Time for a new tractor

[Freebird]

When I started in the stairlift business, I bought a smaller Mahindra EMax 22 with a loader.  I use it primarily for unloading stairlifts off semis at the end of my 450 ft. driveway.  I typically order 5 lifts at a time.  5 lifts weigh right at 1000 lbs.  They used to ship them on two pallets but recently changed that and now they come on a single pallet.  Even with a 900 lb ballast on the rear of the EMax 22, it was more than a little scary lifting that 1000 lbs off the rear of a semi.  It would work but you had to be very careful to make sure that you were as level as possible and go very slow.   More than once I've had one of my rear tires come off the ground and even when a tire does not come up, you can tell that you are overloaded.

So, I finally broke down and bought a slightly larger tractor.  I found a great deal on a new 2021 Mahindra 1626.  Loader lift capacity on the Emax 22 was 900 lbs.  This one is 1560 lbs.  I had the tires loaded with Rim Seal (beet juice) and I will also still have the ballast box that I used on the Emax so I should be good to go.  Ended up buying it from a dealer about 5 hours away in Mt. Pleasant Mills, PA and they are delivering it so it won't be here until next Tuesday but I'm really looking forward to it.  Bought it there because I got a fantastic deal and a great price on my trade,.

Of course it's also coming with a set of 48" forks.  Another advantage of this one is that it uses the skid steer type quick attach so it will be much easier to swap between bucket and forks.  My Emax was not quick attach.  My other few implements will work fine with this one.  Bucket scraper, post hole digger, etc.  

This is not a picture of it but exactly the same tractor.  They removed mine from the website when I bought it and before I downloaded the picture. 

 

 

 

[BlueSky]

Wow! That's quite a tractor.  I'm sure you'll find many more uses for it.

[bpate4home]

4 hours ago, Freebird said:

When I started in the stairlift business, I bought a smaller Mahindra EMax 22 with a loader.  I use it primarily for unloading stairlifts off semis at the end of my 450 ft. driveway.  I typically order 5 lifts at a time.  5 lifts weigh right at 1000 lbs.  They used to ship them on two pallets but recently changed that and now they come on a single pallet.  Even with a 900 lb ballast on the rear of the EMax 22, it was more than a little scary lifting that 1000 lbs off the rear of a semi.  It would work but you had to be very careful to make sure that you were as level as possible and go very slow.   More than once I've had one of my rear tires come off the ground and even when a tire does not come up, you can tell that you are overloaded.

So, I finally broke down and bought a slightly larger tractor.  I found a great deal on a new 2021 Mahindra 1626.  Loader lift capacity on the Emax 22 was 900 lbs.  This one is 1560 lbs.  I had the tires loaded with Rim Seal (beet juice) and I will also still have the ballast box that I used on the Emax so I should be good to go.  Ended up buying it from a dealer about 5 hours away in Mt. Pleasant Mills, PA and they are delivering it so it won't be here until next Tuesday but I'm really looking forward to it.  Bought it there because I got a fantastic deal and a great price on my trade,.

Of course it's also coming with a set of 48" forks.  Another advantage of this one is that it uses the skid steer type quick attach so it will be much easier to swap between bucket and forks.  My Emax was not quick attach.  My other few implements will work fine with this one.  Bucket scraper, post hole digger, etc.  

This is not a picture of it but exactly the same tractor.  They removed mine from the website when I bought it and before I downloaded the picture. 

 

Does that has a PTO.  Would be cool to run some vintage stuff off of it like a sawmill etc.  

[Joe in WV]

Good looking tractor. Really like the quick attach implements. 

My Ford 1520 is about back together. Had to tear apart to put clutch in it.  Replaced the pilot and throwout bearings and both clutch disks... Then, found out PTO shaft, bearings and seals also needed to be replaced. This required the front portion of the transmission to be disassembled. Way out of my comfort range but I got through it.  Next tractor I buy, will most likely be a full size, 4 wheel drive orchard tractor.  The parts are cheaper than the compact tractors and not near as tip prone due to the larger diameter wheels up front.  Be careful, those heavy loads can get you in trouble quick. Even a small pothole or slope can tip you over, especially if the loader is higher than the headlights.  You've got forks now that should make it alot safer.  The lower the loader/forks are, the safer the ride.

Anyway have fun with it it!

[uncledj]

Since we're braggin' on our tractors....My 1957 Ford 800 with a Sherman backhoe was one of the first ones built to be used specifically as a backhoe.    It's a real POS.   lol....   Smokes, vibrates, leaks oil, power steering fluid and air from the tires that are so bad they had to be banded.   I have to go out there and sand the points to get it started, and the generator is shot so I run it off a 12v battery.     It's missing the sheet metal so it looks like a mechanical monstrosity.   I may have to post a pic.   With all it's failings, it still beats diggin' by hand.

  I'll be looking to sell before much longer....any takers?....

Edited March 24, 2022 by uncledj

[SpencerPJ]

Looks great Freebird, enjoy and be safe with it.

