Flailing about tractors

[BotaDriver]

In regards to hillside stability; You can add wheel spacers on the 32/3800, up to 3" each. What type of tires are you looking to get? I didn't see that mentioned. What type of hills are we talking about on the property?

You'll love TN I think. Our county borders AL, and we're a little less than an Hr south of Chattanooga.

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Let me know how that China junk works out for ya pimp, not to mention the shipping from over seas...

It's the exact same "China junk" as value leader if you didn't happen to notice, 'pimp'. There is no trouble getting that into a container full of like items going to like customers. I take it you've always purchased your China-made good from people who do just that?

I take it you don't know much about purchasing directly, or international freight for that matter, but I'll let you in on a secret. It's rather simple to order Chinese goods, of all shapes and sizes. The price also comes down quite a bit if you need a decent steady supply. Have you ever been in Harbor Freight? They have the absolute cheapest stuff out there of any US Retailer, and they do A LOT of business.

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[Russell King]

OK so someone please tell me why a flail mower is better than a rotary mower and what are the advantages one over the other and can I use it in multi floral rose and brush?

A couple of other things about these flail mowers (as I read) is that they chop up the material a bit better and it is not windrowed as much. The front of the mower starts chopping into the material at a taller height and then as the mower moves along it cuts off more and more until the height of the bottom blades are reached.

Hope that makes sense.

The material falls out along the total length of the mower.

 

[chrisDavis]

In regards to hillside stability; You can add wheel spacers on the 32/3800, up to 3" each. What type of tires are you looking to get? I didn't see that mentioned. What type of hills are we talking about on the property?

You'll love TN I think. Our county borders AL, and we're a little less than an Hr south of Chattanooga.

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It's the exact same "China junk" as value leader if you didn't happen to notice, 'pimp'. There is no trouble getting that into a container full of like items going to like customers. I take it you've always purchased your China-made good from people who do just that?

I take it you don't know much about purchasing directly, or international freight for that matter, but I'll let you in on a secret. It's rather simple to order Chinese goods, of all shapes and sizes. The price also comes down quite a bit if you need a decent steady supply. Have you ever been in Harbor Freight? They have the absolute cheapest stuff out there of any US Retailer, and they do A LOT of business.

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Tires are too subtle a point for me at the moment Gotta do some reading up on that.
I can walk straight up most of the wooded hills, but get pretty winded. I am guessing some of it is 100% grade (45 degrees?). Most is considerable less inclined. Other than pucker, I don't see why going straight up 100% grade should be an issue. Not so much going sideways, though...

 

[ipz2222]

You just don't want to go down a hill with a load in an fel and a 2wd machine. Rear wheels will just slide. BIG pucker factor.

 

[tonyvkubota]

Hello Tony:
I started off looking at "big" lawn tractors and now I am looking at L series! At this point 4x4 and stability on hills (safety) is my number one concern. I think HST is the way I will go because my wife wants to mow the fields and she has never gotten the hang of gears/clutches.

Most L series I see don't have a back hoe. I wanted a one for running drainage pipes and digging holes for fruit trees. But it looks pretty expensive for an add on.

A fellow here in Cocoa has an L4400HST with bush hog, straight blade , and box blade for $20K. About 50 hours use and "one" scratch. I really want a flail mower -- especially if it will work for bush hogging, too. Flails don't seem very popular, though.

Tennessee is as far north as I could see my Florida native honey moving. Folks there seem very friendly. Sales taxes are high (10%), but no income taxes. They do have some sort of dividend/interest tax. Apparently some people drive out of state to purchase big ticket items to save on the sales taxes.

Land where I bought is not too expensive. I paid about $1400/acre for my property. It has a couple of small creeks, a cave for moonshining , pretty "mountain" and pasture views, and enough pasture for a small garden and shooting range. It gets enough snow to create a good mood, but not so much that I will be blowing it off the driveway.

Thanks for your comments and those of everyone else here. I don't know jack about tractors, so everyone's comments and experiences are gold to me.

