Today marks the end of a search that has spanned many years.
Today we got our first tractor.
Our desire for such a machine was sparked by borrowing the neighbor's tractor for garden tilling and a few other heavy tasks around the farm. Also, as chores around the house became increasingly larger the appeal of the wheel barrow, shovels, and other hand tools diminished significantly.
Over the past few years we had sporadically invested time and effort in researching and seeking out a suitable tractor for use around our residence. Along the way we soaked up as much data as we could about PTO horsepower, break out force, hydraulic flow capacities, hydrostatic transmissions, and dealer networks.
We opted to look at used machines to save on costs. We decided to stick with some of the more popular brands to ensure the machine would hold it's value and parts would be easy to find. New Holland, John Deere, and Kubota seemed to be the top contenders in the market.
Eventually we found a suitable deal on a tractor with loader as well as a few of the implements we wanted.
The package as purchased was:
2002 John Deere 4310 with 386 hours 32 HP - 27 PTO HP
430
Front End Loader
E-Hydro Hydrostatic Transmission
MFWD
Load Match
Motion Match
Cruise
R4 Tires
Mid
PTO
Land Pride FDR2572 finish mower in
moderate condition.
Landscaping rake, 5ft.
Land pride Rototiller RTA 1558
with some moderate rusting.
We are lucky to have great neighbors all around us. A couple of them helped us pick up this tractor which was located about 65 miles away. They secured a flatbed trailer and truck for us as well as helped rig and haul. Many thanks to John and Susan for making this possible!
The tractor had been stored in a shed for the past few years so there were a few things to address before putting it into full service. The first tasks on the docket were an oil change, battery acid clean up, fuel system treatment and cleaning, mid pto circuit troubleshooting, and a hydraulic system check.
After the maintenance items are addressed we plan on putting the tractor to work cleaning out the old barn.
