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 | Toddh
Join Date: Posts: 1 
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2000-03-29 14273
I've basically decided that I need to buy a compact tractor, but have never owned a tractor before. Used vs. new is confusing and that's before even thinking about brands. I have 15 ac with 4 horses (2 mares with foal due in 3 weeks) and live at the property. Mowing is a primary use and there is a lot of bitterweed and mesquite on the property, so brush hog (5'?) would be required. Some minor dirt work and general horse chores (manure spreading, stall cleaning, etc.) would also be required. I've looked at a Kioti 3054, LongTrac 320 and researched the JD 4x00 series (4100 sounds good). If anyone has suggestions for what size/brand of tractor and implements, I'd love to hear them.
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| Scott Stewart
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2000-03-29 14284
I recently found myself in the same position. I shopped JD, Kubota and New Holland. For some reason, I really liked the NH but almost bought a JD. However, my wife found a great deal in the local paper and we got a '98 NH1730 (29hp w/200hrs), loader, bushhog and blade. I know deals are out there. Unfortunately, springtime is a bad time to find them. If you are patient and lucky, one may come your way. Everyone I have spoken to recommends staying away from the Longs - "they can be difficult to get parts for and tend to break". I have no experience with them, but trust the local farmers that do. I looked very hard at the Kioti's, but the $1000 wasn't worth it to me. They just don't have the reputation like the others and their controls are a little less user friendly.
Scott ....
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| MichaelSnyder
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 0
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2000-03-31 14318
Todd,
As with most situations on the CTB, we can only recommend or advise based upon what mental picture appears in our heads from your post. With that said, Looking at the acres of land you own and guessing your situation is somewhat similar to a few horse farms around us.... It's my guess that a 20hp unit like the 4100 would be a bit on the small side for your needs. Which by the way is what we own..But I only have 2 acres and no horses, etc.. We also searched for a good used compact. I assume they exist...somewhere, but even ones which looked "beat" or "really used" seemed to retained incredible resale value. Further more, we knew we wanted a loader and a 54" belly mower. The 60" is simply too broad to trim between our fence line & trees. So we would have ended up buying new attachments anyway. So, from a financial standpoint, not just at time of purchase, but also costs incurred 10 years from now...the logical choice seemed to be a 'new' unit. We plan to keep it for many many years. Good Luck :) ....
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| Alan L. Lewis
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2000-03-31 14327
Toddh:
For a 5' brush cutter you will need something about like a Kubota B2710 or JD 4200 at the bear minimum. Anything smaller and you have to run a 4'. I have a 2710 and it runs a 5' cutter just fine. ....
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| Andy
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2000-03-31 14329
Toddh......I have to agree with the others, a 4100 seems a bit on the small/light side for your needs.....I've been shopping around and IMHO the Kubota B2710/2910, JD4200/4300, or the NH TC29/TC33 would be better suited to your needs......prices range from $17K-$20K for tractor with HST, folding ROPS, R4s, fitted with 60" HD loader, 5' brush hog, and 5' box scraper. ....
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| bestoldman
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2000-03-31 14333
TodH from bestoldman. Ran Kioti last year, very crude, and very slow. Long tractor, hard to find dealers for. Suggest JD 4600 or larger, or Kubota same size or larger. JD 5100 would be a good choice. ....
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| bestoldman
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2000-03-31 14334
TodH from bestoldman. Ran Kioti last year, very crude, and very slow. Long tractor, hard to find dealers for. Suggest JD 4600 or larger, or Kubota same size or larger. JD 5100 would be a good choice. ....
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| PaulB
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2000-04-01 14342
Gotta add my 2 cents worth, as I have 7 horses, 10 acres. I went small and maneuverable to do the work I do, and have not regreted it. I bought a kubota B1700, which is 17 horsepower, and is physically slightly smaller than the JD4100. I haul wood, move dirt, spread manure, bring water to the pastures, carry hay out to the pastures, drag my riding arena, pull out old fence posts, drag trees out of the woods to get cut up for firewood, plow the driveway in the winter, pick rocks out of the pastures, even once had to push a horse who died over to his grave and fill it in (don't want to have to do that again in the near future) and do everything else you need to do except mow, which I will once my garden tractor dies and I need to buy a deck. I never feel underpowered, and I appreciate the ease of maneuvering around the barn and paddocks that the smaller tractor allows. Yes I have to pull a smaller manure spreader than I could with a 30 horsepower machine, and I will get a 48 inch bushhog not a 60, and my 5 foot rear blade takes longer to plow than a 7 footer would, but for me when I am on the tractor I am having fun, so taking a little longer to do a job is no great shakes. Most users say go bigger, but I am from the opposite camp, and like my smaller machine. I would say, get hydro and 4 wheel drive whatever you decide on. good luck. ....
