How important is 4 wd?

Thinking I may be getting a new toy and have never had a tractor with a loader.Am thinking about the jd 5055e. Most of my place is flat and will be doing general farm stuff on 320 acres.

4WD just gets you stuck deeper in the woods.

Not so much worried about the stuck part but have heard 4x4 it is important if you have a front end loader.

I would want it with a loader Just to make sure the front goes where I want it and not sliding into a ditch or rut


4wd is like a pistol, you never need it until you need it! But when you need it it is worth whatever it costed you.

2wd gets you stuck in wet grass.

I'd never consider a tractor with 2wd. 4wd is a must. So many reasons to have it. You'll need it.

I agree with that. So many times ive been stuck on my tractor and just reached down and put in 4x4 and easily gotten out from something id have to went and got a truck or something to pull me out of.

Trucks and tractors- Never buy anything but 4WD.

If you ever pick up a load and you don't have rear ballast then you can lose some control especially if you are going down an incline. 4WD won't always overcome being under ballasted but you will have more control than 2WD. I always put my tractor in 4WD when mowing ditches parallel to the road. I feel like it give me more control IMO.

A must have. Many times I’ve been able to get through mud after getting stuck in 2 wd

4wd does two things, helps with loader work and gets more HP to the ground when pulling. A must have IMO.

Modern tractors are lighter than their older HP equivalents, and need 4wd to perform. I personally wouldn't buy a 2wd tractor, unless it was strictly for row crop use, and I would still prefer a 4wd

I would definitely get 4wd. I have a 48 hp kubota that's only a few years old and if it wasn't for it being paid for I'd probably be trading it in or selling it to get a 4wd with a loader.

It's very easy to identify people who know absolutely nothing about tractors.
They're always the ones who say, "you gotta have a 4wd".
For the most part, a 4wd tractor will do nothing that a regular tractor won't. It does come in handy with a loader, if equipped with the right transmission. But it'll make no difference pulling most implementation or almost anything else a farm tractor is used for.

Sheeeeit. Good luck with a 2wd

4WD isn't necessary, until you really need it.

2wd is fine but I prefer 4wd with a loader. Especially putting hay out in the winter around hay rings get pretty nasty pretty quick

New tractors need 4wd because they are a lightweight POS.

That's pretty much sums up all you need to know on the subject.

Get a 4wd if you are getting a new machine... you'll need it as soon as you hook up anything other than a Bush Hog.

4wd is all about overcoming an array of shortcomings and other inadequacies that can't be covered up with shiny new paint.

Brother I'm normally your strongest ally in the room but you're wrong on this. If you don't believe me load it down with a big disc and reach down and flip the 4wd off halfway across the field. That front drive-train adds at least 15 hp to the unit.

If you don't think you need a 4wd tractor, go rent or borrow a 4wd tractor, put it in 2wd and drive around doing work for a weekend. You'll spin out at least twice, and need to use 4wd.

I would just quit while I was ahead.

It's very tempting to buy a 2wd tractor. I nearly did myself earlier this year. They're so much cheaper for the same HP. Had a few folks talk me out of it, and I'm glad they did.

Well at age 61 this is gonna be my "forever" tractor, so I am thinking I am gonna have to bite the bullet and get the 4 wd and the transmission that comes along with it. That and a quick hitch for sure.Thanks for everyones input.

I’ve got a Massey 1433v 4x4 and a Ford Super Dexta 48hp. I’m trying to figure out a way to make the ford 4x4. Problem is it’s a 66 model and was my grandfathers so selling it is out of the question

^^what he said^^

Lord, how have I managed the past 40 years with 2wd tractors?
If I'm buying a used tractor and it happens to be a 4wd,thats great. But it's the least of the options I'm looking for, and certainly not the deal breaker.
Mostly it's an added expense, additional maintenance, and more moving pieces to break down.

