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I need a tractor. I want a tractor. Talk to me about tractors!
I have been moving cow manure with a wheelbarrow and pitchfork for the last 2 years. (Not consecutively, but pretty darned close to it! I have 4 cows.)
Yesterday, I had a fellow scrape my barnyard with a 4x4 Kubota, and it was a sight to behold. I nearly swooned! I decided I need a tractor. Stat! So, talk to me about Kubotas, or comparable tractors. Mostly, I'll be scraping a mucky barnyard with it. How big of a unit do I need to get the job done? What should I expect to pay for it? How difficult are these things to operate? I've never operated anything more complex than a riding mower, but, by Goddess, I am gonna learn! So let's hear it! :) |
My brother bought one recently. He can't keep his wife off of it, so he's gone fishin.
I did some online research for him. He is a welder and good with stuff, so I just let him get the general drift before buying: 4 series Kubota 23 HP diesel. Loader capacity about 550 pounds, and the backhoe will dig a 6 1/2 foot deep hole. In summary: Kubota has its own financing, if you use it you will pay about a _total_ of $17,000 with tax and the required (LOL!) $400 flood insurance (also from a Kubota company). It comes with either an 8" or 12" bucket and the bucket has optional teeth. Teeth are good. A smaller bucket might be better at digging, but you are going to find the backhoe slow enough that you may want the 12". I don't like the minimal 140 degree range of motion of the backhoe, that puts dirt piles awfully near the hole you are digging. My technique was to dig with the backhoe as much as I needed, then switch to the loader to cart it off. Pushing the edges of a pile back into a hole is aggravating. A BIG concern is the stability and tendency to tip. Filling the tires and adding wheel weights might be prudent. You may also want to weld on extension pads to the stabilizing pads, and hand holds on the roll bar if it doesn't have them. The other consistent issue is the fenders breaking. You'll likely be able to make your own bracket or step to correct this. From http://www.compacttractorreview.com/...bota/BX24.aspx Strengths Strong for size. Extreme value at $14500 for TLB 23 HP diesel. Close to the no-name import prices with poor parts/performance. Went up a 2:1 dirt slope with ease. Hydro drive in high gear will rip your head right off with the power delivers. Unbelievebly easy to remove backhoe. 2 minutes... I like the plastic rear body. It saved me when I did not remove digger correctly and it came up on the body. Just pushed it in a little and and went back to original. What would metal have done? Plastic hood is fine. 2009 BX25 went to steel hood. Weaknesses Small frame width at 42" makes tractor feel like going to tip with loader. Use to 35HP larger tractor feel and stability. It is a trade off for size. ***Not very stable side to side on inclines. Bought is to go in hilly woods. Not the best at this. Almost tipped twice in 12 hours use.*** Once used my leg to stop from tipping and I had the loader down. Going to look into weights, filling tires. If you are looking to move large amounts of dirt all the time you probably want the larger Kubota. This 48" loader is small. If you want to rip stumps out without digging like a backhoe forget it. Overall Really runs well. Strong for size. Basically a man trapped in a boys body. K Weaknesses Very tippy as I have almost rolled mine 3 or 4 times already. Don'b believe the deals do their job that well as mine was low on front axle lube and had to add some. Back-hoe stablizer pads seem very small for the forces they see, constantly dig down into the dirt and loose holding ability. They need something larger. no shut of on the tank so fuel filter sucks to change! can not leave the quick hitch on when wanting to use the loader, this somewhat defeats the time savings engineered in this unit. Could use higher mounted head lites as well as lites for running the backhoe after dark, Weaknesses Too small to handle larger, time saving implements. Not enough power to handle more than a few acres, not enough torque for large jobs. Overall Great tractor for a few acres or less and small jobs, DO NOT BUY the BX24 if you need more than that. Weaknesses f,e,l blocks lights, you have to gas it up to move f,e,l or b,h, you cannot do this at idle speed, seat is a pain in the butt to move from forward, to revese seating for bh operation, if you are going in reverse and you step of the pedal machine stops very suddenly, it will pop a wheely, becareful if you are moving anything delicate in the f,e,l if it is something lite if will shift, the stop is very abrupt, Weaknesses Just a few "opportunities for improvement": 1. Fuel filler should be on the side to minimize spillage. 2. Knobs on handles should be glued on as they tend to fall off/come loose. 3. Brush guard should be wider so headlights are not blocked. 4. Grease fittings on MMM wheels pull out when greasing - metal fittings should never be screwed into plastic :( 5. The plastic engine hood has a tendency to "rattle" at under 1800rpm, so latches on the sides would probably be a big improvement. 