New to farm equipment and need some advice...

[ranchwabble]

We rum mostly cattle but I'm thinking about plowing up about 60 acres and planting alfalfa, corn or potatoes. What type of tractor do you think would be ideal? What would be the smallest that I can get away with? What types of implements do you think I'll need? The ground is really hard and the top 18 inches is mostly clay. Do you think a disc would do it, or do I need something else? I am also planting an acre of pumpkins this spring on compost piles that I made and I'll need to plow that under in the fall.

Bret :???:

 

[Angus Cowman]

a good heavy offset disc would probably do what you are needing to do
for a good heavy one like a Taylor way or Bush Hog brand you would need at least 100 hp for a 10ft disc and a 4wd tractor would be even better

 

[cowboy43]

Are you going new tractor or used tractor ? Looks to me like you gonna need a corn planter and corn picker and cultivator, drill for alfafla, tater planter and tater picker, pumpkin planter and pumpkin picker and , chisel plow for the really hard clay, heavy duty disc and at least 100 hp tractor and one hell of a lot of money that you will never see again.

 

[ranchwabble]

Are you going new tractor or used tractor ?

From what I hear you end up paying the same 'cause the mainenance on a used tractor. Maybe a slightly used tractor would be best. I was looking at the chisle and the disc too. If I end up with one of them, are they still good for regular plowing? Maybe it would be more cost affective to pay to get it plowed and then get the disc for re-plowing...?

 

[farmwriter]

Our local farmers Co-op has some equipment for rent, too. (I know they have a grain drill, for example.) For 60 acres, might be a better way to start off and see if you wanna try to make a go of it every yr.
Last couple of times we needed something done we didn't have the equipment for, hiring out tractor work wasn't too bad on the wallet. Might be different in your neck of the woods, though.
If you can find a slightly used tractor, that might be the best way to go on that, but I highly recommend you buy one that can be easily serviced by someone close to you. We're not mechanics and in the past have had a tractor that had to go 3 towns away for any work it needed. BIG headache.

 

[ranchwabble]

Our local farmers Co-op has some equipment for rent, too. (I know they have a grain drill, for example.) For 60 acres, might be a better way to start off and see if you wanna try to make a go of it every yr.

That would be great. I don't know of anything like that around Colorado though. I am going to ask some farmers around my place. Maybe I can pay them for some extra work.

Thanks,

Bret :cboy: