling as well as a 54" hydraulic front bade for snow, mulch, loose dirt and gravel. There are several nice aftermarket front end loaders (see JOHN DEERE X475 X485 X585 X595 X700 ultimate ) reasonably priced that will do a surprising amount of work. With the PTO and the 3 pt hitch the implements available are amazing.

If I were in your position right now I would seriously look at the x700 series (diesel) mowers. great mowers that will also do a lot of other work.

There are a lot of videos of the X series on youtube moving snow, digging dirt, moving rocks, etc . ..

 

[Mike Madison]

I would suggest renting a big piece of equipment for a couple of days for filling in the pool-might cost $1,000 or more, but worth it. A little tractor is not really suitable for that job. Then I would look for a restored older tractor of 30hp or so (Ford 2000, MF35, Deere 950 etc) that someone else has mechanically rebuilt, put new tires on, painted etc. Try looking at the ads on Yesterday's Tractors. Takes some patience,but there are excellent deals to be had on older tractors, and those from the '60's and later are pretty modern (live PTO etc). For your garden you want a chisel plow/cultivator, a rototiller (reverse rotation recommended) and a tool bar for building beds,marking rows, and weeding. A flail mower will do a neater job of mowing than a bush hog. For moving stuff around a big scoop on the three point works well, and saves you having a loader. Of course there are many right ways to go about this, and some other line-up of stuff might work as well. After forty years of truck farming and dealing with all kinds of tractors and equipment, I would tend to go the way I suggested.

 

[Tractorable]

I think the OP is the perfect candidate for a SCUT. Keep the riding mower to mow the lawn and the snowblower to clear the driveway of snow. A Kubota BX or equivalent with a loader, grapple, and landscape rake with gauge wheels would be perfect for his one acre lot.

Pictures of the above ground pool garden project would help us assess what would be required to do that job.

 

[dodge man]

I filled in where our above ground pool was with a BX. Moved maybe 3 truck loads of dirt around to the back of the house and it didn't take that long. I was more or less just trying to get that flat spot to drain when I was done.

 

[flusher]

1 acre. You can do a lot of work with a 20 hp (engine) SCUT with hydrostatic tranny and a 4-ft wide FEL. My first tractor was a 2005 Kubota B7510HST bought new for $12.6K.