[N3FOL]

Very nice!   For sure can be used all year round.   Enjoy the outdoors!   👍🏻

[larrydr]

I was a potato farmer for 14 years , had a couple of loaders on hand ...All our bulk potatoes had to cross a grade line before we loaded by conveyor in a 40 foot trailer ..Our indoor loader had 8 ft by 4 ft bucket and heading for the grader bin with a full bucket , one thing you learned quickly was the height of the bucket and speed you were driving the tractor from the pile required some care because not thinking was not good ..At height over 5 feet it became top heavy , and then you can guess what would happen next

[Freebird]

18 hours ago, bpate4home said:

Does that has a PTO.  Would be cool to run some vintage stuff off of it like a sawmill etc.  

Yes, it has a PTO.  My old one, the Emax 22 had a PTO also.  Only time I've used it is for a post hole digger and for a sprayer.

[Freebird]

This is the Emax 22 that I'm trading in.  Since these pictures were taken, I added a ballast on the back that adds about 900 lbs of weight to the rear to help with lifting.  Still wasn't enough though.  The new ones has loaded tires and I'll also use the 900 lbs ballast if I need to.  This one is only rated to lift 900 lbs., the new one is rated at 1560 lbs.  Should be much better.  I didn't buy the mid mount mower for the new one as I never use it to mow.  I would be nice to have it as a backup but I couldn't see spending another $5600.00 for a mid mount mower when I have a 62" zero turn that I mow with and a 380X John Deere with a 54" deck that I can use for a backup.  This was a great little tractor though,.  Have owned it for about 4 years and never had any problem at all with it.

 

 

 

[Marcarl]

Nice piece, hoping it works well for you.

[Woody]

Looks good I have the skid steer QC on my Kubota I like it. I've built several accessories to use on mine.

[bpate4home]

41 minutes ago, Freebird said:

This is the Emax 22 that I'm trading in.  Since these pictures were taken, I added a ballast on the back that adds about 900 lbs of weight to the rear to help with lifting.  Still wasn't enough though.  The new ones has loaded tires and I'll also use the 900 lbs ballast if I need to.  This one is only rated to lift 900 lbs., the new one is rated at 1560 lbs.  Should be much better.  I didn't buy the mid mount mower for the new one as I never use it to mow.  I would be nice to have it as a backup but I couldn't see spending another $5600.00 for a mid mount mower when I have a 62" zero turn that I mow with and a 380X John Deere with a 54" deck that I can use for a backup.  This was a great little tractor though,.  Have owned it for about 4 years and never had any problem at all with it.

We had an old Farmall Cub and a larger Massy Ferguson which both had the PTO drives.  One of them we used to run a neighbors small saw from the 40's. It was pretty cool how it worked.  When he moved to southern OH, near Seneca Lake, He bought a new one with a front bucket, a backhoe, forks, brush hog and a side mower. That side mower was awesome for him. He had rolled one of the tractors mowing a dam on the small lake they were on.  That side mower made it so we didn't have to worry about that as he got older. 

[Condor]

I'm jealous.......

[Freebird]

Well, I now have another new tractor.  Also a year ago, I bought the new Manindra 1626 HST.  It served me well for a while.  Then I changed stairlift suppliers and the new brand is heavier.  As with the other brand, they come 5 on a pallet.  Though the pallet with the 5 lifts is only about 975 lbs., the pallet is about 96" long and I have to take them off the semi from the end so there is a lot of weight hanging out on the end.  The Mahindra handled the old brand ok but not these.  I couldn't get under the pallets and curl it back at all.  Depending upon how the weight was distributed on the pallets each time, I usually also couldn't lift them at all.  I could get under it and drag it off the semi and it would hold them when it slid off the end.  The I would have to get it from the side to carry it to my shop.  Scary dragging a pallet off the end of a semi not being 100% sure it would hold it.

So, I decided to buy yet another new tractor.  The problem is, I didn't want to go with more HP because if you go above 25 HP you have to get the DPF emissions crap.  After a lot of research I decided to go with a different brand this time.  My last two tractors were Mahindra and I really liked them.  Never had a problem with either of them.  This time, due to it's better lift capacity, I ended up with a Kioti 2620 HST.;  Still about the same HP so no DPF system but about 200 lbs more lift capacity which should be more than enough.  It's not a lot more but enough that I should be able to curl it back and lift what I need to. It seems that Kioti has the most lift capacity in this class.

It will be delivered one day this week after they get the rear tires loaded.  Then I'll put my forks and ballast box on it and do a littler test.  I just had a load of stairlifts delivered and am leaving them on the pallet until I get the new tractor here and give it a go.  I'm confident that it will be OK though.

The good news is that I got a heck of a deal on the Mahiundra 1626 and got within $500.00 of what I paid for it.

Here's a picture of what I bought.,

 

[Woody]

I seen that orange paint and thought you done stepped up to a Kubota . But it's a good looking tractor never owned one but have all ways heard good things about them. 

[Woody]

Does it have the skid steer hook up on the FEL?

[Freebird]

Yes it does.  It would have been a no go without the skid steer hookup.

[Freebird]

1 hour ago, Woody said:

I seen that orange paint and thought you done stepped up to a Kubota . But it's a good looking tractor never owned one but have all ways heard good things about them. 

I actually had a small Kubota a few years ago.  It had the FEL and backhoe.  Was a good tractor but just overpriced compared to the Mahindras and Kiotis which serve me just fine.  The Kubota was the small one.  BX22 or something like that.