To20Chris
Platinum Member
I thought I would post some of what I found when comparing the Kubota B7510 & B7610 to the Kiotis. I almost bought a B7610, and it is a very nice CUT, but it was not the right unit for my uses. It would appear they are designed primarily for mowing.
1. The Kubota B's are much lighter than any of the Kiotis. This is mostly because they have a ladder frame. The light weight makes them easy to transport, and gives them low ground impact.
2. The ladder frame allows some of the components (like the mid PTO) to be moved up higher, and gives good ground clearence.
3. They use a 3ph mounted backhoe, but I suppose that does allow more ground clearence with the hoe on, and keep the weight down.
4. They have fairly powerful motors for driving mowers.
HOWEVER - I don't plan to do much mowing with mine (bushog on occasion), and won't be transporting it. I'm got a FEL & BH, which is what it will be doing most of the time, so the light weight is mostly a disadvantage. So I started looking at other brands. I looked at many on paper, and checked out the Iseki (MF1428V) in person which I didn't like, and it would have been $2k more than a B7610 (I don't think that dealer had a very sharp pencil).
I will admit that I did not consider buying a tractor from a Chinese, Indian, or Eastern European company, because it's still a lot of money, and I am not confident in their industrial mfg capability, service, or their ability to survive in the market long term. I am confident in Korean heavy industry, so the Kioti (Daedong) was very interesting. I found the CK20HST to be mostly superior to a Kubota B7510/7610:
1. The CK20HST is about 600lbs heavier, due to traditional gear-case construction. Also, it looks & feels well built. The fenders on a B7610 are obviously thin guage and bend easily.
2. The CK20HST was about $700 cheaper than the B7510, but had more features. The B7610 is $1k more. In general, Kubota leaves things off the lower model units that you would really want, in an atempt to move you ever up the price ladder. the Kiotis is well equipped. The B7510/7610 have "quarter-inch" lift control - you set a relative height, not an absolute height. This might be nice when mounting an implement, but would be a pain other times. The CK20 has the normal height setting found on the better Kubotas. The B7510/7610 don't get the "double frame" found on the B7800. The Kiotis are stronger than either, and the materials and build quality is every bit the equal of the Kubota.
3. The B7610 does have bigger tires than a CK20, but then it costs more too.
In the end, I got an LK3054 with a Rhino 2408 FEL and 65A BH for $350 more than a B7610, and it is simply a whole lot more tractor. And when it comes to re-sale, I'm betting that a bigger, more powerful Kioti would still be worth at least as much as a Kubota B7610 - but then I don't plan on selling it!
1. The Kubota B's are much lighter than any of the Kiotis. This is mostly because they have a ladder frame. The light weight makes them easy to transport, and gives them low ground impact.
2. The ladder frame allows some of the components (like the mid PTO) to be moved up higher, and gives good ground clearence.
3. They use a 3ph mounted backhoe, but I suppose that does allow more ground clearence with the hoe on, and keep the weight down.
4. They have fairly powerful motors for driving mowers.
HOWEVER - I don't plan to do much mowing with mine (bushog on occasion), and won't be transporting it. I'm got a FEL & BH, which is what it will be doing most of the time, so the light weight is mostly a disadvantage. So I started looking at other brands. I looked at many on paper, and checked out the Iseki (MF1428V) in person which I didn't like, and it would have been $2k more than a B7610 (I don't think that dealer had a very sharp pencil).
I will admit that I did not consider buying a tractor from a Chinese, Indian, or Eastern European company, because it's still a lot of money, and I am not confident in their industrial mfg capability, service, or their ability to survive in the market long term. I am confident in Korean heavy industry, so the Kioti (Daedong) was very interesting. I found the CK20HST to be mostly superior to a Kubota B7510/7610:
1. The CK20HST is about 600lbs heavier, due to traditional gear-case construction. Also, it looks & feels well built. The fenders on a B7610 are obviously thin guage and bend easily.
2. The CK20HST was about $700 cheaper than the B7510, but had more features. The B7610 is $1k more. In general, Kubota leaves things off the lower model units that you would really want, in an atempt to move you ever up the price ladder. the Kiotis is well equipped. The B7510/7610 have "quarter-inch" lift control - you set a relative height, not an absolute height. This might be nice when mounting an implement, but would be a pain other times. The CK20 has the normal height setting found on the better Kubotas. The B7510/7610 don't get the "double frame" found on the B7800. The Kiotis are stronger than either, and the materials and build quality is every bit the equal of the Kubota.
3. The B7610 does have bigger tires than a CK20, but then it costs more too.
In the end, I got an LK3054 with a Rhino 2408 FEL and 65A BH for $350 more than a B7610, and it is simply a whole lot more tractor. And when it comes to re-sale, I'm betting that a bigger, more powerful Kioti would still be worth at least as much as a Kubota B7610 - but then I don't plan on selling it!