BEST tractor/snowblower combo for $5-6k?

[tobypineo]

Hi. I have about 2 acres of lawn to mow and about a 200' driveway to snowblow. IF economics do not allow me to get the BX 1500 I really want then I need to spend probably $5-6000 for a lawn or garder tractor and a snowblower. It needs to be able to do the job for 5 years or so??? I have a pretty good slope of a hill to mow and the driveway has quite an incline too. Resale is important because I will probably get a sub-cut tractor in a few years instead. What I would like is the cheapest 4 wheel drive out there, but that is too much $, unless I haven't found it yet. A diff lock would be good, but only a few garden tractors have that, as far as I can tell. Soooo, I call upon all of your wisdom to help me make the right choice!

So far (in rough numbers)

JD G110 with snowblower $5k
Craftsman GT 5000 with snowblower $4k

Haven't looked at Yardman and the other MTD's. Not real excited about those other than maybe a Cub.

Thank you! Don't pay attention to my signature...times change!

 

[tobypineo]

PS Yes I did some searching, lots of info on mowing but not a whole lot on snowblowing, traction, etc. Thanks.

 

[KentT]

My suggestion in that price range:

1. Buy a Simplicity Conquest or the more expensive Prestige -- or their equivalent with a Snapper, Agco or Massey-Ferguson label -- and get the difflock that you need... plus the best cut of any lawn/garden tractor in the business.

2. Order these two adapter kits from the Simplicity dealer, then find yourself a good used 42" snowblower off a Simplicity Sovereign or Landlord and use it... You should be able to find a good used one for about $250 or so, and it'll last for years. I'm using a 1968 model now....

Here are the kits from Simplicity to convert a Soveriegn Snowblower to use on a Prestige/ConQuest. You actually need two kits, instead of just one:

1. Snowblower Hitch assembly for Landlord/1700/2700 series MFG # 1693500

2. Kit to convert from Landlord Hitch to Prestige/ConQuest hitch MFG # 1686886

 

[bczoom]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( IF economics do not allow me to get the BX 1500 I really want then I need to spend probably $5-6000 for a lawn or garder tractor and a snowblower.))</font>

Toby,

We're all really anxious to spend other people's money. I'll throw out my 2 cents.

If you have $5-6K, is that enough to get you through some monthly payments on a financed BX1500 until your economics/financial constraints are relieved?

If not, I'd consider getting a used tractor that would meet your needs. Remember, a lot of depreciation occurs as soon as a new vehicle leaves the dealers lot. On a used machine, that's already been taken care of and you may get a larger percentage back after 5 years on an already used machine. I just sold a garden tractor/blade/mower/blower after 6 years for $300 less than what I paid for it.

Brian

EDIT - The tractor I mentioned above (that I sold) was a Simplicity Soverign so I guess I'm seconding thoughts made by Kent.

 

[ByronBob]

Tony have you ever seen this to blow snow with?

http://www.troybilt.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_10001_14102_10115_17693_-1

It's a serious machine which would last a long time. And for mowing I still believe that Craftsman has a solid tractor line-up.

All could be gotten for less than 4g.

 

[JTKub]

Toby, you've got LOTS of choices in the $5-6K range, but if resale is a major factor for you, stick with JD or kubota. Resale for the rest can be pretty horrible /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif.
G/luck
Joel

 

[lawnduster]

MTDs are crap, just my 2 cents

 

[LBrown59]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( MTDs are crap, just my 2 cents )</font>

Tell Me About It !

 

[Dutch445]

Toby,
Do some looking around, you could find a decent used JD or other HD Garden tractor with a snowblower for the money you want to spend. one example:
used JD on Ebay
If you can find a 445 or 455, that would be even better as you would get the 26" rear tires which make a big difference in traction. Those machines all have diff lock, and are heavy, and can take a lot of extra weight if you need it. It isn't hard to find opinions on the snow attachments in the forum, most here feel they are great. (me included).
That tractor on Ebay has the 46" single stage, you may be able to find one with the 47" 2 stage, or buy that seperate.
I would put the performance of this setup right up there with any BX or sub compact when it comes to mowing/snowblowing, even with 2wd.
/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[LBrown59]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( My suggestion in that price range:
1. Buy a Simplicity Conquest or the more expensive Prestige --
===============
)</font>

I just got the following price off the Simplicity web site.
$7000 Simplicity Prestige Garden tractor
Included 54" Mower.
--------------------------------
Total $7000

Just recently I got these prices on the Kubota BX 1500.
Dealer A
$ 6200 Kubota BX 1500.SUB - COMPACT
No mower
--------------------
Total $6200

Dealer B
$7300 Kubota BX 1500. SUB - COMPACT
Included 54" Mower.
------------------------------
Total $7300

Why pay for a sub compact and only get a garden tractor ???