JD 4052R HST vs Branson 4820/5520CH (I chose a MF 2850M)

[TractorTYMe]

Plus the Branson has a very very reliable mechanical injected low tech license made Cummins A2300T engine made by Kukje.

 

[ericm979]

The current 20 series Bransons do regens but still use mechanical injection. They expanded the capabilities of the previous version's data recorder computer to monitor the regen process.

It's an improvement over the older ones like mine that don't have the ability to do a regen. A few people with them who have cold winters and don't run the tractor hard have had their DPFs clog.

 

[espacef1fan]

Thanks for the feedback!

So in another thread I already mentioned this but the idea of the JD is dead.

They lost me whe both 4052Rs on the lot had the door seals falling off. To me that didn’t bode well for the long term longevity of the very expensive cab, so I passed.

That brings me back to the Branson. It became my primary choice but was out of stock.

So as a result of that, now I’m actually looking at the Massey 2850M . It has a few features the Branson lacks and does a few things in a way that makes more sense(tap the cruise to engage instead of press and hold etc) Small things like that add up when you have an 8 hr day in the tractor atleast every two weeks.


The Branson remains my number 2 choice over all of the other brands for many of the reasons you all mentioned.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Is the Massey in stock so you can at least climb around on it and test it out?

Good luck and post pics when you get it home.

We like tractor pics.

 

[espacef1fan]

Is the Massey in stock so you can at least climb around on it and test it out?

Good luck and post pics when you get it home.

We like tractor pics.

It’s in stock, sort of.

They have two tractors, a 1840M HST deluxe cab and a 2860M PST standard cab.

Having spent some time with the two of them I decided I will be pleased with the 2850M, if it ever arrives

 

[espacef1fan]

Also for those that are curious, here are the features that made me choose The MF 2850M over the Branson 20 series CH.

In no particular order:
- Air ride seat
- Easier ingress/egress of the cab
- Seat that adjusts further forward
- speedometer
- adjustable transmission(response and speed limiting, both via knobs)
- Easier to operate cruise control (push to engage instead of push and hold)
- removable clean out screens on radiator and condenser
- more advertised breakout force on the loader
- wheels accept iron wheel weights

 

[mo1]

Avoiding the obvious discussions I’ve found myself in a position to choose between these two tractors. The cost per month would be almost identical due to better financing rates being available on the Deere.

I plan on keeping the tractor for 10-20 years minimum.

The Branson has a separate lifetime extended warranty on engine/power train.(It’s written like a home warranty sort of)




The main tasks I’ll be doing with the tractor will be:
- Mowing with a 6 foot finish mower
- lifting pecan super sacks (1500-2500 lbs) onto a car hauler
- operating a lane shark type loader mounted brushcutter
- general landscaping work



Both tractors will run the finish mower perfectly

Both tractors weigh almost the same.

Both have similar hydraulic implement pump flow for the lane shark operation.

There are two key area of concern I have:

-Loader capacity. The 440R loader has 6” more lift height than the Branson BL200 liader(110” vs 104”) however the Branson has more lift capacity at the pins at full height 2701 lbs vs 2539 lbs. Both have a 2500 psi relief valve.

Is the Branson optimistic with their loader rating? Is the John Deere conservative? Are they comparable in the real world capacity or is the difference as much as indicated on paper?


- Is there any notable features on the John Deere or Branson that will make any of my tasks noticeably easier or less stressful on one tractor vs another.

I looked at your list and you may be best served by a couple of different machines. Lifting 2500 pounds with a compact tractor is going to be a tall order. Depending on how high you need to lift it, the loader may or may not be able to do so, but if it does, the machine will need all of the counterweight you can put on it and it will not like it very much. Remember that the lift capacity is at the pin height and your load will be sticking out further than that, exerting a cantilever effect and reducing lift capacity. I would be looking at a full sized utility tractor or a skid loader to lift that much weight. I have used a New Holland Boomer 50, which is a competitor to these tractors with similar specifications, and it is a handy tractor but it absolutely knows it has picked up a 4x6 round bale off of a car hauler trailer. Those bales weighed about 1000-1200 pounds, and I would not try to pick up more with it. And that tractor also has loaded tires and a backhoe hanging off of the back, so it is pretty well counterweighted. I would think if you can absolutely keep the pecan sacks to no more than 1500 pounds and don't have to move them very far you may be okay though.