Chris

Hey Chris , here a thought on the back hoe. I also plant fruit trees. Now most of my backhoe work is done but I still day dream of having a backhoe, just can' t justify the cost with what I would do with it. But I did see a cool idea I believe was in this forum. A guy took basically a large shovel spade with no handle on it and rigged it to his front end loader bucket with chained turn buckle like they use to hold down rigs in transport on a flat bed. It gave me a thought to rig my own for planting more fruit trees. For me getting my trees in was easy ( my buddy dug holes with his backhoe )..... but dam taking care and maintain them is another story , lots work.
Like you I am new to the tractor world, but I have many farmers and loggers , for neighbors and friends who help me out. I am always very concern with safety and listen to them always.
Hey with that high sales tax in TN, does that mean lots big business setting up out state near the TN state border line ?
I do love NY, the four seasons , and even the snow. But I will not be trapped into paying high taxes for no reason. And here in Central NY is always the natural gas drilling be here one day. When that happens I think I be out NY. Your plans sound good , enjoy. TONY

 

[BotaDriver]

Hey Chris , here a thought on the back hoe. I also plant fruit trees. Now most of my backhoe work is done but I still day dream of having a backhoe, just can' t justify the cost with what I would do with it. But I did see a cool idea I believe was in this forum. A guy took basically a large shovel spade with no handle on it and rigged it to his front end loader bucket with chained turn buckle like they use to hold down rigs in transport on a flat bed. It gave me a thought to rig my own for planting more fruit trees. For me getting my trees in was easy ( my buddy dug holes with his backhoe )..... but dam taking care and maintain them is another story , lots work.TONY

There are also stump buckets that go on the SSQA, let's see if this image loads....

 

[Eric McCarthy]

It's the exact same "China junk" as value leader if you didn't happen to notice, 'pimp'. There is no trouble getting that into a container full of like items going to like customers. I take it you've always purchased your China-made good from people who do just that?

I take it you don't know much about purchasing directly, or international freight for that matter, but I'll let you in on a secret. It's rather simple to order Chinese goods, of all shapes and sizes. The price also comes down quite a bit if you need a decent steady supply. Have you ever been in Harbor Freight? They have the absolute cheapest stuff out there of any US Retailer, and they do A LOT of business.

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NOPE I've NEVER set foot inside a Harbor Freight and don't plan on it either. I've seen their web site and came to my own conclusion its cheap shit junk tools and stuff from China that won't hold up and last. If I ever need cheap screw drivers or sockets in bulk I might stop in and buy up some.

I said I'd take a gamble on Value Leader Implements because they offer what I find to be a decent warranty.

 

[BotaDriver]

NOPE I've NEVER set foot inside a Harbor Freight and don't plan on it either. I've seen their web site and came to my own conclusion its cheap shit junk tools and stuff from China that won't hold up and last. If I ever need cheap screw drivers or sockets in bulk I might stop in and buy up some.

You didn't spend enough time on their site as you could have read some reviews. If you did, you find that a lot of their tools are equal to name brands, in-fact some are literally the EXACT same tools. Sears has several craftsman branded tools that are made in the same factory, except they charge 20x as much. (there are threads out there that talk about the tools HFT sells branded as national name brands)

Most of the engines they sell are exact clones of the old Hondas. Reviews are on par w/ units sold for several times the price, sometimes the reviews are better than others. HD/Lowes carries a lot of junk; HFT just sells it for much less. Not to mention their 2 yr no questions asked replacement warranty is rather cheap.

The SDS+ Rotary Hammer I bought from them has the best vibration dampening of any unit I've seen. Already drilled 100 5/8 holes a foot deep and it performed flawlessly. It cost about $67.....less than the rental cost of a Makita for 1 day.

