Went to tractor supply today and was told that king Kutter was going bankrupt?

[Baranx4]

I was looking for a king kutter middle buster and all they had was farm force. When I asked if they had a king kutter middle buster or could get one they said they weren't going to carry the brand anymore as they were filiing for bankruptsy, I assume in certain items only. It seemed fishy to me as a way to get you to buy their brand. I searched online and couldn't find anything on them filing. Has anyone else heard this also?

So I didn't buy the farm force.

 

[joes_427_vette]

Ten or so years ago I bought a 6' King Kutter back blade to use behind a D-15 Allis. I used it for plowing snow in the drive way. One day it hooked a piece of ice and slid the tractor over. At the same time it twisted the pipe turning mechanism like a pretzel. I would never consider buying another Kutter attachment as it is money thrown in the wind. I understand being competitive in the market but the thin piece of pipe used as the main support wouldn't meet the expectations of an unlicensed, unemployed engineer. Special high strength steel alloy... maybe.
From this point on I purchase name brand ( what I consider products with a reputation for quality ) attachments that cost more but will be serviceable for many years. Just my 2 cents.

 

[JoeinTX]

From what I've read it seems that TSC (or at least some stores/regions) have been trying to phase out the KK line in favor of cheaper alternatives like Farm Force for some time now. But they seem to have a hard time doing this, at least in part, due to the KK tiller being a popular item that they can't completely replace with another OEM.


I still see scads of yellow KK implements out front of all of the local TSCs and no matter how long I've been hearing about this TSC/KK fallling-out I've yet to see any other brand in serious numbers on the TSC lots around here.

 

[wedge40]

You can go online and check the warranty info for KK. Then ask what the warranty is for TSC's replacement? I'm guessing TSC was trying to get you to purchase "their" brand. If you're lucky enough to have other farm supply stores in the area, I'd make a trip over there. I'm lucky, I have three different stores to choose from. All within 30 or 40 miles of home.
Wedge

 

[mrutkaus]

I just checked google and there is no news under "king kutter bankrupt"

When I visited TSC a couple weeks ago almost the opposite happened, I asked about the Dark Horse box blade and the guy said it might last for "one road" and then said that the KK blades were backed by a good company.

Mike

 

[SnowRidge]

I'm not sure where KK implements are made, but I think TSC is trying to source heavy stuff as locally as possible, perhaps on a regional basis. I purchased an auger about a year ago. According to the TSC catalog, their augers were made by Speeco, a Colorado company. However, all the augers in stock at my local TSC were made or imported by some small outfit in Alabama.

I assume they are trying to keep freight charges down.

 

[LBrown59]

I have three different stores to choose from. All within 30 or 40 miles of home.
Wedge

Do they offer KK products?

 

[allen in texas]

All of the Gebo's around here carry KK. Haven't heard anything about bankruptcy on KK

 

[Baranx4]

Do they offer KK products?

They had a KK tiller there, everything else was farm force.

 

[john_bud]

Isn't farm force made in China?

jb