6. The range selector is frequently hard to move out of neutral and the fwd/backward pedal must be tapped to allow free movement of the selector...this should be simple for an engineer to develop a "fix". Weaknesses less than one month after getting this machine we lost the transmission in wich the dealer said that kubota had never seen it happen before and wanted the part back to find out what had happened and by the way it took over a month for them to get the part from japan and repair it the front bucket is way under powered the brake is awkward to use the forward and reverse peddles should be closer together or on a rocker like the terrimites are the boom on the backhoe should at least be 2 feet longer you should be able to spin the seat around with out getting off the machine for better positioning of machine without stopping for too long Overall I have beeen running mini backhoes for a good part of 22 years this machine is nothing but a glorified lawn mower with an backhoe attachment and i wished my boss asked my opinon before he bought this thing since i am the one who uses it in my opinion it would be a good little machine if you just use it around your garden but if you want to use it for what i use it for dont buy one if you want to know i run a cemetery and use it to dig graves and taking out shrubs and such Weaknesses No cab options. Headlights obstructed by FEL. Overall Within 4 hours of purchasing the machine the HST went. The dealer and Kubota were great I had a new machine delivered within 5 days of the original. The dealer advised it was a defect and states they have never seen this before. No problems at all with the new machine. The first time I removed the BH it took close to 2 hours to remove the quick connect pins. The pins were frozen , however a little wd40 and now it takes me about 3 minutes now. The BH digs well and my property is almost all rock and clay. Weaknesses BX24 is shipped to dealers without bachhoe dipper bucket. Buyer to select between 8 & 12in. Unfortunately, no dealer in eastern or central NC has one in stock. No Just-in-Time delivery from Kubota. A week later I am still waiting for delivery because dealer can't get the bucket. Contacted Kubota Customer Support. No response 4 days later. Not a good start. My first experience was to dig out an 8" caliper birch stump. I figured this project would take me an hour. My first try, I fumbled with the controls, it snapped all the roots and popped it out like butter. The loader I use all the time for piling snow, carrying heavy stuff, taking out the garbage (long driveway) & moving gravel. If you have an acreage this is SOOO handy. I use it for everything now. The other use I've found for the Kubota is pulling cars and trucks out of the ditch. I can't believe the power, even with turf tires. The other day (-35F) I put it in 4WD and sucked a Honda Accord out of the ditch like it was nothing. All in all, I researched this tractor 6 ways to Sunday. I was reluctant about the price and the fact its a diesel (didn't want 2 stroke fuel, gas and diesel). I was cautious about the size of tractor too. I looked at every tractor including India built units. I wouldn't hestitate for a second to buy a Kubota. Be sure to get multiple quotes before buying, I saved close to $1500.00 by shopping around. Weaknesses I have 27.5 hours on my new unit. When I went to get on it today, the left fender where the floor board mounts snapped (it was cold out, but not that cold and I only weigh 210 lbs). Engineers dropped the ball on the fender/floor design when they went with plastic with no reinforcement in this area? Needs to have something extra installed after its repaired so it dosen't happen again. I read above that I'm not the first to have this happen, purhaps a redesign repair bracket from dealer is in order. Unfortuatly I favor getting on/off from the left due to the loader handle being in the way on the right. Thanks goodness I'm done using it until spring. Overall I would recomend getting the tooth bar for the front bucket. It makes tipping things into the bucket much easier and really helps with loading and moving materials. I also picked up a 6 1/2 foot Meyer plow on eBay for $100 and with a little welding to modify the mount, I now have a plow that moves up and down, left and right with the loader handle. If you are going to be doing serious scraping and digging with a box blade, go with the 4 footer. If you are going to be spreading and smoothing driveways etc, I would opt for the 5' box. Have to learn to gently stop in reverse, especially in high range. If the reverse pedal is released too quickly, the front tires lift off the ground. This may result in some part from the weighted rear tires. After the first two hours, apparently a clip under the seat came loose (or wasn't there in the first place) and a fuel line got nicked by the fan under the seat, spraying diesel to where I could not use it until repaired. That was ok, though, because a line in the hydraulics in the backhow was leaking by then as well. There is also a small fan under the tractor I assume to cool the rearend, 'bout 2wks after getting the tractor a stick came up and wiped out all the fins. |
I used to have a Kobota and they are good. I have used a backhoe but that is not what you really need. All you need is a tractor and a front end loader. Most of the tractors in the sub compact will have a hydros transmission. It runs the same as a lawn mower push the petal forward and you go forward and back to back up. IF you are thinking about one go to any Kubota dealer and try it out. If you want something else go to that dealer and check out their tractors. Any tractors in the sub compact are good for what they are for and all manufactures manufacture them. Find a place that works on them and buy it from that manufacture.
