New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac

   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #1  

TimOb

Bronze Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2006
Messages
65
Location
WA, USA
Tractor
Power Trac PT425
Ok folks,
Did any of you buy your Power Trac sight unseen? If so, what can you tell us about your buying and shipping experience?

Just curious, I spose - Tim
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #2  
I'm one that bought "sight unseen".

Never heard of PT. I was planning on buying a CUT. I had acres of "lawn" [weeds] to mow, brush to clear and burn [endless], stumps to remove, a driveway w/ditches to maintain, and other chores. I did a google search for compact tractors that brought me to TBN.

I bought "the book". Great investment. I learned that I didn't need [nor want] a CUT. I needed a 4WD lawnmower and started looking at the JD dealer, Lowe's & HD. Found a nice JD for close to $10K.

Then I found a post by Bob Skurka in the "Lawn and Garden" section asking what's "the best lawn tractor". PT, Ventrac and others were mentioned. Started reading back posts. That did it.

Terry at PT was great to work with. The forum here gets all the credit for my purchase tho. In hindsight: wish I'd gotten one years ago.

Shipping was painless. I had it delivered to a local hardware store that has a loading dock. They ended up not using the dock instead loading it directly into the store's stake bed truck, and they then insisted on simply driving it to my house (10 miles) to unload (I have a loading dock too). The alternative was for me to make a 150 mile round trip to the Sacramento freight terminal.

It was out of gas at delivery (no surprise there) but I already had a can of gas. There were a couple of spots that were "rubbed" from tie down straps, no big deal. The brushhog was attached to the PT and one of the front tires was flat, again - no biggie. (I filled all the tires with some 'bulletproof sealer' from Gemplers and haven't had a problem with tires since).

A year later I ordered the grapple bucket and the box blade. Wish I'd have gotten them in the first place as I'd saved considerably on shipping, but I was working within a budget and making a large [for me] purchase, sight unseen, so didn't get all the attachments that I'd have liked at the first order. Now I have all I want with the exception of the cement mixer.

After a year and a half of use, I'm getting pretty adept. The thing that can't be adequately expressed is how quickly the thing "scoots" around. There is a large cumulative amount of time saved by not having to shift a transmission from fwd to rev, for instance. The machine is just "quick" compared to other mowers or any tractor.

Phil
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #3  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( After a year and a half of use, I'm getting pretty adept. The thing that can't be adequately expressed is how quickly the thing "scoots" around. There is a large cumulative amount of time saved by not having to shift a transmission from fwd to rev, for instance. The machine is just "quick" compared to other mowers or any tractor.

Phil

)</font>
Great rundown, Phil. I agree that this "quickness" resulting from a combination of articuiated maneuverability and seamless forward/reverse movement can't be readily described.... Especially in "cramped quarters" I'd guess that you could load, transport and dump almost 3 bucket loads to 1 compared to a conventional CUT/SCUT... I'm pretty convinced that it is more than twice as fast as the manual transmission Kubota that I had before, or the hand-control hydro that I have on my little Allis-Chalmers garden tractor. There's simply far. far less wasted movement and no wasted time shifting gears...

In response to the original question. I bought mine used from a guy about an hour away -- after finding out here on this very forum that he might be selling it. I visited him, test-drove the PT-425 and gave him his asking price without haggling, though I did call Tazewell and get their opinion on what the tractor and attachments was worth...

I'd been strongly considering buying a new one, unseen, until I happened on this opportunity. I've since invested some of the money that I saved by buying used into a new grapple bucket and minihoe, plus modifying a boxblade I already had....
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #4  
<font color="blue">The thing that can't be adequately expressed is how quickly the thing "scoots" around. There is a large cumulative amount of time saved... </font>

That statement pretty much sums it up. It moves quick. It changes implements quick. It does everything quick. The time saved is very noticable.
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac
  • Thread Starter
#5  
All,
Thanks for the great info.

Phil,
Do you ever have any regrets not getting the 425 - mainly, in terms of power, brakes and lift height? I have a few slopes, that I'm fairly certain the 422 would be ok with. I don't have a real problem spending the extra for the 425, then again, it would be best if I don't have to...

Thx again,
Tim
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #6  
No regrets on the 422 vs the 425, Tim.

I have steep parts and have not had problems going up any of them. I can't have the brushhog running while driving up steep hills, but 1) that hasn't been a problem and 2) that may still be the situation with the 425, hard to know without side-by-side comparisons.

With the 425 I'd have to remove the ROPS because of the low branches I'm always working around.

Lifting power wouldn't make any difference. I can lift enough that the rear comes off the ground. With more lift power what?

Lift height: haven't yet tried to lift anything that I couldn't get high enough for what I wanted to do.

Brakes are the same (there aren't any). The parking brake is the same... pins into the wheel discs on the front. Hard to engage, hard to release, I use it rarely if ever while working but always when transporting it in my pickup.

I can't imagine 3HP making much difference but if the 425 came with a Kohler engine (sorry, Jack) that would make the 425 more desirable to me. I wouldn't have had the vaporlock problems caused by the Robin engine exhausting from the front of the motor. My problem is now fixed but it took a year and a half of trial and error.

Phil
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac
  • Thread Starter
#7  
Thanks again Phil,
I suppose the vapor lock problem could occur on either the 22 or 25hp robin engine. It seems that is a bit of a red flag - wonder if PT has redesigned anything to prevent future occurances. Didn't you go thru pretty much work to resolve that issue? Maybe I should just search the past threads....
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #8  
Not very many people buy things unseen, how ever, if a good friend recommended it , I might buy. Maybe some one you trust very much tells you it is a good deal. I might buy in that situation. Their are many good friends on the PT forum, and looking through their eyes about the things they have done, seen, experienced, discussed argued, helped each other. I would think you could go with a good thing, and feel justified in the outcome. I don't believe that I have heard any body trash the capabilities of the PT. Most would say they should have bought it years earlier. So really, you are not buying it unseen, you have seen the pictures, read the postings, and talked to the people that make the machine, and talked with the people that are actually using the machine in a working environment. I don't believe you could get any better recommendations anywhere. So even if you never get to Tazwell, you can still benefit from all the knowledge that is available. I have never been to the PT manufacturing plant. I rely on my knowledge, other people knowledge, and communication skills to Git er Done.
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac
  • Thread Starter
#9  
J.J.,
Nice perspective, I believe you are correct.

The documentation all of you provide is tremendous, to say the least.

thanks,
Tim
 
   / New Thread - How did you buy your Power Trac #10  
I bought my PT used. I kept checking the used section on PT's website and found a great deal. It just so happened he lived about an hour from the factory so he brought it there where they loaded the grapple and minihoe and shipped it all up to me on a 1-ton truck with a trailer. It was painless and a good experience.
 
 
Top