A BX, a B, and a L ... ?

[Shawn T. W]

One of my "problems" is once I spend money on something, I'm invested in it, and usually customize it to my liking, or needs ...

While a mini-X is mostly a one trick pony, kinda like my Z-turn ... It's should dig better than my little backhoe, which ... I've spent a bit of cash to make it the way I want it ...

Massey Ferguson has this ridiculous way of attaching the hydraulic hoses (In MY Opinion!) they have three floppy hoses which come off the back of the tractor, and meet the BH in the middle which has its own three floppy hoses, it's a real pain to tuck them away for three point use, to keep them out of the way of the arms, and PTO shaft ... So I had the dealer redo it for me, so the tractor side is a solid mount, and Extended the BH lines ... You can see it between the extra seat and ROPS, Plus I bought a extra seat, as the factory setup is a a pain to lift and swivel to put into place, a good way to pinch your fingers!

I also added a thumb, quick on to make changing buckets easier, a 6" bucket, root ripper ...

I also got the 2" receiver hitch for it, which all I've used it for so far is stretching fence ...

While I plan to keep my 5' brush hog, it will probably only be used once a year, and I'll probably need to use my little SCUT with it ... As I use it now only for clearing my creek banks ... Even the B doesn't really have the PTO HP for it, nor the front ballast to do this ...

While I could run the rear blade on a different tractor for winter snow removal, and then use the TLB to scoop the snow later, it's handy to do it all at once, at both ends of my driveway I need to stack it up ...

It's 60' wide ...

I've only removed snow once each winter, so it's not a high priority ...

 

[Shawn T. W]

Failing that, I'd be looking at a mini-excavator,

You got me thinking ... Not sure I want to bail out on My Little Baby Fergie, but if I cut my losses now ... what If I got something like this ... https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing/for-sale/251648243/2002-caterpillar-301-dot-8-mini-excavators (not gonna buy chinese!) and trade my little SCUT for something like this ... https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing/for-sale/250228057/2002-kubota-l3010-less-than-40-hp-tractors ... I have a lot of accessories and money in my SCUT though ... And would basically have to start over ...

Originally when I bought my place 4 years ago, I was looking in the 35-50 HP range pre-emissons, then ended up needing a BH to do my own driveway back during COVID when I couldn't get anybody to even return my calls, and looked up to 75 HP ... Just wasn't anything available, except for my little SCUT TLB ...
..

 

[SDT]

MF135s and MF148s are reasonably common in NZ, and not too expensive (around NZ$10K / US$6K) . All were Perkins. But I understand that's not as true in the USA.

In the US, 135s could be bought with four cylinder Continental (prone to block cracks between cylinders 2 and 3) and three cylinder Perkins (converted diesel) gasoline engines as well as the wonderful, fuel sipping, three cylinder 152 CI Perkins diesel engine.

 

[SDT]

Paul, interesting take on my situation ... My local Massey Ferguson dealer has Massey Ferguson 35 (older version of the 135) on his lot https://www.marshfieldmachinery.com...35-Marshfield-Machinery-Inc-16662987?ref=list buts it's a bit wide for most of my attachments ...

My L5030 already has a 90" finish mower ... But no loader for it.

View attachment 170438

While it can, and has pulled the 6' rear blade, once it's angled ... It's kinda narrow, but it's good to have options!

View attachment 170439

If the L2500 was a HST I'd put that higher on my list, I really like the much larger rear tires, and I don't have to have 4X4 ...

Looking at the pictures in the ad, the B7500 actually has a 60" rear finish mower, not a 4' mower as it is written, still don't really have a use for it though ...

I have thought of a dozer, but to get one that could push dirt around, just because I like moving dirt, but don't really have a project for it ... I'd want something the size of a Cat D3 or Deere 350 ... But they weigh a lot more than I can put on my trailer, and I don't really want to upgrade my truck and trailer too ...

And yes, this would be almost a duplicate to what I have already, inorder to share the attachments it's gotta be in the same ballpark ...

The B7500 has larger tires, and probably a higher rear lift height and weight capacity than my SCUT, but still narrower than my current setup ... Of these three that are currently available it seems to be what I'm leaning towards ...

Most of my driveway maintenance is very light, actually mostly weed control, I don't drive on it much, and have a gate to keep people out, packages are left out by the gate/road ... Here is a video of it ...

