Choosing/Buying a Topper & Plough

PaddyBloggit

I have a 2 acre site with one of the acres on an incline .. nothing worth talking about. (The house on it is in need of renovation. Ditches need fixing, trees need cutting etc.)

The inclined acre is at the back of the house and is covered with ferns at the moment. The area to the front and side of the house is more of a managed field than a lawn.

I have a MF698T and am looking to buy a 5' or 6' topper that will keep growth at bay.

As a completed novice I'd be grateful for advice as to what I should be looking for.

A MF dealer who goes to England regularly has said that he'd pick up one for me for about €500/€600 but other than that I don't have any other info from him.

He also said that he'd pick up a two furrow plough for me for roughly the same price ... again any advice here.

The idea behind the plough is to use some of the area to plant my own veg. Would I get the use out of the plough or am I being overly optimistic in what I'm hoping to do?

Would buying the plough mean I'd need other ground working machinery? levelling bar? etc.

The only definite is that I need to but a topper .... the plough is aspirational!

mossfort

you should be able to buy one of those old ferguson 2 furrow ploughs for about 150 euros. there were loads of them around one time.
the dealer bringing the topper from england is it new or secondhand ?
some of them small toppers are no good because your driving over the grass before you cut it.

Casinoking

It's a long time since you could buy a Ferguson plough for €150, any half decent one is making €350 - €500 since they started getting scarce. An awful lot of them were broken up or went into foundations. Anyway, it would be a waste of time behind a 698 the tractor would pull it apart at the first stone. You'd get a straight 3 furrow spring loaded plough for €600 -€700, however you'll then need some kind of a harrow as well and maybe a drill plough. A small rotavator might be a better bet, again you should pick up a decent small one for less than €1000. As for the topper, €500 is plenty to spend on one that's only going to cut an acre a couple of times a year.

PaddyBloggit

Casinoking wrote: »

It's a long time since you could buy a Ferguson plough for €150, any half decent one is making €350 - €500 since they started getting scarce. An awful lot of them were broken up or went into foundations. Anyway, it would be a waste of time behind a 698 the tractor would pull it apart at the first stone. You'd get a straight 3 furrow spring loaded plough for €600 -€700, however you'll then need some kind of a harrow as well and maybe a drill plough. A small rotavator might be a better bet, again you should pick up a decent small one for less than €1000. As for the topper, €500 is plenty to spend on one that's only going to cut an acre a couple of times a year.

Thanks for the comprehensive reply.

I recon I'll get the topper first. The dealer had the same to say about the ploughs .... getting scarce ... hence prices going up.

PaddyBloggit

mossfort wrote: »

you should be able to buy one of those old ferguson 2 furrow ploughs for about 150 euros. there were loads of them around one time.
the dealer bringing the topper from england is it new or secondhand ?
some of them small toppers are no good because your driving over the grass before you cut it.

It would be second hand.

Your point about the small topper being no good is worth looking into.

Thanks!

scudster

IMO toppers are not much good. If the grass get very long it would get it hard to cut. Get a 5'6" mower instead. Should be able to pick a secondhand one up for about the same as the price you were talking. It will also cut the grass as short as you want and it doesnt take as long to mow a bit of grass as it does to top it.
If you do decide to buy a mower, dont run the mower when the bed is upright. Not only is it dangerous but all the oil is at one end and it wont lubricate all the gears.

PaddyBloggit

Thanks scudster. I'll look into the 5'6" mower.

I presume you mean ... not to run the mower when it's in a vertical position (as opposed to horizontal position for mowing) .... do I read you right?

Off I go to look at mowers!

roosterman71

Is there any possibility for you to get a neighbour to top the field for you? Save you 5/6 hundred quid on a machine that will only be used once, maybe twice a year. Plus it would only take 20/30 mins to top the place so is the purchase of a topper/mower worth it?

Bitten & Hisses

Atkins in Cork are advertising a Ferguson ridger for €650. Would this be a better option than a plough for you?

PaddyBloggit

roosterman71 wrote: »

Is there any possibility for you to get a neighbour to top the field for you? Save you 5/6 hundred quid on a machine that will only be used once, maybe twice a year. Plus it would only take 20/30 mins to top the place so is the purchase of a topper/mower worth it?

The site is in another county and easier to have a topper/mower on site as I don't know anybody there.

I have the tractor in situ so a reasonble attachment would mean I could do it myself when I'd be there.

PaddyBloggit

Bitten & Hisses wrote: »

Atkins in Cork are advertising a Ferguson ridger for €650. Would this be a better option than a plough for you?

I reckon I need to pin down the topper/mower first as that's kind of pressing at the moment. I'll check out Atkins though to see if it would be suitable.


Thanks.

JohnBoy

650 for a fergie ridger???????

wowsies, is that what their making?

is there some other cheaper make to look for, thats crazy money for a 40 year old simple implement.

PaddyBloggit

JohnBoy wrote: »

650 for a fergie ridger???????

wowsies, is that what their making?

is there some other cheaper make to look for, thats crazy money for a 40 year old simple implement.

I guess someone has to pay for Atkin's nice building ... and I guess there's that flood damage to pay for too.

€650 a bit rich for my blood so they won't be getting it from me.