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willow you need to let us know what all you expect this tractor to do. I use this one for my main tillage tractor and spend 12 or 14 hours a day in it in the summer, probably more than you need--lol
http://usera.ImageCave.com/rancher19...tractorjd1.jpg this one is my fun/work tractor, it disks and bales and pulls the grain drill when I'm feeling nostalgic. http://usera.ImageCave.com/rancher19...tractorjd2.jpg this one cuts my firewood for the winter http://usera.ImageCave.com/rancher19...tractorfd1.jpg this one spreads poo. http://usera.ImageCave.com/rancher19...tractorpoo.jpg |
Wow, HC, that seem like a a lot of stuff going wrong?
Thought Kubota was top of the import line, (don't think anybody make a USA made small tractor any more). I bought a 30 hp Mahindra, three years ago, had an electrical problem, dealer repaired (house call) that's it. What ever you buy make sure you have dealer support if buying new. Older/used, have some one that knows what going on with you when looking. Lots of old farmers sold off a lot of old tractors for big bucks, because they look like a nolstagic print, but don't have good hydraulics, live pto speeds, etc. R1913- good for you, one can't have too many tractors, or too much fun, etc, etc.................... |
Sigh Willow me and you both crave the same thing lol. I dream about Kubota tractors lol. They are EXPENSIVE double sigh. I had a thread on here about tractors awhile back. I got lots of good suggestions but what I want I probably can't afford. Basically I want the same thing as you but I want to move dirt with it too.
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have a look at a skid steer, we use ours more than any other tractor round the farm!
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Ahhh...the great tractor debate surfaces again.
What do you need the tractor to do? What kind of ground will you be working? Flat or hilly? Implements? Future uses for the tractor? How much do you want to spend? Do you mind going into debt for a tractor? Is a used tractor alright for you? Clove |
You'll receive great advice, and probably more than you want! so I'm just going to give one piece of advice which I wish I'd thought about when we bought our current tractor....when you look at the tractor, you want it wider than it is tall....What I mean is the rear tires need to be fairly wide apart compared to how tall the tractor is.
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I wish you well on this.....we just bought a 44 hp diesel, Kubota 4 x 4, filled all four tires with antifreeze and it has done everything thing we've ask of it from pulling us out of the ditch to moving extra large cut trees to digging our septic line......to clearing 50 year old over growth with no problems and many other things I don't remember right now....Husband loves it...won't let me on it until the new wears off!! LOL!! It's a MAN thing !! yeah right!! LOL it will be mine soon......
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I can highly recommend the Kubota tractors. I have the L48 Loader backhoe. I would look for a machine with the HST or HST2 transmission. It's the hydro version, just a pedal that you rock back and forth to make it move. That's what the L48 has, and I love it. I don't know how much manure you have to move, but the 20-30 hp tractors can do a lot of work in a day.
http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w...hepard/l48.jpg |
Something from the past 20 years, the compact 4wd diesel tractors from Japan are good. Kubota, Ford/New Holland, John Deere.
