Introductory Notes.

This is a review intended for newbies to tractors because I am myself a newbie to tractors. I am also a newbie to semi-rural living.I just passed the 10 hour mark yesterday, so this is also a very preliminary review (at 50 or 100 hours I may post another review).

History of Needs.

I spent a lot of time last year looking at what I considered decent tractors for my property (5 acres on a big hill, 1/2 lawn, 1/2 woods). I ended up buying a John Deere L130, thinking I could add a few light attachments as needed (front blade for plowing, rear landscape rake, aerator, etc.). After 1 year, I knew I'd made a mistake. The JD was probably good for what it is designed to do, a few acres of relatively flat grass. It is really an expensive riding lawn mower.

Okay, this year, I started looking at "real" subcompact tractors. I didn't consider anything larger than a subcompact for two reasons. First, I sat on a slightly larger tractor and didn't like how far off the ground it was for my hills. I also didn't want to spend that kind of money. When looking at subcompact tractors, I also decided that the tractor must have 4WD and a differential lock.

I narrowed my search down to three tractors: JD 2305, Massey Ferguson GC 2300 (same as Agco ST22A) and the Kubota BX2230. I quickly realized that the JD was out of the running because it cost an additional $2,000 or more for no good reason. I took the MF for a weekend and played around with it. I wanted to like that tractor because the dealer is literally a few hundred feet down the road from me (and I mean literally in the literal sense, as in actually a few hundred feet). I decided not to get that tractor because I didn't feel comfortable on it, It didn't "seem" (whatever that means) as rugged as the Kubota even though slightly heavier, the transmission didn't hold as well going down hill, it was alot louder (like twice as loud) as the Kubota, and every time I started it, it blew out a big cloud of black smoke (but was new). Oh yeah, the exhaust came straight out the front and blew back at you, so I smelled like diesel exhaust every time I started it up even for just a few minutes.

So, the Kubota was it. I thought about the 1830, but for only $600 more, I could get quite a bit more horsepower. I ended up buying the 2230 with FEL, 60" mid-mount mower (mmm), ballast box, front grille, liquid in the back wheels, and engine heater. The whole package cost me $12,350, plus taxes (delivery was free).

First Impressions

Our dealer is great (so far) (Dan Beissel at Neibur Implements in Miesville, just south of Hastings). When he delivered the tractor, he stayed for about an hour, reminding us of the various features. He also showed us to to remove the FEL, and then had us put it back on. He showed us how to remove the mmm, and made suggestions about the use of the ballast box. He also offered to come back out at around 10 hours if we had any questions, or we thought he might want to take a look at how the tractor was holding up (e.g. we thought there were any adjustments or minor repairs necessary). We don't have any issues at all, so he won't need to come out.

I have used the tractor thus far exclusively for re-orienting the grade in several areas of our property. I am surprised at how easy and fun this is to do. The joystick is almost like an extension of my hand once I "get into it." The movement of the bucket is smooth and intuitive, if that makes sense. I sometimes wish the bucket were larger, but for what I need, its fine. There are several small projects I have wanted to do since moving here a year ago, but didn't want to spend the time with a shovel and rake. Last night, I was cutting into a hillside to straighten out a walking path through some woods, I used the cut soil to fill in a large bowl shape in part of our lawn (about 60 cu. feet to fill, or 12 to 15 bucket loads). I spent two hours and am nearly complete with a project that I would not even have considered without the FEL.

If you are going to get an FEL, as others say, you need a few hundred pounds on the back. I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on a rear implement just for weight, which is why I got the ballast box. It cost me $149 because it is the Kubota brand one (he didn't have any generic ones on hand, which would have cost less than $100, but he would have had to order one, and I wanted the tractor). I like the fact that the ballast box has a heavy duty lip on the bottom. I plan to take the box off this weekend, drill a 1/2 hole in that lip and then use that hole to attach light-duty implements to the box (spike aerator, smallish drop spreader, and small utility cart). That way, I won't need to take it off, and when I don't have the FEL attached, I'll remove all the retaining wall stones and use it for more yard tools. Right now, I have a small toolbox, hand-winch and heavy log-chain in there in case I get stuck (happened once already).

The 4WD is really nice. There have been several times already that I would have been in trouble (getting stuck) without it.

I am glad I got the size I did. It is plenty strong to work hard uphill. Yet, I can fit this into my 2 and 1/2 car garage with FEL and ballast box and still fit both of our trucks. Anything larger wouldn't have fit. Anything smaller wouldn't have done what I need.

A few minor annoyances.

The seat belt is really dumb. First, its placement is almost under (and to the side) of the seat. Every time I sit down, if I forget to grab the seat belt first, the seat spring pushes it under the seat. Also, as you are bouncing around, the retraction lock pulls it tighter and tighter, so you have to remove it and re-attach it every once in a while. I am not heavy, but am tall, and it is a short seat belt. Kubota advertizes that their 2006 models have a better seat belt design, so apparently others have complained about this too.

The headlights are worthless if using the FEL, which will be a prolem when I start plowing this winter.

The treadle is too long to use effectively. I wear a size 13 and a 14 in a workboot. Yet, with my foot on the treadle, I still need to move it back and forth to go from forward to reverse, which seems to defeat the purpose of the thing.

Overall.

I am so glad I bought this machine. I hope it keeps up as well as others around here say there's have kept up. I'd consider it an expensive necessity that meets my needs pretty well. I haven't used the mower yet, but I can say that taking it off is about about 1/10 as hard as it was on the JD. I hope putting it on and using it is as good an experience as using the FEL has been.

In other words, I made the right decision for my needs, based on capacity, ease of use, price, and brand.

Oh yeah, did I say I thought this little tractor looked the best out of the bunch?

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. I don't know a lot, but I know a lot more than I did a few months ago, mostly from hanging/lurking around here. This site was invaluable in helping me make my decision. Thanks everyone.

Date Purchased: 12/2005
Purchased: New
Price Paid: US$12300
Pros: Easy to use, strong for size, quiet motor
Cons: headlights dim, seat belt dumb/unsafe, treadle difficult
Rating: