Milking 80 cows in Fordstown near Navan, Co Meath, Ollie Clarke found himself in the market for a nimble stockman’s tractor.
Ollie’s yard layout leaves little room for manoeuvring large machinery, especially when it comes to feeding. He wanted to upgrade his Same Sliver 110 to a fresher stockman-type machine somewhere in the region of 100-120hp. Ollie attended farm machinery shows and the Ploughing to see what was on offer in this power band fitted with loader.
Kubota M5111 does the business for Meath dairy farmer..
Two brands stood out for Ollie – Kubota and Claas. After pricing both the difference was marginal, but in the end he opted for the 113hp Kubota M5111 fitted with Kubota’s LA1854 front loader.
The tasks in hand
During spring and summer, Ollie’s main use for a tractor is spreading fertiliser, spraying, topping or dung spreading. The most challenging job is pulling his 2,000 gallon slurry tanker. This was where the Kubota surprised Ollie – it proved a better gripping tractor than he had expected, being well capable of handling the tanker.
Dairy farmer Ollie Clarke, Fordstown, Navan, Co Meath.
During winter, Ollie uses the tractor and loader mostly for feeding silage with his 4ft 6in shear grab. For good counter-balance when using the loader, he specified the tractor with rear wheel weights. The extra 100kg on either rim leaves the tractor that bit more stable when handling silage bales or full grabs of silage given the tractor’s compact, light build.
One of the standout features of the tractor is its front axle's wide turning angle.
One of the standout features across his 22 months of ownership is the tractor’s 55° turning angle. This allows him move from the pit to the feeding passage in one pass without shunting forward and back. The tractor has an overall length just barely over 4m and a width just under 2.2m, weighing in at 3,420kg unladen.
Ollie has 200kg worth of wheel weights on the rear, improving stability when using the loader around the yard.
Front loader and cab
A front loader was a must-have for Ollie. And a key thing he liked about the M5111 was how well Kubota’s own self-levelling loader worked with it. It was a big step up from the loader on his old Same, which was very big and heavy, he said. He is impressed with its fast hydraulics and high lift capabilities (3.35m).
Control layout in the cab is simple, with not much in the way of electronics.
Ollie likes the visibility from the cab in all directions given the absence of thick rear corner pillars and curved rear windows. The clear roof panel improves visibility when working the sheargrab or bucket at heights. Control inside the cab is just as he wanted, a simple layout with manual lift arm control and manual spools.
The cab offers good all-round visibility.
Engine and transmission
Under the bonnet of the M5111 is Kubota’s own 3.8l four-cylinder engine capable of churning out 113hp. Fuel and AdBlue tank capacities are 105l and 12l respectively. Overall, Ollie is happy with the tractor’s AdBlue and fuel use. He noted he has only refilled the tractor with AdBlue twice since new.
Ollie has clocked up 463 hours since taking delivery in January 2018.
The tractor is fitted with a 36 x 36 dual-speed 40km/h transmission. This consists of six manual gear changes within three ranges, with dual power at the press of a button in every gear. Forward and reverse is selected using the left-hand power shuttle. 4WD is engaged at the press of a button via solenoid, with a sensor mounted down at the brake pedals to engage four-wheel braking. Ollie said this sensor had to be replaced as it became faulty, leaving 4WD engaged permanently. He said this was the only issue with the tractor so far.
The M5111 is fitted with a Dromone pickup hitch and has a rear lift capacity of 4,100kg.
The rear end has a Dromone pickup hitch and standard category II linkage, with max rear lift capacity of 4,100kg and a hydraulic flow rate of 64l/min both being plenty for Ollie’s applications.
Since taking delivery of his M5111 in January 2018, Ollie has clocked up 463 hours. This reflects the tractor use of many livestock farmers. Unlike some tillage farmers and contractors, there are still a number of farmers who want a straightforward tractor for typical yard/loader work. Ollie is happy with how the tractor has performed, from diesel usage to its comfort and usability. He is happy with his choice and hasn’t looked back.
The spec
Engine: 3.8L four-cylinder Kubota
Horsepower: 113hp (84.3kW)
Transmission: 36x36 dual-speed power shuttle
Travel speed: 40km/h
Hydraulics: 64l/min
Operating weight: 3,420kg (without loader)
Tyres F/R: 360/70 R24 & 480/70 R34 Trelleborg
Loader max lift height: 3.35m
Loader lift capacity to max height: 1,880kg
Fuel tank capacity: 105l
AdBlue tank capacity: 12l
Price: €64,204 plus VAT
Milking 80 cows in Fordstown near Navan, Co Meath, Ollie Clarke found himself in the market for a nimble stockman’s tractor.
