Your thoughts, please. (New buyer, 80 acres)

[newdude]

Hello all, long time lurker, first time poster.

I'm in need of some advice, input, or just a chance to pick at your collective wisdom... I have been reading everything I can and researching like mad for the last few months but can't seem to reach any solid conclusions.

I'm in need of a tractor for a new property. I *think* I have narrowed it down to an L6060 or an M6060/7060. I'll try to explain all of my reasoning and let you chime in. I realize the subject has been somewhat beat to death but I can't seem to find the answers I'm looking for. I'm hoping to get to a dealer in the next couple of weeks but I'd like to know if I'm at least thinking in the right direction...

So...

80 acres, about half pastures and half treed/rocky outcroppings. It's not completely flat but the slopes aren't that wild.

Chores will include:

Cleanup. The pastures have long been neglected and will need to be mowed and brought back to life. Trees will have to be limbed and downed trees will have to be removed (Thinking a grapple is in order for the task, the trees are not large).
There is about a half-mile driveway that will need maintaining and plowing in the winter.
There will be some small farming needs but I will not try to hay the pastures.
General land/farm maintenance.

I'm pretty much set on getting a cabbed model for the winter snow chores, plus bonus AC for the summer.

Now for the dilemmas.

Obviously the *best* choice is the bigger and more powerful M7060. LOL. However, I'm drawn to the L6060 mostly for the HST transmission. Several of the pastures have irrigation sprinklers buried underground. I'm thinking that for the more technical work regarding cleanup/mowing and for navigating tricky terrain the HST would be a plus. I also think it will be less intimidating for the wife to drive without a clutch. She can drive a stick but is very much not a big fan...

I'm also liking the idea of the L because of the possibility of getting a front mounted snowblower in a few years. Last winter wasn't too bad but the one before was pretty gnarly.

I'd probably spec both machines about the same. Loader, couple extra remotes, etc.

So? What do you think?

Mo power, mo betta? I don't think the L6060 will be short on power for my uses but I also don't want to end up with less tractor than I need. I also don't want to buy on power alone when the HST could be a plus that makes the machine easier to use and more productive.

Thoughts, ideas, concerns?

Thanks in advance

 

[rustyshakelford]

There are three camps here. One camp will suggest a 35-50 hp and 5-6’ mower. It’ll work but mowing would take forever and whenever you are done you’ll need to start over again. Pros are nimble tractor with good vis.

Camp two larger HST with a 7-8’ mower. Hst is nice but you have a lot of drivetrain loss and limited to mid 60s for hp.

Camp three, my camp. Buy something that’ll handle a 12-15’ mower. I can knock out 20 acres in 2-3ish hours and enjoy the A/C and dust free cab. Turn on the radio and sit back to cruise. For the irrigation heads, get out and kill the area around them so they are visible and there is no need to get close to them. ALso these new power reverser or shuttle shift tractors are simple and usually clutch free if you desire. 80 acres with 40 in pasture is a larger area. The 7060 would be the absolutely smallest tractor with a 12’ cutter I’d consider. Check out the Deere offerings too. They redid the smaller 5 series and have made some great improvements

Brett

 

[Fallon]

My L4060hstc will now a little over an acre an hour with my old or new 7' flail. In moderate or heavy grass I'm up limited on power very noticeable & top out around 3mph. I hear 40 acres & hear 40 hours of mowing. If you are mowing monthly to get fields in shape, that's a **** of a lot.

20hp more on a L6060 would bump up your speed (and/or width of mower) a bit. Not sure how much, maybe 2 acres an hour? Flails mulch a lot better & leave a better cut, but tend to use a bit more power. A 10-12' rotary cutter might gain you a bit as well. Dropping from HST to a geared machine bumps up avalible PTO HP another 15%. Others can likely speak up with better ballpark numbers based on their experiences.

I love my HST+, but its advantages are not in field work & bigger spaces. If you are planning on hay, minimizing mowing time & other large property tasks you probably want something bigger than an L.

 

[Glocker]

i'm a fan of the shuttle shift over the HST . Look into a Land plane for the driveway and a pto chipper for clean up.

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

There are several people on here who happily run a 10' rotary cutter in grass with either a L6060 or MX5800HST. Hopefully they chime in.

