New X500 or used X534 or X540?

[WalterK]

I paid lesss than $6800 new for my X534 last fall. Is the MTD all wheel steer?

No doubt I can get more competitive pricing for new units from JD dealers out of my area. I've got no problem with my dealer - nice guys, honest, etc... they just don't have a lot of competititon, so their prices are pretty much JD list, minus any special sales they run. Geez, I think most people around here with any sizeable proprty use lawn services. The way I look at it, if I've got too much property to take care of myself, then I've just got too much property, period. While I was outside working one day recently, I was actually mistaken as being "the gardener" by a parent of one of my daughter's friends )
I suppose I could get good pricing for new units from authorized JD dealers off the internet, bring them to my dealer and see how close they'd come - if they'd come down at all, but I also don't want to insult them. I've been honest with them from the get go as to my options of buying new (X324, X500) from them versus buying "more tractor" (X534, X540) used elsewhere.

 

[LBrown59]

I don't need a front blade and tiller for it and I don't

But wouldn't it have been a whale of A deal if your dealer would have thrown them in free of charge with the JD?

 

[ChuckinNH]

I've been thinking a bit more about the turning radius thing now, and maybe have an update that makes what is happening clearer. On a two wheel steer tractor the distance from the center of the circle you are driving to the pivot point of the tractor (rear axle) will always be the shortest line. The line from that same center line to the center of the front tires will be longer. That means, as I said before that the further towards the front wheels you go (I.E. mower deck) the longer that line will be. (I. E. uncut circle) On a 4 wheel steer tractor the distance from the center of the circle you are driving to both the center of the rear wheels, and the center of the front wheels is the same, so the uncut circle becomes a factor of how far the mower deck protrudes from the side of the tractor. You would see that pretty clearly if they stated both the turning radius of the front tires, and rear tires in their specs. Naturally they will pick the shortest line, though that is not the length of the arc the mower deck travels.

 

[WalterK]

I've been thinking a bit more about the turning radius thing now, and maybe have an update that makes what is happening clearer. On a two wheel steer tractor the distance from the center of the circle you are driving to the pivot point of the tractor (rear axle) will always be the shortest line. The line from that same center line to the center of the front tires will be longer. That means, as I said before that the further towards the front wheels you go (I.E. mower deck) the longer that line will be. (I. E. uncut circle) On a 4 wheel steer tractor the distance from the center of the circle you are driving to both the center of the rear wheels, and the center of the front wheels is the same, so the uncut circle becomes a factor of how far the mower deck protrudes from the side of the tractor. You would see that pretty clearly if they stated both the turning radius of the front tires, and rear tires in their specs. Naturally they will pick the shortest line, though that is not the length of the arc the mower deck travels.

Well, it's certainly better than JD's official technical support description.

 

[Revelation]

It sounds like your budget was for the 300 Series. With the dealer giving $500 off the X500, your getting a better machine that will satisfy you for a very long time. I would get the X500 and not worry about the turning radius of the AWD version.

 

[WalterK]

Well, I'm tracking down a fairly-low hour used X534 at the moment. Not sure if the deal will come together yet - and a new X500 from my local dealer is likely my backup plan if the X534 doesn't work out, since the $500 deal off is through the end of the month. As much as I like some of the features of the X540, I don't really know that I absolutely need the hydraulic deck lift, liquid cooling and power steering - although if I could get one used for the same price as the new X500, I'll probably consider it.

 

[turbo36]

I've been thinking a bit more about the turning radius thing now, and maybe have an update that makes what is happening clearer. On a two wheel steer tractor the distance from the center of the circle you are driving to the pivot point of the tractor (rear axle) will always be the shortest line. The line from that same center line to the center of the front tires will be longer. That means, as I said before that the further towards the front wheels you go (I.E. mower deck) the longer that line will be. (I. E. uncut circle) On a 4 wheel steer tractor the distance from the center of the circle you are driving to both the center of the rear wheels, and the center of the front wheels is the same, so the uncut circle becomes a factor of how far the mower deck protrudes from the side of the tractor. You would see that pretty clearly if they stated both the turning radius of the front tires, and rear tires in their specs. Naturally they will pick the shortest line, though that is not the length of the arc the mower deck travels.

I don't understand the Deere spec's, I can turn my 455 AWS around in one stall of the pole barn when I had a non-AWS 425 I had to back up and make two turns.

I also have a X749AWS and the turning ability is similar. Here is a link that another member posted showing the turning capability. (Thanks,Skidoo)
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...183-x-series-comparisons-hel_6995-medium-.jpg

 

[ChuckinNH]

The tractor itself on an AWS turns in a smaller circle than the 2 wheel steer it is the back tire that they measure from that turns in a larger arc because it describes, or follows the outside of the circle instead being the pivot point like on a 2 wheel steer. If you were to condense that to thinking about what a ZTR does it might be clearer. Some folks have said that an AWS X700 series will leave a smaller uncut circle with a large mower deck than a ZTR if you keep the inner rear wheel turning on both, and they are probably right.

 

[WalterK]

Well, guys, I did it -
After what can only be described as a torturous couple of weeks, I (finally) pulled the trigger for a deal on an 2007 X534 with 50 hours.
I've got to offer my profuse thanks to forum member bjess8, who was kind enough to pass along info I requested on the dealer name and location, after he decided that he wasn't in a position to purchase it himself. The tractor was a trade-in from the original owner who decided to upgrade to a larger tractor.
I managed to get the dealer (who's actually a Kubota dealership) to agree to ship the tractor to NJ. The price? I managed to get the dealer to agree to a total cost of $4,000, including delivery. I could hardly get a new mid-level X300 series tractor for that price after sales tax, if I bought locally - and I seriously doubt that it would have lasted very long on JD's Machine Finder website.
The only downside is that the 2007 models only had 2-year warranties, versus the current 4-year / 500 hour warranty - so time will tell how much of a bargain this was. That said, I'm thrilled to have gotten this deal.
I'll post back once the tractor's arrived with a couple of pics and reports on its performance..

 

[daBear]

Congratulations, you got a steal. You must have had LB talk to the dealer for you.