Something new, the tractors from Japan (same manufaturers) are good, but spendy! :) The new stuff from India or Korea is pretty good, little less expensive - there are a lot of private brand names so hard to list them. Tractors from China are to be avoided at this time. Some day they will get it right, but so far, the fit & finish is poor, the castings are poor, and the hoydraulics are poor. Just not up to snuff. There are also grey market tractors - they were built for use in Japan so do not have safety features or parts support in the USA, and are used. They are cheaper, used, manual is in Japaneese, parts are harder to get, but they are better than China machines for sure. If you buy used Kubota, be sure you understand if you are getting a USA type or a Grey Market type - there is quite a price difference, don't get hood winked on this. Yanmar also is a pretty good tractor, often grey-market. Older USA tractors - these are small farm tractors, the good options you would want started showing up about the mid to late 1950s. Older than that, and it likely will not have power steering, live hydraulics, live pto, etc. None have front wheel assist, but don't need it. These are bigger heavier tractors that are balanced with more weight to the rear so they work fine without fwa. In order of cost: New Kubota, New Holland, JD, Case, Massy - all come from Japan. New machine from India or Korea - Kioti used to be if they are still around, Mahindra, and many more. New China tractor - don't bother. Used Kubota, Ford/New Holland, JD. Grey Market machine - less support, Kubota or Yanmar made for Japan. Older USA tractor. Good luck on the search, there is a bewildering assortment of brands, options, and sizes. How does one choose what you need if you don't know anything about it? :) I might suggest, if you buy a good used machine, you can then trade or sell it for not much cost to you, and buy something you really want with the features you realize you need in a year or 2. Might be the best way to try out & learn, then move up to what it is you want. --->Paul |
Thanks everybody! Keep those comments coming. This is really helpful!
In answer to the questions: What do you need the tractor to do? - Mostly to scrape out my cow shed/paddock and move manure and dirt around. I won't be doing any tilling or planting with it; I grow everything in raised beds here. What kind of ground will you be working? Flat or hilly? - Hilly. Stability is kinda crucial because I'm not an experienced operator and I'm not very brave, either! Implements? - basically, a front loader. Future uses for the tractor? - Can't imagine any changes in my situation, hope not anyway! How much do you want to spend? - I'd like to stay under $10,000 Do you mind going into debt for a tractor? - No, I realize that's going to be necessary. Is a used tractor alright for you? - Absolutely, if it runs well! I don't have anyone to work on it for me, and I don't have the time or experience to be constantly tinkering with it myself. |
Hi Willow, I have a ASV RC30. It is a small skid steer loader on tracks. 30 hp diesel,tracks, light(3500 lbs), and can be found used in your price range(10K) I love mine. It gets in places most machines can't handle. There are lots of attachments available. I mostly use the bucket, but the root rake and backhoe sure come in handy.
Good luck in your search! |
My own two cents:
Avoid old tractors. They look cute, but you're going to want one that works. As in with all the bells and whistles. Popular names bring higher prices. Deere, Kubota, etc. all demand higher prices than Yanmar, New Holland, etc. Don't buy too much tractor. If it's utility work you will be doing, don't go buying a field plowing tractor. Get a small nimble utility tractor. |
I have two tractors, one I bought simply because I needed a good all purpose tractor for the farm and the other just because I couldnt let the previous owner keep it at his asking price. ($1000) which included a JD 6' 3pt rototiller. That one is a ferguson 30 that I use for pulling the hay rake and wagons with. It doesnt have live power and makes it difficult running most pto operated equipment and the hydrolics are also somewhat limited. Great little tractor other than that though. My main tractor is a ferguson 35 and there is a huge difference twixt the two. The 35 came with a front end loader which I use for lots of lifting chores around the place, loading manure, gravel, mulch and most anything that needs to be picked up and moved. I also modified a rear mount hay fork to fit on the front loader. I can now load and handle the big round rolls with the tractor instead of having to deal with the small square bales. I bought that one about 12 years ago for $3000, put a new set of tires on it about 3 years ago, cost me $600, but it also came with the front loader, a grader blade, and a 6 ft bushhog. Both of these tractors are over 50 years old and neither of them given me any trouble whatsoever. They are similar to the 9N and 8N Fords that rancher1913 uses for cutting firewood and spreading poo. The basic difference is the fergusons have overhead valve engines with a couple more horses than the fords and a much better low end torque curve with makes them a bit handier than the fords, my 35 has the live power setup for the pto, and much stronger hydrolic system than the 30. Both of them were built to last, and to do basically any tractor work around the farm you need done. Good luck in your tractor search, theres lots of good ones out there. :)
P.S. The smaller older fords, fergusons and massey fergusons are all well suited to hilly ground. They have a low center of gravity and the wheels can be spread out making them extremely difficult to turn over. The larger the tractor, and the taller it stands, the less stable they become. |
You don't need a tractor, Willow, you need a skid steer. It will do everything you want it to do and it will do it MUCH better than a tractor and loader.
