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Need advice on mower tractor for hilly rough weedy land. Thanks!

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Discussion starter · #21 ·
TUDOR said:
The K66 axle torque is 310 ft-lb, the K72 axle torque is 405 ft lb. A 30% improvement.

A stronger hydro that is under utilized will last a lot longer than a lighter hydro that has to perform at a high percentage of its capability to do the same task.

Link to Tuff Torq hydro specs.

The engine has to deal with those weeds. The hydro has to deal with the slopes that the weeds are growing on. You won't be happy with a K66.
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Ugh, now you're making me nervous. Lots of people saying I'd be fine, and you come along and throw a monkey wrench into the plans :)

Are there any GT with a locking K72 other than Deere? I'm finding it hard to find any GT with locking diffs as it is other than JD and Husq.
 
#22 ·
Are there any GT with a locking K72 other than Deere? I'm finding it hard to find any GT with locking diffs as it is other than JD and Husq.
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The Simplicity Prestige series has a K72 with a locking differential also, but the least expensive Prestige model is $100.00 more than the JD X540 & X590, which are the most expensive models in the X500 series.
 
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#23 ·
DonF said:
That look like Bushog territory to me, be better to have it bushoged and trailer off 5 or 6 loads before using a GT. I guess you have a higher opinion of Husqvarna GT.
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I agree. Better to have it done for you, at least the first time, to see what you are dealing with. Then you can make a more rational decision on what or what not to buy. You may find that the only do-able portion is what was landscaped at one time. Then you may go for less $$$ of a tractor.
 
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#24 ·
There is no way that I would cut that the first time with my
x500. My bush hog hooked up to the 2305 yes, but not the x500.
After the first time cut, the Husky or Jd would do just fine. Do yourself a favor and hire a local guy to bush hog that first. Shouldn't cost you more than a hundred bucks.
 
#25 ·
5acresInColorado said:
Ugh, now you're making me nervous. Lots of people saying I'd be fine, and you come along and throw a monkey wrench into the plans :)

Are there any GT with a locking K72 other than Deere? I'm finding it hard to find any GT with locking diffs as it is other than JD and Husq.
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:sidelaugh

Sorry 'bout that! I'd rather see you happy 10 years down the road than cursing them darned know-it-alls at MTF for recommending too light a transmission. This way, you've been warned and the decision is yours to make based on the manufacturer's specs.

I've found no need for a locking diff on my 2wd GT through over 2 decades of snow removal. The added weight and tire chains for ballasting a FEL does wonders for traction. With my 4wd SCUT, I'm constantly making use of the diff lock, but it doesn't have chains.

On the topic of ballasting, I highly recommend loading the tires for stability on those slopes. Adding wheel weights would also tend to keep the tires planted more firmly. If the option is available, turning the rear rims around may widen the tractor's stance by a couple of inches which will also help with stability.
 
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#26 ·
TUDOR said:
The K66 axle torque is 310 ft-lb, the K72 axle torque is 405 ft lb. A 30% improvement.

A stronger hydro that is under utilized will last a lot longer than a lighter hydro that has to perform at a high percentage of its capability to do the same task.

Link to Tuff Torq hydro specs.

The engine has to deal with those weeds. The hydro has to deal with the slopes that the weeds are growing on. You won't be happy with a K66.
Click to expand...
The K66 will hold up just fine! We're not talking about a K46 here. Just because it doesn't have the miraculous green paint, the Husqvarna with the K66 will hold up fine!
 
#27 ·
It looks like you need to spray some Amine 400 2, 4-D Weed Killer on those thistle weeds.
They don't go away in one application.
It took me two years. once at spring, once at fall.
After you kill them and mow them down, just don't let them high again.
I tried both way when the thistle was out of control.
Mow first ,spray week later.
Spray first and mow two weeks later.
The second way is very dusty but you can cut faster.
I did 5 ac in 2 fenced areas. All the rest was done by a tanker with a 60 foot spray boom. Then mowed with multi gang.
The 5ac i did was done by a black HOP with 54" stamped deck with stock blades, driven by a G730 rear end.
 
