Buying Advice Kubota L35 or New Holland T1520

[BryanFields]

Greetings:

I need to do some dirt work and my tractor is way undersized. I have a 2010 Kubota BX2660. Tough little tractor but way undersized for it is 26 hp and FEL. I need to buy a new tractor that will handle slightly heavier loads, have a backhoe for digging trenches, and one that is capable of handling Arkansas rocks and light clay. I have found two very different machines and I am having a hard time deciding. Couple of quick notes: I don稚 want to rent or hire the work out. Yes, I understand the benefits but I would rather own the machine and use it to dig a pond and do many other chores around the three pieces or land my family owns.

Machine one is a 1999 Kubota L35. It has over 2600 hours but has new tires and looks to be in descent shape. I am paying $13,000 but the owner does not have the three point hitch, so I will need to spend $1300 for Kubota to replace it(ouch), so roughly 14,300 total cost. It is a 35 horse glide shift transmission with a FEL that will lift 1600 lbs with a breakout of 2745. The backhoe has a 108 in depth and it boasts a whopping 4970 breakout force. It comes with a 12 inch bucket.

Machine two is 2010 New Holland T1520 with 418 hours going for 16,500. It is also a 35 horse but has a hydro trans. The FEL lifts 875 lbs with a breakout force of 1602. The backhoe is a 920GH with a 90 in depth reach and 2785 breakout . The backhoe comes with two buckets a nine and sixteen inch.

Both tractors being equal, the Kubota is the clear power winner; however it is 11 years older, higher hours, and a transmission that will slow me down slightly?lbeit longer lasting I am sure. I am scared the hours may indicate it was a rental, and I have no way of determining that?o it may have just been used a lot by the first owner.

I have learned lots on this forum and I look forward to contributing to others as I learn my tractors ability.

Bryan

 

[Grandad4]

It all comes down to the condition of those machines and what else you might need to be doing with one of them. The NH is certainly OK and would make a very nice tractor for taking care of property, but it's no match for an L35 for working in the dirt. A commercial duty unit like the L35 can be a mixed blessing, of course. For example, the FEL is permanently mounted; you can't take it off when not needed. So if the current "dirt work" is the main reason for upgrading, you'd probably have to go out of your way to find a reason for not getting something like that L35, but if your tractor will see other kinds of work, it may not be the best choice. You're definitely right to look carefully at the L35, though, because many of them were in use as rentals. The hours wouldn't put me off, but indications of heavy use and abuse would.

 

[BryanFields]

It all comes down to the condition of those machines and what else you might need to be doing with one of them. The NH is certainly OK and would make a very nice tractor for taking care of property, but it's no match for an L35 for working in the dirt. A commercial duty unit like the L35 can be a mixed blessing, of course. For example, the FEL is permanently mounted; you can't take it off when not needed. So if the current "dirt work" is the main reason for upgrading, you'd probably have to go out of your way to find a reason for not getting something like that L35, but if your tractor will see other kinds of work, it may not be the best choice. You're definitely right to look carefully at the L35, though, because many of them were in use as rentals. The hours wouldn't put me off, but indications of heavy use and abuse would.

I appreciate the advice. I'm VERY mechanical, but new to tractors with backhoes which is what concerns me about the L35. Yes, I can see the obvious, but it's not a car or tractor so I wouldn't necessarily know the wear and tear to look for. I just got back from the Kubota dealer and looked at the new L3800 with a 7 foot bh. If I put the 16 k down on it with Kabota's zero interest rate, I'd only be paying a little over 200 a month and I'd have a new machine. The only problem here is what I do after I'm finished with all this work...Lots mind you! But still something that new and nice should be used for many many years. I have a feeling after I dig a few small ponds and finish the dirt work (about a year of weekends), I'll barely be in the machine except when helping friends of course. I don't do hay or run cattle like most of my family.

Boy...I do love the stats of that L35...freaking 5,000 lbs of bucket force fir a 35 horse tractor! The new L3800 has more horsepower but only 3,500 force on bh. I'll be digging in rocky terrain... then again, a new bh with 3500 might be better than a used bh with 5,000.

Once again, Thanks!

 

[rjwerth]

An L35 and an L3800 cannot really be placed in the same category as they were designed to be two completely different beasts with two very different prices. One is a dedicated TLB and the other is a multi-purpose tractor. That said, I think the price on the used L35 is a bit high.

 

[dondc]

I have an L35 with just over 1100 hrs on it which I bought second hand. I am using it to clear 3 acres of small trees, build a pond, dig tranches for footings on an equipment shed, new barn and after that I plan to sell it to recover most of my cost or trade it in on a tractor that would better suit the other farm needs. I do have the 3 point hitch and the backhoe is fairly easy to remove and reinstall. The loader is howerver permanent but if I decided to keep the tractor after the backhoe work was mostly done, I will change the loader bucket to quick attach and then get a grapple and quick attach forks. The advantage for me with the L35 vs a larger machine such as the L39 is the L35 is only about 6500 lbs with tires loaded so I can pull it on a 10,000 lb equipment trailer without having to worry about any special licencing. I did add a bolt on tooth bar to the FEL bucket and would recomend it if you plan on doing much digging (5 min on or off). I can say that the L35 is a stong tractor for its size and it has done all that I have asked it to do. Good luck with your choice. Don....

 

[wmonroe]

What other tractor work do you plan on in addition to the pond/dirt work? 2600 hours to me isn't excessive for a 13-14 year old machine, I put 170 hours on mine last year and was away from home traveling probably four months. What is more important to look at is how it was maintained, plenty of grease, slop in the pins and bushings (some is normal), any maintenance records, etc. A newer machine would be the same check all the above, these tractors can last a very long time or be destroyed in short order, regardless of the brand.