Hey just a heads up that we have a couple farm tours coming up! More info here: roughdraftfarmstead.com/1wmuyznbhatmf629zruj48mbnvrysz/no-till-farm-tour

My family has been in large scale agriculture for over 210 years, I am a 6th generation farmer in north central Montana with a farm foot print of a little over 6400 acres. But I also have a large scale garden space for everything from fruit trees to veggies for the house hold. I can attest to the value of small farm equipment like the walk-behind tractors, we have multi $100,000 equipment all over the farm included by not limited to a 2017 Jon Deer S790 combine, to a 8RT Tractor. Honestly though, I almost prefer working on the garden than one of our large 200+ acre fields. Getting down and dirty with your grow plots is just so satisficing to me. It brings back prospective of what my great grandparents had to work with when they started this farm back in 1889. Small farm tractors like these are awesome if used in the right way for the right job. Like he stated there is no "perfect" tool just the "right" tool for the job needing done, unless you're talking about my father who taught me everything about farming over the last 49 years, he was the perfect tool for every job.

I’ve been using a walk behind gravely L model since I was 12 years old I’m 72 now. You are right the rotary plow can be a real workout

My daughter has an old Gravely walk behind. She loves it.

We consider the BCS 739 one of our best investments. My dad found a sickle bar attachment and snow blower for $50. Scrolling Craigslist does pay 😂 We have a Kubota for turning compost, cleaning chicken coops and the big field tasks. I wouldn't want to be without either one. Invest in yourself, your health and good equipment... better than a 401k

T post puller: Look up a video on how to pull a t post just using your post pounder. You basically wedge the pounder against the notches on the post to leave leaver out of the ground

We use the BCS with the dual action sickle bar mower for converting thick pasture grass to mulch for a food forest. It has been an absolute game changer! 🤙

Love your videos. Educational and the nerdy sense of humor is so good 😂 had to stop and explain the "no perfect tools" joke to my partner, who wasn't impressed, but I thought it was great. Thanks Jesse!

I got a BCS 749 when I started my farm last year and it's been great. I have a flail mower and a sickle mower attachment and of those two I prefer the sickle mower - it's way easier to maneuver, much lighter, and if you don't have to replant immediately it leaves a nice thick mulch on the ground/beds. I also use the rotary plow to build beds and the rear tine tiller occasionally...though striving for minimal till so that one doesn't get too much action.

Hi Jessie!! I have a BCS 749 and I love it. I have your book and it is great too. My implements are rotary plow, flail mower, tiller with roller(which I no longer use), a potato plow, and disks for cultivating soil(limited in effectiveness and I broke one disk) Starting my 4th year in 2023. Last year I applied bark mulch to my walkways to my in ground raised beds. This year I used the rotary plow to move the composted bark mulch on top of the raised bed rows. Placing bark mulch offers tremendous benefits reducing erosion of the soil in the raised beds, capturing excess moisture and holding it for dry periods. And they compost in place. Here in southern Virginia, we have heavy clay soil so starting out with a broadfork was a way to difficult to start. I am hoping to broadfork in the fall of this year. Trying to transition to No Till. I have crimson and Balsana clover, forage collards, and Sunn Hemp cover crops planted. I have 2 silage tarps prepping a wildflower buffet for the honey bees in my Langstroth and Layens hives. Keep up the good work with the videos.

This may be a duplicate. My first message appears to have gone astray. My family garden has become a very extended family garden. We have had a tractor tiller work it up this spring. My little rototiller isn't going to keep up. We are going to continue to use thirty inch raised beds on four-foot centers with five - or six feet head lands. We have an orchard to keep chop and drop mowed. Some pasture to mow off flowers and seeds of spring plants that have become too mature to encourage fresh growth. The cut should be at six to eight inches. We plan on growing field corn, other grains, and crops for chickens, pigs, and people. The idea is that we don't want to be dependent on farm store animal foods. I am looking at a BCS 853 or a BCS 749 trying to decide which to choose. The 853 tried and true with simpler clutch and transmission. Something that a good mechanic can repair and may be more dependable, particularly if our infrastructure continues to fail. Or the 749 with new features. A more complicated clutch and transmission. Possibly more maintenance problems requiring more specialized parts and knowledge to repair. Beyond what a good average mechanic can do and be a problem if our infrastructure continues to fail. Can you make any observations or suggestions?