I have 40 cows on the place and most of the time I only use the skid steer. The tractor doesn't get much use at all in the winter, and in the summer it does haying. For barn and barnyard cleanup, the skid steer is the one to use. If you have so much manure (cows constantly in barn ) where you are going to use a manure spreader, then you would need a tractor with a pto, but it doesn't sound like you have that problem. Having a skid steer is like having a hired man for the amount of things you can do with it. Jennifer |
skid steers are nice, but "hilly" and "skid steer" don't mix... also, most aren't very stable (unless you get tracks).
Surprised no one has mentioned the older Ford 4000 with a loader or something similar? You could go 38HP and $6,500 instead of 23HP and $17k R P.S. I see that a couple people did, indeed, mention older USA tractors. It's the way I'd go. |
With hills and lack of experience, make sure you get a tractor with roll over protection (ROPS in the brochures) Many people have tipped tractors over on flat ground, never mind hills, and even a small tractor is heavy enough to KILL you.
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My wife & I had just gone through this in 2007. We had a Cub Cadet garden tractor for mowing the yard and we had trouble with it after about 2 years of buying it new. Every single year, it wouldn't start, would break down, we would have $200.00 repair bills a couple times a year.
We finally got fed up, and decided to look around for a smaller tractor to mow our hilly yard. We ended up getting a Mahindra and we bought it with a bucket in the front. We have had 0 problems with it and we use it to mow our yard and to haul stuff in the bucket. A Mahindra is cheaper than the Kubota, John Deere, or other tractors that you are just paying for the name. I would think you might be able to find a smaller tractor with a loader that is used by looking at different auctions. New is good, but you are probably looking at $12,000.00 plus. If you can find somebody with a newer tractor that is having an estate auction, see what model, kind it is, price it accordingly, and go to the auction. You might just get a steal! |
HI Judy!!!
What happened to that john dere that was in the barn yard when I picked Libby up? Libby had another calf a few weeks ago. She is giving about 7 gallons per day now. |
I'm going to recommend a smaller tractor. Something in the 18-20 HP range, 4x4, with a loader. Find out what dealers you have in the area and buy one of their brands. Sticking with a well known name brand is best. John Deere/Kubota/New Holland are the most popular. I will link some examples of what I'm thinking about.
http://www.tractorhouse.com/listings...2b0c550da4dbe1 http://www.tractorhouse.com/listings...1a1cbeea3f4e20 http://www.tractorhouse.com/listings...d61ebf4d795a82 |
Tractorbynet.com check them out.
Don't underestimate a skid steer, they will turn around within their own length which makes them handy in close quarters. Having 100's of hours in one I can tell you they are more stable than they look & you sit inside a roll cage, not just a ROPS [rollbar] and have a seatbelt [so do non grey market SCUT/CUT] so you are more protected in a roll over. They should lift higher than a SCUT[sub compact utility tractor] or CUT [compact utility tractor] and come in AWD so you don't need to pony up extra for 4X4. My only bad experience was driving down a ramp into a hole to dump trash w/ the bucket too high. It would tip forward onto the bucket and wasn't strong enough to back up so I had to get a pickup & a chain to get the back wheels on the ground. The best advise is to look at the dealers closest to your location, and ask everyone you know how they are for service. Tractors can and will break & you won't want to go back to the wheelbarrow while the parts come in. Get the largest/widest tracctor you can afford & avoid the grey market. Size isn't as important as experience. Dad & I were purchasing a fuel tank/pump from a friend who ran an excavatiion business. He was retiring and his son was running the business. We sat on his front porch watching his grandaughter, all of 14, muck out the barn & barnyard using a 941 CAT track loader. The barnyard was maybe 20 X 30 & this kid grew up watching her dad & granddad & while the 941 was a smaller CAT, it was still a full size construction machine! Leave the old Ford 9N/8N & farmalls for the collectors. They are workhorses but they are not suited to your needs. |
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I'm another who would say you should seriously look into a skid steer. They are so much better for dirt/scraping work. Get one with the newer style attachement and you can easily rent all sort of things (post hole diggers, tillers, pounders) to get work done.