I would also look at a smaller unit for the mowing and landscaping. You don't need anywhere near a 50 HP tractor to run a 6' finish mower and you also don't want that weight on your lawn if you can help it. It will also be a pretty long and not very maneuverable machine not well suited for mowing anything except a fairly wide open area. I know, I used to mow my lawn with a tractor the size of a Deere 3 series and a 6' rear finish mower and had a massive improvement in mowing speed and enjoyment when I traded that for a zero turn mower. A zero turn won't be useful for landscaping, but something like a subcompact (1 series) or a smaller compact (2 series) with a belly mower would be better suited for lawn mowing and landscaping.

 

[espacef1fan]

I looked at your list and you may be best served by a couple of different machines. Lifting 2500 pounds with a compact tractor is going to be a tall order. Depending on how high you need to lift it, the loader may or may not be able to do so, but if it does, the machine will need all of the counterweight you can put on it and it will not like it very much. Remember that the lift capacity is at the pin height and your load will be sticking out further than that, exerting a cantilever effect and reducing lift capacity. I would be looking at a full sized utility tractor or a skid loader to lift that much weight. I have used a New Holland Boomer 50, which is a competitor to these tractors with similar specifications, and it is a handy tractor but it absolutely knows it has picked up a 4x6 round bale off of a car hauler trailer. Those bales weighed about 1000-1200 pounds, and I would not try to pick up more with it. And that tractor also has loaded tires and a backhoe hanging off of the back, so it is pretty well counterweighted. I would think if you can absolutely keep the pecan sacks to no more than 1500 pounds and don't have to move them very far you may be okay though.

I would also look at a smaller unit for the mowing and landscaping. You don't need anywhere near a 50 HP tractor to run a 6' finish mower and you also don't want that weight on your lawn if you can help it. It will also be a pretty long and not very maneuverable machine not well suited for mowing anything except a fairly wide open area. I know, I used to mow my lawn with a tractor the size of a Deere 3 series and a 6' rear finish mower and had a massive improvement in mowing speed and enjoyment when I traded that for a zero turn mower. A zero turn won't be useful for landscaping, but something like a subcompact (1 series) or a smaller compact (2 series) with a belly mower would be better suited for lawn mowing and landscaping.

We’ve looked into larger tractors and cost/lack of HST rules them out for us as a single machine solution. We can’t really afford 2-3 machines either and still get the features/functionality we want. Comfort is especially important to my wife who hurt her back in the Army. That’s how a zero turn got ruled out even after trying a few commercial/luxury versions. The poor ride quality of SCUTs and in ability to run things like a full size lane shark also ruled those out as a mower/landscaper.

The best we can do/been able to find is a 4500lb bare weight CUT like the Branson or MF. The sacks would only need moved 50-100ft from the fill point and either into the barn, or onto the trailer. We have conceded the point that we may have to leave the bags lighter.

The extra power leaves us open to options like larger mowers or using other implements in the future as we may move one day and need the capabilities.

As to the weight and size on the lawn we had been mowing with a 1975 JD 1120 (5500lbs, I suspect filled tires on top of that weight)with rear AG tires and skinny fronts and rarely marked the lawn. That tractor was also notably longer.

 

[IndyJay]

Also for those that are curious, here are the features that made me choose The MF 2850M over the Branson 20 series CH.

In no particular order:
- Air ride seat
- Easier ingress/egress of the cab
- Seat that adjusts further forward
- speedometer
- adjustable transmission(response and speed limiting, both via knobs)
- Easier to operate cruise control (push to engage instead of push and hold)
- removable clean out screens on radiator and condenser
- more advertised breakout force on the loader
- wheels accept iron wheel weights

I drove the 1840M and 2850M when I was shopping, both great machines. The $10k price difference between the 2850M and the DK4510 nudged me toward the Kioti. It was a hard decision though.

 

[espacef1fan]

I drove the 1840M and 2850M when I was shopping, both great machines. The $10k price difference between the 2850M and the DK4510 nudged me toward the Kioti. It was a hard decision though.

I’ll admit the price tag on a comparable Kioti or Branson makes a compelling case(Branson especially as I have a two dealers close by)
They are both amazing tractors for the money.