#28 ·
the first thing I would do is use some 'Round-Up' on them weeds.. when u see them wiltin away.. then mow a week or so later..

Round-Up will KILL anything it touches.. u do not have to cover all the plant.. just some of it..

BTW.. those r NOT weeds.. they r TREES.. lol
 
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#31 ·
I saw Kawa Mule mentioned by the OP early on,,,,, if the OP has a Mule perhaps equipping that with a tow behind brush hog would suffice if he's not looking for that "manicured lawn" look out back and an LT for the front "lawn".
 
#33 ·
Patriot Fan said:
The K66 will hold up just fine! We're not talking about a K46 here. Just because it doesn't have the miraculous green paint, the Husqvarna with the K66 will hold up fine!
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Did I mention green paint? Check my signature's list of tractors.

I evaluated the various Tuff Torq hydros available. I don't know, nor do I particularly care, what colour tractors use them.

Based on the hydro pressures developed by the K66 and the K72 when doing the same task, the K72 will last quite a bit longer. In all probability, at least twice as long. The K66 is somewhat more capable than a K46, but it uses the same size hydro motor. The K72 has a hydro motor that is over twice large.

There's a difference between being able to do a task, and surviving doing the task many times over the years. Just because my GT is more than capable of pulling my travel trailer does not mean that it will survive hauling the trailer across the country, even stopping at every campground along the way.
 
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#34 · (Edited)
TUDOR said:
There's a difference between being able to do a task, and surviving doing the task many times over the years.
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This.

Pay once now, or pay over and over again later.

The time and headaches you'll save: priceless.

:twocents:

I learned early on the truth of the saying, "Only a rich man can afford cheap tools".


That camping trip sounds fun though... :1287: :trink39:
 
#35 ·
5acresInColorado said:
I'm not far from Denver but definitely not looking for an older tractor or a project :relaxed:
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Too bad, since the older tractors are the ones that will stand up to the stress of what you are wanting to do.

Plus they have attachments that will make short work of those weeds.

My Bolens 1250 with the Haban Sickle-Mo and dual rear wheels would knock those down in short order and not break a sweat doing it.
 

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#37 ·
I'd love to hear all the cases of K66 failures. The failures of the K46 are legendary, but I've never heard anyone complain about the longevity of the K66. Tudor, using your logic, the OP should opt for the biggest 4wd tractor he could fit on his property, just so it never fails at mowing his weeds!
 
#38 · (Edited)
Patriot Fan said:
I'd love to hear all the cases of K66 failures. The failures of the K46 are legendary, but I've never heard anyone complain about the longevity of the K66. Tudor, using your logic, the OP should opt for the biggest 4wd tractor he could fit on his property, just so it never fails at mowing his weeds![/QUOTE]

I reiterate, I evaluated hydros. I did so specifically for the minimum to handle the slopes pictured as per the OP's request while keeping in mind a reasonable length of service life.

If there were no slopes involved, I would have found a K46 acceptable and suggested a K66 as a viable alternative for a longer service life. With the slope shown, a K46 is out of the picture and a K66 would be the minimum suggested hydro. Since one does not get reasonable service life from any hydraulic equipment that has to perform beyond it continuous rated pressure for half of the operating hours my suggestion is, again, the next larger capacity hydro.

Horsepower output from a hydro is a combination of flow and pressure. Flow is created by hydro input rpm and pump displacement. The K46 pump displaces 0.427 cu-in, the K66 displaces 0.610 cu-in, and the K72 displaces 1.098 cu-in. As the flow rate goes up, the pressure required to generate a specific amount of horsepower goes down. That is physics, not opinion.

