John Deere: X300 vs X340 vs X500

[Dupy]

Hello all, wanted to start off by saying I love the site and have learned a lot just from browsing the last few days. Thanks in advance for any and all help here.

So I have just bought an old 1890's farm house in northern VT; It's got 3 acres with one decent (20°-25°) slope near the back of the lot, a few trees and a decent sized driveway. I want to use the tractor to mow (obviously,) as a snow plow in the winter and the wife wants to be able to tow a 10P cart for soil/mulch/plants/etc. Also we would rather spend what it takes upfront to get a good piece of equipment that can last 15 to 20 years minimum with proper maintenance. We chose to go with JD since the dealer is so close and their customer service is second to none from everyone we talked to.

After a trip to the local dealer I walked away unsure of what we really need. They have X300/48" deck for $3300 which I thought should be enough. After reading to 'Decide what you need and buy the next size up' I went back and took a second look. Great news is they had a brand new X340/54" discounted to $4300 (close to the price of the X320) so I thought that was a no brainer w/ the upgrade from the K46 to the K58. They also got the X500 for about $5300.

So I am assuming the 300 is not enough and trying to decide if I need the 500 or if the 340 will do the job. My main concern is plowing ungodly amounts of heavy, wet snow after a big storm with the 44" two stage blower on the 340, year in and year out for 20 years!

Will the cold temps stop the transmission from getting too hot? Will I be taxing the tractor too much and really need the 500? Also in the summer it can get pretty hot, though I plan on tapping the K58 case to be able to flush it and change the oil if cannot be done stock, will the 340 be able to handle 2-3 hours in 90°-100° heat without straining the K58 too much?

Any and all advice is welcome. We just moved in this Monday and it's not gonna be long before we have to mow so we got about a week or so to make a decision.

 

[Grandad4]

Deere makes some excellent mowers and you'd probably do just fine for your mowing needs with any of the ones you mentioned. But I think your concerns about pushing snow in a Northern Vermont winter with a lawn tractor are quite justified. You'd have a 600-800 lb 2wd machine, and while more weight in back and tire chains would help, I think you'd still find it inadequate for the task at hand, and such work is very hard on equipment. For those reasons, a snow blower attachment would be seem to be a much better solution.

Your acreage is enough that you could even go up to something in the X700 series or an actual sub-compact tractor, although they are in a whole different category as far as performance and cost.

Just for comparison, it wouldn't hurt to look at other top brands. Kubota, with 3 dealers in your area comes to mind, along with New Holland and Case IH.

By the way, with everyone roasting in this heat, thanks for bring up snow and winter! Best of luck with your shopping!

 

[Dupy]

Thanks for the input, and yes, it was 92 in our house last night at 10 pm! A little snow would be welcome right about now.

I will definitely be doing some comparison shopping before I purchase but wanted to know exactly what our needs were and choose the those models from each dealer in order to make a fair comparison, starting with JD since I believe their service dept is the best around. Other people have also suggested a sub compact tractor and maybe I should take a look at the X700 as well while I'm at it. I'll have to come back and post some pics of me pushing snow in the middle of winter.

Thanks again!

 

[Don87]

3 acres is into the subcompact range, especially if you might be considering any landscaping in the future.
I have 2 acres, with 1 acre wooded, and decided on the subcompact for my needs.

 

[evo803]

IMHO the snowplowing duties will ruin your plans to have either the 300 or 340 for 20 years. The 500 should be your minimum and the 700 would be the last tractor you would ever need to buy for that property.

 

[AKfish]

Heh, heh.... told ya!

But it certainly doesn't hurt to ask as many folk's as possible!

Besides, if you get the X500 - it'll likely mean somebody will have 2 sales - not just one.

AKfish

 

[jc21]

My two cents? ......... I'd agree with previous posters to buy more (much more) tractor than you think you need, $ permitting of course. I mow 2 1/2 acres, snowblow 300' of driveway (and sometimes a neighbor's too) and the 10p cart has gotten a real workout as has the X320 that pulls it. We bought it in 2007 and it's getting ready to turn over 450hours- it has done yeoman's service but.......

....... I wish for more. In a perfect world there would a 2320/2520 sittin' in the garage with a backhoe along with a bunch of other implements but this economy won't allow for it at the moment. I've got retaining walls to build, lawn to replant and my 110'x 30' vegetable garden would be bigger. If I was in your situation I'd make the X500 your starting point for several reasons. 1. The diff lock ...... there's been a few times moving snow when I wished my X320 had it and if your going to be moving a lot of "heavy, deep, wet snow" you'll want it for sure. 2. Ground engaging implements- the 500 series will take a mechanical rototiller and iirc, a moldboard plow. With three acres I can't imagine you not turning some kind of dirt over somewhere...... the biggest reason I wished we had gotten an X500.

 

[Dupy]

Thanks again for everyone's help. Friend of a friend passed this link along to me and I was thinking about driving out to take a look (Yanmar YM1500 w/ ~900 hours.) Seems to get good reviews and even though it needs deck/plow/tires I was hoping I would also be able to save some $ over the x500/x700.

Yanmar 2 cyl diesel tractor YM1500

 

[Jay4200]

Any and all advice is welcome. We just moved in this Monday and it's not gonna be long before we have to mow so we got about a week or so to make a decision.

I don't know from John Deere, so I can't comment on the tractor.

My only advice is to plan on running a 2-stage snowblower instead of a plow. A plow can be useful too, but there is no replacement for a blower when you're looking at 18"+ of snow. Once there is too much snow on the ground to push, you're screwed.

With a plow you generally can't push more than about 6" at a whack, so you'll have to venture out at 2am on those -20F blizzard nights. Yay. OR, with a blower, you can stay under the covers and wait until morning.

I plowed for years with my ATV, until one night when I was out in a wet snowstorm at 2am. By the time I was done, I was completely soaked, frozen, and I literally thought I was going to die. Never again - I bought a blower the next day and now I just watch it come down until it's all done

JayC