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| Eddie Watkins
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2000-04-01 14343
ToddH, I just went through the same process and it is really difficult because all the tractors are good. It comes down to what you want to use it for. For brushhogging a pasture, I would certainly want as wide a rotary cutter as I could get. I bought my JD 4300 about 9 days ago and have worked (played) on it nearly every evening. I was able to pull some stumps that were in the 10-12" diameter range with little problem. I thought the JD 4300, Kubota B2910 and NH TC29D were all nice tractors and believe I would have enjoyed any one of them and they would have done the job. The adjustable arms on the B2910 would have been nice, I am not very good at lining up the implements to hook to the 3pth, yet. You give up some lift capacity to get that feature but, for me, I'm not sure I will ever do anything that needs the capacity I have. Amazingly, after I bought new, I found a used dealer with several nice used tractors. I would recommend something in the 30 hp range simply because the extra power may come in handy. The bottom line is find one that will do what you want it to do. The rule I have seen here on the CTB is about 5 hp for each foot of width on the rotary cutter. Somebody else may have better information. ....
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| Roger L.
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 0
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2000-04-01 14344
Todd, most of us would agree that it just doesn't much matter. All of us have different opinions on what would be the "best" tractor. The good news is that all of the name brands are very good, and have been for at least the last 10 years - maybe 20. Name brands popular around here are JD, Kubota, NH (Ford), Massey Ferguson, and more recently - Cub Cadet. The Kioti and Long are not as well known so they don't have a track record yet. But the name brands have been proven to be very durable. If you go back through the old threads on this forum and you will see that mechanical problems are rare - even with older used machines - as long as they were kept up. A tractor in good shape drops up to 20% from its purchase price and then tends to holds that value a long time. Sometimes they begin to go up in value. The market for used ones is very strong. With a popular make you can easily trade up or down. Unusually low price deals are so rare that they may not be worth your time to pursue. Horsepower is not as important as physical size. They all have plenty of power, the larger ones are physically larger - which means more stable - particularly when carrying something heavy....and that IS important. Littler ones do the jobs slower, but are handier. So you take smaller bites. That's all.
So my advice is: get any make that has a dealer close enough to you to make you feel comfortable. Lean toward the name brands. Definitely go for 4wd, get a loader (they can be added), and put something on the rear 3pt to counterbalance the loader. It can be a weight box, back blade, a box blade, or a bush hog. Now you have the basic tool. Set the wheels as wide as they will go - (stability again). Personally I would add power steering to the "must have" list; tractors with a full loader bucket can be a bear to steer. Gears vs Hydo? Everyone appreciates the convenience of hydrostatic transmissions. Get this if available, keeping in mind that gear transmissions work just fine and this is the area where you can save the most money. Something in the 18 to 30 HP range is a good place to start. A 30 HP tractor is almost twice the physical size of a 20 hp.
You are in the lucky position of being able to choose from a large selection of good machines.
....
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| Toddh
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2000-04-01 14348
Thanks for all the suggestions and help. Based on my own research, meeting with dealers, reading the very helpful comments posted here, and searching the classified ads I've pretty much narrowed down my choices to the JD 790 and the Kubota L3000 (both new, with loader and both have dealers within 20 miles of my property). Neither are the "Cadillac" models, but price/performance is important. I know this is the Deere board, but any comments would be appreciated.
Also, the implements from the Kubota and Deere dealers seem awful expensive (outisde of the loaders) vs. Tractor Supply or another tractor dealer. I was looking at 5' cutters for about $500 at most places but the Kubota dealer wants $750 for his Rhino mower and the JD dealer wants $795 for the Deere mower (ouch!). Is this normal and, if so, anyone know why?
Thanks again for all the help. This board is a boon to beginners!
Todd ....
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| Toddh
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2000-04-01 14349
Darn it, one other thing: I know I don't want turf tires, but I'm seriously considering the industrial tires instead of the Ag tires. I'm not going to be using the tractor on the lawn, but I understand that the industrial tires help keep from digging ruts in the pasture and are more durable plus they add a little weight (at the cost of a little traction). Anyone have good or bad experience with the industrial tires? Are they worth the extra $$?
Todd ....
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| Jim Youtz
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2000-04-01 14361
Get the industrial tires. They don't tear up turf like AG tires, and have almost or about the same traction. They're thicker and tougher to puncture than either the turf or AG. Only downside-they ride stiff. ....
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| Jim Youtz
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2000-04-01 14362
Get the industrial tires. They don't tear up turf like AG tires, and have almost or about the same traction. They're thicker and tougher to puncture than either the turf or AG. Only downside-they ride stiff. Also I agree wholeheartedly with the previous posting that suggests that sometimes smaller is better. Nothing gets in the way in tight places like a machine too large for the job. One of the most important purchase decisions IMHO is to properly size for your needs (far more important than brand). Of course don't undersize, but just as important not to oversize ....
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