tractor magazine comparisons ?

[stovepipe]

Are there any magazines or websites that actually test and compare tractors ? A "consumers report" type of magazine. Whenever I buy an atv or motorcycle magazine, they're always comparing different manufactures by class size, they often refer to them as "shootouts". They run several test, compare features and usually award an "editors choice", or "best buy" award. It seems to motivate the manufactures to try and top the other each year.

 

[cowboydoc]

There have been quite a few done. Western Horseman did a review, Quarter Horse Journal, Successful Farming, etc. All of the ones I looked at though they never compared apples to apples. It was always a hydro in on brand, gear in another, 65 hp from one, 45 hp from another, 4wd, 2wd. They never just did say 65 pto hp tractors with mfwd and cab. They did all different ones from different mfg. So although it showed alot of different models the comparisons between them were pretty worthless as they were comparing the best apples to the best oranges. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[Woodbeef]

Very good question!! I've often wondered why there are no magazines in North America just for tractors and equipment like Europe has. It seems every country has at least one if not more publications. Farm Journal does work a bit with Profi International from the UK,but other than that I've not saw much. Check out the Profi site and order a free copy of the magazine. Now it does cover bigger tractors,but you might find something interesting there. www.profi.co.uk

 

[JDgreen227]

I subscribe to an ATV magazine, two motorcycle magazines, three auto/truck/suv magazines, and that no-advertising-permitted consumer publication which shall remain nameless.
/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif What I do not like about the comparison tests printed in the magazines with ads....I wonder how strongly their editorial content is influenced by advertising revenue. Most of the shootouts seem to just mention positive factors of the vehicles with the final paragraph stating, "well, these are all pretty good machines, etc".

Given the small number of registered users currently on the TBN site (about 8020) it is unlikely there would be enough of a market for a magazine that covered new tractors and implements. I do subscribe to Antique Power but it has no articles of the type you mention....I'm sorry for that.

 

[JDgreen227]

Thanks for the tip, I ordered a trial copy !!

 

[thcri]

I am not a fan of the Consumer Reports magazine and related. I am in the heating and air conditioning business and about ten years ago one of them magazines had the top three furnaces on the market. They listed their why's why not's and so forth. I never did like the report. The number one furnace on their list had so many problems the manufacture had to stop producing it. The number two furnace on their list the goverment shut it down because of safety issues. These people half the time don't even see the product but look at the brochures of a product and rate it by that. This is not always the case but in many cases it is.


just my 2 cents

murph

 

[BXMMCC]

Murph -
To be fair, the Consumers Report magazine does hands on testing of anything they report on. I can't speak for the 'related' that you mention.

 

[JimMc]

http://www.compactequip.com/features.php is a free magazine

 

[stovepipe]

Dear JimMc:

Thanks for the website !!!! Just what I was looking for.