Comparison Kubota vs Branson?

[ericm979]

Are there any reps from any tractor manufacturers on these forums? I've not seen any. I haven't seen any manufacturer reps on motorcycle or car forums either. They might read but don't post. There's a lot of reasons why doing so is a bad idea from a manufacturer's standpoint, as much as we'd like to see it.

 

[sedalia]

Yes, I see lots of participation on forums from smaller companies. Larger, mature, organizations use many channels for feedback, including dealer/service channels, Internet/web analytics, etc, and definitely social media monitoring and participation. Smaller companies don't necessarily have the base or volume for Twitter, et al, so use focused channels, if they care. Kukje doesn't even have a meaningful (English) website for support, feedback, parts, or anything else that could even give them a modicum of feedback other than clicks and visits.

Dave (DavesTractor - go Dave!) is a excellent exception to my claim, except I doubt he has enough clout with Kukje. Korean manufacturing culture seems inflexible or capricious to external forces. Of course that also might be true of classic US manufacturing.

 

[b1badas]

Branson 5220ch owner. Neither Kukje nor any dealer within 1000 miles of me (including Texas) provides the support you will get from your local Kubota dealer. My theory is that US dealers will/can not work with Kukje in a meaningful way and vice-versa. There may be a few individuals who are trying but neither the good ol' boy tractor dealers (I mean that in a very affectionate way) are not effective in east Asian diplomacy, nor are North American Branson.

I don't equate Branson to early Hyundai imports because the latter were really bad vehicles. Yet a clear and easy path to success has been laid and yet Kukje and the major American dealers refuse to see it. I have communicated with them and they are defensive and blind.

To support my claim, don't you think that if Kukje cared about customers they would monitor and participate in these forums?

Sedalia, I am about to buy the same tractor you have (Branson 5220ch). Please let me know if I am making a mistake. Are you happy with yours? Have you had any problems? How long have you had yours? Thank you in advance for your time.

 

[rngrrymd]

Sedalia, I am about to buy the same tractor you have (Branson 5220ch). Please let me know if I am making a mistake. Are you happy with yours? Have you had any problems? How long have you had yours? Thank you in advance for your time.

b1badas, that poster hasn't been on since they joined back in January 2, 2018 so unfortunately you probably won't get an answer from them. Maybe someone else could chime in or you could post a question in the Branson forum as well. hth.

 

[Miniard40]

Hi, I'm new the forum, though I've been lurking for the past year. I'm planning to buy a new tractor over the winter. I run a market farm (veg and small fruit), currently at 2.5 acres in production, but planning to scale up to 5. We own 50 acres, including 15 acres of meadow and 26 acres of steep forest land and old logging roads. We're mostly planning to use the tractor for tilling, deeper soil work (chisel plow? Spader? still deciding), mowing, and loader work, but may want to use it for some minor forestry (log hauling?) in the future.

I'm still in the exploratory phase, but am looking at something in the 35 to 45 HP range with 4WD. I'm most familiar with the Kubotas in that size range (looking at L3901), but I'm exploring all brands with a decent dealer nearby. I'm particularly interested in the Branson, since they seem to be a better deal on a similar HP and weight of tractor (3520 or 4020). Or I could get a bigger, heavier tractor for the same price (4720). Most Kubota vs Branson comparisons I've seen were older threads, and largely said that Branson as a brand was still unproven. Anybody have an updated opinion?

Resale value isn't an issue for me but reliability is: I'm hoping to keep this for a long time.

My personal suggestion is a Branson. I have owned a few different models and was recently in the market for a New tractor! I went to my local Kubota dealer and looked at to 6070 Kubota! The price was ridiculous and I had no luck talking them down a few thousand !! I had bought from this dealer a couple times and my deals are cash. I will say I do like Kubota tractors but unfortunately they are extremely light my last tractor was a Mahindra and to be honest it would have taken at least a 70 hp Kubota or JD to compete with the 40hp Mahindra. I looked at weight of Kubota and JD and 70 hp tractor was still significantly lighter that the Mahindra of a smaller size. I was turn on to Branson from a friend so I took a look and after comparison Branson was a much better deal and built to preform. I bought the 5520c. To give you a comparison shortly after I bought my Branson I had a friend remove a barn from his property. Under a feed room was a 9x11x6-in thick concrete slab. He tried to move the slab as a whole to put it over a drainage ditch as a bridge. His 70 horse John Deere would not budge the slab. I told him I felt as I could lift it enough to at least get it on poles to roll it. I brought over my Branson and was successful at raising the slab 18 in high for them to slide poles under. Slab weight was roughly 4 tons . Now I picked one end up NOT the whole slab but was impressive considering the much larger tractor couldn't even budge it

 

[Torvy]

My personal suggestion is a Branson. I have owned a few different models and was recently in the market for a New tractor! I went to my local Kubota dealer and looked at to 6070 Kubota! The price was ridiculous and I had no luck talking them down a few thousand !! I had bought from this dealer a couple times and my deals are cash. I will say I do like Kubota tractors but unfortunately they are extremely light my last tractor was a Mahindra and to be honest it would have taken at least a 70 hp Kubota or JD to compete with the 40hp Mahindra. I looked at weight of Kubota and JD and 70 hp tractor was still significantly lighter that the Mahindra of a smaller size. I was turn on to Branson from a friend so I took a look and after comparison Branson was a much better deal and built to preform. I bought the 5520c. To give you a comparison shortly after I bought my Branson I had a friend remove a barn from his property. Under a feed room was a 9x11x6-in thick concrete slab. He tried to move the slab as a whole to put it over a drainage ditch as a bridge. His 70 horse John Deere would not budge the slab. I told him I felt as I could lift it enough to at least get it on poles to roll it. I brought over my Branson and was successful at raising the slab 18 in high for them to slide poles under. Slab weight was roughly 4 tons . Now I picked one end up NOT the whole slab but was impressive considering the much larger tractor couldn't even budge it

The original post was from 2015 and the last one before yours was almost 4 years ago....they don't even make the 4720 anymore.

 

[EddieWalker]

... and to be honest it would have taken at least a 70 hp Kubota or JD to compete with the 40hp Mahindra...

I didn't know this. How odd?