Hand Tools and Machinery for Country Living

[Too Tall]

Ahhh the smell of ether on a cold morning :)

Hilarious, I was thinking "just get your sawzall".

These are great videos bud.

[j44ke]

Ahhh the smell of ether on a cold morning :)

Hilarious, I was thinking "just get your sawzall".

These are great videos bud.

So good. I think he gets cans of ether by the case.

He's a Catskills product. What we in Virginia used to call redneck genius without it being a criticism or a pejorative. There is a video where he uses another machine to flip over a Dodge pickup truck and show all the things that are wrong with truck design now. There is a Bobcat skid-steer repair that is a tour-de-force of getting it done. Built a castle out of shipping containers. Etcetera.

[72gmc]

This may be the video that convinces my wife that a skid steer and baby excavator are good tools to have. No luck so far, but I’ll keep trying.

[darkmother]

^That video was a lot of fun to watch.

Nice tubeless install technique-bead to the center channel of the rim!

[j44ke]

This may be the video that convinces my wife that a skid steer and baby excavator are good tools to have. No luck so far, but I’ll keep trying.

Those Kubota mini-excavators are incredible. Next time you see one and you can look into the cab, look at the runtime hours.

We are getting the chorus of moos from across the valley today. Started last night and is still going. Usually that means another batch of calves has been separated from their moms to be sent to the feed lots - but in February-March? I think that would mean calves born in December? I don't know why that should surprise me - I am sure they can get cows to calve whenever they want. Just seems tough time to have calves due.

[j44ke]

Okay, now I am looking at tractors. Specifically subcompact. This is a slippery slope. First quads, then side-by-sides, then tractors. Next stop, mini-excavators.

Anyway, I like the look of the Kubota BX23. Small 4x4 tractor and I can get as complicated a plow setup as I want. They make a manual one and one that has complete hydraulic control, plus any number of after-market options. In the last week I've had 2-3 jobs that I could have used the tractor for. I have two drainage pipes I'd like to add to the driveway, and the list goes on. Splitter on the PTO. Chipper on the PTO. Planting trees which I will do a lot of over the next five years. And I just banged back into shape the stone wall that the snow plow guy knocked 4-6" off-line, so I am pretty committed to plowing my own drive next winter.

Plus it is orange.

Am I wrong? I might not care. I might have to build a second garage.

This one is on Craig's list locally for $23K, and it is the only one that looks like it actually got used.

[sk_tle]

Doesn't it make more sense to rent than to own those kind of things?

Here in europe very few people own thoses, they are mostly rented on demand.

[bigbill]

We're planning our first month in Wyoming. My wife and her sister are eventers (dressage, show jumping, and cross country). The dressage and show jumping competitions are held in a two acre field and arena. The cross country course has been on leased BLM land for the past two decades. That lease is up at the end of June and won't be renewed so we have to break down the course and either haul off the jumps or build a bonfire. All the materials on the course are either rock or wood. The rocks can be scattered and we will re-purpose the wood as much as possible on a short course on our property. This was a world-class course so will rent a skid steer from the CAT dealer for a week or more. Last summer I got pretty good with a blade, bucket, and forks. We have two flatbed trailers available for the ten mile travel between the BLM and our property. As an aside, the area where the course is set up was used for astronaut training because it is similar to the moonscape.

For the remainder of the summer after we build a course on the lower terrace, I'll excavate an old, narrow irrigation ditch that is no longer in use, and fill it with gravel to create a French drain and eliminate the standing water that supports mosquitoes. Our fence lines are overgrown with Russian olives, an invasive species, that I'll work on removing so I can repair all the old fences. I'll bring both chainsaws, gas trimmer, generator, and handtools. I'll be the epitome of "he's brown as a berry from riding the prairie."

[j44ke]

Doesn't it make more sense to rent than to own those kind of things?

Here in europe very few people own thoses, they are mostly rented on demand.

For a handful of jobs a year, yes rental makes sense. But even just 10 times a year, delivery and pickup starts to eat into the advantages. And if you are going to use it for plowing snow, then scheduling a rental is not usually workable.

[monadnocky]

Jorn - curious, do you have a place to keep it out of the elements? I'm always surprised around here to see them not in a garage or shed or some sort of structure - just out with the seat up, in all conditions.

*oh and edit: Do you plan on filling the tires with calcium chloride?

[72gmc]

Grew up doing chores on 6 acres with dad's Kubota (I think it was a B7100D, diesel 4-wheel drive). A constantly useful little thing. It was so interestingly mechanical--it was fun to watch the glow coil heat up, let alone help Dad justify ever more PTO-driven attachments.

If I had even a weak justification for one of my own, my wife would be hiding my wallet.

[j44ke]

Jorn - curious, do you have a place to keep it out of the elements? I'm always surprised around here to see them not in a garage or shed or some sort of structure - just out with the seat up, in all conditions.

*oh and edit: Do you plan on filling the tires with calcium chloride?

Yes. There are already plans to build an outbuilding.

I have seen advertisements in Craig's List for "weighted wheels" but usually they are bolt on iron rings or similar. I know water and calcium chloride (or antifreeze or window washing fluid) is also used. I'm not sure when people add weight to their tractor wheels - I have a feeling that works for pulling when the tractor is 2WD and better traction is needed. In the front the weights are usually on a rack where a bumper on a car would be to keep the nose of the tractor from lifting.