A 300 hp tractor would look stupid in 2wd pulling a 40' turbo till. Matter of fact it doesn't happen. Buy 4wd and thank us later.

I'm gonna go out a limb and wager the majority of us here ain't talking about 300 hp tractors.

Watch the video and then ask yourself if you are using your tractor to mud ride or are you using it to do work?

If you are mud riding with it and unhappy with your 2wd setup... you might want to check into a basic set of clamp-on duals like in the video.

He got through that mud hole without Cab-N-Air too. Just want to point that out before someone says they won't work without an Air Conditioner either.

It is a Fordson; not a Ford. Calling it a Ford is like calling a Chevy a GMC.

I took my old Fordson Dextra a lot of places people never thought it would go. Knowing how to drive and how to work brakes is important. You can drive one with the front tires off the ground if you can work the brakes. Mud is about the only thing to give the 4x4 an advantage unless you are working the loader. Then it really helps out. I know I wouldn’t buy a new one without it. I have enjoyed it on my new one, for sure.

This...^^^ 4 WD for sure

That's funny.
If you goobers are getting stuck on wet grass y'all need to take up golf.

Get it. 4X4

I'm with OB on this one.

So you don't believe two tractors , same HP , same weight, same rear rubber, only difference is one is 2WD and other is 4WD that the 4WD will pull best? Also explain what difference the trans makes when doing loader work with a 4x4.

In most cases, it won't make any difference because the bulk of the weight and torque is on the rear-end. Any additional traction gained from a live front end is mainly noticeable in added steering control, rather than pulling power. On muddy ground, with a 4wd,you might not have to use the brakes to assist with steering as much as you would with a 2wd. But I can get the same job done every time with a 2wd tractor.
With regard to transmission, if you have a standard manual shift, you're just as likely to burn up a clutch, using a front end loader, with a 4wd or 2wd.
The 4wd does have an advantage when equipped with a shuttle shift or similar transmission.
The obvious downside of the 4wd (aside from added cost and maintenance) is rapid wear of the front tires, especially if you have to put them on the pavement very often.

When you need it its the most important option in the world.

Yeah , like going up a steep hill with a heavy bush hog on back, get a bucket full of dirt and put it in 4X4.

I use my tractor to work.

4x4 is a damn near necessity.

Save the BS for people who don’t know any better.

I must be one of the greatest tractor operators of all time. I'm not a row cropping farmer, just live on a small farm and use my tractor around home and on an 800 acre lease year round, about 200 hrs a year. Been doing it for about 30 years and have only gotten stuck a few times and only once that I couldn't get unstuck by unhooking the implement I was pulling. I've worn one tractor out, it was 25 yrs old when I got it and still use it occasionally, and have 6 years on the second one I bought new. Never had 4 wd but I guess it would be nice if I ever needed it but don't consider it a necessity. That's my story and I'm sticking to it

Yea but you're a flatlander. Try a 2wd on any rolling ground and you'll see why it's needed

Just let them keep playing with their toys.

They cannot miss what they have not had!

South Montgomery Co, is rolling ground, only flat ground around here is in creek bottoms and most of those are good old prairie gumbo. Not like the mountains of Pelham but some pretty good grades

Important

We just know what we're doing. There's a big difference between an equipment operator and a steering wheel holder.

Hahaha. Now that's funny.

You're just a youngin. I done wore out a fleet of tractors before you left Morgan.

Yep

Sad part is I'm sure I've got more seat time than you. We had a 2wd 4755 pulling a 36' disk in the cahaba river farm in the 90's. That sand made it slip pretty bad. Bought a 4960 4wd then finally got some work done. I'm not like some on here. I know where a 4wd tractor pays off.

My JD 5300 is 2wd, my JD 5103 is 2wd both with loaders. Feeding hay in January & February sucks with a 2wd. My next one will be 4wd wether 25 hp or 150 hp.