Land plane

Another thing is I'm gonna need to reorganize my barn AGAIN to fit something else in ... I'm thinking that if I turn my 20' trailer around, I can still store my land plane and rototiller on the front, leave the ramps down and drive this third tractor up onto it, maybe even store my 5 brush hog sideways on it too, If there is enough height to drive my L5030 with the forks on to set it up there ... Because once I put my pickup in there there not alot of room to get a tractor out, without moving the pickup out too ... The back looks like it's accessable, buts it's fenced off to keep bigger critters from getting in and messing with my cats ...

View attachment 170440 View attachment 170441

The MF 35 is also a good small, utility tractor but one should avoid those with the Standard Motors 4 cylinder diesel engine (notoriously hard to start) and/or Multi Power.

 

[SDT]

Paul, interesting take on my situation ... My local Massey Ferguson dealer has Massey Ferguson 35 (older version of the 135) on his lot https://www.marshfieldmachinery.com...35-Marshfield-Machinery-Inc-16662987?ref=list buts it's a bit wide for most of my attachments ...

My L5030 already has a 90" finish mower ... But no loader for it.

View attachment 170438

While it can, and has pulled the 6' rear blade, once it's angled ... It's kinda narrow, but it's good to have options!

View attachment 170439

If the L2500 was a HST I'd put that higher on my list, I really like the much larger rear tires, and I don't have to have 4X4 ...

Looking at the pictures in the ad, the B7500 actually has a 60" rear finish mower, not a 4' mower as it is written, still don't really have a use for it though ...

I have thought of a dozer, but to get one that could push dirt around, just because I like moving dirt, but don't really have a project for it ... I'd want something the size of a Cat D3 or Deere 350 ... But they weigh a lot more than I can put on my trailer, and I don't really want to upgrade my truck and trailer too ...

And yes, this would be almost a duplicate to what I have already, inorder to share the attachments it's gotta be in the same ballpark ...

The B7500 has larger tires, and probably a higher rear lift height and weight capacity than my SCUT, but still narrower than my current setup ... Of these three that are currently available it seems to be what I'm leaning towards ...

Most of my driveway maintenance is very light, actually mostly weed control, I don't drive on it much, and have a gate to keep people out, packages are left out by the gate/road ... Here is a video of it ...

Land plane

Another thing is I'm gonna need to reorganize my barn AGAIN to fit something else in ... I'm thinking that if I turn my 20' trailer around, I can still store my land plane and rototiller on the front, leave the ramps down and drive this third tractor up onto it, maybe even store my 5 brush hog sideways on it too, If there is enough height to drive my L5030 with the forks on to set it up there ... Because once I put my pickup in there there not alot of room to get a tractor out, without moving the pickup out too ... The back looks like it's accessable, buts it's fenced off to keep bigger critters from getting in and messing with my cats ...

View attachment 170440 View attachment 170441

The linked MF 35 is a good looking unit, and it has the very desireable, fuel sipping Perkins 152 CI three cylinder diesel engine. That said, I would avoid it if it has Multi Power, as it likely does not work properly if at all. Be advised that MP transmissions will coast when in low range.

Additionally, check out the power steering (if equipped) with the oil fully up to temperature as many/most are badly worn due to failure to replace the filter inside the pump reservoir (and oil) which few owners know exists, and repair is time consuming and expensive.

In years past, I've owned a similar MF-35 as well as a nearly identical FX-35, both with Perkins diesel engines. Despite working them hard all day, I don't remember ever pouring more than 5 gallons of fuel into either to fill the tanks. Great little tractors.

 

[PaulL]

Paul, interesting take on my situation ... My local Massey Ferguson dealer has Massey Ferguson 35 (older version of the 135) on his lot https://www.marshfieldmachinery.com...35-Marshfield-Machinery-Inc-16662987?ref=list buts it's a bit wide for most of my attachments ...

My L5030 already has a 90" finish mower ... But no loader for it.

View attachment 170438

While it can, and has pulled the 6' rear blade, once it's angled ... It's kinda narrow, but it's good to have options!

View attachment 170439

If the L2500 was a HST I'd put that higher on my list, I really like the much larger rear tires, and I don't have to have 4X4 ...

Looking at the pictures in the ad, the B7500 actually has a 60" rear finish mower, not a 4' mower as it is written, still don't really have a use for it though ...

