Kubota Tractor Size Inquiry

[WagginTail]

The original thought process was to trade our tractor in for a larger tractor for lift capacity purposes. Our L3301 has served us in every capacity we have needed it. It lacked being able to lift a round hay bale. It will do it but it doesn't like it one bit. Our problem with a larger tractor is that our property is currently designed for a small tractor. So all of our trails, our garden, our gates, pile barn storage, everything is small. To upgrade in tractor size would require extensive expansion of all of that. The larger tractor would have to live outside because it would not be capable of fitting thru the pole barn door. So overall a larger machine was not ideal. But we need lift capacity. My wife had the idea for a skid steer. I have never operated one and had many concerns about it fitting down the paths, will it get stuck, ect.. So our salesman came out to help us solve our problem and potentially evaluate the L3001 for trade in. All of that to say we are on team skid steer now.

Nice. I love having a skid steer. It's a lot easier to see what your loader attachments are actually doing. And it's a lot faster doing certain tasks vs a tractor with front end loader. Ours had paid for itself time and time again with everything I've done on our property with it. I personally do not like foot controls. For me it's hard to be precise with them. Joystick is the way to go. What HP skidsteer are you looking at? And good luck with the search!

 

[Admin]

 

[trigger]

I'd recommend a tracked skid steer. They cost more but been using both on jobsites for yrs. If you're on hard pack the wheeled ones do fine but they're heavy and will get stuck in a couple inches of snot or soft sand. Flats and bead leaks suck too. You can choose to foam fill them to avoid that but they still get stuck too easy. Just my 2c.

 

[Robobrainiac]

Be sure to also make sure you get something with auxiliary hydraulics on it, opens up the door for so many more attachments. It's kinda like asking about favorite oil, but I really like foot control vs hand controls.

I do not have an opinion on the controls because I have never used one. For now budget will come first. I don't mind wrenching on things and we will most likely not put many hours on the machine.

 

[Robobrainiac]

I assume the salesman also sells skid steers as well..

Be careful on the skid steer… they can cost a fortune…and the attachments aren’t cheap either.

With that said I have an older 30hp diesel Gehl skidsteer that has been awesome for my acreage cleaning.

Yes, they are a semi local equipment dealer. Kubota, Case, and new holland. They have a bunch of other brands and they network between MO and IL.

I have seen maintenance costs of machines and it is wild the cost of skid steers in general. The price is kind of why I was so on the fence. I can get the M6060 Kubota tractor, loader, box blade, tiller, rotary cutter, and land plane for $10,000 less than the SV75 Kubota skid steer with bucket.

But I have projects I want to get done and I need to be able to process them at my own pace. A skid steer rental is just not for us.

 

[Robobrainiac]

Nice. I love having a skid steer. It's a lot easier to see what your loader attachments are actually doing. And it's a lot faster doing certain tasks vs a tractor with front end loader. Ours had paid for itself time and time again with everything I've done on our property with it. I personally do not like foot controls. For me it's hard to be precise with them. Joystick is the way to go. What HP skidsteer are you looking at? And good luck with the search!
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I am not super concerned about HP, mainly because I do not have a preference based on zero experience. I would like at minimum a 2500lb lift @50% tip. From my understanding, higher hydraulic flow is also good. I am working on doing some research and figure out what I should look for.

 

[Robobrainiac]

I'd recommend a tracked skid steer. They cost more but been using both on jobsites for yrs. If you're on hard pack the wheeled ones do fine but they're heavy and will get stuck in a couple inches of snot or soft sand. Flats and bead leaks suck too. You can choose to foam fill them to avoid that but they still get stuck too easy. Just my 2c.

From my little knowledge so far I will only consider a tracked machine. Thank you.

 

[dweber23tr]

Regardless of what you get, after a couple hours of using it, you'll be wondering how you ever got along without it...

 

[Rdrcr]

Since you’re planning on buying pre-owned, have you considered the Grand L40 series? We just had a guy install one of our S2T Turbo Kits on his L3240. It’s a pretty awesome machine!

He’s making good things happen at 8,700 ft elevation.

Mike

 

[Robobrainiac]

I made a new thread to hopefully gather some information so I can make an informed decision on a skid steer.

 

[Rdrcr]

^^^^
I considered a skid steer….until I started researching implements….man, they are pricey! But, regardless, a skid steer is still on my wishlist.

Mike