How much HP do I need...

I just play a little and don't need anything special. Price is a big thing since I have to plead my case to get something different How big of a tractor do I need to use a five foot brush hog and a six foot disc?

If your talking about your better half just remember its easier to beg forgiveness than it is ask permission.LOL!

A Massy 65 or JD G or about anything above 50 HP would get
your job done.

(quoted from post at 21:20:52 08/02/14) A Massy 65 or JD G or about anything above 50 HP would get
your job done.

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Heck that's way overkill. A Ford NAA or 600 series is bigger than his needs. I run a 5' hog and 6' disk behind an Ford 8N. 50HP will easily run a 6 foot hog and in sandy loam a 10" tandem disk.

Rick

30hp would be fine. Up to 50, but hp isn't everything.

It will be way way way more fun and easy and useful if it has
live pto and 5 or more forward speeds. Those things appeared
in the mid 1950s or so.

I use that stuff with a 27hp tractor, plenty of tractor, but it had
live pto and 9 forward speeds. Very easy to match the power
available to a slower or faster gear.

Paul

i use a farmall c

A Ford 9N will handle that stuff-just be sure to add a Over Ride Clutch (ORC) to the PTO shaft on the tractor.

Some guys on here think live PTO and 47 gear transmissions make it more fun. I dunno. Never had a live PTO, and most tractor work, I pick a speed and just let the tractor work. If it's bogging too much, I drop down a fear, but usually, whatever gear I start with is what I end up with.

Look for a mid 1960's tractor , with live power, and standard three point hitch.Much more user friendly for a new tractor operator , and will fit most equipment.

I have a TO-30 and run a brush hog and a six foot disc, plus a two bottom plow. In heavy grass like we have now a few more ponies would be nice. I just cut it a bit taller. I can always cut it again.

Larry

I brush hog with a 30 HP Kubota but have never disced with it. I have always used one of my larger tractors for that.You need to factor a lot more into the equation than power however. Your loving wife wants you to be safe! In order to be safe on a tractor you need not only reserve power but also reserve weight for stability in unforeseen situations. You also need a cab for basic protection from the weather but also to help you avoid skin cancer. Front wheel assist can help you to be not only more productive but also enable you to pull out of sticky, potentially dangerous situations. If you sink a six foot disc in up to the axles in heavy soil you will need a good 60 HP. So with this information hopefully you will be able to convince SWMBO that you need at least a 90 HP cab tractor with FWA. (mine is for sale)

Twenty five PTO HP will do it if you are not in too much of a hurry.

That said, a 25 HP compact tractor will not be heavy enough for a three point mounted disc and marginal for a 5' cutter.

Thirty HP would be better and 35 better still.

Dean

50 horse??
Sheesh!
A 23 hp Ford N series would handle both of those tools easily.

Around here Massey 135's etc cost little more than the Ford N series.
There is a long list of persons here who super heros and are proud of their physical and mental ability to "make do" where lesser men fail.
There is no reason to be without live pto, live hydraulics, a SCV, a real drawbar, working brakes, 12V electrics, power steering, differential lock. A stable tractor less likely to flip and crush the operator is an advantage too.

[i:654c4848f0]"There is no reason to be without live pto, live hydraulics, a SCV, a real drawbar, working brakes, 12V electrics, power steering, differential lock."[/i:654c4848f0]

Except for cost.
A decent 8N that will do the work Chuck T states can be had for $1500 to $2000.
A tractor equipped like you state is at least double that.

You can buy a REAL tractor for less then a N series any day of the week, around me. Why would you want to limit yourself to a wannabe? There is NOWAY a 23 horse tractor will handle a 5 foot rotary mower in very tall grass.

First of all, just so we're on the same page, what is a REAL tractor?

Secondly, Don't take my word for it.
Go over to the N Board and tell them:

[i:654c4848f0]"There is NO WAY a 23 horse tractor will handle a 5 foot rotary mower in very tall grass."[/i:654c4848f0]

See what kind of replys you get from the Hundreds if not Thousands of fellows over there who do it all the time.

I would want a 30-40 HP tractor with live PTO.

Since you sound like an inexperienced operator of a tractor I would stay away from the non live PTO tractors: Ford 2,9 or 8N, All the JD letter series tractors, Also the letter series IH too, TO20 and 30 as well.

As far as HP you can get by with 25+. 35-50 works better. Some models I would recommend: Ford 661-861, MF 135, Oliver 55-550, IH 350, JD 1020, Ford 3000,etc.

You did not talk about your budget, I would plan on $2500+. The cheaper tractors more than likely will not have live PTO or have mechanical issues.

How much will the bills be if you get hurt on a tractor that is harder to operate safely???? That is why you should stay away from the non live PTO tractors. Yes, I know guys will say they do/did it for 50 years with no problems. I also have been to funerals of guys that did have problems with using older machinery they where not experienced with.

Heck I know guys who grew up around tractors and PTO's who were seriously injured or killed by PTO's, most often because they took short cuts. But I do agree that live PTO is much safer.

UD is correct too. I run a 5 and 6 foot hog with 2 different tractors, one 23 HP and the other 33. That's 56HP to run them combined. Setup and ground speed are the factors.

Personally, if I had the money to spend I'd have a modern compact MFW at about 35HP for the smaller stuff and a 60's or newer at about 45-50 HP to replace the current 33HP bigger one.

While something like an 8N at 23 HP will do the task listed by the OP when lifted both the disk and mower are going to make it very lite in the front and the lack of live PTO is a safety consideration. An ORC will make it safer but the ORC is not an answerall. A slightly larger tractor with live PTO will be much safer for any operator and much safer for a novice.

While it's OK at least in my books to give small "passengers" rides in smooth areas you should never, ever ride one when you are using a rotary cutter or something like a disk. The safest thing for tractor rides is a modern cab tractor with a buddy seat.

One factor no one has addressed. For a new guy starting out is service and support for what ever he buys. On poster recommended a Massey Ferguson. Good tractor. But here where I live poor choice should you need dealer support. Here the best support would be for JD, IH, Case and Ford because JD and CaseIH are the closest (at 25 miles) decent dealers with decent parts support. The AGCO dealer is poor at best so MF, White, MM and Oliver are poor picks. So not mentioning a brand check your local support before dumping money into something.

Rick

Agreed, UD.

I've been operating various 5' rotary cutters in just about anything with 8Ns since 1974.

Are there better set ups? Of course. But anyone that says it cannot be done is simply ignorant.

Dean

How much ground do you need to cover and what is your budget?

For the $ it's hard to beat the little masseys. My grandpa has
used nothing but a farmall super c, John Deere 430w and a
ford 8n the last 40 years for the exact size implements you
describe. He sticks with his 430w the most. He won't part
with it. You'll spend $2500+ for anything in decent shape
with live power in that hp bracket which is 25-30 hp.

Your local tractor market is rather strange.

(quoted from post at 09:53:43 08/03/14) Agreed, UD.

I've been operating various 5' rotary cutters in just about anything with 8Ns since 1974.

Are there better set ups? Of course. But anyone that says it cannot be done is simply ignorant.

Dean

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Easy there Dean. Play nice.

I do all that with my ford 860. Live power and around 40 hp. I would not want anything smaller and price is not that much off 8n price. A lot of people see all little fords the same when they sell them.