We have an old skidsteer, and I can't imagine dealing without one. (also have an old tractor, but it's not that little). Cathy |
if you _only_ want a loader, those skid steers are pretty good. However they _only_ do loader work, don't handle deep mud, and you will not have a tractor to pull things, or run other implements. They are very specialized. You can find ok used ones for $5000, so it would fit your budget.
I think a slightly used compact utility tractor about 3-5 years old, in the 7-10,000 range, would do what you want. You might find one for $5000 with a loader, but that would be a real deal or one with a preoblem..... These tractors with 1000 hours or less are in pretty good shape. Kubota, New Holland, JD. Mahindra is in the cheaper class, but also worth looking at. Now, what size do you need? How tall is your shed, how wide is the door? Are we talking 2 horses, or 30 horses to clean up after. :) Those tractors yunder 20 hp can be glorified lawn mowers - if you have _real_ work to do they might not cut it. Or, if you have a real small shed with a narrow door, that might be the only thing that fits, and then is perfect for you.... I'd say the tractors under 20 hp are small, 20-30 are nice work horses, and over 30 are getting to be serious tractors. I'd guess you are looking at that middle range? But the smaller range might suit your needs, we don't know. It sounds like you do not need the big range, unless you find a real deal. --->Paul |
There are lots of good tractors out there, and I've had good luck with Fords, Masseys, JD, and Kubota. The Kubota I have now is a 3130 L, and it is a great tractor. It has been the "most borrowed" piece of equipment in the family. The loader and 4x4 just gives it so much more utility than bigger two wheel drives on the farm/in the family. Do look for a tractor with a roll over protection system (ROPS). There's only one of you. Best wishes.
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Just to confuse things try WWW.jonesboro-tractor.com . It will give you an idea as to what is out their. On the front cover of Volume 3 Issue 12 .March 20,2009 is an add for several package deals, Tractor, front end loader 5 foot cutter, 5 or 6 foot box blade 18 foot trailer and ramps from $17,900 to $24,599. Find a dealer that works on tractor and buy that brand. You will have to have somebody to work on your tractor from time to time.
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WILLOW <> I have a neighbor who has a good 8N Ford wth a loader on it. I'm pretty sure he'd trade it to you even up for your 4 cows. Those 8N loaders don't amount to much, but without any cows it wouldn't make much difference, would it. Happy titilating. LOL <> UNK
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Take heart, girl....
My wife and I spread 5-6 TONS of manure on our farm each week, and yes we do it all by hand with pitchforks! No spreader or loader, just throw it on the trailer, drive to the field, and fork it out spreading it evenly over the land. Just bought another tractor too (50hp), and could have had a front end loader for another $1500, but we decided against it. Why?, cuz we just like the workout! No pudgy farmer bellies here! When you've spread manure by the ton daily(by hand), you'll find out that 4 cows just aint nothin'! :) |
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Front Loader, Backhoe, 4WD, PTO, 24Hp, diesel. 70 months at zero percent financing got me in at $250/month. It is fun to use. :) |
OK, I'm back! (Yesterday was kind of a long day.) Thanks, everybody, for the suggestions -- keep 'em coming! Here are just a few quick comments:
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Oh well, too late now! Hey, I'm glad to hear Libby had another successful calving! Bull or heifer this time? and, SEVEN gallons of milk?! Holy moly, that's a LOT of milk out of a LITTLE cow! I'd love to see some pics when you have time, Max. Thanks for taking such good care of our girl!!!!!!! Quote:
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Yeah, I realize hard work never killed anyone, but I don't wanna be the first! :eek: Seriously ... I do all the farm stuff by myself, and I have 4, count 'em FOUR, part-time jobs off the farm, so something's gotta give somewhere. Anyway ... spring is usually auction season, so I'll be scouring the listings on Auctionzip.com to see if I can find any of the tractors recommended above! |
May I suggest watching your local craigslist for tractors? They are usually posted in the farm/garden section. This will help give you an idea of what tractors are out there, and a general idea of price and what people are asking for them.
