80 vs a side by side for farm use

[vilasman]

Hi... I'm new here...I have a 100 and I've been in that forum for years. I have a question.
Ive got a farm... I got my 100 to drive around on the farm... as well as everywhere else I need to go...

I talked to a atv dealer a few years ago and his advice was... get a side by side atv for the farm... you wont care if it gets scratched up, its a lot lighter, its more agile and nimble than the cruiser and a lot cheaper to fix.
Made sense at the time....
So I was in a Kabuta dealer few hours ago and saw there side by side and the blasted thing is $16,000.
And I thinks to myself I could get a triple locked 80 series, possibly with solid axles for a lot less money, drive up and down the logging road on my land and then drive it to town when I'm finished. It will pull a trailer loaded with more firewood than the side by side ever would and it would skid trees for fire wood...
Is there a down side here or am I seeing this... the landcruiser way?

 

[Comet]

I love the kool-Aid we drink on the forum. The Kubota is a diesel? At $16k it’s cheaper than my initial $3000 purchase plus all the add-Ons by about $2000. I love my 80, I love my 100, I love my 62 but the side by side can attach a brush hog and other implements. I vote side by side for the farm. Or get a rolled 80 and make a truggy. I will continue to be of no help on this forum until I own one of every generation.

 

[danthman114]

Polaris makes a diesel ranger. then theres the mahendra roxor. ROXOR Offroad | UTVs, Side by Sides, SxS Utility Vehicles, Recreational Off-Roaders
they look like the old cj5 but its alittle smaller and has a diesel. if I was looking for something for on the farm the roxor is what I would get. hell I still might...

 

[flintknapper]

Side by Side for a Farm/Ranch are mighty handy. IF you could only have one vehicle to do all things (including travel to town), then yes, Cruiser or Truck. But since you already have transportation...go with the SxS.

Do your homework. It doesn't need to be a diesel (for most folks). Buy a reputable/proven brand.

 

[thatcabledude]

Yamaha Rhino

 

[thatcabledude]

An old one

 

[PDoyle]

I have a gas powered Polaris Ranger crew. The bed is plastic and kinda small I think it will hold 900 /1000 lbs but it does tilt. There is no heat or A/C. You can buy the cab and windshield set up for around $2k more. It isn't as wide as an 80.
The 80 would tow more.

 

[FJBen]

Find a small cheap pickup and small tractor. I'd venture to say you could have both for half the price of a new side by side. I have both for much less than half that price. A tractor will give you all sorts of options for attachments. A loader is a must, then whatever else would work on your farm. We have 10acres and a dedicated zero turn for most of the mowing.


1994 Kubota B7100HST 4WD. Got for a a good cheap price, you can find deals.

I have an 87 Dodge Ram 50 4WD (mitsubishi mighty max) that gets most of the farm duty loading scratches stuff. I also have a tundra but I don't like to get it messed up.

I don't have a good picture of the Dodge D50, because no-one takes pictures of an 87 Ram D50. On the plus side, it always starts and does quite well. I'd prefer a Toyota, but this price is right. You can see most of the Dodge behind the BJ74. I have a cab, heat, A/C and can drive into town to get parts or to the dump etc. It's literally not that much bigger than a side by side.

 

[BILT4ME]

Get an 80. Remove the doors. Cut off the roof in the back.

Now you can carry all you want in it. It has heat and AC, you can get in/out quickly, and it's still road-legal if you want it to be. And you don;t have to worry about it getting scratched up.

Install a pintle hook / ball on the rear and you can tow about anything.

You can probably find the parts to install a third-world PTO on it somehow.

 

[Heckraiser]

Cheap 4x4 pickup gets my vote. Can tow/haul anything a SxS could, but also goes on the highway if needed and has heat/AC. Something like a Ranger/Mazda, Toyota, Nissan, etc. The cost of 80's what it is, I would definitely go that route over an 80.

Coming from someone with zero farm experience other than plowing a long drive with a 4x4 tractor and running a few forklifts.

 

[MoJ]

I second the pickup.

 

[ERG80]

Side by side. My bil has a ranger for farm duty. No doors, easy to spray out, and the perfect height to jump in and out of for all the tasks around the farm make it the right choice for muddy poopy farm work. The bed is big enough for most of the the jobs around. Pickup truck or trailer behind a cruiser for the larger less common jobs.

 

[vilasman]

We have 4 tractors and at least 1 has a loader and i think one has a hay spear or whatever you call it.
There's 2 full sized chevys. Its a family farm from my grandfather...
Maybe I'm strange... when I was a kid I'd walk the few hundred acres... and dream of driving all over. Then I got my 100 and drove it all over... and got stuck in the mud in a gulley... and rubbed up against some trees and such.
I'd be suprised if someone here knew about Stoots mountain in Virginia but I was up in the top of it this weekend and what road there is ,is over grown with blackberry vines. I was happy about the scratches... helps it not look like a garage queen.
I shot some video of the road in the top of the mountain but to me and my uncle who grew up walking up and down that mountain... its the kind of place you wouldn't want to go unless its dry out. My crazy A-- wants to see this view when its covered with snow. Wondering if anything short of tank would get there

 

[vilasman]

Finishing my thought.... I do stuff like get up at sunrise , make something hot to drink and go drive the 100 out in a field or round to the river and take pictures and think on how life is good. This is why I got my 100.
I'm thinking a 80 with locking difs would make it easier to do in whatever weather...
Pickup... 1st its not full time 4 wheel drive... although I had thought about a taco or a tundra... with 4 doors...
But this is why I'm asking... in the 80 forum.
I litterally got out of bed in pajamas and house shoes to take this picture. Might wear more clothes if there was 12" of snow out... but both this pictures would be awesome in a snow storm or a thunder storm. I just want to make sure I can get back out of there

 

[FJBen]

So with that info, sounds like you want a beater 4x4 to adventure around the farm. All your other vehicles/tractors cover everything else. In that case, find a good deal on an 80 and explore away.

 

[krice118]

I think a single cab tacoma or pickup would be the ticket. Theres no discounting the utility of a truck bed

 

[Tank5]

For 15k, you could buy a short wheel base removable top fj45 with a flat bed on it. It is locked with ARBs front and back, 4.88 gears, marlin 4.7 crawl box and a Chevy fuel injected 383 stroker engine. When you are done with it on the farm I am sure it will be worth more than a side by side. I happen to know where a fj45 like this can be found. Send me a pm if you are interested.

 

[Proven]

That roxor is pretty damn cool though.

 

[maxamillion2345]

Never would consider an 80 for farm use. Sxs buy a used ranger or something for 8000

 

[chap79]

As much as I love my 80, for farm use I’d go pickup. Parts for the 80 are more expensive and a bed for hauling will come in handy.

If you already owned the 80, then I’d say UTE it. But since this is a blank canvas type question....