My old tractor was 2wd drive and thought it was just fine, never got stuck. My current tractor is 4x4 with a loader and I will never consider another tractor that’s not 4x4 with a loader. Using the loader usually requires 4x4 and I use the loader way more than I ever thought I would. After 700hrs is about time for some new front tires.

Never owned a tractor but everything I've been around has been 2wd used on a perfectly flat hazelnut orchard.
For Alabama hunting land type stuff I see a 4wd being more useful. Land and tractor is on the todo list for eventually.

Larger front tires hold up better doing a lot of loader work also.

We use to have a JD 5200 2wd there was nothing like raising the loader up to put a hay bale in the hay ring and watch the front end get pushed down in the chit. Some times it would back up while you held diff lock down sometimes it wouldn't back up and with a hay spear on the front you can really crawfish yourself out like you can with a bucket. The time I got stuck mid January putting out hay and it started to rain made me remember that pretty well and hate that tractor I went and got our JD 6320 cab tractor 4x4 and pulled it backwards enough that the front tires was above the ground again and drove off. It just sucked out there that day freezing in the rain.

If you can get a 2wd tractor stuck in wet grass, you are either an idiot, or you need new tires really bad.

Maybe you made it 40 years with 2wd tractors because you’re using smaller equipment? Do you own a 4wd tractor? Every friend I have who farms for a living told me before I bought mine to make sure I got the front drive shaft, lots cheaper than additional horsepower. Thirty years ago they were pulling an 18’ harrow behind a Ford TW30 tractor and thought they were doing it big. Hell, they were doing it big back then. But now they’re pulling harrows twice that width with a 4wd with the same hp.

IMO, owning a 4wd tractor isn’t about not getting stuck, it’s about more pulling power. Whether it’s implements or a spreader buggy they just handle it better. Trust me, if there’s one drawback to a 4wd it’s when you do get them stuck you better call a really, really big 4wd tractor.

I would not own a utility tractor with a loader without 4x4. It’s an absolute must or you’ll find yourself more frustrated over the work your tractor can’t do rather than what it will do. On ground that is not flat it’s like owning a totally different machine.

When I was tractor shopping a few years ago I noticed a couple things:

1. 4wd tractors hold value better than the same tractor but 2wd. I think the 4wd option is like a $4000, well that tractor can have 2000 hrs on it and still be $4000 more than the 2wd model.
2. The same rule applies to a front end loader.

I ended up getting a 2wd but was able to get a nicer and larger machine than if I got a 4wd. When disking I wish it was 4wd. But when fooling with hay (square bales), bush hogging, spraying, or box blade work I'm fine with just 2wd.

Depends. Flatland and no mud and muck most of time 2wd is ok. 2wd will go through a good bit of mud and sand with the grip tires. You will have no troube pulling out vehicles with 2wd, but 4wd will help. Hilly land or muddy land 4wd a must. 4wd will still get stuck too!

Not very important until you need it....then it's important. My Kubota is 4wd and I don't think I'd buy another that wasn't.

Definitely 4wd. There's a hole for everything but 4wd and differential lock has saved me a bunch of times. One time bush hogging around my pond I went down a wet steep area more than I should have and the 4wd and diff lock got me out when tires started spinning. Saved me embarrassment and a hassle.

You should be able to perform almost anything you care to with the 2wd. 4wd is great for steep slopes, really digging the loader into stuff, and if you are trying to plow deep or in unbroken ground. If money is not an issue buy the 4wd. If trying to save some funds just use common sense and don't run the thing off some pond dam or in a mud hole. Most of the work we do is with tractors 35-90 horse. In the small 35 tractors 4wd is really needed on hills or with heavy discs or any plowing. But I'd rather have a 50-60 horse 2wd than a 4wd 35-40 horse tractor. However, in the 80 horse 4wd you spend more time worrying about breaking implements than you do worrying about not getting enough bite (and that can be a bigger problem). So, in short. If your a hobby farmer/wildlife land manager and can't perform the task with a 50-60 horse 2wd then you are probably doing something you really don't have to. Kind of like a truck. Most of us don't really need a 1 ton truck, but if you can afford it it sure is nice to know you aren't limited like all the other poor folk.