 

[buckaroo52]

I don't usually buy HF crap either, too far a drive to return it when it does break, and it will. I did buy the chain saw sharpening device, on sale for $19.99. I've had it for 6 years now and use it a lot, so do my friends and neighbors, damn thing works great. I mounted it to a 2x6 and clamp it in my vice so its not in the way mounted on my work bench. I bought a gold trommel made in California that has a HF predator gas engine on it and it ran all summer long without a single hiccup. Wasn't thrilled about that engine on my new trommel, but so far it has been amazing, although it only runs at a high idle. I gave up on their hand tools though, they definitely are crap. So bottom line on HF is I guess it depends on what you buy, and what you expect out of it.

 

[Eric McCarthy]

Like everything else there comes a price point where quality diminishes and goes right out the window. Yep there are dozens of items of all sorts that are from China. But the price tag on each item reflects the quality behind it.

I've had friends of mine buy up HF impact sockets, the first use on a nut and the socket blew open. Another guy I know bought a cheap ass horizontal engine for his log splitter spent something like 400 bucks I think and after 16 hours of operation the engine blew a piston threw the block.

You get what you pay for in life, you spend cheap you get cheap products. I've said all along I'd entertain the idea of a Value Leader mower BECAUSE they offer a 2 year warranty.


Ohh and Buckaroo52 that electric chain saw sharpener you bought throw it away and save the life span of your saw chains. All the professional tree guys I know taught me and they ONLY use hand files to sharpen their chains. The electric tool job takes off too much metal too quickly and will shorten the life span of the chain. There is a right way and a wrong way to file a chain and the electric sharpeners will not to it correctly.

 

[olthumpa]

I agree with Eric on the electric sharpener. They eat chains. If you do not use your saw much than it isn't that much of an issue.

When I am cutting I touch up the chain with a hand file at the first sign that it is getting dull. Might take me 5min. but time well spent because it keeps the saw cutting fast and from working harder than it has too.

I always have spare sharp chains with me so it it is going to take more than 10 min to sharpen it, (because I hit something), I swap out the chain, back to work and it the chain isn't destroyed sharpen it later - voila another spare sharp chain.

 

[skeets]

Well I don't know but I got a HF chain sharpener about 4 years ago, and it paid for it self in the first 3 weeks I had it, Lil Brother and nephew bring their chains to get them sharpened too so there has been a ton of chains run through the thing. You can adjust the depth of your grind and the angle. Granted it aint like a pro sharpener but it works well and like a file it is just for touch ups, and Im still using some of the same chains I started with, and you have to manually file down the rakes on the chain. I don't like using the china stuff but for what it is it aint bad

 

[buckaroo52]

If you are grinding off too much material from your chains, instead of just sharpening them, then you probably shouldn't be running a saw unsupervised either ! Every commercial logger I know has an electric sharpener of some sort or another, and they only use a file if they are down to their last sharp chain in the woods. It is impossible to get a straight edge with a file, and then**your saw will pull off center, guaranteed. I've got chains that are at least 6 years old and still got lots of life left in them. I cut problem trees, leaners, trees with broken tops, windfalls, and approximately 6 cords of firewood from my 30 acre timber patch ever year. I won't be throwing away my electric sharpener anytime soon !

 

[Billdog350]

I see the thread has drifted into chainsaws and harbor freight.....

Back to the OP. L series are definitely where you want to look and they're often similar priced to the B series....you would think stepping up would be way more, but actually there is a premium you're paying for the "Compact" nature of the B's. I have seen L tractors almost as cheap as B's.

Example here: PARC's equipment will ship their tractors to CT for about $700 or less, so I would guess to TN you'd pay a few hundred. They whoop on anyone elses prices.

http://www.thetractorguys.com/new_vehicle_list.asp?Manufacturer=307&mainManufacturer=307&brands=y

http://www.tractorhouse.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=6497031

http://www.tractorhouse.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=6497041

Here is a L3800 HST 4wd for $18500 with 50 hrs!
http://www.tractorhouse.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=8381269

Keep in mind some of these deals at Parcs are NOT kubota FEL and backhoe...they're aftermarket "german engineered made in taiwan" units. I have serviced a few of them and they seem to hold up well and customers are happy. That said I personally would try to spend a bit more for the official Kubota FEL since the parts are easier to find down the road.

