[bound201]

My wife and I are closing on a house soon with has ~4 acres total, so a fairly large yard to mow plus I intend to have a decent sized garden out of all of this as well. Idealy I'd like to have an old tractor such as an 8n or a newer sub compact but the cost of those is prohibitive plus the fact we'd still need something to mow the grass doesn't help.

There are a lot of options, lawn tractor, garden tractor plus the various attachments. I must admit it is a bit overwhelming, I'm interested in a tiller, snow blower and maybe a planter as well so it makesfor a lot of reading considering the options out there.

If you have any recommended threads or pdfs to look at I'm all ears, thanks again for the help.

 

[TooTall999]

Depending on budget and how mechanically inclined you are, a new or used garden tractor would fit the bill nicely. A lawn tractor new or used would be too light duty for anything but lawn mowing and snow blowing. You say you'd want to either till or work the soil with it, so a garden tractor would be the better choice. The John Deere 318 is a popular used choice, but there are others.

 

[Leon Renaud]

Go for the best older GARDEN tractor you can buy most any of the older brand name machines are better than any of the new stuff you can buy today.I might be judged a heretic here but I'm not totally brand loyal because I find it hard to believe that the Kohler.in a Cub Cadet is better than one in a John Deere or Wheelhorse etc. I'm partial to Cub Cadet because that's what I got introduced to small tractors with ,But I now also have several different brands.OH did I mention that these little wonders are very habit forming?Visit this forum often and read all you can on here once you pick a brand then join forums specific to that make BUT stay here also!I have gotten a great deal of help from here with all my tractors questions.

 

[emt_156]

If it were me I would look for a gravely 4 wheel tractor. There are countless attachment for them. You just have to make sure you have the pto shafts to go with it. The plus to these tractors is they have a 50" mower deck which will be good for your large property. The draw back is that they are not the fastest things out there, so if you can't cut the lawn in a hurry.

 

[ratboy]

here is a place to start:http://www.mytractorforum.com/showthread.php?t=210435

It just keeps me from re-typing (lazy me).

I myself am partial to Bolens. Mostly because of the shaft driven implements. I have used them for 20 +- years. Rugged, dependable, well built. I like the 300 and 400 series older John deeres. Older cub cadets made by IH are very nice. Gravely is a good name but to be honest, there aren't many of the 4 wheeled variety in my neck of the woods, so I can't give you an honest run down on them. Check all the forums. Read and ask questions. Oh, the older Sears suburbans are also very good machines with a large variety of attachments.

The Bolens tractors that I would recommend looking for: 1886, HT18, HT20, HT23.

Just mt 2 cents.

 

[bound201]

Thanks for the info so far. Rat, I'll read the thread in a bit, having to work late tonight .

Where would you recommend looking for the tractors at? the standard? Ebay, craigslist, or is there some other sites I'm not familiar with, I realize we have the forsale section here to keep an eye on as well.

 

[wizzo]

You might also try looking here http://www.machinefinder.com/

 

[slkpk]

What type of budget do you have to work with? This will give us an idea on your pricing to help you look for different models and brands. There is a lot of good used equipment out there. slkpk

 

[Dude11]

I clearly see your point on having one "do all" type garden tractor.But for the life of me I have never been able to find anything that does everything but wash dishes.Plus,it gives you the right to own a couple!! Just think--if one gets a little sick--you still have some type of back up.I say life is short--don't limit yourself to one thing in the shop.Now get out there--and spend some money! The economy needs your help.:sidelaugh

 

[ratboy]

I clearly see your point on having one "do all" type garden tractor.But for the life of me I have never been able to find anything that does everything but wash dishes.Plus,it gives you the right to own a couple!! Just think--if one gets a little sick--you still have some type of back up.I say life is short--don't limit yourself to one thing in the shop.Now get out there--and spend some money! The economy needs your help.:sidelaugh

And there is a lot to be said about not having to change attachments when you need to do a different task! Each tractor gets its assigned duty.:trink40:

 

[bound201]

What type of budget do you have to work with? This will give us an idea on your pricing to help you look for different models and brands. There is a lot of good used equipment out there. slkpk

I want to keep it under 3k for the machine, prefer under that but can go over some if there is a good reason. I am starting to see a good reason to buy one machine to mow the lawn and another for the garden, but again I'd have to keep the price for both together within reason.

 

[G-1]

Here ya go!!!
http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/for/2590341928.html

:swow::swow::swow:

 

[bound201]

I clearly see your point on having one "do all" type garden tractor.But for the life of me I have never been able to find anything that does everything but wash dishes.Plus,it gives you the right to own a couple!! Just think--if one gets a little sick--you still have some type of back up.I say life is short--don't limit yourself to one thing in the shop.Now get out there--and spend some money! The economy needs your help.:sidelaugh

There is something to be said of that. I'm used to large tractors that changing implements was much quicker overall. I'm considering getting two due to the change time, may get a newer lighter tractor for lawn and basic use and get an older one to use for garden.

 

[F250Highboy77]

I do like GT's myself but here's a thought. You live next door here in the midwest, I wouldn't rule out something in the size of an 8N Ford. Here in Iowa I see them for sale among other brands and they can be had for the same price or cheaper with attachments like 3pt mowers,belly mowers,box blades,even front end loaders (FEL's) for that matter. I'm not trying to push you away from the GT's by no means mind you. I had a buddy sell his 8N with an FEL and a 3pt finish cut mower and box blade for about $3k. The JD 318's are excellent workhorses as well and you can find just about anything for them too.

 

[BillB]

Here ya go!!!
http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/for/2590341928.html

:swow::swow::swow:

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!

Looks like a scam to me; there's no way someone is selling a 2006 Kubota TLB with 211 hours for $5000. The ad also shows up all over the country on CL and others when I Google it. :sorry1:

Bill

 

[bound201]

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!

Looks like a scam to me; there's no way someone is selling a 2006 Kubota TLB with 211 hours for $5000. The ad also shows up all over the country on CL and others when I Google it. :sorry1:

Bill

Yeah kinda guessed that as well, if its too good to be true it likely is.

I'm going to take a look and see what I can find out there.