 

[rustyshakelford]

There are several people on here who happily run a 10' rotary cutter in grass with either a L6060 or MX5800HST. Hopefully they chime in.

10’ works but if it’s not smooth, it’ll scalp worse. 8’ single deck is about as wide as I personally go.

Brett

 

[newdude]

Wow thanks for the fast replies. Having actual usage numbers helps a bunch.

I'm gonna go read up on the JDs again. Thanks Brett


Did Kubota get rid of the M8560 and M9660? What did they replace them with? I'm trying to figure out where the size/power equivalences are.


Let's see what others have to say.

 

[jeff9366]

I'm in need of a tractor for a new property. Eighty acres, forty acres pastures and forty acres treed/rocky outcroppings. It's not completely flat but the slopes aren't that wild.

Chores will include:

Cleanup. The pastures have long been neglected and will need to be mowed and brought back to life. I will not try to hay the pastures.

Trees will have to be limbed and downed trees will have to be removed (Thinking a grapple is in order for the task, the trees are not large).

There is a half-mile driveway that will need maintaining and plowing in the winter.


I *think* I have narrowed it down to a cabbed Kubota L6060 or a cabbed Kubota M6060/7060.

I'm drawn to the L6060 mostly for the HST/PLUS transmission. Several of the pastures have irrigation sprinklers buried underground. I'm thinking that for the more technical work regarding cleanup/mowing and for navigating tricky terrain the HST would be a plus.

HST will be less intimidating for the wife to drive without a clutch. She can drive a stick but is very much not a big fan...

I like the L because of the possibility of getting a front mounted snowblower. Last winter wasn't too bad but the one before was pretty gnarly.

Have you or your wife operated a tractor before? A cabbed L6060 is a big tractor to newbies. A cabbed M6060 is a very big tractor to newbies.

Mowing your pastures and maintaining your 1/2 mile drive Summer and Winter will determine how heavy a tractor you need and how much horsepower. Other tasks require less weight and less horsepower.

How much time to you want to spend mowing? Here is a mowing calculator:
Mowing Calcuator | How many acres can I mow in an hour

Front mount snowblower is nice.
VIDEO: Kubota Grand L66 Auto-hitch and attachments (walk around and demo) - YouTube
Also consider a truck snow plow. Good lights, warm and dry inside.

As you have forty acres of trees you need to consider tractor width. I decided on a 60" wide tractor, rather than a 66" inch wide tractor, based on the spacing of trees where I live in Florida. As you will probably want to spread your wheels somewhat wider than normal due to your slopes, and will probably order six ply, R4/industrial tires because of rock outcroppings, you should discuss tractor widths with your dealer. Rear wheels can be spaced in increments. R4/industrial tires are somewhat wider than R1/ag tires. (Kubota tractor cabs weigh 500 to 600 pounds and raise the center of gravity of the tractor a bit, decreasing stability.)

With rock breaking the surface, consider optional L2296 Round back, heavy-duty FEL bucket, rather than the standard FEL bucket. L2296 is heavily built for rock and other tough conditions.

Tractors can be intimidating at first. So many levers, so many knobs, etc. Yes, HST/PLUS will be simpler for you and your wife.
VIDEO: Kubota HST Plus Transmission Features - YouTube

 

[newdude]

I spent many summers operating a tractor at a friends place. Although never for serious work... I couldn't tell you what it was. It was old, very old. I'm guessing something similar to a 9N or Farmall H.

After that I've had on and off time on different things, from forklifts and skidsteers to backhoes. Nothing substantial but it all adds up. I've generally been pretty good at picking up how to operate new machinery or wheeled vehicles. As a machinist I seem to have a knack for *listening* to machines.

My wife... Total newb... I don't plan on throwing her into the lions den either but if she can eventually learn and like it it'd be great.

Added my location. We're right around 3300 ft.

 

[jeff9366]

Play with the mowing calculator and we can determine your horsepower requirement. Assume a mowing speed of three to four mph until the pastures are smooth.

The mowing calculator does not adjust for grass length. Long grass requires more power to cut while maintaining a four mph speed.

All of the tractor models under consideration are equipped with turbocharged engines so 3,300' altitude will not affect engine horsepower output. ((Power loss for normally aspirated engines is 3% per 1,000 feet, over 500 foot MSL base.))