I have been on here since around '98; the 2000 date in my sig is wrong. All the old timers defaulted to that date during one of the TBN upgrades.
This subject has come up sooooooooooo many times. Use the search function, and sit down for a few days of reading
This has been discussed ad nauseum. It is a good thing to think about before spending the money on the wrong tractor for you.
For durability, after 13 years here, I have hardly heard of major issues with either style tranny. My local dealer sells MAssey and used, and spent years as a Kubota mechanic. He has not seen much in the way of HST issues.
There are a number of trannies out there. Even saying gear is misleading. There are various different "gear" transmissions.
The hard part is, it is partly a personal thing. I can drive either no problem. I tend towards HST though. My wife and son like it too; they help me with tractor work. My old "B" Kubota, and my current New Holland TC are both HST. For my five acres, and manuevering around trees, it works well.
I have driven shuttle shift and GST too; I like the GST on the L35's TLB's I have rented.
I have spent a little time on my neighbors Ford, a gear tractor. It worked well, but after 13 years on HST, I had a little time adjusting to working in a tight area and finessing it.
The best thing, is to read read read, then go try both. And as much as I like Kubota's, try the others too. I was really looking for an L3410 when I got a deal on my used NH TC40D. I'd own another Kubota; I got the NH partly because of what was available on the used market. Sure do like it though