Torque generation by a hydro comes from the displacement of the hydro's motor and the pressure created by the work being done. It is modified by the reduction ratio of the final drive and the diameter of the tires. The K46 and the K66 have the same motor displacement, 0.610 cu-in, while the K72 motor has a displacement of 1.404 cu-in. Motor torque output for a given pressure will be considerably high for the K72. Again, physics, not opinion.

Now for my opinion. Personally, I wouldn't want less than the hydro in either a 40 year old JD140 or a MF 14 to handle those slopes.

The continuous duty pressure rating of that hydro will grenade all 3 of the Tuff Torq hydros under discussion. Unlike the K's, that hydro at full flow will stall a 14 hp engine before it reaches continuous duty pressure while climbing those slopes towing a heavy trailer.

Fact: Max flow of a Sundstrand Series 15 hydro is 14.2 gpm at 3600 rpm.

Fact: The hydro will consume 14 engine hp at full flow and 1500 psi.

Fact: 1500 psi is 60% of the rated continuous duty pressure of that hydro.

Note: Continuous duty pressure, not intermittent, and definitely not peak pressure.

But the OP specified his reluctance to take on the unforeseen maintenance issues that go with a 40 year old GT, and 14 horsepower is not enough to knock down those weeds with a decent sized mower for the size of the property anyway, therefore I have offered my best recommendation for the required minimum sized hydro as based on the information given by the OP.

You are welcome to your opinion, but in my opinion, a K66 is going to work its guts out and generate lots of hydro killing heat trying to mow those slopes after the weeds have been dealt with.
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#39 · (Edited)
Patriot Fan said:
I'd love to hear all the cases of K66 failures. The failures of the K46 are legendary, but I've never heard anyone complain about the longevity of the K66. Tudor, using your logic, the OP should opt for the biggest 4wd tractor he could fit on his property, just so it never fails at mowing his weeds!
Click to expand...

I didn't get that impression from Tudor at all. That's his version of what he (and I, to be honest) considers necessary to last. Both of us have pretty old gt's. My 4 are 25-48 years old, and all over 1500 hours, I believe. They have required less work than the 20xx lawn tractor I had, and the same goes for the neighbors new(er) gt. That thing always has issues.

The 18hp 318 drug an 18hp lt, and 26 hp "gt", right down the street, with their drive belts going up in a cloud of smoke.

All of mine will pull a 4' box blade, or 2,000 lb car trailer around, and none of them care.

Did the op ask to do that? No. However, that terrain will be no cake walk, and this is what people like Tudor and I with 20+ year old gt's reference longevity to.

Yes it was an lt, but the one I had previously mowed 3 beautifully manicured acres for 5 years (not all of it each time) before I got it (for free, and it wasn't worth what I paid). It was a ragged out pile of junk. Most box store "gt's" aren't made of much thicker metal than I was constantly repairing for wear and cracking on that lt in my 1/2 acre yard. It was non stop worn steering/electrical failures/carb problems. I probably put 10 lbs of welding wire into that deck fixing brackets, linkages, and such.

On the other hand, my 1967 12hp Bolens 1250 mowed a 5 acre farmyard along with tilling, for over 20 years. Then it was given to us, and it put in another 10 years of tilling an acre garden, and occasionally mowing a 10 acre farm yard, along with weekly mowing of the actual lawn. It also handled routine spraying of all 10 acres, including thousands of trees for webworms, probably hauled an easy 50 tons of rock out of those trees, and shuttled around trailers, dead pickups, and other small farm equipment.

The engine and hydro weren't touched in those 30 years.

Then it came with me, and proceeded to clean my yard up for another 2-3 years. Now it's down to a bad engine rebuild.

I've picked up entire rearends of new gt's in the store. Attempt that with one rear wheel of any of mine, and one would likely end up with their lunch someplace other than their stomach.

So, the real question here should be, how many years/hours do you and the op consider fair longevity?

5 years? A $4k (new) "gt" has a decent chance of that with some minor issues.

10 years? That's getting really iffy without major problems or worse.
 
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