Yanmar Tractors? Input please

Cashs Cowgirl · #1 05/18/10, 07:09 PM

I was looking at Tractors...don't know a whole lot about them. I don't own that much land-4 acres to keep down, a garden to till and row.

I know of someone selling a Yanmar YM2000 tractor, 22hp, 2wd, 2 cylinder diesel engine, with 844 hours. Doesn't seem like a bad price on it. They just bought a new one so they want to sell this one.

Any suggestions? Or any suggestions on what kind/size tractor that I should be looking at....hate being new at equipment buying, lol!

Harry Chickpea · #2 05/18/10, 07:16 PM

If it is on craigslist, it likely is a scam. There are ongoing scams with the small John Deere, Kubota, and other tractors being "sold" for about 1/3 what they are worth. Usually there are four pictures of a really nice looking tractor with some attachments.

Stephen in SOKY · #3 05/18/10, 07:46 PM

I'm in the market myself, here are a couple of sites you may want to review:

http://www.yanmarowners.com/yanmarspecifications.htm

http://www.compact-tractors.com/ymspecs.htm

Cashs Cowgirl · #4 05/18/10, 08:48 PM

Harry, a friend of ours is selling it. We know him, he just has it listed on Craigslist since it's free to do so.

DamnearaFarm · #5 05/18/10, 08:55 PM

We had a Yanmar 1500 before we moved to NM. It was basically used for dragging the paddocks, garden work and bushhogging and such. A great little work horse but useless for anything major. If you don't intend heavy duty use it's a great tool, particularly if it's a good price.

plowjockey · #6 05/18/10, 08:56 PM

They are good tractors. John Deere rebrands several of their models.

Seems like a good size, but IMO, don't buy a tractor witout a loader. Makes the tractor much more useful and makes for a better resale value.

plowjockey · #7 05/18/10, 08:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cashs Cowgirl

Harry, a friend of ours is selling it. We know him, he just has it listed on Craigslist since it's free to do so.

If you know the seller and it's a good price, why not? they are solid tractors. Add a loader later, if you want one.

foxtrapper · #8 05/19/10, 06:50 AM

None of us can just tell you what sort of tractor you need. It depends on your needs. It's a small tractor, and 2wd. If you've got visions of dragging logs up mountains in the snow, it ain't gonna do it. If you've got just a few acres of level ground and want to use a 5' mower and do some light plowing, it'll be fine.

So, what are your visions and plans and hopes, and what is your place like?

Batt · #9 05/19/10, 06:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plowjockey

They are good tractors. John Deere re-brands several of their models.Seems like a good size, but IMO, don't buy a tractor without a loader. Makes the tractor much more useful and makes for a better resale value.

Quote:

Originally Posted by plowjockey

If you know the seller and it's a good price, why not? they are solid tractors. Add a loader later, if you want one.

Yeah, what Plowjockey said. I have a YM2500 with a front end loader and it is about as handy as a third hand. Everything you are proposing as well as pull a hay rake, move loads of wood and hay...just love it. Parts are mostly the same as a John Deere 810. If you know the current owner sounds OK, otherwise be very, very leary.

Cashs Cowgirl · #10 05/19/10, 07:44 AM

Foxtrapper, I don't do much out here but raise a few animals for meat, grow a garden and bushhog the pasture (which my neighbor actually does for me). That's about it. It's all level out here.

KMA1 · #11 05/19/10, 07:57 AM

If what you are looking for is a big lawn mower, or what used to be called a "garden tractor", at 22 hp, that is what you are talking about. If you want a tractor that you can mow a large yard, a pasture and pull commonly available used farm implements for garden, a standard 5 foot bushhog, or possibly hay equipment, then find a 30-35 HP tractor. You will be much happier in the long run and will make up the difference in cost in cheaper used equipment and time saved in doing your work. The loader is excellent advice. Once you have one you will wonder how you ever made it without one.

Ramblin Wreck · #12 05/19/10, 08:04 AM

For four acres, a 22 HP tractor should be fine. The level ground probably minimizes the need for four wheel drive, but that is a very nice feature. As noted above by several posters, a front end loader is a great option. I use the loader a lot for things like maintaining the drive, moving poop from the barn to the garden, lifting roofing materials, and even painting the house.

rambler · #13 05/19/10, 08:49 AM

They are pretty good mid-value brand.

Kubota, JD, NH/Case are the good ones.

China made no-name brands are at the bottom of quality & parts source area.

Yanmar is in the middle for quality. An issue is parts - it is likely a grey-market machine. Made for another country, imported used to the USA. Parts can take a while to find. This makes them cheaper to buy.

2wd in these small machines can be a problem, if you need to plow or work it hard or put a loader on it. If you judt mow grassno big deal.

--->paul

foxtrapper · #14 05/19/10, 09:13 AM

OK, then that is probably a fine machine for you. Do the normal tractor inspection. Run it through all the gears, pick an impliment up and watch how it picks it up, and how it holds it up. Check the PTO. Check the fluids and such.

Yanmar machines are fundamentally fine. No, they are not as heavily built as an old Deere. But flimsy they are not. Parts availability can be entertaining. Not impossible, but not as convenient or easy as IH parts. If you've got a dealer around you, that's worth bonus points, imo.

Gary in ohio · #15 05/19/10, 10:25 AM

Yanmar's are nice little tractors. I have 2 of them. A couple of things to keep in mind.
Yanmar has both greymarket and US spec'ed tractors. The grey market are the YM plus 4 digits, YM 2200/1500. The US market are 3 digit tractors YM 140, 186, 240,340 etc.

The tractors are solid tractors, reasonable easy to repair with parts being generally available for the more common grey market tractors. The US specs parts are generally available, but your most likley not going to find them locally.

I would fully recommend the yanmar's if your not basing your livelyhood on it. Downtime on the tractor will be a little longer than name brand local resourced tractors.

A very good resource is http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/yanmar/

sidepasser · #16 05/19/10, 11:17 AM

Parts are not that hard to find..

http://www.fredricksequipment.com/

http://www.hoyetractor.com/mm5/merchant.mvc

both will ship and what one may not have, the other does.

I have a Yanmar 2500, great little tractor, and only problem I have had with it is the starter which I replaced.

Use it 9 months out of the year bush hogging, pulling/dragging, mowing the yards, plowing, etc.

Mine was a grey market and so far, no problem at all getting parts.

Just make sure it is functioning the way you want a tractor to function before you buy it same as with any other tractor.

Gary in ohio · #17 05/20/10, 05:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plowjockey

If you know the seller and it's a good price, why not? they are solid tractors. Add a loader later, if you want one.

bush hog makes a nice FEL for the yanmar grey and US spec tractors.

Gary in ohio · #18 05/20/10, 05:58 AM

Just one other thing to keep in mind. If your hire people to work the farm then you will need to meet osha requirements, older tractors and grey market tractors are expensive to bring up to code.

PonderosaQ · #19 05/20/10, 06:38 AM

Just love ours...

Cashs Cowgirl · #20 05/20/10, 07:54 AM

Nope no hire-ees here. I do all the work myself with my husband if need be. We only own five acres. As a matter of fact he told me that we need to go test drive it on Saturday so that I know what I'm working with, lol.

So a front end loader could be added to this unit? (though I understand about the whole 2 wheel drive being an issue when moving heavy loads, but the most we'd do is move a little dirt around, if we got loads in, which we do occasionally and it's flat flat flat land here).