century Tractors

[spencer200]

All right guys my dealership is considering becoming a dealer for these nice red tractors. I would like to hear the opinions of anyone who has bought one, the good, bad, and ugly.
your opinions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[DK35vince]

Everything I've read about these machines so far has been positive.
Claiming Century/Branson are the same basic tractor with differant names,loaders ect.

 

[thcri]

If Century is the same as Branson i think it is a good unit. I sat on a Branson a couple of weeks ago and was impressed. Looked like a real good tractor and probably would have dealt on it if I already haven't bought my New Holland TC29D

It was a Branson 3510


murph

 

[markie61]

Generally good things to say about Branson (never saw a Century).
Goods:
Great value, good fit and finish, good general feel, QA bucket std on loader (Branson), 12x12 shuttle std. I liked the idea of the Yanmar engine in the the big 'un.

Bads:
Seat - the spring/weight adjustment is manually done with a wrench and the spring is anchored between 2 pieces of bar metal. On all 5 I looked at, the bar metal was already distorted, thus reducing the distance the spring can travel, thus reducing the weight it will hold.
Branson loader - the joystick for the loader bumped against the throttle control, either reducing the throw of the joystick or moving the throttle speed up or down (I understand a fix was in the works.)
Steering column too short - I have a 33" inseam and the tops of my knees were even with the steering wheel with the seat adjusted all the way back (I understand a fix has already been done.)
3ph - no extendable link end and turnbuckle stabilizers (but for its value, you could buy an EZHitch for everything and still be thousands ahead.
Fluid tank - I recall noticing that one or two of the fluids were in a weird place (like under the floor). Can't recall which, just noticed it was different.

In summary, VERY competitive - especially if there was a great dealer selling them. Like spencer200 /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.

Mark

 

[Chipperman]

Spencer200
Where are you located? The Century is an excellent Tractor and Value. The quality, fit and finish as well as operation is great. Transmission has a nice tight and positive feel. It does well at independent as well as name brand dealerships. In addition it looks nice and believe it or not that makes a big difference. Their are two loaders the standard which is Korean and is a good standard loader. (they now come with float) Then thier is the C-50 that is really rugged. One look at the subframe and it is obvious this loader will stand up to some major work. The C-50 is midmount and the C-30/40 (Korean) is the wrap around style. This fall all of the tractors will be "Powered by Cummins". Kukje been contracted by Cummins to supply then with (I think) 18-65hp engines. If you are looking for additional tractors sales you will not be disappointed .
Good Luck
Chipperman

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I just had my century 2028 dropped off today. I did a lot of shopping and found this tractor to have the best bang for the buck. IMHO. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif I'll send some feedback once i get some seat time.

 

[Loges1]

I wouldn't trade mine for anything orange,blue, or green /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I just got a Century 3035 about a week ago. As delivered the C40 loader grease fittings had never seen a grease gun. A day or 2 later I noticed moisture in both headlights and one of the tail lights. It runs and operates great. I have about 6 hours on it.

 

[19th_VA]

Hey Redone,

Can you fill in your bio so we know who/where you are? I have the same tractor, only Branson. As a note, most of the problems noted by Markie61 have been fixed by Branson.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( As a note, most of the problems noted by Markie61 have been fixed by Branson. )</font>

Yes, but some of them are not really problems. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

The under floor fluid tanks he mentions are the hydraulic steering fluid reservoir and the fuel tanks. The fuel tanks are filled through a common filler (with a built in removable filter) accessible on the right side, and the reservoir, located as it is on the left side, provides a sight gauge for the steering fluid that can easily be seen when climbing aboard. It is accessible for service, which should be infrequent in any event.

If I'm reading his post correctly, he says that the Bransons lack extendable link ends on the 3PH, and there are no turnbuckle stabilizers (adjustable check chains).

My 3520 certainly came with adjustable check chains (and they are shown in both the factory operator's and parts manuals), and I haven't had any problem connecting implements, even without extendable link ends. AFAIK, extendable link ends are not considered a standard 3PH item.

To me, it seems kind of unfair to list the lack of a nonstandard item as a con, thereby lumping it in with real problems. It seems to me that extensible link ends ought to be listed as pluses on those machines that have them, and not as cons on those that don't. This may seem like splitting hairs, but it is something that really jumps out at me.

As to the rest of the items he mentions:

The loader joystick does not interfere with the hand throttle on my 3520, so it has been fixed.

I don't have a 33 inch inseam, so I don't know if the column is still too short for taller folks. But it does have a tilt adjustment that might help. I'm not sure if Markie61 knew about that when he looked at Bransons.

The seat springs on my tractor don't distort any "bar metal." I'm not sure what he means by that. The seat suspension adjustment does require a wrench, which might be a problem if the machine is operated by two or more persons with significantly differing weights. Otherwise, set it and forget it.

But for my money, the biggest problem is the seat track adjustment range--or more properly, the lack of it. It flat doesn't go forward far enough for shorter folks. The two stage clutch has a lot of throw, and the seat needs to be closer than the adjustment range allows. Even my dealer commented on the limited travel.

A modification to the seat is on my short list of things to do.

Besides the seat track adjustment, the location of the parking brake lever is the only design decision that I would question. It is down low on the column. While it works fine, its location does not invite frequent use, which it should.

And yes, Bransons do represent a tremendous value for the money.

SnowRidge