I have thought of a dozer, but to get one that could push dirt around, just because I like moving dirt, but don't really have a project for it ... I'd want something the size of a Cat D3 or Deere 350 ... But they weigh a lot more than I can put on my trailer, and I don't really want to upgrade my truck and trailer too ...

And yes, this would be almost a duplicate to what I have already, inorder to share the attachments it's gotta be in the same ballpark ...

The B7500 has larger tires, and probably a higher rear lift height and weight capacity than my SCUT, but still narrower than my current setup ... Of these three that are currently available it seems to be what I'm leaning towards ...

Most of my driveway maintenance is very light, actually mostly weed control, I don't drive on it much, and have a gate to keep people out, packages are left out by the gate/road ... Here is a video of it ...

Land plane

Another thing is I'm gonna need to reorganize my barn AGAIN to fit something else in ... I'm thinking that if I turn my 20' trailer around, I can still store my land plane and rototiller on the front, leave the ramps down and drive this third tractor up onto it, maybe even store my 5 brush hog sideways on it too, If there is enough height to drive my L5030 with the forks on to set it up there ... Because once I put my pickup in there there not alot of room to get a tractor out, without moving the pickup out too ... The back looks like it's accessable, buts it's fenced off to keep bigger critters from getting in and messing with my cats ...

View attachment 170440 View attachment 170441

Looks to me like the thing you're lacking is a big tractor (Grand-L size) with a big loader and forks. Then organising your barn gets a lot more interesting - you can stack things up and move them around way more easily. Adding a loader to your existing Grand-L isn't really practical (too expensive). You could sell and buy one with a loader, or look around for a tractor that catches your eye and has a decent loader. L or Grand-L sized, or again something older like a 135.

To me the 35 isn't comparable to the 135 - the 135 was a ground-up rebuild and a lot better machine.

I did particularly like this "Massey Ferguson 135": https://www.tractorhouse.com/listin...5-massey-ferguson-135-40-hp-to-99-hp-tractors Pity it's in the UK.

 

[PaulL]

You got me thinking ... Not sure I want to bail out on My Little Baby Fergie, but if I cut my losses now ... what If I got something like this ... https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing/for-sale/251648243/2002-caterpillar-301-dot-8-mini-excavators (not gonna buy chinese!) and trade my little SCUT for something like this ... https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing/for-sale/250228057/2002-kubota-l3010-less-than-40-hp-tractors ... I have a lot of accessories and money in my SCUT though ... And would basically have to start over ...

Originally when I bought my place 4 years ago, I was looking in the 35-50 HP range pre-emissons, then ended up needing a BH to do my own driveway back during COVID when I couldn't get anybody to even return my calls, and looked up to 75 HP ... Just wasn't anything available, except for my little SCUT TLB ...
..

The L3010 is a nice looking machine. Without upending everything.......it'd replace your grand-L and probably SCUT as well.

The Cat mini-ex also looks pretty good. I have a small Takeuchi that I inherited, and it's an excellent machine. I have a tilting bucket (which requires a 3rd function) and I didn't know I needed it till I had it. It makes a lot of things possible without having to reposition the machine constantly. And I have a trenching bucket. It was pretty useless at Mum and Dad's place, they have a lot of clay and it just filled up and wouldn't clear every time you put it in the ground. However, at our new place we're pretty stony and sandy, and the trenching bucket is amazing. Because it's a small machine it doesn't really have enough power to drive the mid-size bucket or the large tilting bucket through our soil. But it'll drive the trenching bucket through almost anything.

If you swapped SCUT TLB and Grand-L with no loader for the L3010, and added a mini-ex to replace the backhoe, you'd have a way more capable setup. You wouldn't need much more storage (if any) and you'd have a more powerful loader to stack up some of your implements. You would lose the cab you currently have though.

 

[Shawn T. W]

Warning! A long book follows!

I don't really want to loose the A/C, and the 3010 doesn't have enough power to run the 90" finish mower ... Plus it's also a tad wide for 48" rototiller ... I'm not sure if it's feasible to also upgrade the rototiller too.

When I bought the L5030, I didn't really want a loader, as my little SCUT does all I needed, I do have forks for that too, and I do stack the rototiller and land plane in pallets up on the trailer now, and also sometimes stack the tote I was using on the front, and put it up on top of the one on the trailer too make room to move around or get something else out ... It will lift to 6', but if I turn the trailer around, the back 16' is now empty, I could put stuff, or park a tractor on top of it!

