r/tractors

Not mine but I thought this was cool

I have 10 acres and can’t figure out what size tractor to get. I plan to put in some food plot and a decent sized garden so I will be doing some tilling/plowing with it. Would also use it to plow snow and do some mowing and using a brush hog. Having a loader is a must too. But I’m just not sure what size I need at the end of the day.

I've been chatting with some farmers who own tractors, and one thing they all mention is how often their newer machines break down because of DEF and SCR problems.

These issues can be things like DEF sensors, faulty injectors, crystallisation, or sudden power reductions.

It can really be a problem when it happens during times like planting or harvesting.

If you have a tractor, I want to hear from you:

What kind of tractor do you have?

Have you had any problems with DEF or SCR?

What was the real cause of the problem?

Was it easy to fix? Did you have to spend a lot of time at the dealership?

I'm trying to figure out if these problems are rare or if they're just something you have to deal with when you own a modern diesel tractor.

We have a two year old Yanmar YM347 that just intermittently dies. It's got 150 hrs so about a 100 from next service. Thinking likely a fuel filter clogged or such. So, two questions. This is my wife's baby and I'm hardly ever on it. Fuel or other issue? Is there an alternative fuel filter you can use? Seems strange I can't find one anywhere. Thanks!

I'm finally to the point where I'm ready to start more seriously shopping for a tractor for my property and was hoping to get feedback and suggestions. I copied a recent format I saw another person post when looking for recommendations as it worked well (thanks!). Apologies for such a long post, but tried to include everything I saw people asking for in comments on other posts.

I know first and foremost the dealer is one of the most important pieces, and I've got a handful of options around me (though none of them close sadly), but I've mainly been looking at Kioti first, and Kubota second, but am open to other suggestions as well. The Kioti seemed like the best bang for the buck in terms of a decently reliable machine for the money that offered more capacity for the dollar than the Kubota. If my understanding is correct, Kubota would be considered the more reliable/engineered machine in comparison to the Kioti, but the Kioti isn't bad, just not in the top tier like Kubota would be. As far as dealers go I'm fairly rural and there really isn't anything remotely close, so any tractor I get is going to involve a decent drive to a dealer.

I've also considered the possibility of different machines like a skid steer, excavator, and a tractor, but I can only afford one machine currently, though I realize I'm making compromises if I get a tractor. The Kioti mini excavators are like $70k plus on their own, but maybe there are some much cheaper options I'm not seeing. I've seen suggestions about the backhoe on a tractor like this and that renting is often a better use of money than owning a backhoe as it's hard to get on/off and store, but I feel like I have years of projects already lined up using the backhoe and it would be indispensable to have it on hand and available. Not a day goes by on the property I don't encounter some other project where I say "that would be so easy with a backhoe". But I'm open to other ideas or being persuaded differently on the backhoe.

Looking at both the Kioti and Kubota lines I think I struggle a bit making sense of all the different options and what size or series I need to be looking at for what I need, so I'd welcome suggestions on that front. My biggest workload (I think) will be grapple work as I've got hundreds of downed and old logged trees all over the property and hundreds of brush piles I need to grab up and move around the property. I do not have a sense for weight here though, but using some online calculators for a rough number it seems as far as downed trees go most of them I need to move are in the 1000-2000 lb range. Another factor (might be) emissions controls at various power levels, but it seems like for the power or series I'm guessing I need (40-50HP) that the more complicated emissions controls are automatic. I plan to do maintenance and some of the repair work myself as I've got a background in machine/vehicle mechanic work and am comfortable doing the work myself, I'd only take it to the dealer for major work or warranty work. Also looking for suggestions on transmission based on my usage since I know I've got a couple of options there.

From a budget standpoint my plan is currently to use one of the 0% financing deals as that's probably the only way I can afford to buy. Used prices in my area are like 80% of new pricing it seems for anything with reasonable hours, so that doesn't seem worth it and prices me out of buying since I can't finance with a used buy. My thinking was to roll the attachments into the purchase so I could finance the whole thing as I probably can't afford to buy the attachments separately and I've seen people suggest it's better to roll the attachments in with financing right in the beginning. Based on attachments and the types of tractors I'm looking at I'm guessing I'm going to end up with a final price somewhere in the $50-60k based on CK, DK, and NS pricing, though I'm not quite sure which of those models is best for my needs yet.

Property / land specs

•About 60 acres total

•Roughly 10 acres open (small orchard, hobby farm mostly by hand, no tilling)

•Roughly 50 acres wooded 

•Old gravel/stone driveway that is mostly just dirt now (1/2 mile long)

•About 2 miles of trails through woods

•About 1.5 Miles of fence line (no fence yet, but started clearing by hand)

Main use cases

•Brush cutting some of the older trails and clearing old brush growth

•Moving materials around the property with a front loader (soil, boulders, timber)

•General property maintenance

•Fence installation, maintenance, fence line work

•Backhoe (general projects, trenching, drainage installations, well work)

•Wood harvesting, but not commercial, just taking down fallen and dead stuff and processing for use in wood stove as primary heat source

•Small scale (personal use only) livestock and animals (chickens, goats, horses), feeding, irrigation, pens

What I’m looking for

•Looking for big enough to do the job without straining and prematurely wearing a too small machine out, but not so big it's cumbersome to use

•Would like it to be the right size for fitting in through woods and fence line, around buildings, etc.

•Want reliable and good value, don't need top of line for my workload/duty, but want something I can invest in that will last with good maintenance/upkeep

Attachments I Plan to Get

•Front end loader

•3 Point Quick Hitch

•Backhoe

•Grapple

•Wood Chipper

•Stump Bucket

•Blade for snow removal

Tractor Options I Want

•Cab

•4 Wheel Drive - Snow 5 months out of the year plus rain/mud