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Woodland
The final area of our property is the 5 wooded acres. A lot of people like to
keep the underbrush down in an area like this. To handle the underbrush, we
need to use a rotary cutter. Rotary cutters come in different grades; standard,
medium, and heavy. A standard duty cutter will handle material up to 1" in
diameter. This is usually enough for most peoples needs. You also have a choice
of shear bolt or slip clutch drive shaft. A shear bolt works well when youre
cutting mostly grassy material, but if you are going to cut heavier material, a
slip clutch is preferable. If the blade on a shear bolt rotary cutter hits a
large object, the shear bolt will break to protect the PTO and tractor from
damage. When the bolt breaks, you need to replace it to continue mowing. So,
if you use the cutter in an area where there are a lot of large objects, a slip
clutch will prevent you from having to replace the shear bolt frequently. In our
scenario, we will choose a 5' rotary cutter with a slip clutch to keep the
wooded area clean. The rotary cutter will also help in the pasture if the grass
gets up and too heavy for the grooming mower.
Consider PTO Requirements
The implements we have chosen for our scenario are a 5' rear discharge grooming
mower, a 5' rotary cutter, and a 6' blade. Now we can choose the tractor that
will make all of this work.
A lot of implement manufactures will list horsepower requirements for
implements, but you need to make sure they are referring to PTO horsepower, not
engine horsepower. PTO horsepower is the amount of horsepower available at the
rear of the tractor where you hook up the implement. There is normally a 4-5 hp
drop from the engine to the PTO shaft.
A good rule of thumb for matching your implements to the tractor is:
- 4' PTO implements require 16-25 PTO Hp
- 5' PTO implements require 20-30 PTO Hp
- 6' PTO implements require 25-40 PTO Hp
For the implements that we have chosen, we need a tractor with a 30-35 hp
engine, or 20-30 PTO hp. This will put us in the compact line of tractors. If we
had chosen smaller implements, we would be at the smaller end of the compacts or
sub-compacts. On the other hand, larger implements would lead us to the larger
compacts or utility size. Kubota offers several choices in the horsepower range
that we have chosen. The three that I would recommend in this scenario are the
B7800, L3400, and L3130. All three of these tractors are similar in horsepower,
but are quite different in size.
The Tractor Models
The Kubota B7800 is a smaller frame 30 hp tractor that has 4-wheel drive and
hydrostatic transmission. The hydro is very useful when you are doing a lot of
direction changing and maneuvering in tight areas. The only disadvantage with a
hydro is that you loose an additional 1.5-2 hp turning the hydrostatic pump.
The L3400 comes in two transmissions. The first is a standard gear drive with a
constant mesh transmission. This is a good transmission if you are in open
areas, but it can get tiring if youre working in tight areas. A constant mesh
transmission requires you to stop the tractor completely when changing gears or
directions. The second transmission available in the L3400 is the hydrostatic
that was discussed earlier.
The final tractor we are considering is the Kubota L3130. This is the largest of
the three tractors but it is still in our horsepower range. The L3130 is
available in 3 transmissions. The first is a fully synchronized transmission
(FST). This transmission gives 8 forward and 8 reverse gear choices with a
shuttle. With the FST, the tractor can be shifted without stopping. The second
transmission option is a glide shift transmission (GST). This transmission has
12 forward and 8 reverse gears with a shuttle. The clutch is not needed to shift
up and down gears or shuttle forward/reverse. The third option on the L3130 is
the hydrostatic. The hydro has three ranges with a rocker pedal in the floor for
forward and reverse.
All of the tractors we are discussing have a live PTO. A live PTO means that
the direction or speed of the tractor can be changed without stopping the PTO.
There are several ways that manufacturers can implement live PTO. The first is
to use a two-stage clutch. The two-stage clutch allows you to push the clutch
pedal down half way and stop the tractor, but the PTO continues to turn. The
second way is to use a hydraulic clutch pack. This is called a hydraulic
independent PTO. It is used in shuttle transmissions where the clutch is needed
to shift. The third live PTO implementation is called a mechanical independent
PTO. This is normally found on tractors that have a hydrostatic transmission
where the clutch is used to engage the PTO and travel is controlled by the foot
pedal.
Our Choice
For our scenario, we will chose the Kubota L3400HST. This tractor will give us
enough horsepower to match the implements with a little extra to spare. The
hydrostatic transmission will make maneuvering in the yard and in the woods
easy. If we later want to add a front-end loader to the tractor, this style
transmission will be very operator friendly. This tractor also has a cruise
control, which will come in handy when we are mowing the pasture. The cruise
control can be used to select a speed and hold it, without having to keep your
foot on the pedal.
Buying the Tractor
One of the most important things about buying a tractor is to purchase it from a
good, reputable dealer that is close to you. They should be a full-service
dealer that can provide delivery, good service, and parts. The extras that come
after the sale, such as going over how to do the 50hr service, how to hook-up
and use your implements properly, and explaining how to operate the tractor will
help you feel more comfortable and give you satisfaction with your purchase.
Knowing that you have a full service dealership to stand behind you after the
sale will give you peace of mind. The tractor that you are purchasing will be
with you long into the future. You need a dealer that will be too.
Summary
The best way to ensure success when buying your first tractor is to look closely
at your property. When you take the time to understand your specific needs,
choose the implements that will work best for you, then match the tractor to the
implements, you will have a much better chance of picking the model that works
for you. If you then buy your tractor from a good, full-service dealer that is
close to you, you will always have someone to go to when you need it. Enjoy
your tractor and be safe.
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