Hey man, nice video and talk. Thanks. I'm in the pyrenees, spain. 1140m altitude, close to french frontier. Its challlenging and i really apreciate your point. Im actually almost no digging or tilling ,but did it a couple of years. Interesting what you do, wich is what traditional way is .

It might be cool to find out a way to mount walk-behind-tractor implements to a riding tractor like the antique Ford N-series or Ferguson TO-series that some of us were lucky to acquire for the price of a down payment on a new walk-behind or riding-tractor. Farmall Cub/100-series and Allis Chalmers B/C/CA-series are good choices too.

Any Small scale operation needs a BCS! The versatility and reliability saves the back and increases efficiencies! A scythe sounds great, but it can flail mow, harrow, spread, snowblow, mulch/chip or split wood.

Scythe for the win.

Jumping in! I have been using my Grillo tractors, G-85d and G-107d for over 7 years now. For working steep fields, smaller plots, the walking tractors are "the way to go". Implements that I use, rotary plow, tiller, sickle-bar mower, bush hog, driven wheeled trailer (turns it into a 4-wheel drive truck), CAEB dump cart (basically a powered wheel barrow), Molon rake, CAEB round baler, finish mowers, power harrow, chipper/shredder. Yes, I do a lot of work with these machines. I try to scale my work to fit these machines, I have 2 four wheeled tractors for other doings on the farm. I just enjoy using the smaller stuff as I get older working on a smaller scale and getting the exercise. For example, my 4 wheeled tractors have sat in the barn for the past 3 weeks. My walking tractors have been used on an almost daily basis. The CAEB dump cart just makes the little G-85d a handy dandy hauler for harvesting, weeding, and watering around the garden. Some of my friends have paid more for their bicycles than I have for my machines with the tools! I still ride my 20 -- 45 year old steeds!

I have a couple that may be getting close to 80 years old they are a bit of a beast to man handle but I love their simplicity and functionality.

I'd love a walk behind crimper that had a small amount of steam. So the steam could bust the cell wall but also give a bunch of crimps as well. Also, some of the smaller Japanese, Thai, Korean, small/meduim scale riding tools and harvesters. Then flip some of it to electric. That asian stuff is really use to weird size plot sizes and also very good about uneven ground. In a way the USA stuff doesn't care to really think about until lately on a smaller scale. We underrate some of that overseas stuff.

I'll add my voice to the several others who have already commented. For the "budget challenged," with wrenching skills, there is an active community of Gravely collectors and vendors maintaining these older robust tractors. I have a Commercial 12 walk behind (12HP) and a 16-G (16 HP) riding tractor and they, along with some attachments, allow me to manage an under 2-acre homestead that is dedicated to growing food for ourselves. I never quite reached the level of finances to acquire my dream of a Grillo or BCS suite. I still dream of that, but have gotten by. Obviously for any commercial operation, new, modern equipment is the more efficient solution. I have 2 much older Gravely walk-behinds retired waiting to pass along. Facebook has several active Groups with great members that graciously offer assistance and advice.

I'm a walk behind tractor fan. On our rough land turning into a farm it can clear some very severe snow drifts, mow small spaces like a back yard as well as an acre at a time of brush. The tiller is very durable and can beat up very dense rocky soil. Just tried making some loose hay this year and in awkward corners of our property without too much energy made a months worth of loose hay.

I got about 35k in my sit on 4x4 tractor/loader/backhoe and other attachments. It's a bit more than double a walk behind but I'm obsessed with permaculture landscaping my own and other people's properties so I'm glad I got it, but yes tough to pay for. I can create and maintain the garden beds with it, but not as easy or precise as a 2 wheel tractor!! I know this because I've clocked many hours behind an awesome little diesel BCS at my friend's organic farm :) I do aspire to get a BCS when my sit on tractor is paid off, they are great, use less fuel and cause less harm to the land when mowing paths, etc...

