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Comment by seltzered_ | Hacker News Reader

The problem with this example I think is the price of 45000 USD. I went down a research rabbit hole in this once and largely concluded some cheaper options are either to

- question why you really need a tractor. There's some organic growers on her small plots using push-driven tools rather than riding tractors.

- look into the ge elec-trac community (google it). A tractor built back in the 70s gas crisis that people still cherish. Notably most electric tractor r&d I've seen tends to be done around a gas price crisis (early 70s, 2008)

- seriously consider why you need a tractor if it's small acreage. I've wanted to gift a scythe rather than see people close to me futz with tractors they can't maintain

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Here's a few (75 acre, non farmable use case):

- cutting grass

- pulling a stump

- leveling a gravel road after a heavy rain wash out

- pushing around a brush pile

- moving some big rocks around

Good point! Think what I was thinking about was the large suburban homeowner (around 2 acres)

I am that homeowner. Here are some things I use my tractor for: turn compost (6ft tall piles), till a large garden, grade landscaping for drainage, dig holes for posts and plants, distribute mulch, repair driveway and distribute gravel, and help my neighbors with many of these same items.

I also use it to move heavy items like wooden beams and Mac's mom.

All of this could be done without the tractor, so I wouldn't say it's necessary. My back is not wrecked right now, though, I'm glad I have it. Also, I imagine my use will slow after having lived here for longer (only been a few years so far) - we have several projects we want done at the moment.

The way I figure I could rent a tractor for about $150/day when I need it, or buy an old one for $6k to use for many years and then sell it... probably for near $6k (I know I've spent money on maintenance). Renting every other weekend is annoying, and I often work 1 hour in the evening.

Anyway, hopefully this helps answer your question about why someone with a few acres would own such a thing.

My Dad bought a JD2130 in the 1970s for ~$17K and sold it in 2007 for $17K.

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