Semo appears to possibly be a fella that might have owned more than one tractor, and also that he also possibly drove them for more than a couple hours a few weekends a year.

My Vote = Get a 4wd if you can still afford a tractor of the appropriate horsepower. Don't get 4wd if that means you are going to get a 35hp tractor vs a 60hp tractor.

My Argument = You don't necessarily need it.

The basics of your agrument that 4wd is a necessity is not logical. If you are riding around needing 4wd because it is muddy you are also then rutting up your fields and destroying your road infrastructure by driving your tractor around on them in muddy conditions. I've got to ask why you would be doing that? Are you discing up a mud hole? Does that not plug your disc? Are you plowing up mud? Are running a bush hog through a swamp several times a year because of ____ ? Do you have a road that you need to fix and don' t know how?

I mean.... WTH are you doing? If you say I'm feeding cows I'm going to say "Ok". That's a logical reason to be in need of 4wd. Carrying more than 1 bale through some mud in February. I'm down with that.

BUT - In the 30 years I have been driving tractors regularly I have only been stuck in 2wd machine 2-3 times and ALL of those times involved needing to have that machine in the field come hell or high water because of something to do with money.

If you have a wet spot in a field fix it. Your granddaddy never needed a 4wd tractor and he might have farmed for 30 years. We had about 15 tractors when I was a kid growing up and the only one that was 4wd was an articulating giant. When we said 4wd tractor back then everyone knew you were talking about a Steiger, Versatile or something like that.. Not a little 50hp chore tractor.

If you need 4wd to pull your 6' disc then you didn't buy a large enough tractor.

It's that simple.

I could give a chit less if some guy that says he's God's gift to tractor operators says I don't need it - if I'm gonna just have one tractor to do the hobby around the house related things that I need to do with a tractor, you can guarantee it's going to be a 4wd.

Not trying to get into some internet shouting match. But Goatkiller is 100% correct. If it makes you feel good to push equipment to its max and won't let any situation, soil/weather conditions, or bad idea stop you from trying....then better run a 4wd (though you will probably have issues at some point anyway).

I liked the grandparent point you made, but then I remembered that mine had an Oliver crawler. Though that was a real death trap if you take the wrong angle on a steep slope.

Interesting thread, but I think the argument is more semantics than anything. Whether 4wd is a necessity or not depends on what kind of tractor we are talking about and what kind of implements you will use. If you are going to have a FEL, then I would say to definitely find a 4wd tractor. If you are not getting a FEL, and it's going to be used on 320 acres that are flat, as the OP said, then maybe you can save a lot of money and do without it. Then it depends on what kind of tractor you are considering.

If you are only going to be running a bush hog to mow roads and deer plots, and then maybe a disc for planting deer plots, and you are getting a decent sized tractor, you can get by fine with 2wd. The first tractor I used was a Super C, and we used a 300 acre tract of land similar to what the OP has. That 2wd tractor did every job we needed on the place. I have a Yanmar that is 4wd and rated about the same HP as the Super C, but the Super C is at least twice the tractor. It would pull a 2 disc discplow that the Yanmar would struggle to budge. The OP is likely not interested in a Super C, but it's an example of a tractor that doesn't need 4wd.

Outback has a JD5210 that is 2wd and doesn't need 4wd unless you have a FEL. It's basically the same tractor as the 5055 the OP is considering. I ran a 5210 for 12 years and it was a fine machine. I got it stuck several times, always in the same field where it would break through the upper crust when plowing. The Super C was stuck in the same field several times. When I got 5075 with 4wd, I was hopeful that the days of getting stuck in that field were over. Unfortunately, they were not. I might have made a few extra rounds before breaking through, but it broke through and I wound up calling a wrecker to get me out.

