Not sure what I need

[mfields]

I'm kicking around the idea of picking up an old SCUT. I'm going to be on a tight budget, and I'm not looking to get anything for another year or two. Right now I'm just doing my research, and this seems like a great place to ask some questions.

I'm looking for a small 4wd tractor (needs to fit in an 8' truck bed) to use for plowing the garden and prepping food plots. Originally I thought about an old garden tractor with a sleeve hitch, but I also heat with firewood and thought that a slightly larger tractor with a FEL might be a lot more useful for that. The firewood is often tree tops left by the loggers and they often need to be skidded up out of a ravine so that I can safely cut them up. A SCUT with a FEL seems like it would be MUCH better suited for this task, and it would make the cost of buying a machine a LOT easier to justify. The plowing would be done with a single bottom plow (would like to get a 2 bottom some day) and a 48" chisel plow. I mow the yard (1.5 acres) with a ZTR w/ a 60" deck, so I don't really need anything for mowing. If the tractor already had a deck of some kind, I may use it for trail maintenance out in the woods. I plow snow with an ATV with a front and a rear blade, and that works pretty well for me, so I don't really need anything for snow removal either.

Over time, I may buy/build a rear tiller for it, as well as a rear blade. I'd really like to keep the price for the base tractor down as low as possible. I've been looking at the old B6000/6001/6100 and the B7000/7001/7100. Seems like these would be a good fit, but I don't know what other models are out there that I should be looking at. I'd be glad to hear any suggestions.

Thanks,
Mark

 

[lsmurphy]

The 7100 size or any other 4WD in that category with weights, ballast, and operator will come in close to 1000lbs.
Add an attachment, my tiller weighs in at 669lbs, mower at 458lbs........etc.........

7100 with tiller and operator.........1700lbs++ or around there.



If you cannot afford a $500 to $800 trailer.........>FIRST!........you cannot afford a low budget tractor.


People die on a regular basis loading tractors into truck beds. Even with only a 4' box blade or single bottom plow..........it won't fit anyway.





You need to rethink.

 

[DanDan]

I'm looking for a small 4wd tractor (needs to fit in an 8' truck bed) ...

I'm with lsmurphy on this one- you might not know what you want or need now, but the precondition of it having to fit in the bed of a pickup is very constraining. I wouldn't dream of putting our BX1860- the smallest Kubota going right now- in the bed of our truck. I'm rather horrified at the prospect, actually.

Think about getting a trailer if the machine has to be moved.

 

[Benhameen]

I have witnessed a number of accidents loading atv's and dirt bikes in the bed of a trucks over the years. I couldn't imagine loading a tractor, especially when your tired from working, that's usually the reason for the accidents that I have seen, guys are wore out from riding.

Get a trailer first.

Just my two cents, of course.

 

[85Hokie]

I third the trailer idea.....just think about WHAT ELSE you can do with a trailer.....get the trailer FIRST and the posiblities open up as to what type of SCUT you can get. I had my BX-25D with loaded tires delivered on a single axle 12' trailer.......I looked like Spock, an eyebrow raised rather high...then he (saleman) backed it off and the trucks rear end came off the ground.......

if you are not rushing into it , do as murphy said....look at the big picture,
Eat this elephant, one bite at a time! Just my 1.5 cents....damn inflation

 

[skeets]

Trailer first, then the tractor,, but read this first it might save you a bunch of heart ache later

http://www.grit.com/tools/how-to-ch... eNews&utm_campaign=10.07.13 TG#axzz2h2WBqg7G

 

[cerlawson]

If you can build a tiller, you certainly can build a trailer. Then will come the day you want to upgrade for a better tractor. Make the trailer big enuff for that.

One warning, check out the three point hitch control. If it is not one for setting the "draft", forget it. Some smaller Kubotas have a cheap substitute.

It's a good idea to look at used as a starter. You may find a little surprises, but usually much cheaper than buying new.

 

[Eric McCarthy]

Here's my haul rig, its over kill for a B6100 without a loader but I like having more then enough truck. 88 Chevy C-30 crew cab one ton and a 6x16 tandem axle trailer rated for 7000lbs and I use every inch of deck space quite often