New Max 28 HST/Loader Delivered Last Night

[dadreier]

The last time I bought a new tractor was back in 1999 and I was able to avoid sales tax because I made the purchase in another state (by telephone) and had the tractor (and other equipment) delivered to me "for free".

Back then, however, the Kubota dealers close to my home were opposed to making any substantial reductions below MSRP.

This time around, though, when I spoke with the local Mahindra dealer and he told me that he would cheerfully pick up the Max at no charge if there were any warranty issues, this really hit home. As part of my "downsizing", I had sold the trailer which I used to haul the old Kubota and did have concerns about having the Max stranded on my property. Combining this with decent pricing made me go local without even bothering to get quotes from out-of-state dealers.

Dennis

[dadreier]

Here's another thing

Had a neighbor stop by to see the new tractor. Started it up without waiting for the glow plugs to warm up. Ran rough for a second or two.

Certainly I had been advised by the dealer to wait. Twelve years with the Kubota and no waiting makes for a hard-to-break habit.

Initial run-in for the engine has been completed and if the fields dry out a bit I may do some cutting if I can find something tall enough to mow.

Dennis

[flusher]

After what I believe was a thorough examination of all similar tractors (and their dealers), I decided to spend my money on a Max.

I know I was always curious about what people were actually paying when they posted about getting a new tractor, so I'll provide that info right up front. I paid $14,600 (cash, no financing) for the tractor/loader. That does not include sales tax which is another six percent in Pennsylvania.


Dennis

My first tractor was a new 2005 Kubota B7510HST (21 hp engine, 17 hp pto, hydrostatic tranny, power steering, 4WD) with the LA302 FEL (4-ft wide bucket, ~800 lb lift). Paid $12600 plus tax. I'd say you got a real good price for the Max 28

[dadreier]

Here's another minor gripe that's going to be hard to live with: Not only do you have to open the hood and remove the RS engine panel to gain access to the engine oil dipstick, the dipstick itself is difficult to see and reach. The loader frame is right in the way.

Once you manage to get the dipstick out and take a look at the oil level, you quickly find out that it is even more difficult to replace. I kept missing the hole and running the stick into other parts of the (now clean, but soon to be dirty) engine. With practice, I'll no doubt get better, but even in bright sunlight I'll probably need a powerful flashlight when attempting to distinguish individual parts when everything under the hood is painted black.

At around 10 hours operating time, the Max requires you to re-torque various bolts on the chassis and all the wheel mounting bolts. No sweat doing the wheels, but a few bolts on the chassis did not lend themselves to my socket on the torque wrench. This forced me to cheat a little with a box-end wrench and my calibrated arm.

I was also able to mow a quick acre or so with the new rotary cutter (60") and can now agree with the others who have stated that the 28XL is well-suited to handle this size attachment. Truth be told, I only needed to take off about two inches of field grass, but I could feel that the engine had plenty of power to spin up the heavy cutter blades and stump jumper.

I deliberately went slowly while doing the cutting since this was the first time out, but I did use high range. It looks like speed will not be an issue, though, because a few stomps on the hydro pedal proved that the tractor is capable of moving faster than the uneven ground and lack of a suspension seat allow.

There was a bit of a hump in the field I was mowing which was about 10 by 25 feet in size. Maybe a foot or so tall at the highest point. I decided to level it out. This, of course, required me to scrape off the thick sod with the bucket. The little Max seemed to struggle slightly, especially compared with what I was used to in the much bigger L3710, but once the turf was gone, the soft dirt underneath was easy to work.

While in the field, I did try the 4WD a couple of times, just to make sure it worked properly. It did. And it went in and out quite easily. This is one area where the Max outshines the just-sold Kubota, which sometimes made me lift the front wheels with the loader to disengage the front axle.

Dennis

[s219]

Never heard of having to lift the front wheels to toggle 4WD! If it's stubborn, normally you just need to have the front wheels straight, and then maybe change direction (ie, go in reverse if you were in forward) for a brief second.

[dadreier]

Hey, tried all that!

I had the Kubota for 12 years. The "sticky" 4WD situation was mostly seen during the early years and was completely gone by the time it was sold.

Please don't think I was knocking on the L3710. It was fantastic. No repairs needed. Even the factory battery lasted until one week before I put it up for sale.

Dennis

[s219]

Oh, no problem, I was just thinking how nuts it would be to lift the front wheels every time. I still get annoyed when the L/M/H selector is stubborn (need to double clutch or rock the HST pedal) and the 4WD lever sticks.

[AchingBack]

Oh, no problem, I was just thinking how nuts it would be to lift the front wheels every time. I still get annoyed when the L/M/H selector is stubborn (need to double clutch or rock the HST pedal) and the 4WD lever sticks.

s219, I find if you generously lubricate your linkage it will help.

[s219]

s219, I find if you generously lubricate your linkage it will help.

Which linkage, and what spots? I would definitely give it a try!

[AchingBack]

Which linkage, and what spots? I would definitely give it a try!

s219, sorry, I don't know about Kubotas, and there may not be linkage on your tractor. The selector lever might be a direct connection. What do they say over on the Kubota forum?