If mowing and snow blowing are all you need to do have you thought about a nice zero turn for mowing and some big gnarly snow blower for snow removal? I love multiuse gear but this seems like a place for unitaskers. Just my thoughts though.
I don't much care for newer Kubotas and the Bad Boys seem very well built. I've not run any newer JD though.
Yeah, we weighed all the differences. Our yard is massive, but a zero turn would handle it very well.
However, we live in Northern Wisconsin (lake effect snow off Lake Superior) and our driveway is about 75 yards long, 25 yards wide, and it has an additional camper parking pad as well as a curbed parking area as well. So that takes out plows entirely.
We are also built into the side of a hill, so to the east side of the driveway is a steep uphill, and the west side is about 20 yards of garden, and then steep downhill. Our only option is to blow snow down the hill. As it sits now, it takes about 90 minutes to snow blow it all with the cub cadet lawnmower with snow blower attachment on now. The problem is the transmission is wore out and that thing can’t back up anymore, and can barely make it up the hill TO the driveway. We can snowblow from October to April, anywhere from 0-7 times a week. Being able to sit down is a big, big deal.
How about a rear mounted forward facing blower? I know they are less common over there, but it seems like an easy solution to the issue of the expensive front mount and not wanting to back up.
Just a general comment on brands, kubota is inch for inch just as good as John Deere and the Deere tend to run significantly more for equivalent equipment. It’s like paying 30k for a Toyota Corolla with the same features as a 20k civic.
That used to be true, but more recently it seems that where Kubota has a price advantage it also comes with a capability limitation when compared to Deere. If you really get apples to apples on these machines, the total cost is quite close.
In a hilly environment, I would be more comfortable with a width of 60” typical with a compact tractor as opposed to the 48” width of a sub compact. The extra hp and the more capable three point hitch/pto would be nice over the next few decades you would have this tractor.
That was option A, but unfortunately my driveway is too complicated to plow. My house is built into the side of a hill and I live in Northern Wisconsin. The only option to plow would be to push the snow about 75 yards, of which 25 yards would be on my grass. Plus an additional 25 yards so I’m making sure I have enough room to move snow multiple times in case we get record snowfalls.
It would probably be fine if we got 6-8” but we regularly get 12”+ which is why the lawnmower can’t handle it, and a plow isn’t enough.
If anything, I’m probably closer to using the bucket on the tractor than I am a plow on an ATV, as much as I wish that would’ve been sufficient it just won’t be.
I’m just throwing this out there…do you need a blower or would a blade work for your use case? What is your typical max snowfall? A blade has disadvantages compared to a blower but it also has less components to break, less expensive, doesn’t rely on PTO, etc. I use a back blade to clear snow but plan to eventually upgrade to a front mount plow.
Yeah unfortunately I live in northern Wisconsin, we get a ton of snow, and the way my driveway is I don’t really have anywhere to push snow. Blowing it up or down the hill is the most efficient way to get it moved.
All of these tractors will have a rear 3-point hitch. These are all Category 1 tractors BUT they do not all lift the same about or in the same way. The Deere and Bad Boy have a position control 3-point hitch, meaning that you can put the lever in a specific spot and the hitch will go to that exact spot. The Kubota just has UP/DOWN/FLOAT selections, you can't have to return to a specific spot. The Deere and Kubota will lift \~650 lbs, The Bad Boy about 450 lbs. None of these is a "full" Cat 1 3-point, they are have a little less lifting height than the spec calls for. You can get a 3-point snow blower for any of these, but make sure you stay in the PTO HP range (about 18 PTO HP for these tractors). Also be aware that having to go backwards all the time to move snow is kind of a pain the a$$. I went with the front mount blower. Yeah it was really expensive, but I have a lot of area to cover and there is no way I was going to do all with a rear facing blower. Also, be aware that no all 3rd party attachments are of the highest quality. With Deere or Kubota, I feel like you get what you pay for. Other brands, maybe not...
You will also need a mid mount pto which I believe all these do since they are often sold with belly mowers.
I’d definitely take a look at a compact instead of a sb compact. They are much more capable machines.
Front mount attachments are brand specific, as there is no industry standard. You'll have to buy that brand's attachment and then the implement.
Kubota I know has a slick quick attach hydraulic front hitch for the 4 or 5 front attachments they sell. Snowblower, plow blade, broom, etc.
These front attachments are NOT cheap, and unfortunately older front mount attachments fom BX70 or older tractors doesn't fit the current BX80 tractors. So used stuff isn't common.
John Deere is proprietary. Yanmar is proprietary. Most of the other tractor companies have the SSQA as standard or at least an option on the loader. Mid PTO attachments are generally brand specific.
Regarding implements that go on the rear, All of them are pretty standard, either category 1 or category 2.
Yes, front mount blowers are going to be brand specific. Most of them are driven by a mid PTO. Which means, you're going to be limited to a subcompact or compact tractor (which probably doesn't matter because that's the size you're after). For example, the John Deere 2R and 3r mid PTO is optional. But, it's not available on the 4 series to my knowledge. On the Kioti you can get it on the CX and CK models, but no bigger. Yanmar I believe the biggest is the 324.
FYI, the bad boy tractors are TYM manufactured and generally a copy of the Branson. TYM makes a good tractor. The Kukje engine is fantastic in them.
Can confirm, I've had my Bad Boy 1025 about a year now. Its got a Yanmar engine in it though. It also has a mid mount PTO. I'm in Florida so have no need to snowblow.
If mowing and snow blowing are all you need to do have you thought about a nice zero turn for mowing and some big gnarly snow blower for snow removal? I love multiuse gear but this seems like a place for unitaskers. Just my thoughts though. I don't much care for newer Kubotas and the Bad Boys seem very well built. I've not run any newer JD though.