As I was driving this afternoon, I was thinking, a lot ... The thing with a mini-X... While I hear/read that they are magnitudes better than a BH, stronger, deeper digging, more places to put spoils ... I not sure how that really benefits my situation?

I got most of my digging projects already done, lately it has been mostly used for burying critters that have been "bothering" my cats ... Last week I was home 5 nights, and had 4 burials ... !

My house and barn are roughly in the middle of my property, and it's 1/4 mile front to back ... From my limited observation these mini-X's don't go over 1 mph ... Is that right? Even if it is a faster digger, I'd still be done with my BH, in less time than it would take to crawl out and dig, then crawl back, for a 6"-12" wide by 3' deep hole ...

I mostly use the BH for small holes, picking up stuff, or if I gotta go in deep soupy mud, it can pull me back out again!

The MF 35, 135, or even a 231 while having a little more power than the Kubota L2500, they are much wider, about as wide as my L5030 is, which seems the 48" tiller wouldn't be a good match ... While I like the old iron, I'm not convinced they are the right tool for me now ...

Back when I was looking for my "big lawnmower" ... After 3-4 months of searching, and striking out, I decided to look for bigger tractors ... 80-120 HP, I talked to my local dealer, he said he could transport if I needed service, but he didn't really have anything pre-emissons like that ... I was thinking I could pull a 15' - 20' batwing mower ... I found this tractor in Virginia, more than 1000 miles away ... I loved it!

And in my frustration with mowing my rough fields with tiny tired 60" or less mowers ... In the HOT sun!

If it had been at my local dealer, I would have written a check, and drove down the road 6 miles to my house, pulling a 15' batwing he had ... But shipping this 1100 would be challenging, and it wouldn't fit on my trailer weight wise, so I had time to think about what I "NEEDED" ... and it wasn't a 100+ HP tractor and batwing to mow 14 acres! So back to the looking for a 5,000 Lb or less tractor in the 50-65 HP range, I didn't need a loader or cab, as both add cost and weight, neither I wanted to deal with ... Even 4X4 I was willing to do without for the same reasons ...

Then ... My brand new semi-truck had the A/C die, in July, (our summer !) I was headed to San Antonio, Texas, after 4 days of suffering in this rotten oven, I decided to expand my budget and get a cab with A/C ... After mowing with it in 90°+ and 85%+ humidity ... I'm not interested in getting rid of my big lawnmower, even though the worst part of that tractor is getting in and out of it ... Once in, sit back on the suspension seat, and cut grass!

Since I bought this place, I've been working on a "future garden" area, I took the spoils from my ditch digging and piled them on top of my rocky ground ... Smoothed it out, rototilled it many times, hand removed LOTS of rocks, but never have time enough now to actually grow vegetables! It grows lots of grass/weeds and rocks though!

Since I don't get to it too often, due to my limited time, and busy with other things, it's the last on the list of priorities, now that I got my big lawnmower, my field cutting time is cut by 2/3's ... I'm hoping to be able to just hop on another tractor with the rototiller already hooked up so I don't have to do what I've been doing ... Brush hog, then rototill!

Then ...

After a couple of passes in both directions ... Since I already have it hooked up!

I leave it hooked on, and hit it again in a couple of weeks ...

It be so handy to just have the rototiller hooked up most of the time during growing season to keep this knocked down, once I retire, I hope to actually plant vegetables in it, but will have a fence around it to keep deer and raccoons out ... So maneuvering will be more critical .

Talking to myself as I was driving ... I'm thinking the BX isn't really much different than the SCUT I have, other than it has less power, is narrower and it has a useless to me mmm to have to hide/store ... The B also is lacking in power, (just on the low side of the recommended power requirements) but has bigger tires, but still narrow enough to utilize the tiller, and it's HST ... The L has more power, so could easily run the tiller, but would need more space to turn around if I was trying to avoid clutch wear and tear (no shifting, stoping to turn around), which who knows being 20+ years old how close it is to replacement?

I'm not sure how much time I'll have this next time I'm scheduled to be home, I'm only really going home for a "follow up" dental visit, as last time home, my cleaning and two fillings, turned into 3.5 hours, and "challenges"!

I'm back to thinking a B size tractor would work best, and keep what I have, maybe a B7800 with the bigger engine will become available within a few hours drive and be a better choice?

I really "shouldn't" be in a hurry, as My Little Baby Fergie "CAN" and Has done everything I need, and the L5030 helps out with mowing and watering ...