Do you have a Rural King there?
Okay, my manual says use a J20A oil equivalent for the tran/hyd fluid. I found this at TSCās site for $32/5 gal.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/super-s-hydraulic-fluid-j20a5-gal?cm_vc=-10005
Looks like Iāll be taking a trip to TS soon.
Yes, we have a Rural King, but the closest one is about 45mi from here. TS is closer.
The worst part of doing your own service is getting rid of all of that used fluid/oil. Last time we had service come to the house, that way they take away fluids. Our New Holland is diesel, 36HP and we want and need more HP. The old Ford 5000 has 60 HP (when it was new anyway) but after $1500 in repairs itās still not right. Weāre still looking for something with low hours, 50-60HP and a cab for snowblowing. Good news is weāre down from 5 tractors to 4! 2 family members bought one of the ātwinsā so itās still in the family but we donāt have to deal with it. We had to have the Ferguson repaired last summer too after it blew a seal and all of the engine oil drained into another part of the tractor. Luckily no permanent damage to the engine but another $1100 in repair. We work them pretty hard so the expenses are worth it.
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The best advice I read before buying a tractor was that the tractors weight will determine how much/what work you can do and the reactors horsepower will determine how fast you get it done. You can easily add weight by loading the tires as well as ballast attachments but you canāt really do much with the horsepower so keep that in mind when buying.
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My tractors all leaked so bad that was never a problem!
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Derek,
You might consider an orchard tractor. They are typically much lower profile and narrower (ideal for orchards) but still have good horse power. The disadvantage is that if you are using an implement designed for a taller tractor, they wonāt lift the implement high enough on the three point.
All the major manufactures make them. They just donāt make very many. I see them on tractor house. A lot of time, they donāt have a lot of hours. Hours is what wears a tractor out, not time.
Older tractors are cheaper, but if they are too old, finding parts for them when you need them can be challenging. So I wouldnāt buy anything from a manufacturer which is out of business (i.e. Oliver, White, Minneapolis Moline, etc.) John Deere has done a good job in the past of stocking parts for their tractors. Plus if itās a really common model, they will stock parts longer (and you can get aftermarket parts).
In terms of brands and models, there are lots of orchard tractors out there. I personally think John Deere and Massey Ferguson made the best tractors in the past (donāt know about their new stuff). Kubota is another good brand. I think New Holland makes a cheaper quality tractor, imo.
I have a Massey 4225 low profile FWD I bought used several years ago. Itās a well built tractor. Itās 65hp and will do anything I need it to do. I see them for sale from time to time on Fastline.
Hereās one for asking price of $19K. But it has 3500 hrs. Too many hours for that much money. I see them on Fastline with b/t 1000-2000 hours for about that much money. Sometimes Iāve seen them with less than 1000 hrs.
Again there are lots of lower profile tractors you can look at from reputable manufacturers, if you Google around.
Btw, notice the above tractor doesnāt have an exhaust stack sticking up (itās run underneath). Thatās a nice feature of orchard tractors, so you donāt knock it off on tree limbs. Also the ROPS folds down for using it around trees.
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If I had it to do all over again. I wouldnāt buy anything but Kubota. Best tractor ever IMOā¦
https://www.kubotausa.com/?utm_source=gwg&utm_medium=ppc&utm_campaign=t2&utm_content=dealerships
Hard to find used but well worth it. I had a 32 horse that would easily do all the work you will and would easily fit in orchard spacing.
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Rotella
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Well, itās finally starting to dry out around here, so I thought Iād get the tractor out today. I hadnāt been on it since October, I think. On Sat, I changed both of the air filter elements. I was going to try out the bush hog a bit before I stopped to change the old oil in it, so that would help it flow better while it was warm.
It took a while to get it started, but eventually did. Thereās a shifter interlock that keeps it from starting, so I had to fiddle with the two shifters a bit before I found the right location. I let it warm up a bit and then rolled out of the barn and up the hill. Well, just like last year, when I engaged the PTO, it popped the shear bolt on the bush hog. So, I spent the next hour looking for my bag oā bolts and Nyloc nuts and had change the busted one out. That went without much difficulty.
I figured by then the oil had run back down into the pan and was ready to drain. I popped the drain plug out and about 7qt of dirty black oil came out. Not surprising as it had been a while since it was changed. I took the old filter off, put the plug back in, and put the new filter on. Itās supposed to take about 7-8qt of new oil (I used Rotella 15W40), so I filled it up.
I then fired it up to get the oil circulating, and then would check the dipstick after it cooled down a bit. Well, while it was running, I was checking for leaks and didnāt see any. But, while I was looking it over, a bolt that holds the lower part of the alternator was sticking out the front of it by about 2 inches, not more than an inch from the spinning fan belt. I guess it had worked itself out because the nut holding it on the other side of the altenator was gone. Either it had worked loose and fallen off, or was never there in the first place.
