Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M

   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #1  

RodSerling

Bronze Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2013
Messages
78
Location
PA
Tractor
Kubota BX25D
I got the bug to upgrade from my BX25D to something with some more capability. I have owned the BX for almost 4 years and put on almost 400 hours. It has been handy but I want something that can do a little more.

What I use the tractor for and where I use it:
I have 4 acres of wooded PA ground. I want to clear a 1/2 acre or more to plant. I also use it to plow 1500' of driveway, 300' of it is 30' wide. With a good snow (12"+) it takes all day to do and I am frozen and wet. I also use it for driveway maintenance, to dig stumps, drag stuff, help neighbors out, etc.

Backhoe vs. Loader vs 3 pt Usage. I use the backhoe as much or more than the loader and rarely use the 3 pt except for a box grader 2 twice a year. My background is in construction. I was a equipment operator for years so I use my tractor with that mindset. I have no experience using it in an AG setting. What I am trying to say is, a strong backhoe is a must.

Machines I am considering and why.

#1. L2501 with BH77. I like the weight and the loader of the L. It fits my budget the best at right under $32k equipped the way I want. My concerns are the BH77. I've ran 3 pt BH's before and am disappointed. It also seems to hang of the back quite far and I have some steep hills I am afraid I would drag on. I don't want a BH that is just a little better than the one I have on the BX. I also want to be able to lift myself up and move myself around without getting on and off.

#2. B2650 with a cab. Heated & air conditioned cab with a radio, need I say more. I'm getting older. I got arthritis here, herniated disc there. The prospect of letting it warm up and plowing the driveway in heated comfort or using it in the spring bug free is very appealing. But I have a wooded lot and the same as above for the BH77. And $37k the way I want it.

#3. B26. This machine seems to be the backhoe I want at a price I don't. The downside of this machine is almost $42k. That's a lot of money for approximately 100 hours a year. That's $84/hr over a 5 year loan.

#4. Case 580 L or M. All the capability I could want. A heated cab. I could clear my driveway in an hour. I could put my own septic in when mine goes bad. Pretty reliable, parts readily available. I can get a nice one for $25k-$30k. The downside is 40 gal fuel tank. Bigger fuel cost, bigger maintenance, bigger repairs. I don't have a vehicle that could take it to the dealer, so that would be $300-$500 just to get it to the dealer and back. And in my experience old backhoes that are used for homeowners tend to turn into leaky old dinosaurs and then into lawn ornaments. Also no warranty.

#4.2 . Used L39 or L48??????????????
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #2  
If your using the backhoe a lot, an you don't what to cart your tractor around from place to place, I would get the case 580.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #3  
An old industrial machine will do WAY more work than a small Kubota. But as you know an old machine means a lot more maintenance & likelyhood of expensive repairs & downtime. Old iron is heavy & weight is what does work. It will lift double, triple or more what the small machines will. It won't pull an impliment with the permeant hoe, but it sounds like you are mostly in need of the hoe. A real TBL or even a small TBL will dig a lot better than an AG machine with a hoe.

I plowed a couple years with a L3200 (L2501 with minor engine differences). SSQA plow up front & blower on the back towards the end. I put chains on the front as they wouldn't fit on the back with R4s. I couldn't drive through 1' of really heavy wet sloppy snow much less plow it. I got the blower for drifts & banks as it wasn't up to things with just the plow.

I upgraded to a L4060 for the cab. Haven't had enough snow to see how double the weight plows snow. But I do love the cab. It keeps the dust off & the climate control is nice in the heat & cold.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #4  
OP where are you getting your prices?! They are way too high for the machines you are listing.

Do you have the run the backhoe across your yard? If so a fuel size machine is out of the question. Very heavy and they are really cumbersome compared to a little backhoe.

Those L39’s are pretty nice. They get pretty heavy too but are very capable.

I guess you need to determine your tasks and then size the machine accordingly. Your list of machines range from a BX to a full-size backhoe! That makes it hard for us to help advise you on what to get.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #5  
For starters the BH77 isnt a 3pt hoe.

But no its not real big or powerful.

Coming from a construction background, used to the power.....

I think you should really look at the used L35/L39 or L45/L48 you mention. Or even try to find a sweet deal on a used M59
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #6  
For starters the BH77 isnt a 3pt hoe.