We have received literature with some agriculture stuff that we have bought like say from BCS. A lot of impressive stuff that they have but I do not feel that it would fit our situation. We do have a powerful rototiller which we are hoping to use less and less as we go more to no till gardening and concentrating more on compost and so forth. So another interesting video giving all of us the pro and cons ands the many options, Thank You!

I'm not necessarily recommending this... But I use an old Scag 36" walk behind commercial mower for bed prep and tilthing. With the deck real low and the spinning tires leaving ruts, it forms a damn fine 30" bed while mulching residue and terminating cover crops 🤠🤙🏼

So true....the t post puller is GOLD!!!!🤭👩‍🌾🌱

Grillo is fantastic. I’ve got a G131 and a G110, both fitted with aftermarket 10hp diesel engines. Something people don’t talk about is the fuel economy difference between diesel and gas with these small engines. Diesels get dramatically better mileage. I use less than 5 gallons total each season for both tractors and that includes mowing and running a water pump every day, besides all the other tasks involved in running a 1/2 acre market garden.

I sure would love to get a power harrow for my BCS. Also the stump grinder & wood chipper…. & generator!

Love your channel, thanks!

So, when you get all your new walk-behind, just throw the BCS in the mail, to my spot. Respect from Africa 🇿🇦

I've been using a "Rapid Euro 4" mono-axial tractor since about 2010. It has a 20hp B&S Vanguard motor and hydrostatic drive. It is made in Switzerland and the company mainly specialises in machines for making hay on mountain slopes (like Aebi). There are several other specialised manufacturers in Austria and Germany who make similar equipment. My Euro 4 machine still works well, but more modern machines have more practical features like electric starters, more hydraulics, and "variable geometry" (the axel moves forwards and backwards at a push of a button) which dispenses the need for counterweights, which is very useful when working on steep slopes. I mainly bought my machine for land clearing with a flail mulcher, but also have a rotary hearse, a cutting bar for hay making (that I have never used) a barrow attachement. I have about 50 acres in the Pyrenees mountains, with only about 2 acres of arable land, the rest is either too steep or forest.

You missed the obvious which is that a larger tractor is a poor investment over time if you own a small farm that has limited returns. I have a BCS. But my 13 ACRES doesn't warrent the regular upkeep of a larger unit. ...it does sometimes need a seat though. 😏 Cheers 🇬🇧

If you're in an area where you can still get classic small ride on tractors and the implements ,cheaply .. and keep them running , then a ride on is great .. But the turning room , and tractor paths take a lot of space ,

I don't have a walk behind tractor but I do have a rear tine Troybilt 8hp Horse tiller. It has been key in enriching my 2500 sq. ft. vegetable garden by tilling in green manures and fall leaves. I use the hiller/furrower attachment to make raised beds or mounds. As I'm migrating to no-till, I'll still use the tiller 1-2" depth to terminate winter rye in the spring while disturbing the soil as little as possible (I feel that a very shallow till does not upset the soil food web to badly. 🙂

I wish the big tractor manufacturers still made mini tractors like the Kubota 5000/6000 series. I have a B6100 and it's not much larger than my lawn tractor, and it can get around and fit in really tight spaces not much larger than what a walk-behind tractor requires, yet I can still put on real cat-1 implements on the back and don't have to wrestle around a walk-behind. It's also still a "real" tractor in that is has ag tires, high ground clearance, 4x4, hydraulics, loader, etc. Obviously telling people to by 1970s tractors isn't a solution to anything, but I digress that I wish that class of tractor was still made new. It could be a solution to scaling up bio-intense market gardens beyond the 1.5 acre Jean-Martin standard. Right now to manage anything bigger in size you more or less need to have both a walk-behind and a subcompact.

wow this is very very effective. i love a little mulch too

I was closely looking at a walk behind when I was looking for another tractor several years ago for my small farm and living in Georgia I went with a sit on because I found I was using the mower and bush hog attachments more than using the garden attachments with my older tractor. The clincher for me was when I was mowing beside the house one day and had a rattle snake dart out from in front of the mower attachment and had I been on a walk behind, I would have just about stepped on him.

