Buying Advice New B3350

[jim_wilson]

The last update I received today is still sometime in May (my dealer has two on order that are suppose to be arriving around then.) One is spoken for already (the owner is buying it), and I'm debating on putting down a deposit on the other one.

However, I still need to work out the height issue with my existing garage door opening. Depending on tire air-pressure of the B2650/B3350, the height of the tractor with R4 tires falls right around 83-83.5". The door is at 82", but I think if I relocate the garage door tracks higher and cut out the opening some more I should be able to get around 84.5", which should give me an inch to spare (enough for weatherstripping.)

Also, the loader-mounted hydraulic plow I wanted I don't think is available yet still.

Crap. I was hoping it would be out sooner. Did the dealer say if all the parts were "live" in the ordering system?

THe dealer I talked to a few weeks back said the part numbers were there - but he could not order on them yet because they weren't "live".

You mentioned the loader mounted hydraulic plow before - is that a new Kubota accessory? I haven't seen that mentioned anywhere.

 

[bandit67]

You can still build a B3000 on the Kubota website. Typically they take the previous model builds down a month or more before the new models are up, so it would appear that the new B3350 is still a good 3-4 weeks out, maybe more. There must still be quite a few B3000 machines/parts/components out there that need to be sold off before the all-out launch of the B3350.

 

[ericdube]

Crap. I was hoping it would be out sooner. Did the dealer say if all the parts were "live" in the ordering system?

THe dealer I talked to a few weeks back said the part numbers were there - but he could not order on them yet because they weren't "live".

You mentioned the loader mounted hydraulic plow before - is that a new Kubota accessory? I haven't seen that mentioned anywhere.

I believe most of the parts are already orderable (since the B2650 has already shipped) as they were in the system and the dealer provided pricing for everything in my quote. The only items I haven't been able to get a price for because they weren't in the system was the quick-attach subframe (for the front mounted snowblower) and the loader mounted hydraulic plows. I know my dealer told me they already had a lot of things on order such as the B3350 tractors and the loaders, but they weren't going to arrive until sometime in May.

As for the 60" & 72" loader mounted hydraulic plows, there's a picture of it in the B2650/B3350 brochure posted earlier in this thread. It requires the new quick-attach system and 3rd function valve. There's even a manual blade option which eliminates the need for the 3rd function valve. I'm thinking of going with the loader mounted 72" hydraulic plow and 3-point mounted rear 64" snowblower (with hydraulic chute control.) This should make it easier for me by not having to swap back and forth between the plow and snowblower all winter long.

 

[ericdube]

You can still build a B3000 on the Kubota website. Typically they take the previous model builds down a month or more before the new models are up, so it would appear that the new B3350 is still a good 3-4 weeks out, maybe more. There must still be quite a few B3000 machines/parts/components out there that need to be sold off before the all-out launch of the B3350.

Agreed. I suspect there's probably some great deals that could be had for a B3000 as well (I know my dealer has at least one B3000 in stock.) If I was on the fence between the two, now is the time to pick one up and save a bunch of money.

 

[bandit67]

I took advantage in November. It was a no-brainer for me to trade my B3030 open station for the deal I got on the B3000 between the great trade-in value & sale price on the new machine, 0% financing, and no payments for 4 months. Plus I wasn't prepared to deal with the costs involved in purchasing a full Tier 4 machine.

I'm very pleased with my B3000, and don't expect I'll miss anything available on the B3350. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.

 

[ericdube]

I took advantage in November. It was a no-brainer for me to trade my B3030 open station for the deal I got on the B3000 between the great trade-in value & sale price on the new machine, 0% financing, and no payments for 4 months. Plus I wasn't prepared to deal with the costs involved in purchasing a full Tier 4 machine.

I'm very pleased with my B3000, and don't expect I'll miss anything available on the B3350. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.

Understood and all that matters is that you're happy with your purchase. Not to mention that after hearing about the discount you got on the B3000, I agree that you did very well indeed.

If I wasn't overly interested in a few of the new features only found on the B3350, then I'd probably also follow your lead and pick up one of the remaining B3000's left on the lot given now is the best time to get a great deal.

Now if I can just get my garage door opening issue solved as quickly!

 

[bandit67]

My door clearance is barely 83.5" at the trim - the weatherstripping flap folds/rubs on the roof when pulling in & out. I have a taller ceiling behind the door, so was be able to adjust the door opener to pull the door just a bit further back on the track to get the bottom of the door further up and out of the way. The track isn't much higher than the 7' mark, but there was enough play to get the door bottom up a little higher. I got an extra 1/4" of clearance at the trim by adding some screws to tighten it up against the frame, since the nails allow the trim to sag over time.