[SlowPokePete]

Please get a tractor.

SPP

[sk_tle]

For a handful of jobs a year, yes rental makes sense. But even just 10 times a year, delivery and pickup starts to eat into the advantages. And if you are going to use it for plowing snow, then scheduling a rental is not usually workable.

I didn't consider the snow plow indeed. I thought you already had your mind set on the 4x4 quad for that and it was an aditionnal machine.

[j44ke]

I didn't consider the snow plow indeed. I thought you already had your mind set on the 4x4 quad for that and it was an aditionnal machine.

I'm on the fence.

[mjbabcock]

This one is on Craig's list locally for $23K, and it is the only one that looks like it actually got used.

We got a BX1860 included with the house we bought 4 years ago. Super useful little machine, but it didn’t take long to wish I had a larger machine. The bx series has little wheels and narrow axles. It can get tippy with the bucket on the front of those small front tires. I would love something with ~30+ horsepower and the larger size 3-point and the more powerful pro would be a bonus.

As for attachments, that’s where a bigger machine would also be nice. I feel like I’m always pushing mine more than I should. I have linkage pins with lots of play in them on the bucket, and dragging a 5’ lane plane on the dirt road can make it struggle at times. If you’re gonna spend the money, throw an extra $4-5k and get a bigger machine.

[monadnocky]

Yes. There are already plans to build an outbuilding.

I have seen advertisements in Craig's List for "weighted wheels" but usually they are bolt on iron rings or similar. I know water and calcium chloride (or antifreeze or window washing fluid) is also used. I'm not sure when people add weight to their tractor wheels - I have a feeling that works for pulling when the tractor is 2WD and better traction is needed. In the front the weights are usually on a rack where a bumper on a car would be to keep the nose of the tractor from lifting.

In this neck of the woods, for some reason it's all Ford tractors from the mid-80's - it's like the Ford sales guy went through the neighborhood in 1986 and everyone was buying. 2WD with a much bigger difference between the size of the rear versus the front wheels, much bigger than the one you are thinking about. So lots of weight is kind of de rigueur. I guess not as much of a concern with 4WD and wheels that are reasonably close together in size.

Tractors-Ford-1520-35695616.jpg

[Markco]

We have a Kubota BX2380 same as pictures less back hoe. If we need a backhoe we rent one. Only rented once in 25 years. I call it my hydraulic son. We have a 600' driveway with a short 10% pitch. Have the loader, snow blower for central MA winters, and a hydraulic feed chipper for 7 acre property, probably will get the mower and bagger once my old machine dies. You can definitely get by without one, but having it makes living in a rural setting much more comfortable and you will find lots of thing for it to do. Moving wood, concrete, carrying tools, building stone walls, removing brush and fire hazards near your home. You won't regret it. Comments about larger machine are valid. The B series are better for forestry management tasks due to higher ground clearance. The BX is easier to store and and handle has plenty of power, it just might take longer to do a task. There's a (gasp) facebook owners page for BX users and a web forum Tractorbynet that are useful sources of info from like minded obsessives you should consult prior to diving into that hole. There are few things as satisfying as tractor time. A 3 hour ride comes to mind...

5 years ago I looked at used items, they hold their value incredibly well and at the time new units were selling with 0% financing for 6 years. It made more sense to put down a modest down payment and pay 250/month for 6 years. You get the KTAC insurance which is like an excellent warranty for little money and I'd pay way more than 250/month to maintain the property jobbing it out, snow plowing alone it's paid for itself. YMMV. When I'm too old to live in a rural setting, it will be paid off an offered with the house or sold to pay for a week or 2 at the nursing home.

[caleb]

In this neck of the woods, for some reason it's all Ford tractors from the mid-80's - it's like the Ford sales guy went through the neighborhood in 1986 and everyone was buying. 2WD with a much bigger difference between the size of the rear versus the front wheels, much bigger than the one you are thinking about. So lots of weight is kind of de rigueur. I guess not as much of a concern with 4WD and wheels that are reasonably close together in size.

There's a whole world of guys who restore vintage tractors, too. I like the idea of Jorn on an old Oliver, Minneapolis Moline, or Alice Chalmers.

Press to start: https://photos.yesterdaystractors.co..._hits_seen=100

[j44ke]

In this neck of the woods, for some reason it's all Ford tractors from the mid-80's - it's like the Ford sales guy went through the neighborhood in 1986 and everyone was buying. 2WD with a much bigger difference between the size of the rear versus the front wheels, much bigger than the one you are thinking about. So lots of weight is kind of de rigueur. I guess not as much of a concern with 4WD and wheels that are reasonably close together in size.

Tractors-Ford-1520-35695616.jpg

I think they have them because they are good and relatively easy to work on. I am not sure Ford makes any tractors now. I think Fiat bought New Holland from Ford. New Holland was an old brand from the 1800's started in Pennsylvania. Ford built tractors before they bought New Holland, but I don't know when Ford bought them - in the late 80's? Now New Hollands (Fiat owned) are the same blue and white as this Ford. Anyway, whoever built them, seems like Ford tractors of that era are solid.

Edit: Of course: the internet...https://nelsontractorco.com/blue-ford-tractors/