If you are just gonna use a 50 HP tractor for keeping up roads and deer plots, I would save a lot of money and find a good 2wd. If you are gonna run a loader and do other work, I'd spend the money and get a 4wd. If you are gonna run a tractor of 30 hp or less and do more than a garden, then I'd go 4wd.

Since this is in the Serious deer hunting forum, I assume we are talking about a tractor for deer plots. I think a good 2wd is all you need for that purpose.

The other factor to consider is, will this be used at home or will you need to trailer it from home to camp & such.

That 50hp 2wd will likely weigh 2,000lbs+ more than a compact 35hp 4x4. Depending on what you have, you may need more truck & trailer too to go along with the new tractor.

If you are buying a new tractor, I don't think 4x4 adds much to the price. Maybe 2 grand or so. I have 4x4 and it does make a difference when disking. It also helps the steering in a muddy or soft field. Although, using the breaks properly will help a two wheel drive in these situations. I need a tractor in the 70hp range and I have opinions on both 4wd and 2wd. If I get the 2wd and get stuck a lot, then I will be mad but if I get the 4wd and don't get stuck then, great. The only time I have been stuck with my 4wd, it was stuck terribly. I still have night mares about that. I may just go with a 2wd model.

Funny thing. I never once stuck a 2 wheel drive tractor. I’ve had a 4 wheel drive tractor for 3 months and I already got it stuck once and had to use the bucket to lift and push back to get me out. Luckily, I knew how to do that. Otherwise I might still be sitting there.

LOL. I was stuck way beyond that point.

Well the deed is done. Hopefully I will be using anew 5055e to finally get my plots planted Friday and Saturday. Ended up getting the 4x4 since I got a loader and this should be the last tractor I ever own.

Congrats on the purchase.

Sweet

Congrats, that's a fine tractor and you needed the 4wd since you got a loader. My 5075e is the same tractor except a little more air to the engine. Mine has been a solid tractor and let's hope yours is too

What about bush hogging around lakes/ponds? I've got a very shallow pond that I can bushhog around in 4wd and get the area nice and clean for fishing. That area will never be dry, by definition.

If you can't figure it out spray it or use your push mower.

BrabB - Congrats on purchased I think you made the right call. You will wind up using the loader a LOT.

4wd with a loader if for not anything other than the heavier built front end. My dad had a 2 wheel drive tractor with a loader and it was constantly an ordeal with front spindles breaking due to the weight and the bouncing caused from the added weight and leverage of the bucket.

Nobody needs a tractor.

A push lawn mower and a garden tiller is all anybody needs.

And anybody that says different just does not know how to use them as good as I do!

Cannot wait to use that loader. I have two stream crossings that need a new culvert and some dirt and I have not been able to take care of it until now.Also have two shooting house already built and this is gonna make them a lot easier to put up.I am very stoked.Only fly in the ointment is we have a huge trial coming up and I may not be able to swing a trip up until the first week in November.

Congratulations on the purchase. You'll wonder why you went so long with out a loader now that you got one. It's as handy as a pocket on a shirt. I leave my loader on while I bushhog to move fallen trees or big limbs that broke off from the edge of fields and move hay rings and feed troughs in the pasture while bushhogging.

In my experience.....and i wudnt doin farm stuff, which im sure a 2wd would be fine....i wouldnt have a 2wd tractor...i wouldnt have a 2wd anything....unless i was putting a diff lock on my huffy.

Tractors are too light today you will need 4wd to dig,load etc with a bucket. I would also fill the rear tires with a water/antifreeze mix for added weight

This!

I rarely need 4x4 on a backhoe at work, we develop land and get in some hairy situations. Im not sayin i have to use 4wd or buckets to self pull or push but if i get stuck in 2wd on a tractor then i dont have any business being in that spot in the first place. Its just up to you