I have been on a mission to get down to one machine (currently have a JD 28 hp 4WD diesel 6' commercial front mow and an older Ford 30 hp 4WD compact with a loader). All the equipment I have bought to date has been very well used/beat on before I got it and I am a marginal wrench at best beyond making something work that is broken. The thought is that one newer machine that fit in the garage would reduce the time I spend working on equipment and far increase the chances of turning the key and doing what needs to be done. But, I'm having my doubts that any one machine that does both will do either very well. Typical duties at my acre and a half ranch: mowing with lots of trimming, hillside and wet spots pushing snow (average 10' year with at least a few good ones every year and on a road that produces a wall at the end of the driveway) rototilling with 42" 3 pt tiller single point sub soiler spreading 20 yards or so a year of compost firewood duties spreading fill loads from single axle dump trucks grading with 6' box blade 8' rake the Ford travels from time to time to do work elsewhere Has anyone made one machine work and been happy with it? If so, with what?
I have a ford 1520, little smaller than yours. I have done all the above with it, I just bought a loader for it and now it helps with firewood duty. Maybe a sub compact would be even better, FIL has a kubota and he can just tuck it in the corner of the garage. Or maybe a stiener, they come with a lot of attachment. They also are great for mowing hills and wet spots.
Solar, The size of your existing attachments, like the 6' box blade and the 8' rake are not going to work well with a single/smaller machine. Now there are tractors that will mow and run those size attachments but they are not not going to go in tight areas and will be rough on wet spots in the lawn too. My advice is to keep the mowing separate from the other duties and you will have no problem finding a machine to all the rest exceptionally well. Even if it's already in your shed. If you are willing to start over and downsize the attachments, then there are some options. But you will sacrifice quite a bit of loader capability once you get smaller than the mid-frame compacts.
I have a line on a decent looking b21 at a price that i could get out of clean if it doesnt work out. It will fit in my short garage at home that the ford doesnt. The only thing people seem to complain about is pto hp but my little tiller in my heavily composted garden doesnt need much anyway. the ford then retires at the camp where it has an indoor spot. It is substantially less money than i was going to spend on a bigger machine and i wont be towing a machine back and forth. The f910 and f1145 both do what they do best and it all likely outlasts me. Seems right but it means maintaining 4 older machines.
Yes, Yes, Yes I run chains in the winter, Yes and the mower is rear three point, but makes it nice backing into pond and under trees.
Can't speak to the loader. I was gonna buy a Compact tractor. But bought a Big 74" Zero Turn mower.. .. Which leads me to saying.... Nice mower! That is quite the machine you have
I don't have one, but I have mowed with one. In short, I didn't like it. If you are mowing on flat ground and can raise the loader way up it improves visibility and your ability to get close to stuff...if not you've got an extra 3-4 feet hanging off the nose of your tractor to run into stuff and take away from turning ability. If you have hills and/or trees raising the loader is a real bad idea.
Would you believe I didn't pay much more than the price of a big box store rider for it? I've put some work into it but it is amazing to mow with especially on my terrain.
Where it gets really interesting is what a front mount can do in the off season vs. a ZTR. You ever get that snowblower mounted Solar?
Found a hydraulic leak near one of the lift cylinders when I went to mount it. Pretty sure it is that crazy line but need to spend some time on it. Also blew out the sidewall on the tire I hadn't replaced yet as soon as I picked the blower up Once you decide you don't have to mow with the machine your loader is on, it seems there is a huge advantage both in capabilities and cost with a permanently mounted loader? I've been trying to come up with a reason the B21 isn't right for me but haven't found one yet. Its just as heavy as the Ford, appears far more capable than the Ford and fits in my garage. Doesn't seem like there is another machine in this class that is built like that, especially old enough to fit in my budget?
I have a one machine does it all mentality and so far it's working out ok. I took the loader off the first few times I mowed with it and even though it comes off in 1-2 minutes I have been leaving it on while mowing for the last couple of years. For where I'm mowing it really doesn't get in the way at all. I just drop it down a bit and I can see right over the top. I totally agree it would be nice to have a bit more tractor when dragging logs but I just buck them into 10-12 foot sections instead of trying to drag the whole tree. For me I needed 4 wheel drive on my hill to plow in the winter and I couldn't justify 2 tractors.