I have seen some really good deals on craigslist for tractors. They don't last long if they are priced right. Seems like I have seen several small Massey's and Fords at really good prices. I still vote paying cash for a old tractor with a wide front end in good condition, but that is just me. I have posted this before in other threads, and got the daylights beat out of me for not suggesting a new $20,000 tractor with $14,000 worth of implements. (We worked the Dave Ramsey plan many years ago, and we avoid debt like the plague.) * This part is important, and I haven't seen it posted yet: Make sure you have adequate clearance to get a tractor in and out of your barn. Probably need to measure the heighth of your barn doors. |
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Willow,
I have a gasoline 3000 Ford with power steering, live hydraulics, live power, and a front end loader. When I bought it 5 yrs ago it had low hours, roll bar, new tires, good paint, no problems of any sort, and cost less than $5,000 delivered. Good old iron at a very reasonable price. They are out there if you just look, and a lot cheaper than imports. There are plenty of implements available for these oldies at cheap to reasonable prices. I have a pt. blade, a rotary mower, a gin pole, a drag, and bale spike for the front end loader, with it and a spike on the 3 point I can bring in 2 round bales at a time from the field with no problem. Parts are readily available, reasonably price, and most mechanics can, and will, work on them, something not awlays true with imports. This tractor does everything I need to do, and does it easily. The only thing I would possibly want different is I wish it was a diesel. I maintain and service it well and I expect it to last me as long as I ever need a tractor. |
local Massey Ferguson place has a 165 with front end loader (50 hp) for $5,000. Craigslist often beats that for good used ones.
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I'm in the same need of a frontend loader.
Skidsteers are like an extra (loss for the proper term) miracle I guess. My youngest works for Bobcat and he can snag one for me to use on occasion. And use it I do. I have tried most all they have and the track machines are more suited for me. They ride better and are more versital in the mud and tear the ground up less than tire machines. This is just my opinion from the experience I have had with them. About 80 hours operating time for me. Very handy to have but............ I need another tractor, more modern hydraulics than my WD I have now. I did acquire an old front bucket off a backhoe (6') and rigged a 3-point hookup on it for the WD. It works great, but it isn't enough. It has been my right arm for 15 years now. Bobcat has compact tractors that I have been drooling over for some time now. I think the 50 hp is about 25k. 30hp or so is about half that. As much as I would like a skidsteer, I think a compact tractor w/loader would be better. On a side thought, My youngest was needing to work off some aggrevation with his girlfriend so he decided he was going to dig a hole in the upper pasture with the latest Bobcat he brought out. It was 40' long and 4' deep. After about a foot he hit loose limestone rock. 50% were the size of a hood of a car, 6" thick. When he was done playing, after seperating the rocks. I used the rocks in the washout I call a driveway. The drive goes over a runoff creek. I moved those in about 3 hours and never got out of the machine and placed them exactly where I wanted them. Something that I wouldn't have dreamed could happen with my current setup. I have been doing this periodically for 15 years with my WD and rear bucket but it would have taken 2 months and manhandling ever rock in the bucket. They both have there place. Choose which one serves you best. |
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................One IMPortant difference between the smaller\older farm tractors and a small commercial tractor like a Ford 340A , 340B , etc . A small farm tractor (small being less than 70 hp) has ONE hydraulic pump mounted inside the body of the tractor , now this pump will provide sufficient pressure and fluid volume for the operation of the rear 3 point hookup used for blades and such , IF a frontend loader is added the pump(factory) will NOT have sufficient capacity too power both FE loader and the rear 3 point hookup . So , the only solution is to add a pump on the front of the engine dedicated , EXclusively too power the FE loader , otherwise both functions will be very degraded .
................Now , a small Commercial tractor will have been equipped with one Hyd. pump dedicated exclusively too the FE loader , and another pump too the 3 point hookup . Plus , the frame on a commercial tractor is built MUCH stronger than a farm tractor . , fordy:coffee: |
I have a 30hp Kioti and have never had a problem with it....this will be its 3rd year and i use it to mow. blade the drive, get gravel from the creek and put in food plots. It is a 4x4 and the one decent snow we had this year it had no issue clearing the road. I was considerably less than the kubota and now it is even being labled and sold by bobcat. just do your homework there are a lot of good compact tractors out there.....
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