Lol..., Owwww! Why did you have to say that? All-of-a-sudden I had a horrible flashback to an 11 year old me, in Sacramento, Ca. (now in Maine, converting a 2 acre forest into a food-forest), using a nice new shiny red Troy Built walk behind roto-tiller..., bruises on both sides of the rib cage, and far too many on the right side. I can still feel the one where the end of the handle dug in between two ribs. That was the very last day that happened, I learned well how to use it without bruises.

Yes I have a walk behind Troybilt 208 hrs Powell tiller

🤎🌻💛 Happy Easter! 💛🌻🤎

I can attest to fumes in a tunnel being terrible! I worked at a greenhouse growing plants for wholesale. The doors on the tunnels are big enough to get the tractor through which was great for moving pallets and such, but dang it smells so bad!!

I am eagerly awaiting the day when BCS or Grillo does an electric walk behind. Should be easy and makes a ton of sense to me. Can then use it in tunnels. And very little maintenance, quiet, etc. Guy here on KZfaq actually converted one successfully

Excellent Video! I have the BCS walk behind, and have had a small kubota tractor in the past. The other couple disadvantages of the walk behind tractor I have found is that the issue is not so much one of low power, but sometimes not enough traction. I have found various conditions where the BCS tires just spin and bog down, and dont pull the tractor forward, requiring operator to exert a lot of energy to get it unstuck and moving again. This is not just an issue of moist soil, but can also happen in dry soil if you are trying to till deep. The other con I found is that if you are trying to break hard clay with the tiller attachment, the tiller can actually engage the soil in a way that the tines propel the tractor forward in a rather violent and sudden manner, sort of like a bolting horse. The operator is left trying to hold the tractor back, and get the tines to dig in, rather than jerking the tractor forward. This often requires the operator to just let the tractor go, it jumps forward and puts itself in neutral, then you have to back up over the trouble spot, and try again. When conditions are right to cause this problem every 5 feet or so, it makes for an exhausting day of plowing. We have a 4 acre farm sitting at the source of the Nile River, and at this point work the property solely with the BCS, and dont have a Kubota, for all the reasons you mentioned.

Have two BCS. An older one with rotary mower, Annlso have one with sickle mower ,and the power rake.Have Yanmar 165 tractor and flail mower.

Walk behind tractors have always bbeen used by those with small land holdings. My father had a flower farm on 3 acres. In australia we used the original howard hoe to do this. Howard invented the rotary tiller in 1922. In 1970 we replaced the howard mk2 with a kubota kf walk behind tiller. These were developed in japan for use in small rice paddies. Several other japanese brands were in the market at this time.

I bought my BCS 722 with tiller used from a local market gardener for $1800, best investment I’ve made.

I just got a T-post puller last year. I didn't know they existed 😂

Great job 👍

My father had a two wheel walk behind that he was proud of. At the time walk behinds were highly common to the area, enough that I believe if you could pry open various barns and sheds for many of the larger places, you'd find one and probably a whole slew of implements for them. I should clarify for these, the kinds of walk behinds I'm referring to do not have any sort of PTO and we're every bit the drag implements behind them type. Anyway, he said the name of it once to me nearly thirty years ago then fifteen years after that he died. But that's only why I can't recall the name with assurance. I think though it was a David Bradley but a part of me wants to say it was a Stevens something. I remember it having a ten horse Briggs and Stratton, red frame with a belt drive to a transmission that had three forward speeds even though he only ever used it in setting two. The wheels were easily 35 inch mud terrain tires on big yellow rims. The last year I lived with him I had built a trailer/sulky to attach to it with a cargo bed. Used it for deer hunting and lugging out a pair of stands, rifles, myself, him, and two deer the three miles back to the truck. As I think about it now, I'm lightly kicking myself for not getting it after he died but at the time I had absolutely no place to keep it much less ability to transport it from his house to where I was living at the time.

Nice work.

Happy Easter

Love to get a BCS one day, #goals

4:51 IT'S A FUN FACT hahahahaha ahahahahahahaha rofl thank you Jesse; this is perfectly timed; I just sent this video to my Uncle who just bought a property to homestead and is thinking currently about his choice of tractor. I'm rooting for a BCS!!!

Back in my town we get ducati ones like this, they cost around 1.1k for a 7bhp with a 80cms tiller, i also have a 8bhp with power train and a 1.2mts tiller, that one goes for 1.8k. They use premium gas and use from 1 gallon to 1.5 gallons in 6-8 hours of use.

In Germany these are called "Einachser" (lit.: single-axler(s)) I am looking out for the first battery electric ones. No start hassles, no exhaust gas in the polytunnel and much better controlability.

Use ours every day 🤘

First off, they don't cost as much to buy, operate or repair. Second, they are good for smaller, hard to get to areas. Third, safety; it's unlikely to roll over on a slope and trap me under it, although I'm sure someone out there has managed to.

We had a powersports dealer when i was a kid and sold BCS tractors tons of farmers bought them for the light duty work and we sold a ton just for tillers and snow blowers the biggest issue was people bought a 5 horse and wanted to run the attachments that really needed the 8

Thanks!

I half killed myself working for 38 years, ironically 27 years of that was working a 500 acre farm. My tired 71 year old legs can not walk very far. I got an $18,000 compact tractor, it does may things a walk behind can not do. The front end loader is very handy on the 5 acres I own now. I lucked out and got all the attachments ( roto tiller, disc harrow, brush hog, and more ) used but in good condition for $2500.

When are we going to get an update on the static aerated pile system?

Best dad joke at the end😂

I'm in the UK. We used one with a rotovator rig that we could swap out for a brush cutter or a flail deck. I don't understand the problems you had with rotovating.... Ours would dig down about 8 inches or so and would carve up clay. I wonder if it wasn't the power but the torque yours would put out? Ours did NOT drive fast at all... Slow walking speed ONLY! But we only used ours in small spaces or parks. The brush attachment was REALLY good for cutting brambles. BTW.... Did you have air filled tyres or solids? We had solids just so we never had to get punctures repaired.

T-post puller?!? I need one of those!!!

After years of wishing for a BCS I find myself in the odd position of shopping for a sit-on tractor Almost completely for it's loader function and because I've decided to move towards the 'no-till' method and that will mean adding about 1 cubic yard to a 100 ft bed for many bed flips. ...and I just don't want to do that with a wheelbarrow.

I really liked my gravely but it was to hard to keep running. I’ve been seriously looking at the bcs. I really miss the bush hog it’s like a super super dr walk behind trimmer and much safer than taking a ride on mower on the trails and hills.

Is that the power harrow that your running over the tall cover crop with?

Motocultores es la traducción correcta de "tractor de empuje"/Afectos desde el Caribe Jesse...

THERE ARE T-POST PULLERS?!?! Oh yeah, and good video I guess (jokes aside tysm I've been considering getting one in the future when I invest in enough land to market garden)

standing around and talking about tractors is why i want to become a farmer most, the only thing that would beat it is if we could stand around and talk about our Ox or horse while smoking a corn cob pipe

I had a BCS739 and luckily I sold it... Now I have a small Iseki 21HP 4x4 (TL2100) Traktor. It is nearly as versatile and a lot more comfortable and convenient to use. I would never ever want to change back.

Wondering what type of power you need to be able to complete most tasks? Would a BCS 728 be very limiting and does it have to be a 749 to get the value out of it?

I disagree with you on the price of walk-behind vs ride-on. It might be very country specific, but here in France, I can get a used40hp tractor for the price of a used BCS (around 6-8000€), and the implements on the second hand are not only more available, but also 2-3 times cheaper than BCS ones.

About the cons, and the difficulty turning:. Does it have power turning? Differential? I have a large walk behind that is useless on the slightest slopes, because the differential (which is supposed to make turning easier) basically forces a downhill turn. It takes all my strength to keep it straight-ish. Is the BCS like that?

Been gardening for several years but converting my 3000 sq ft garden space to no till beds this year and expanding in the future. I already own a John Deere 1025r subcompact tractor. I am considering the potential for using the tractor with brush hog mower attachment for cover crop termination and using the tiller i already own similarly to your use of the power harrow for prepping beds by only roughing up the top inch or so of them beds. My question to you is whether you think compaction of the soil will be an issue. The total weight of the tractor, front and rear attachments and my oversized ass will be around 2500-3000lbs. The span between the rear wheels is only 24”, so its not practical to build bed that narrow to avoid driving over them and my attachments are 48” wide so they would be destroying my paths as well. Appreciate the information, looking forward to making the conversion in the coming weeks.

