John Deere GX335

[alan40]

My brother in law is looking to purchase a 335 for mowing and snowblowing a paved driveway. Any feed back on this tractor? Good or bad. Feels the price is a little high but that's a Deere for you.
Take care.

[Bob_Skurka]

The 335 is powered by a very nice Kawasaki engine, there is nothing wrong with that engine, however, many people swear by Kohler engines and there are a couple other choices that might be worthy of consideration if an American engine is desired. The Toro, Cub Cadet and New Holland 20 hp units all use a Kohler engine. All three also power larger mower decks and larger snow blowers than the Deere unit. The Toro & New Holland units are virtually identical except for the paint, both are made by Toro. How was your B-I-L treated by the dealership? Did he check out the competitors? I think all the units are probably fine choices, the Cub will likely be the least expensive but I've never found them to be cheaply made.

[bontai_Joe]

The GX335 is a really nice tractor, and certainly powerful enough for the tasks you mentioned. As mentioned above, the Cub 3000 series and 5000 series are good choices also. The Cub 5000s would be the better choice if the snowblowing is on a very large driveway, and a bit over kill for the typical suburban lot. Toro, Ingersoll, SImplicity, Massey Ferguson (Simplicity clone), Kubota all make really good garden tractors. Perhaps one of them is more user friendly as to leg room, control placement, seat adjustment, etc. A short lefthanded person will probably feel more comfortable on a different machine than a tall righthanded person. Also check out the dealerships for what their service area looks like. Is it a professional place that you might expect quality repairs? Are the customers' machines stored indoors? Does the service department stock common parts? What is the shop charging per hour of labor? Are customers treated with courtesy and respect? These things are important on this level of machine as your brother-in-law will most likely own it for many years. It can be frustrating to buy an expensive brand "X" tractor that is an excellant machine, only to find out that the only dealer in the area is a nitwit to do business with.

[fgross335_2210]

We have a 335 which is the GX335's predecessor. Same 20HP motor and 54" deck as the current model. Ours is a 2000 model bought used in 2002 with 330 hours. We're now at 450 hours and running strong. The first year we used it to regularly mow 3 acres and snowblow 300+ feet of driveway.

The 20HP motor can handle anything the 54" deck can throw at it. It also handles the 42" snowthrower easily, takes VERY deep or wet snow to make it work hard.

In 2002 we added a 30" mechanical tiller and again the 20HP kaw motor is more than up to the task.

Since then we have also purchased a 2210 CUT but the 335 is still used to cut the lawn each week (along with the 2210) and it's also usually the primary snow removal tractor (don't have a blower for the 2210 yet).

I have been running synthetic oil and the engine does not burn any and runs great. Have had a few issues with fouling spark plugs but got that sorted out with a new set. Due to the air-cooled design and amount of air pulled over the motor, the throttle linkage occasionally ices up / freezes when snowblowing in wet snow. WD-40 took care of that problem.

About the only complaint I have is that the motor is very thirsty. It easily uses 2-3 times the fuel of the (diesel) 2210 while doing less work. I wouldn't call it a gas hog but the tank only holds 2.5-3 gallons and we have run it dry a number of times, goes down pretty fast.

Only other complaint, the motor is a LOT louder than the liquid-motor in the 345, earmuffs are highly recommended.

I'm planning on keeping ours indefinitely, great tractor!

[Bob_Skurka]

Not sure if you can compare a new 3xx series JD to an older unit. The older 3xx series tractors had heavier frame the new ones are supposed to be lighter gauge stamped steel. I'm not making a value judgement there, just pointing out an observation.

[GreenRules]

If he doesn't mind a hand lift and no power steering, the GT would do fine. I just bought a new GT 225 for those reasons. Great machine.

[ducati996]

I'm glad the Cub 3000 series was brought up. I love JD products but I also love Cub's 3000 series. I have a 3204 which has full hydrolics and a strong frame. I think it should be looked at before any decision is made. The price point and options is a hard combination to beat...

Cub3204

Cub3204Snow

Cub3204Snow

I attached some shots of the front hitch and blower attachments. There are no belts used in the attachment connection, lift is hydrolic. The blower is a 2 stage and launches snow 70+ feet, wet heavy snow is not an issue...

Best of luck in your search!!

Duc

[Rainbow6]

I believe Mr Surka is correct. Starting with the 2500 series the Cubs come with a 150lb cast iron transmission with a spin-on filter. They are pretty darn tuff. [img]/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[GreenRules]

Nice tractor, but what's the deal with those GREEN weights on the back? [img]/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[ducati996]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Nice tractor, but what's the deal with those GREEN weights on the back? [img]/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] )</font>

I find interbrand breeding is ok !! those weights come from my Deere 4100 - I find yellow weighs the same as green [img]/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Ducati