I was concerned that I was going to have to remove the 2x trim piece (1.5" actual thickness) and go with a 1x (3/4"), but I don't HAVE to. Only problem is that I can't put it in the garage with the tires chained up, so at some point, I may go ahead and swap the 2x trim for 1x to get the extra clearance.

Oh, and I had to adjust the hazard flashers down just a bit, and the radio antenna is sticking straight out and only slightly up to clear the opening. Doesn't seem to impact FM signal strength all that much.

 

[ericdube]

I have exactly the same situation as you for the opening: ~83.5" to the very bottom of the trim with around ~82.5" to the bottom of the weatherstripping. I think I can raise this by another 1.5-2" without too much trouble since everything was screwed together and should be fairly easy to disassemble (plus there's no re-framing that needs to be done since we used SIPs panels for the construction.) The toughest challenge for me will be to re-do some of the hardiplank siding since it was all blind-nailed (will have to face nail the repair and fill the holes with caulk.)

The only trouble I'm running into still is with the height under the garage door itself - 82". The post and beam corner braces in my loft area prevent the door from going back any further. I have no choice but to move the tracks up, which means I might need to replace them with a high lift conversion kit. I'll feel better once I have a chance to talk to my garage door installer to see what he thinks, but I think it's doable putting aside the cost.

The good news if it does work out, I think I'll end up with 84" or better under both the door and opening (including the edge of the weatherstripping.) This should give me a plenty of room for the tractor without worrying about hitting any part of the cab.

I did have one question for you though.. Do you know how long is it from the edge front of the bucket to the backhoe? I'm not sure if I have enough length in my shed to fit the tractor in without having to turn the backhoe when it's parked. I can fit my B2620 with backhoe now and there's a little room to spare, but not sure if this is enough for the B3350 with backhoe.

Thanks!

 

[bandit67]

If I remember correctly, I think my B3030 was around 18'-6", and the B3000 adds 9" to the backhoe subframe to get the seat clear of the cab. My tractor shed that I store it in during the nice weather (keep it in the garage during snow season so I don't have to go out in the snow to get in the nice dry cab) is 19'-5" clear, however I sometimes need to back it further in, so I swing the backhoe as I'm pulling it in - pretty easy to reach the controls through the back window, and it looks like they did a swing up window on the 3350 also.

I also have the Kubota pin-type QA, which adds another 4" to the overall length. Not sure how much the new QA will add to the 3350, but figure it'll add close to that.

Here are a couple pics showing the backhoe frame extension on the cabbed machine compared to the open station. That was always something that bothered me, but since I've had since 2005 to get accustomed to seeing the hoe hanging way off the back of the cabbed machine, I eventually came to the conclusion that I cared more about the cab than the extension. Initially, Kubota did not offer the hoe with the cabbed B3030 - you had to get the Woods hoe, which had an extended frame.
However, the new hoe frame flexes significantly more than the one on my B3030. Kubota just bolted 2 extension plates with the pin brackets onto the standard hoe frame to push it out far enough to fit the seat - the standard pin brackets are still on the frame.

 

[jim_wilson]

I believe most of the parts are already orderable (since the B2650 has already shipped) as they were in the system and the dealer provided pricing for everything in my quote. The only items I haven't been able to get a price for because they weren't in the system was the quick-attach subframe (for the front mounted snowblower) and the loader mounted hydraulic plows. I know my dealer told me they already had a lot of things on order such as the B3350 tractors and the loaders, but they weren't going to arrive until sometime in May.

As for the 60" & 72" loader mounted hydraulic plows, there's a picture of it in the B2650/B3350 brochure posted earlier in this thread. It requires the new quick-attach system and 3rd function valve. There's even a manual blade option which eliminates the need for the 3rd function valve. I'm thinking of going with the loader mounted 72" hydraulic plow and 3-point mounted rear 64" snowblower (with hydraulic chute control.) This should make it easier for me by not having to swap back and forth between the plow and snowblower all winter long.

I had to search around a bit - couldn't find the brochure. But I did watch a Kubota Canada video which showed a plow - and there's obviously a QA plate on the back of the plow. I've been thinking of going with the same setup on my tractor : plow on the front and blower on the back. I'll have to take a look at the loader attached plow when it finally comes out and is available.

If the dealers are putting orders in - maybe the parts are available in the system now. I'll have to check in with my dealer when I get a chance and see if the parts are "live" now for ordering.