Ollie’s yard layout leaves little room for manoeuvring large machinery, especially when it comes to feeding. He wanted to upgrade his Same Sliver 110 to a fresher stockman-type machine somewhere in the region of 100-120hp. Ollie attended farm machinery shows and the Ploughing to see what was on offer in this power band fitted with loader.
Kubota M5111 does the business for Meath dairy farmer..
Two brands stood out for Ollie – Kubota and Claas. After pricing both the difference was marginal, but in the end he opted for the 113hp Kubota M5111 fitted with Kubota’s LA1854 front loader.
The tasks in hand
During spring and summer, Ollie’s main use for a tractor is spreading fertiliser, spraying, topping or dung spreading. The most challenging job is pulling his 2,000 gallon slurry tanker. This was where the Kubota surprised Ollie – it proved a better gripping tractor than he had expected, being well capable of handling the tanker.
Dairy farmer Ollie Clarke, Fordstown, Navan, Co Meath.
During winter, Ollie uses the tractor and loader mostly for feeding silage with his 4ft 6in shear grab. For good counter-balance when using the loader, he specified the tractor with rear wheel weights. The extra 100kg on either rim leaves the tractor that bit more stable when handling silage bales or full grabs of silage given the tractor’s compact, light build.
One of the standout features of the tractor is its front axle's wide turning angle.
One of the standout features across his 22 months of ownership is the tractor’s 55° turning angle. This allows him move from the pit to the feeding passage in one pass without shunting forward and back. The tractor has an overall length just barely over 4m and a width just under 2.2m, weighing in at 3,420kg unladen.
Ollie has 200kg worth of wheel weights on the rear, improving stability when using the loader around the yard.
Front loader and cab
A front loader was a must-have for Ollie. And a key thing he liked about the M5111 was how well Kubota’s own self-levelling loader worked with it. It was a big step up from the loader on his old Same, which was very big and heavy, he said. He is impressed with its fast hydraulics and high lift capabilities (3.35m).
Control layout in the cab is simple, with not much in the way of electronics.
Ollie likes the visibility from the cab in all directions given the absence of thick rear corner pillars and curved rear windows. The clear roof panel improves visibility when working the sheargrab or bucket at heights. Control inside the cab is just as he wanted, a simple layout with manual lift arm control and manual spools.
The cab offers good all-round visibility.
Engine and transmission
Under the bonnet of the M5111 is Kubota’s own 3.8l four-cylinder engine capable of churning out 113hp. Fuel and AdBlue tank capacities are 105l and 12l respectively. Overall, Ollie is happy with the tractor’s AdBlue and fuel use. He noted he has only refilled the tractor with AdBlue twice since new.
Ollie has clocked up 463 hours since taking delivery in January 2018.
The tractor is fitted with a 36 x 36 dual-speed 40km/h transmission. This consists of six manual gear changes within three ranges, with dual power at the press of a button in every gear. Forward and reverse is selected using the left-hand power shuttle. 4WD is engaged at the press of a button via solenoid, with a sensor mounted down at the brake pedals to engage four-wheel braking. Ollie said this sensor had to be replaced as it became faulty, leaving 4WD engaged permanently. He said this was the only issue with the tractor so far.
The M5111 is fitted with a Dromone pickup hitch and has a rear lift capacity of 4,100kg.
The rear end has a Dromone pickup hitch and standard category II linkage, with max rear lift capacity of 4,100kg and a hydraulic flow rate of 64l/min both being plenty for Ollie’s applications.
Since taking delivery of his M5111 in January 2018, Ollie has clocked up 463 hours. This reflects the tractor use of many livestock farmers. Unlike some tillage farmers and contractors, there are still a number of farmers who want a straightforward tractor for typical yard/loader work. Ollie is happy with how the tractor has performed, from diesel usage to its comfort and usability. He is happy with his choice and hasn’t looked back.
The spec
Engine: 3.8L four-cylinder Kubota
Horsepower: 113hp (84.3kW)
Transmission: 36x36 dual-speed power shuttle
Travel speed: 40km/h
Hydraulics: 64l/min
Operating weight: 3,420kg (without loader)
Tyres F/R: 360/70 R24 & 480/70 R34 Trelleborg
Loader max lift height: 3.35m
Loader lift capacity to max height: 1,880kg
Fuel tank capacity: 105l
AdBlue tank capacity: 12l
Price: €64,204 plus VAT
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: