Ontario dairy farmer hits 10,000-hr milestone on his Kubota M7-1

Seeking a durable and dependable tractor for his family dairy farm in Elora, Ontario, Thomas Wantenaar purchased his first piece of Kubota equipment in June 2017. Fast forward eight years later and his Kubota M7-1 tractor is still going strong after exceeding the 10,000-hour milestone.  

Just how long is 10,000 hours exactly? To help put it into perspective, the average person could walk fully around the Earth and still have time to binge watch all 782 episodes of The Simpsons five times.    

“The M7 has been really reliable,” says Thomas, who uses the tractor every day, seven days a week, to help feed his 250 milking cows. “I can't remember a day where it hasn't started up.”

Thomas owns and operates Birkstead Holsteins with his wife Holly. Every morning, he wakes up at 5:30am to mix up a 7,000-kilo batch of feed for his cows – a process that usually takes four to five hours – before using his Kubota M7-1 to deliver the forage to the cattle head gates. 

“My Kubota has plenty of power to pull the TMR mixer and it’s nice to have the 50k speed transmission,” says Thomas. “Our main farm is about 300 acres, but we have three other 100-acre farms down the road, separated by seven or eight kilometers. With the M7, we can get to those farms a bit faster and keep things moving along.”

The seasoned dairy farmer also appreciates how simple the M7-1 is to drive. “Visibility is outstanding, it’s super comfortable, and all the controls are in the armrest, so I don't have to look too far for the different buttons– everything is right there,” he explains. 

“It’s easy to teach others how to operate. I have four full-time employees, and I rarely get a call if someone is out in the field without me. It’s pretty much foolproof.”

Thomas purchased his M7-1 from DeBoer's Farm Equipment, an official full line Kubota dealer located just down the road, and a company his family farm has been doing business with for more than 40 years. 

To keep his M7-1 running smooth, he takes his tractor into the dealership for a full servicing every 1,000 hours and completes an oil change himself every 500 hours. After putting 10,000 hours on the machine, he’s only run into one minor electrical issue and had to replace a parking brake cable once.  

“The amount of maintenance I've put in over the last eight years is virtually nothing compared to other tractors I've owned,” says Thomas. “It still runs perfectly.”

Pleased with his return on investment on the M7-1, Thomas has since purchased a Kubota front-mounted disc mower, a M9960 utility tractor and a R640 wheel loader, which he’s put 2,000 hours on in the past year alone. 

While he’s currently considering replacing another one of his tractors with a new Kubota model, Thomas doesn’t plan on saying goodbye to his M7-1 anytime soon.  

“I don't see any reason why it won't go another, I don't want to say 10,000 hours, but you never know! I'm hoping to keep it around for another five, six, seven years – however long it decides to go.”

Wishing your equipment could reach this milestone? Explore Kubota’s lineup of agricultural tractors to find the perfect one for your farming needs.