Hey man, whats hapening with Josh satin? He stopped youtubing...

Hey Jesse...what state are U planting in?....

10 years ago I wanted a BCS. Looked at some clean high end used models and choked at the price. Ended up buying a nice Zetor low profile 5211 tractor (w/under 400hrs) that came with a plow/brush hog/blade and a mint 1990s Troy Built Horse. The whole set cost slightly less than any of the BCS's I looked at.... They're VERY nice but not worth what they sell for....

Wow, you've been hit by rocks from the rotary plow!? Really seems like they'd have a guard for that.... so do you recommend armoring up like a baseball catcher? The idea of getting hit by a flying rock really makes me enjoy the idea of continuing to double dig with a spade and fork

Maybe this is a dumb question, but I’m confused.. what does no-till farming mean? I thought it was “bad,” but this is a no till channel discussing tractors

I was bitten by a timber rattle snake while using a walk behind sickle bar mower always wear snake boots!

there are walk-behind tractors up to 50hp in europe f.e. the company Ibex in austia

Love tractors two wheels or four wheels

Thanks for the dad joke. On a related note, what's brown and sticky? A stick.

What I have found is tractors only flip on stupid people and I can tell you are not one of those. When I was growing up I used to go to other peoples farms and cut, rake, and bale their hay. Also would plow, disk, harrow or spring tooth the fields for planting. I used a Ferguson 35. I started that at age 12.

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

I have seen these lever post pullers before, but no one says where they got them or the price. Can you provide the location where I might order one? Thanks. Also, I have heavy clay that clamps onto the t-posts like a clamp. Can they handle full body weight on my end? Again, thanks for your help!

Your looking at the wrong tractors, the goodones are in asia, they are made by yanmar and kabuta and use low rpm diesel put put engines and have taller steel wheels and are higher off the ground unfortuanly i havent been able to find them in the states

I got my B&S 14 hp BCS 740 , euro trans with 4 th gear in pull for its cart in 1999 from Joel earth tools before he became big Last year switched to the 13+ honda thumper as much better for my slopes. Then got a used 10 hp. 735 from an old Italian guy used with cart moving compost. Etc instead of wheel barrels & for 30 gallon pto tea sprayer instead of back pack. Would love you to buy me a Grillo

Does anyone rent these out?

Lightweight is good and what did I use it for it’s a lawnmower kzfaq.infoUgkxTPN04aT-Qdjr_KS3ql7ng8wnU3wwsCqk also recommend Yes it is lightweight so hence not as robust as our old one. But if you take care it does the job really well.

The BCS is just so expensive. All the implements included. I want one but can't justify at the moment. Need a Chinese knock off lol come on vevor. Or waiting on electric version

Bad timing im about to sell my bcs lol

The walk behind tractor is as old as the riding tractor. Although they have improved, it's not as much as the farm tractor. Maybe giving more voice to what you would like to see in a walk behind would help. Frankly I don't know why track versions haven't made large inroads, nor a brake steering system. The US demand is just not what it was 40-50 years ago. Large lawns and lack of the desire to do hard work along with cheap desert grown or import crops hurt potential growth. If you asked young people what a truck garden is, they would think it is something grown in a truck.

Yes definitely, its so much quicker.

Robotics

I love Chinese knock offs. They have great outboard motors for boating. Has anyone tried a Chinese BCS knock off?

Jesus Christ Saves

Swear bruh you work to hard

Thanks for the walk behind tractor video. If you have not done so already make Jesus the Lord and Saviour of your life. Study the KJV Bible to know more. Do in now. Tomorrow is not promised.

I don’t believe your family has been farming in Montana for 210 years. The first permanent settlement for non-indigenous people didn’t happen until 1846 which is only 178 years ago, a far cry from 210. Is someone telling tall tales?

Not for older debilitated people & store bought foods will just kill you off sooner. No choice, I have to die in the field, with a smile & dirty....haha