Mini tractor advice

[Turbo Piston Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Turbo Piston]

Hey!

Recently my parents have bought some acreage and I would like to buy a mini tractor mainly to use a front loader. I would prefer a 4in1 bucket. The only brand I know of is John Deere and Massey Ferguson which i discovered the other night.

This is what I am after: http://www.masseyferguson.com.au/GC1700.aspx

Any suggestions on good brands? There seems to be a lot of Chinese tractors coming in. Since I don't know much, any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[Hally Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Hally]

Pretty sure kubota do one and there are quite a few of Chinese no name ones out there

[mjrandom Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close mjrandom]

All the small tractors are common Japanese brands. Kubota, Iseki, Shibaura, Yanmar and Hinomoto. JD are Shibaura and MF are Iseki. All are good machines up to 35hp. JD above 35hp are a combination of JD and Shibaura. I have a Kubota BX2360 with mid mounted mulching deck (modded by me) and 1.2m 4in1 bucket. Kubota only offer a standard bucket so my FEL is aftermarket (Sota).

Make sure you go for hydrostatic drive and avoid grey imports. Anything with a multi speed rear PTO is designed to till rice paddies and the transmissions are very light duty. Spares are also unique and usually only carried by the place you buy the tractor from. I haven't looked at any of the latest Chinese options but generally these are only a couple of $k cheaper than the major players.

It comes down to what they want to use it for. A zero turn or out front mower is a better mower but obviously you can't pull implements or have a bucket. So the choice is a dedicated mower and cheapie used (old) tractor with a bucket.

Having said that I find it very convenient to mow and pick up sticks, fallen limbs etc drop at the fire pit and then keep going.

The Iseki runs smaller tyres than the others and is typically lower to the ground so feels more stable. Be aware though they will all roll over with a full bucket raised to maximum height if you are on uneven ground. The seatbelt is there to be used on anything other than flat ground. Keep the bucket low as much as possible. I welded a lifting point on the back of my bucket and that is very handy for loading trailers etc. for example picking up a replacement Poeey diff out of the trailer.

We also have a baby petrol ride on to do around the house. The bucket makes it awkward around veranda posts etc so if there are tight spots around the house or shed factor this in.

BIL has an older Hinomoto which doesn't have power steering so it is a bit of a pig but all the newer ones are power steering equipped. He also has a Shibaura (JD) and I like it though it seems a lighter chassis than my Kubota. As BIL has an embarrassment of choice in larger tractors with FEL these don't have buckets and are just mowers.

I am very happy and this is my second Kubota. I traded the first on its 20th birthday and got what I paid for it as a trade. I will dig out some pics later on.

[D4D Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close D4D]

That MF is the model my mate has and he loves it, he's got 8 acres of steepish bush block. He tried a few Chinese tractors and they fell apart, burnt out the wiring or couldn't cope with his block, parts were also very specific. He's got the mower deck, loader, slasher.

[mjrandom Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close mjrandom]

This is mine. Yes it will pick up the ride on.



Depending what they want to do it is worthwhile getting a box blade (1.2m) and a carryall (1.5m). I have turf tyres because the ag tyres are pretty aggressive but if you are working in dirt get ag tyres.

Parts are pretty reasonable and I do an annual service which is filters and engine oil. Grease the deck every couple of uses and same for the loader. Pretty easy.

There are some good deals out there at the moment but shop around. I probably would have bought the MF last time but they were off the mark on changeover.

Loaders are easily removeable but mostly mine stays on.

[Turbo Piston Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Turbo Piston]

Thanks for all the info so far guys! New area for me. I had no idea Kubota was Japanese!

What is hydrostatic drive? - I have seen a few advertised with these.

Chinese tractors for the curios:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/30-hp-Tractor-for-Sale-4WD-with-4x1-Front-End-Loader-ROPS-Model-/142005747613?hash=item211033bf9d:g9IAAOSw6btXR4VI

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/New-30hp-...YAAOxyeglTa3FL

http://www.agrison.com.au/Tractor30hp-New.php

Since Kubota only offer a standard bucket and you purchased a 4in1 - did you have to modify or add anything to the Kubota?

[Turbo Piston Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Turbo Piston]

Thanks for all the info so far guys! New area for me. I had no idea Kubota was Japanese!

What is hydrostatic drive? - I have seen a few advertised with these.

Chinese tractors for the curios:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/30-hp-Tractor-for-Sale-4WD-with-4x1-Front-End-Loader-ROPS-Model-/142005747613?hash=item211033bf9d:g9IAAOSw6btXR4VI

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/New-30hp-...YAAOxyeglTa3FL

http://www.agrison.com.au/Tractor30hp-New.php

Since Kubota only offer a standard bucket and you purchased a 4in1 - did you have to modify or add anything to the Kubota?

[mjrandom Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close mjrandom]

Hydrostatic drive is more or less automatic transmission. A variable output hydraulic pump turns a fixed displacement hydraulic motor. Push the forward pedal down and it goes forward, push more and it goes faster. Reverse is the same process so as you are mowing you can slow down or speed up depending on the need without physically changing gears in a gearbox.

Some of the small Isekis don't offer rear diff lock so if there are any places that will be handy be aware. None of the little tractors these days offer turning brakes which is a pity but so far I have managed without them. It was a bit of a learning after only having tractors with these but I have adapted as needed.

The Kubota comes with a two way valve block and connections as standard. Up/down, bucket roll forward/backward. The FEL I bought had a solenoid valve fitted to the main frame so up/down is as usual, bucket roll is as usual but with the push of a momentary switch the bucket opens and closes. All I had to do was pick up 12V to run to the solenoid feed. Very easy to fit though I did change the switch and cat paw on the lever. Personal preference. The lever now sports a 'Yeti' bicycle grip and a Narva push button switch.