That was quite alarming to see, but I donāt think it would have come out any further as it was lodged up against the edge of the fan shroud. So, I had to go find a nut and some washers for it. I had to ask my nephew to help me take off the hood as I needed to get to the top of the alternator. I got the bolt through the hole, and tightened it up.
After we put the hood back on, I fired it up again and took it for a brief run around the back orchard before leaving it for the night. The oil was a bit under the low mark on the dipstick, but it needs to sit overnight to alllow the oil to drain back down, and then check it again tomorrow.
Anyways, like most things around here, it never goes as planned, but itās good to get the rig out on a nice sunny day finally. After changing the air and oil filters, and the old oil, it seems like itās running pretty smooth now. I love the sound of that old diesel thrumming in that low tone it has. Canāt wait to get out and do some more work out there soon. And just in time for spring.
It was a good day.
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Itās never a good day for me unless I break something. Just received a box from UPS full of filters to start my annual filter changes. Iām hoping all goes well and I break a few things.
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Āæ?
Hoping for stuff to break? Not me! Seems like Iām fixing my fair share of things lately. Yesterday I popped another shear bolt on the bush hog, still not sure how that happened. I tried to mow down a big nasty multiflora bush that had some gnarly, thick canes on it, guess it was too much for the mower to handle. Or maybe it was the poplar stump that I forgot about that was next to it.
Guess Iām getting better at this stuff, it only took me about ten minutes to replace the bolt and move on. Got a lot cleared off yesterday, it was a very productive day.
Iāve never changed the air filter elements on this rig. It cost almost $60 to change two of them. I still need to change the trans/hydraulic fluid and filter, not looking forward to that. Will need about 8 gallons.
What kind of tractor(s) do you have?
Yes those air filters are expensive. I have two diesels that require them, a Compact New Holland and a John Deere. I normally replace them every other year unless I have to sooner. Bought 4 gallons of Rotella 15-40 and hope to get my spring maintenance done this weekendā¦ we will seeā¦
Does your bush hog have a slip clutch or does it rely on a shear pin? I buy my filters from Filter1.com the price is pretty good, free shipment ā¦over a certain price and gets here in a couple days. They are a WIX dealer.
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I donāt think it has a slip clutch, but I donāt know what one is either. Itās a pretty old mower, donāt even know what brand it is. All I know is itās red and it has been on this farm for years, it was here when we moved here five years ago. Iām down to one bolt/nut so, Iāll need to pick some up soon.
Is your JD a compact as well? Have you done any plowing or tilling yet? I havenāt, but my next door neighbor plowed one of his fields this week. Guess heās growing field corn in that plot.
I probably will plow in about a month, still think itās too early considering we donāt usually plant out until May.
I went to the local JD dealer last week to get my parts, for four filters it was pushing $90.
I asked them how much their hyd/tranny fluid was for a 5gal bucket, they wanted $70 for one bucket of Hygard! My BIL says just use a brand that conforms to the JD standard called for in my ownerās manual. It uses J20A fluid, and there are several brands that out there are about half the price of Hygard. The parts guys there at the dealer was really pushing their stuff, and downing anything else, unless it came from a known distributor and said it would cost more than theirs. What do you use?
I do not plow with my tractor, I used to use our old Oliversā¦ not anymoreā¦ just use it for scraping the road and have a front-end loader on itā¦ The front-end loader has be the best attachment ever.
I use the standard Hydro Fluid from RKā¦ I think it is Transverse or Harvest Kingā¦ I just check the specs. Most universal fluids work.
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Wondering if any of the people here use a bobcat
I donāt, but I have a few neighbors who do. Bobcats (and the other brands) are very nice for times when the snow is just piled/drifted too high or the path is too narrow or tight turns for a larger tractor to handle it. But for more normal snow removal and ag type things it seems they canāt match the speed which larger conventional tractors can do the work (even though many of the same implements are available for bobcats). Just observations/comments from a non-ownerā¦
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I watched a neighbor using his bobcatās auger to dig planting holes for trees. Sure looked easy.
Id say that Bobcats are a higher horsepower, more compact, more maneuverable machine compared to most tractors but the price reflects it as well. I work at the bobcat manufacturing facility and if I had the money Iād buy a Toolcat. All that said my budget just wasnāt there and I purchased a lightly used 35hp compact tractor with a cab and implements for my property. The biggest advantage I can see with a tractor is having a loader on the front and another implement on the rear to do more work at the same time. This winter was a perfect example when I used both the loader and snowblower when things got bad around here.
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Bobcat canāt do that?
Run a front and rear attachment? Toolcat 5610 has a rear 3 point setup but isnāt as maneuverable as a bobcat.