What To Get?

[IslandTractor]

Island,

Once again you and I don't share identical views ....

Hey, we both own Kioti's, how different can we be?

I did not mean to imply that there is never a role for a bigger tractor. That would be pretty dumb. Where we differ is in the size of implements needed to care for a 2 acre plot perhaps or because we have different ideas about what types of tasks are needed. Another relevant point is that people should not confuse tractor weight with horsepower. Weight is a signfiicant advantage for some things (most of the CK25's advantage over the CK20 is in the weight category IMHO).

For plowing a large area or for PTO intensive applications I might be looking for a bigger machine too (although I'd skip right to the DK45s cab model ). My point was more that for pasture mowing and general utility functions on 2 acres that 20hp is more than adequate. But even with PTO considerations, I think I could run a 4" capable chipper or a 8-10KW PTO generator or a 5ft tiller. Maybe only a 4 boxblade in clay but probably a 5 ft boxblade in the sandy soil where I work and certainly a six foot rake or back blade. Those are appropriately sized implements for 2 acres so I still don't see the point of more than 20hp for that size plot. My FEL is very close in capacity to that of many 30hp tractors so that is another area where hp is not making such a big difference.

I'd gladly concede that 10acres is best done with 25/30hp but I don't think the break point is at 2 (or even 2.5 acres). Somewhere around 5 would be my earliest switch over point.

It is also appropriate to mention that what we are really talking about is torque, not horsepower. The Kubota BX24 has higher horsepower than my CK20 but has a smaller engine that is simply rated at 3600rpm rather than around 2800 like the CK20. Cubic inches is what really counts in tractor engines, at least until you start turbocharging and aftercooling diesels.

 

[coasterez]

Bob,

This makes good sense to me too. The 'botas you mention might be best. As I and many others have said - get the machine best suited for the tasks at hand. 30 hp seems like about the minimum for this application.

Island,
Your reasoning is reasonably reasonable, as usual. For me the advantages of a CK25 vs. CK20 are weight and hydraulic pump capacity. The bigger pump lets me run larger implements. The weight lets me put more power to the ground and keeps me stable while carrying/handling heavy loads. For my uses (all ground engaging), these were enough to justify the extra dollars.

 

[IslandTractor]

Coasterez,

We are not that far off in our thoughts but I still don't see anything in BigEd's original list of tasks for a 2 acre property or even for the occasional use on up to 5 acre feedlots that either requires or justifies 30hp. I understand that some PTO applications might justify a step up in size even with such a small acreage but there don't seem to be any listed in his post. Of course I am assuming that a 4ft hog and 5ft finish or flail mower would be adequate and that he could use a 4 foot tiller (maybe 5 depending on soil). Even the one step soil prep device he was looking at can be sized appropriately for 20hp (or equivalent models from other companies). The plotmaster type implement he refers to is shown in the company videos being very effectively pulled by an ATV!

We don't need to come to concensus here (that is BigEd's job) but I wanted to be clear that all the proposed tasks can be done by a 20hp tractor and appropriately sized implements without difficulty. If he wanted to run a 15KW PTO generator or absolutely needed a larger mower etc things would be different.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

I understand that some PTO applications might justify a step up in size even with such a small acreage but there don't seem to be any listed in his post.

Ed, he linked to an implement that stated that it required a minimum of 30hp. Just like you, I prefer a small tractor if I can utilize it for the task. But in this case, with his required implement, the small tractor will be good for SOME of his jobs, but it will not be able to do one of the main things he seems to need in a tractor. That being running the PTO powered implements. Consequently that drove me to the choice of the smallest 30hp tractors I know of, and one of those is on his BigEd's "short list" of choices. Seems to make it a natural choice to pick the B7800, it is small but it has 30% more engine power/PTO power than the CK20. On the other hand, it lacks capacity compared to the larger L3130 or the CK30, but it redeems itself by actually being small enough to mow a two acre property and being light enough to easily trailer on a 7000# trailer and still leave capacity for carrying the implements.

Here are the requirements for the Plotmaster 600:

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Sans-serif,sans-serif] ‘The Ultimate Planting Machine,’ The [/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Sans-serif,sans-serif][SIZE=-1]PLOTMASTER™[/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Sans-serif,sans-serif][/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Sans-serif,sans-serif][SIZE=-1]600[/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Sans-serif,sans-serif]is a multi-use, 6-foot, all-in-one harrow/plow/cultivator/seeder/ cultipacker/drag with metal grating. Use it with 30-horsepower or larger tractors. Ideal for small farming or planting foodplots and gardenplots. Three-point hitch.[/FONT]
​

 

[IslandTractor]

I should have been more complete in my last response. I had called the company that makes the Plotmaster as it looked like a nice implement for what I am doing in pasture renovation. They actually recommend the 4ft version for acreage up to 5-10 or so (one guy did 40 acres with a 4ft version and ATV!!! ). So I was thinking that the plotmaster looked great but that BigEd's original size estimate is off and that the 20hp tractor would have no problem at all with the 4ft version which was originally designed with a one point hitch for ATV use. It is now available as a 3pt unit. Interestingly the company prez said that a 20hp tractor would have no trouble pulling a 6ft version but at over 900lbs, the 3pt capacity would be marginal or exceeded for transport as the CK20 is rated at 1100lbs. I wonder if even the B7800/3030 with its 1300 lift capacity would be adequate given the weight and length of the 6ft unit. The 4ft unit is no lightweight at 750lbs especially as it is longer than a bush hog buy a foot or two.

 

[Timber]

Island I love that brush grapple you have on your tractor. Now I see it is not quick tach set up. Do you have a bucket and drive the pins out of the loader or do you never take that off

 

[IslandTractor]

Island I love that brush grapple you have on your tractor. Now I see it is not quick tach set up. Do you have a bucket and drive the pins out of the loader or do you never take that off

Actually it is a quick attach. Here is a photo of the FEL "naked". The grapple is from Millonzi and I don't know the manufacturer of the QA adapter but I got it through Millonzi.

I have left it on the tractor for most of the summer as I'm clearing brush.

 

[Timber]

no kidding I thought for sure it wasn't. I have to admit that is a real pretty tractor. I thought it was bigger than a 20 horse mostly because it seems to have the features of a bigger tractor like the piston linkage are the quik tach

 

[Bob_Skurka]

They actually recommend the 4ft version for acreage up to 5-10

OMG I can't believe that! I garden about 2 acres and use a 48" tiller and it can take me the better part of 2 days to get the soil tilled. I'd love to be able to cover a 6' path. That would be a 50% increase in coverage per pass I could not even imagine using a 4' unit on 5 or 10 acres.

 

[IslandTractor]

Bob,

Go to the website and watch their video. video They show an ATV cruising along at about 15 miles per hour towing the device. Quite impressive. They also show a tractor cruising along at mowing speed. I mow more than 2 acres in a couple of hours with a 48" bush hog so it certainly does seem possible to do 2-5 acres of ground prep and seeding with this device in a reasonable amount of time. After all, you'd only do it once a season at most right?