But no its not real big or powerful.

Coming from a construction background, used to the power.....

I think you should really look at the used L35/L39 or L45/L48 you mention. Or even try to find a sweet deal on a used M59
I really haven't looked at TLB with a cab so I cant tell you what size you have to go to in order to have a cab on a backhoe. Sure the full sized ones let you operate inside the cab but I don't know if any compact TLB does that.
I have the B26 open station that I bought used with about 60 hours (mostly bush hog work) for $20.5K and it was a heck of a deal. It is small but very capable machine (but no cab although it does have a nice FOPS) and I am amazed at what it will lift and push when piling brush and logs from downed trees. I don't see that the L35 is a lot larger in physical size but maybe a bit more capable so that might be the better choice although I still haven't seen any of the Kubota TLBs with a cab if you are set on that.
The only time my hoe has came off the B26 is when I bought it and the owner showed me how to unhook/hook up the hoe. I have 450 hours on it now and other than the occasional rock or downed tree I have to deal with I have most of my projects finished but I wouldn't get rid of my B26 for any reason. It is just too handy to have when I need to put a plant in the ground or move some heavy railroad tie for landscaping work or just back grade my driveway. I don't even bother hooking up a boxblade or landscape rake to do this anymore, just use the FEL on the B26.
My only complaint on any of the Compact TLBs is the R4 tires and mud. They wont pull much thru mud so when I clean out my drainage ditches and creek with the B26, I usually have to take my LS P7010 down to spread the spoil pile. Everytime I do this I wish I had an excavator.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M
  • Thread Starter
#7  
Thanks guys this is the input I am looking for.

OP where are you getting your prices?! They are way too high for the machines you are listing.

Do you have the run the backhoe across your yard? If so a fuel size machine is out of the question. Very heavy and they are really cumbersome compared to a little backhoe.

Those L39’s are pretty nice. They get pretty heavy too but are very capable.

I guess you need to determine your tasks and then size the machine accordingly. Your list of machines range from a BX to a full-size backhoe! That makes it hard for us to help advise you on what to get.

MSRP's from the Kubota website and local full hoes for sale under 5000 hrs, 4x4 extendahoe.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #8  
Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M

Thanks guys this is the input I am looking for.



MSRP's from the Kubota website and local full hoes for sale under 5000 hrs, 4x4 extendahoe.

I thought so. Take around 14% off that price online and add any rebates they have going. Last year I was quoted $24,000 for L2501 with front loader and backhoe. That’s a heck of a deal. A B26 at same time was around $32,000 I think.

If you are gonna use machine on your lawn/yard I would not go heavier than a L2501 or the B26. Another option is a L4701 with a bh. Pretty powerful hoe on that one.

For work around the house I think the biggest TLB you should consider is a L39 size. They are nice machines, very powerful. But remember they are GST and not hydro. I’m not sure about the latest model.

Also the BH77 hoe has no issue lifting tractor up or pushing it around. At least as long as fluid are not in tires. Which shouldn’t be per manufacture.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #9  
I use my 2501 strictly as a field tractor so it works for me, but keep in mind that the economy e series doesn't have the hydraulic capacity that the grand L does and that the gears in the DT aren't synced . It's a really strong, sure footed machine and its high quality.
 
   / Input & Questions L2501 vs B2650 Cab vs B26 vs Used Case 580L or M #10  
I use my 2501 strictly as a field tractor so it works for me, but keep in mind that the economy e series doesn't have the hydraulic capacity that the grand L does and that the gears in the DT aren't synced . It's a really strong, sure footed machine and its high quality.
I'd debate the hydraulic aspect... My old L3200 wasn't that different than my new L4060.

I put 3 nice Butcher valves in for rear hydraulics on the L3200. I got a electro-hydraulic 3rd function up front & 3 rear valves on the L4060. The L4060 is in the shop right now because the rear valves suck. Linkages are sloppy, bind & will actuate the next valve over. Internal leakage on the valves is high. The rear cylinders will leak down in an hour or 2. Fronts on the L3200 or L4060 won't budge for weeks.

A little more flow on the L4060, but about the same relative to the extra 8hp.
 
 
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