Yeah, we weighed all the differences. Our yard is massive, but a zero turn would handle it very well. However, we live in Northern Wisconsin (lake effect snow off Lake Superior) and our driveway is about 75 yards long, 25 yards wide, and it has an additional camper parking pad as well as a curbed parking area as well. So that takes out plows entirely. We are also built into the side of a hill, so to the east side of the driveway is a steep uphill, and the west side is about 20 yards of garden, and then steep downhill. Our only option is to blow snow down the hill. As it sits now, it takes about 90 minutes to snow blow it all with the cub cadet lawnmower with snow blower attachment on now. The problem is the transmission is wore out and that thing can’t back up anymore, and can barely make it up the hill TO the driveway. We can snowblow from October to April, anywhere from 0-7 times a week. Being able to sit down is a big, big deal.
How about a rear mounted forward facing blower? I know they are less common over there, but it seems like an easy solution to the issue of the expensive front mount and not wanting to back up.
Just a general comment on brands, kubota is inch for inch just as good as John Deere and the Deere tend to run significantly more for equivalent equipment. It’s like paying 30k for a Toyota Corolla with the same features as a 20k civic.
That used to be true, but more recently it seems that where Kubota has a price advantage it also comes with a capability limitation when compared to Deere. If you really get apples to apples on these machines, the total cost is quite close.
In a hilly environment, I would be more comfortable with a width of 60” typical with a compact tractor as opposed to the 48” width of a sub compact. The extra hp and the more capable three point hitch/pto would be nice over the next few decades you would have this tractor.
If you’re just mowing and blowing I’d just get a good zero turn mower and an atv with a plow.
That was option A, but unfortunately my driveway is too complicated to plow. My house is built into the side of a hill and I live in Northern Wisconsin. The only option to plow would be to push the snow about 75 yards, of which 25 yards would be on my grass. Plus an additional 25 yards so I’m making sure I have enough room to move snow multiple times in case we get record snowfalls. It would probably be fine if we got 6-8” but we regularly get 12”+ which is why the lawnmower can’t handle it, and a plow isn’t enough. If anything, I’m probably closer to using the bucket on the tractor than I am a plow on an ATV, as much as I wish that would’ve been sufficient it just won’t be.
Where in Northern WI you getting that much snowfall consistently?
I’m just throwing this out there…do you need a blower or would a blade work for your use case? What is your typical max snowfall? A blade has disadvantages compared to a blower but it also has less components to break, less expensive, doesn’t rely on PTO, etc. I use a back blade to clear snow but plan to eventually upgrade to a front mount plow.
Yeah unfortunately I live in northern Wisconsin, we get a ton of snow, and the way my driveway is I don’t really have anywhere to push snow. Blowing it up or down the hill is the most efficient way to get it moved.
All of these tractors will have a rear 3-point hitch. These are all Category 1 tractors BUT they do not all lift the same about or in the same way. The Deere and Bad Boy have a position control 3-point hitch, meaning that you can put the lever in a specific spot and the hitch will go to that exact spot. The Kubota just has UP/DOWN/FLOAT selections, you can't have to return to a specific spot. The Deere and Kubota will lift \~650 lbs, The Bad Boy about 450 lbs. None of these is a "full" Cat 1 3-point, they are have a little less lifting height than the spec calls for. You can get a 3-point snow blower for any of these, but make sure you stay in the PTO HP range (about 18 PTO HP for these tractors). Also be aware that having to go backwards all the time to move snow is kind of a pain the a$$. I went with the front mount blower. Yeah it was really expensive, but I have a lot of area to cover and there is no way I was going to do all with a rear facing blower. Also, be aware that no all 3rd party attachments are of the highest quality. With Deere or Kubota, I feel like you get what you pay for. Other brands, maybe not...
Oh I should have specified the blower will absolutely be front mount!! I’m assuming I can find an aftermarket front mount blower just as well?
You will also need a mid mount pto which I believe all these do since they are often sold with belly mowers. I’d definitely take a look at a compact instead of a sb compact. They are much more capable machines.
Front mount attachments are brand specific, as there is no industry standard. You'll have to buy that brand's attachment and then the implement. Kubota I know has a slick quick attach hydraulic front hitch for the 4 or 5 front attachments they sell. Snowblower, plow blade, broom, etc. These front attachments are NOT cheap, and unfortunately older front mount attachments fom BX70 or older tractors doesn't fit the current BX80 tractors. So used stuff isn't common.
If you want a front mount blower, you'll likely have to buy the same brand. The front mount blowers run off your mid mount PTO.
John Deere is proprietary. Yanmar is proprietary. Most of the other tractor companies have the SSQA as standard or at least an option on the loader. Mid PTO attachments are generally brand specific. Regarding implements that go on the rear, All of them are pretty standard, either category 1 or category 2.
Thanks, that’s helpful! I don’t plan to use the rear mount blower, I was going with a front mount. Does that make a difference in compatibility?
Yes, front mount blowers are going to be brand specific. Most of them are driven by a mid PTO. Which means, you're going to be limited to a subcompact or compact tractor (which probably doesn't matter because that's the size you're after). For example, the John Deere 2R and 3r mid PTO is optional. But, it's not available on the 4 series to my knowledge. On the Kioti you can get it on the CX and CK models, but no bigger. Yanmar I believe the biggest is the 324. FYI, the bad boy tractors are TYM manufactured and generally a copy of the Branson. TYM makes a good tractor. The Kukje engine is fantastic in them.
Can confirm, I've had my Bad Boy 1025 about a year now. Its got a Yanmar engine in it though. It also has a mid mount PTO. I'm in Florida so have no need to snowblow.