 

[chrisDavis]

I see the thread has drifted into chainsaws and harbor freight.....

Back to the OP. L series are definitely where you want to look and they're often similar priced to the B series....you would think stepping up would be way more, but actually there is a premium you're paying for the "Compact" nature of the B's. I have seen L tractors almost as cheap as B's.

Example here: PARC's equipment will ship their tractors to CT for about $700 or less, so I would guess to TN you'd pay a few hundred. They whoop on anyone elses prices.

http://www.thetractorguys.com/new_vehicle_list.asp?Manufacturer=307&mainManufacturer=307&brands=y

http://www.tractorhouse.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=6497031

http://www.tractorhouse.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=6497041

Here is a L3800 HST 4wd for $18500 with 50 hrs!
http://www.tractorhouse.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=8381269

Keep in mind some of these deals at Parcs are NOT kubota FEL and backhoe...they're aftermarket "german engineered made in taiwan" units. I have serviced a few of them and they seem to hold up well and customers are happy. That said I personally would try to spend a bit more for the official Kubota FEL since the parts are easier to find down the road.

Thanks for the links! It seems clear an L series is in my future.

As an aside, the chainsaw sharpener twist is a remarkable coincidence. I just bought the HF sharpener to use on a couple of dull chains. Seemed to work ok. However, having read the "proper" way to sharpen chains, I think I will have them professionally sharpened every other time.

Very tough day at work. I am going to meet a builder on Monday to see about getting a house built on my TN property. Retirement and playing with big boy toys can't come too soon.

 

[barncat]

Chris,
I have so enjoyed reading this post. The OTT community is awesome!

Ridding a L3200HST with FEL, 3pt SplitFire Log splitter, plow and box blade…I borrow all the other implements from my brother. It is nice to have someone to share the implement investment with, so, I purchase with barter/sharing in mind.

I cleared 200 year old timber this last summer and I am delighted at all the work this tractor can do. The fuel economy is simply amazing with this unit. I have wondered if a L3800 would have been better but I have never found my tractor to come up short. The HST is loud but I work much quicker on back and forth jobs and it will crawl, a variable speed feature the gears can't match. I am on a hill and there are areas I wish I had the spacer blocks for a wider stance but in the tight places I'm glad I didn't. I filled the tires for lower center of gravity and that greatly helps.

Recommendations: upgrade the 3pt hitch to heavy duty, fill the tires, get bolt in teeth bar for the bucket, and add logging chain hooks to the top of the FEL.

There is nothing like Tractor Therapy!

 

[BotaDriver]

I have wondered if a L3800 would have been better but I have never found my tractor to come up short. The HST is loud but I work much quicker on back and forth jobs and it will crawl, a variable speed feature the gears can't match.

Bet ya $10 I can do every speed w/ my gear that you can do on your HST

And when I press my pedal to go faster, it increases the power

We'll do a straight line back and forth race. The catch, though not needed, you get 9' to flip the 180 and head back the other direction. (have you even used the independent brake feature of the machine?)

 

[Eric McCarthy]

Bet ya $10 I can do every speed w/ my gear that you can do on your HST

And when I press my pedal to go faster, it increases the power

We'll do a straight line back and forth race. The catch, though not needed, you get 9' to flip the 180 and head back the other direction. (have you even used the independent brake feature of the machine?)

I'll put $20 down on that same bet!

 

[Billdog350]

Botadriver, the better test is real world use, not straight line drag racing. How about you both have to load X amount of material from piles into trucks. A DT tractor is constantly being shifted in and out to different gears or slipping the clutch (bad stuff) to get a nice bucket load, while the hst comes up against that pile of material, works it into a nice full bucket load, and you're reversing and dumping into a truck before the gear tractor even has a decent bucket load started.

I've used both GST, DT and HST Kubotas...for loading material a HST will win every time. No way you can creep up close to a truck as easily with the DT as well.

 

[Balvar24]

Bet ya $10 I can do every speed w/ my gear that you can do on your HST

At constant 540 PTO RPM for extended periods of time?