Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice!

   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #1  

Nathan_OR

Bronze Member
Joined
Jun 23, 2003
Messages
62
Hi folks,

I'm a real tractor newbie. I've been renting a Ford 8N for pasture mowing and a little blade work, and I'm ready to buy a tractor for field mowing, garden tilling, a little excavating (landscaping), post holes, and digging out stumps/rocks. I want a CUT with Hydro so my wife can use the loader to move llama beans.

I'm thinking I ought to go Deere because all five of my neighbors drive John Deere, so I'm hoping that they can help me out with mechanical problems. I can do light engine work, but hydraulics and drivetrain I have no experience with, so I'm thinking I might need to rely on them for help. Does this seem like a good reason to go John Deere?

The local John Deere dealer has a pretty decent sales staff as far as knowledge, although I did have to ask all the questions. My concern is that I bought a JE-75 walk-behind mower from them in the past and their service department had it in seven times without figuring out why it kept dying. Not only that but they weren't willing to take it back on a John Deere Promise return. They did sell it for me on consignment without taking any of the price for themselves though. I'm not sure whether to rate this as a "bad experience"... would an experience like this make you folks leery about buying a CUT from the same JD Dealer?

I also don't know where to begin on price. With cars, it's easy: I start at invoice plus a little depending on demand for the car, and work up. Right now I'm looking at the following quotes (all Hydro):
JD 4110 w/ 410 FEL: $15,450, -$600 manuf. rebate
JD 4115 w/ 410 FEL: $17,400, -$800 manuf. rebate
JD 4210 w/ 420 FEL: $18,895, -$1000 manuf. rebate
Do these seem reasonable to those of you who know the Oregon market?

These quotes are for a CUT equipped with R4 tires. I was mainly going for R4 because I have a lot of thistles in my pasture and didn't want to deal with constant flat tires. Plus the landscaping work might give me headaches if I can't get enough traction to dig with turf tires. But I read a post on this forum that suggested that R4 tires are for dumb "yuppies" (like me) who don't know that they slip just as easily as turf tires do! I would definitely go for turf tires if they get the same traction for digging with my loader that R4s would, because I will be driving across my lawn often to get from one pasture to the other. Just want to hear some opinions on this one; I'm sure there will be different ones /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Finally, a technical question: I can't figure out which tractors are equipped with eHydro. Is it a separate option from Hydro, or do some tractors automatically get eHydro if you specify Hydro?

Thanks in advance for all the advice.

Nathan
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #2  
Re: Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advi

Hi Nathan,
I think theres little reason to consider only Deere. All CUTs are basically identical for a given gross HP. Yes, there are differences but not najor enough to be critical.

As far as your dealer is concerned you should ask yourself if this is a concern youd like to do long term business with.

Do yourself a favor and examine all of the possibilities that meet your needs.
jimg
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #3  
Re: Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advi

I disagree with the statement that all CUT's are pretty much the same. Not going to bad mouth any brands but if the options were up to me, green would be first choice and orange second. Just my "unbiased opinion" /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif If you want to figure a good buying price subtract about 25% from retail. John Deere is the ONLY manufacturere that offers ehydro. I far prefer it to a standard hydrostatic drive for smoothness, usability, and safety. R-4 tires are a very good compromise between turf and R-1 ag tires. They also come in 6 ply so they are more resistant to pucture. If you are going to get a CUT, get 4WD! If you want ehydro, the 4210 is the smallest size that comes on and since you mention cutting pasture, the 4210 would be a better choice and still be small enough for mowing the lawn and getting in tight spots as well as have enough pto hp to run a sizable rotary cutter.
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #4  
Do yourself a big favor,and check all of the brands out there,and not just the majors. If you do have a problem with a new tractor it will go back to the dealer anyways no matter what all your neigbor's own. Check them all out before you plunk down your $$$$!!

As for that dealer,I'd be leary of giving him any more of my time of day,let alone business!!
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #5  
Re: Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advi

I use the R4 tires on my JD4400. They are a nice tire if you want a good trade off between the turf tires and the R1 bar tires. The R1 bar tires WILL tear up your lawn some when making sharp turns.
The R4's on the 4400 provide plenty of traction whether I use the loader or am pulling a 7 ft. feild cultivator. They are also gentle when mowing the lawn.
The JD4210 is a medium frame tractor.It will allow you to add a back hoe in the future should you desire.
John Deere added new features to their hydro system when they introduced the "Ten Series" line of tractors. Some are standard when you purchase and some are optional. They call it "E-hydro" as in electronic.
Check around before you buy. Look at other brands. This is part of the fun of purchasing your new compact tractor. The dealers should give you brochures to take home and look over. They will provide you with plenty of info to help you compare features and specifications to help you decide which models are right for your needs and wants.. Compact tractors are like cars to me. They all work and each brand and model has it's advantages and disadvantages.
About prices...
I purchased our JD4400 in May 2002. At the time John Deere was closing out the remaining inventory of 4000 series tractors. I purchased our 4400 at 74% of list price. I felt this was a good price.
In August 2002 I purchased a JD48 back hoe for the 4400 at 82% of list price.
hope you find this helpful. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #6  
<font color="blue">…I was mainly going for R4 because I have a lot of thistles in my pasture and didn't want to deal with constant flat tires… and digging out stumps/rocks…</font>

Hi,

Stick with the R4’s for the puncture proof aspect, the Turf’s are the worst for punctures, also stick with the R4’s for lots of loader work vs. the very poor tire strength Turf’s have…

If you do 80% finish mowing then you go with Turfs…

If you want the best in traction, for mud, slop, swamp, snow… then go to R1 Ag’s…

Curious… what are the techniques you plan on using to “digging out stumps/rocks” with this class of tractor and no backhoe…?
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #7  
I think Deere's are great tractors, so are New Hollands and Kubotas (my personal favortite is orange of course /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif). I really don't think you can go wrong with any of these.

Unless your dealer will not honor his service responsibilities. /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

Since I don't have "all" the details I'll have to go on what I know from your post. And knowing that I wouldn't give that particular Deere dealer another chance to take my cash. Let your neighbors make the mistake, or switch to another JD dealer.
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #8  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( They did sell it for me on consignment without taking any of the price for themselves though. I'm not sure whether to rate this as a "bad experience"... )</font>

I think you would agree that consignment isn't the same as buying new from them... This might be a model where they have little to no experience. Don't forget any dealership will have a VERY broad range of equipment they handle. I'd talk to your neighbors and see if they get good service.

And do check out other brands, you might be surprised.

We have a backhoe, and are surprised that a lot of stumps come out well with the FEL...
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #9  
If you're thinking something in the 41xx's, I'd suggest going to 42xx's or even 43xx if the money is doable for you. I think most will agree that there have been times when on their first tractor they thought, "I wish I had something a little bigger."

As to colors, I think Deere makes a fine machine and your idea of being able to get a little help from neighbors like that isn't a bad idea at all. There are worse reasons to make a buying decision on brands.

As to your dealer, I'd sure want to have a heart to heart with him about any concerns you have before you write a check.

Good luck with whatever you decide. I hope this helps. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
   / Newbie buying 4115-ish tractor... seeking advice! #10  
NATHAN: look at all the tractors, worst thing u can do is buy something just because that is what most of your friends have, and it should be a good long time before u need to do engine or drivetain work on it, no matter the brand. about R4 tires, i am as removed as can be from being a "yuppie" whatever that is supposed to be, but R4's are my choice, all depends on what u think will serve u best most of the time. also might be helpful to fill out your profile a bit. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif welcome to the forum
 
 
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