Need suggestions for multi use tractor/vehicle

[T-Jet]

I need something that will plow a long driveway of snow, cut a 5 acre lawn like a riding lawnmower and maybe 'til up a garden?
If it's a tractor I would like to have something with an enclosed cab for winter time. Does anyone have some suggestions on one vehicle that would do it all? Thx.

[JohnTRourke]

Doesn't exist. It does, but it won't do anything well. Plowing snow is MUCH MUCH faster with a truck. and used plows are about 2 grand and if you live on 5 acres, you certainly have a truck.

You don't have 5 acres of lawn, this isn't Kentucky, you have 5 acres of pasture/grassland (if you live in parker). If you cut it real short you'll burn it out and end up getting weeds and erosion and such. Pasture grass should be long, it holds the moisture in, keeps the roots from drying out, etc. At most you want to cut it to about 6" maybe once or twice a year. Rotary cutter (shredder, bush hog) is what you want for that. The lawn itself (around the house) you do want a regular mower. (riding or really a zero turn is much faster). But tractors tractor, mowers mow.

Tractors of course can till up a garden. 3 point Tillers cost about 2 grand, most people charge about $30 to $40 to till a garden. you could have it tilled for many years for less money and wear and tear on the tiller

If it was me (and it was me, I had a business that took care of people on acreage, I've done this) what you SHOULD do is
a. get a plow for your pickup
b. hire out the bushhogging of your pasture once or twice a year (check craigslist, there are a million uninsured guys doing this), they'll probably do it for $100 to $150. You'll have to get a new guy every couple years because they wear out their machines and don't have any money to replace them, but that's not your problem.
c. get a riding lawnmower of some type depending on how big your actual lawn is
d. have the garden tilled once a year by somebody. ($50 at most)

What you WILL probably do
1. go down to the local John Deere dealer (potasio brothers) and buy a $40,000 dollar 5' or 6' compact enclosed tractor with a front end loader, a rototiller, a 3 point tiller, a bush hog and a mid mount or rear mount finish mower.
2. you'll use it about 200 hours the first year just putzing around, then about 50 hours a year thereafter.
3. you'll use the finish mower about 3 times and realize that the tractor is too big and heavy to really handle a lawn and end up buying a riding lawnmower of some type anyway.
4. you'll bend/break/run into something (because tractors do have a learning curve) and that will cost you at least $500 the first year.
5. you'll be out moving snow and realize how long it takes vs. just shoving it with a pickup. (given, that the one time a tractor works and a pickup doesn't is when we get 3 feet of snow, but how often does that happen?) and get a plow anyway.
having a tractor is really useful, but it's not worth the money, it's cheaper in the long run to hire the jobs out. Unless you live on like 10 to 15 plus acres, then it's worth having something but compact tractors are too small for that size of jobs.

I've seen it a thousand times.

hope that helps.

[ray1970]

Doesn't exist. It does, but it won't do anything well. Plowing snow is MUCH MUCH faster with a truck. and used plows are about 2 grand and if you live on 5 acres, you certainly have a truck.

You don't have 5 acres of lawn, this isn't Kentucky, you have 5 acres of pasture/grassland (if you live in parker). If you cut it real short you'll burn it out and end up getting weeds and erosion and such. Pasture grass should be long, it holds the moisture in, keeps the roots from drying out, etc. At most you want to cut it to about 6" maybe once or twice a year. Rotary cutter (shredder, bush hog) is what you want for that. The lawn itself (around the house) you do want a regular mower. (riding or really a zero turn is much faster). But tractors tractor, mowers mow.

Tractors of course can till up a garden. 3 point Tillers cost about 2 grand, most people charge about $30 to $40 to till a garden. you could have it tilled for many years for less money and wear and tear on the tiller

If it was me (and it was me, I had a business that took care of people on acreage, I've done this) what you SHOULD do is
a. get a plow for your pickup
b. hire out the bushhogging of your pasture once or twice a year (check craigslist, there are a million uninsured guys doing this), they'll probably do it for $100 to $150. You'll have to get a new guy every couple years because they wear out their machines and don't have any money to replace them, but that's not your problem.
c. get a riding lawnmower of some type depending on how big your actual lawn is
d. have the garden tilled once a year by somebody. ($50 at most)

What you WILL probably do
1. go down to the local John Deere dealer (potasio brothers) and buy a $40,000 dollar 5' or 6' compact enclosed tractor with a front end loader, a rototiller, a 3 point tiller, a bush hog and a mid mount or rear mount finish mower.
2. you'll use it about 200 hours the first year just putzing around, then about 50 hours a year thereafter.
3. you'll use the finish mower about 3 times and realize that the tractor is too big and heavy to really handle a lawn and end up buying a riding lawnmower of some type anyway.
4. you'll bend/break/run into something (because tractors do have a learning curve) and that will cost you at least $500 the first year.
5. you'll be out moving snow and realize how long it takes vs. just shoving it with a pickup. (given, that the one time a tractor works and a pickup doesn't is when we get 3 feet of snow, but how often does that happen?) and get a plow anyway.
having a tractor is really useful, but it's not worth the money, it's cheaper in the long run to hire the jobs out. Unless you live on like 10 to 15 plus acres, then it's worth having something but compact tractors are too small for that size of jobs.

I've seen it a thousand times.

hope that helps.

Tractor hater.

(Insert smiley face here. I have yet to figure that out from my Tapatalk ap.)

[T-Jet]

Thx for excellent advice. After reading it what I will probably do is:
Hire neighbor kid with riding mower to come do the lawn for $50 plus tip.
Find a used pickup on Craigslist with plow attached(don't want to use MY nice truck for that!)
Befriend the local farmer with a disk and have him swing by each spring to make a couple passes on garden.
Buy an old tractor to restore/tinker with and eventually watch one of the kids run it into the barn... Every kid should have a tractor to drive to school right ?!

[Holger Danske]

Ive got a jd 3038 and its great for 5 acres no cab though. Clears the snow fine and runs a five foot bush hog easily. it is great, but your options above are goingvto be much more cost effective. If you want a tractor with a cab try looking used. www.tractorhouse.com is a good place to start.

[generalmeow]

My grandpa has an old walk behind tractor, and with the attachments it does everything. It's probably 50 years old and runs like a champ. I think it has attachment that you can stand on and it pulls you around, like those guys you see hauling ass mowing parks. I hope to inherit it someday.

im not sure what they cost now, but its probably a reasonably priced option if you need something that does everything, as they still make them. Might be worth looking into.

[cofi]

Buy a goat....a herd of 4 had been keeping 40 acres perfectly manacured

[ChunkyMonkey]

Goat BBQ.. Yum

[BPTactical]

ATV with plow and pull behind mower. Get a small disc harrow and go nuts.

[Great-Kazoo]

Thx for excellent advice. After reading it what I will probably do is:
Hire neighbor kid with riding mower to come do the lawn for $50 plus tip.
Find a used pickup on Craigslist with plow attached(don't want to use MY nice truck for that!)
Befriend the local farmer with a disk and have him swing by each spring to make a couple passes on garden.
Buy an old tractor to restore/tinker with and eventually watch one of the kids run it into the barn... Every kid should have a tractor to drive to school right ?!

After the trans drops when we're in "The storm of the century" you'll wish you scored a used plow for you "Nice Truck" It's a truck there's a reason you purchased one.