Buying Advice used 790 or 3203 as first tractor

[logan97]

Hi all, firstly I'm a newbie to this forum and to tractor ownership. A little background on myself might help. We just bought a new house on about 7 acres of land mixed about 1/2 and 1/2 with timber and lawn. We also have a fairly long driveway, about 1/3 of a mile of gravel. We live in central Illinois so I expect to get enough snow to make snow removal one of the chores for this little tractor. Although I didn't grow up on a farm, I do have a fair bit of experience operating a number of tractors on the farms that I worked on growing up. My wife will be operating the tractor frequently, however, and she has zero experience.

So let's get to my question. I'm trying to decide between a used 790 and a used 3203. For the purposes of this discussion, let's assume that they are evenly priced. The 790 is cheaper but the price of the 3203 includes 2 attachments that I plan on buying in the next year anyway, a boxblade and a finish mower. My plan going into this was to buy the smallest, simplest, most reliable tractor that would meet my needs and I think the 790 fits the bill perfectly. But now I'm wondering if it would be foolish to pass up the "free upgrade" of the slightly larger and more powerful 3203 with it's hydrostatic transmission?

I have read some miscellaneous threads and offhand comments here and there about possible quality issues with the 3203 whereas the 790 seems to be simply bulletproof.

I would strongly suggest you check out (google)the 3203 reviews before you make a decision

 

[Deaner]

Logan97, I appreciate that. In fact it was those reviews on compact tractor review which caused me some concern in the first place. The most important thing for me with selecting a tractor is that it's qaulity is first rate. The 790/3005 seems to have very few shortcomings: the operaters station is a little tight for someone 6'3" and 240 lbs, the fel is a bit underpowered, and there seems to be an issue with the front gears if one overloads it, oh, and the gear transmission. But the word "bulletproof" is also used quite a lot.

The 3203 on the other hand... It seems that people either love it or have nothing but bad things to say about the quality. So I came to this forum hoping to get some more opinions.

It's likely that whatever tractor I get will be the tractor that I end up keeping for many, many years and I don't want to make a poor decision. I've started to considered some of the used 3120s or even the 3320s to get beyond some of the compromises of the 3202, like not having a mid-pto option and the off-seat PTO seat switch (thanks Roy, I'm right there with you on this one) but I just don't know if I can swing the extra $$ right now.

Anyway, thanks everyone for providing your insight and opinions, I really do appreciate it. You'll see me posting sometime in the next few weeks with pics of whatever JD tractor I decide on!

 

[logan97]

Logan97, I appreciate that. In fact it was those reviews on compact tractor review which caused me some concern in the first place. The most important thing for me with selecting a tractor is that it's qaulity is first rate. The 790/3005 seems to have very few shortcomings: the operaters station is a little tight for someone 6'3" and 240 lbs, the fel is a bit underpowered, and there seems to be an issue with the front gears if one overloads it, oh, and the gear transmission. But the word "bulletproof" is also used quite a lot.

The 3203 on the other hand... It seems that people either love it or have nothing but bad things to say about the quality. So I came to this forum hoping to get some more opinions.

It's likely that whatever tractor I get will be the tractor that I end up keeping for many, many years and I don't want to make a poor decision. I've started to considered some of the used 3120s or even the 3320s to get beyond some of the compromises of the 3202, like not having a mid-pto option and the off-seat PTO seat switch (thanks Roy, I'm right there with you on this one) but I just don't know if I can swing the extra $$ right now.

Anyway, thanks everyone for providing your insight and opinions, I really do appreciate it. You'll see me posting sometime in the next few weeks with pics of whatever JD tractor I decide on!

Don't know if you are hung up with brand preference ? dealer location is important ? what part of the country are you ? I ended up with a Kubota B7800 which IMHO is way more tractor than the 3202. Out of all the reviews I read there was one negative. Barlow's in KY has some really good deals right now before the end of the year. B3200 which is the upgrade to the 78. B3300 SU ,L3400, L3700. What ever you decide I would strongly suggest finding and test driving before you purchase.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

Don't know if you are hung up with brand preference ? dealer location is important ? what part of the country are you ? I ended up with a Kubota B7800 which IMHO is way more tractor than the 3202. Out of all the reviews I read there was one negative. Barlow's in KY has some really good deals right now before the end of the year. B3200 which is the upgrade to the 78. B3300 SU ,L3400, L3700. What ever you decide I would strongly suggest finding and test driving before you purchase.

Sorry, but I am calling you out.

Go to TractorData.com and compare the specs and you will indeed find that...the 3203 is waay more tractor than the B7800.

For starters the 3203 weighs a thousand pounds more than the B7800.

Can't compare the 2.

 

[logan97]

100% correct JDGG I am glad I said IMHO After all the reviews I read. If I had it all to do over again I would still make the same decision. I based that statement on more than specs.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

100% correct JDGG I am glad I said IMHO After all the reviews I read. If I had it all to do over again I would still make the same decision. I based that statement on more than specs.

Understand.

The b7800 looks to be a nice tractor. Glad you like yours.:thumbsup:

 

[jd4310man]

I would recommend the 3203 over the 790. I have owned a 3203 over 3 yrs now and am very pleased to say the least. I have put about 220hrs on this machine with no mechanical issues what so ever. Those people that are bashing this model probably never owned one to begin with. This tractor does what I need it to do and has not let me down!
I have the 300cx loader and it handles it fine. I also have a woods bx70 backhoe with a subframe mount. If you can wait I would get the 3203. If you need this model equiped for a certain application its very likely that it can be done. Good luck on your choice.

 

[Deaner]

Thanks JD4310. Looks like the decision is made. Going to try and go pick up the 3203 late this week. My wife and I sat down and were comparing the tractors, their pros/cons, pricing differences, and potential uses and decided that the 3203 is the better choice for us right now. Particularly when the price is basically the same as the 790/3005s that we're comparing it with.

The 3x20 tractor would be even better but we aren't convinced that it's worth the extra 3-4 thousand dollars price difference that we're seeing in the used market.

Again, thanks everyone for your feedback and suggestions.

 

[Sweats62]

First off, happy new year. Second, I bought a 3203 four years and two days ago and have 615 hours on it. We own 20 acres in West Central MO. I have used a 60" rotary cutter EXTENSIVELY, a 72" finish mower nearly as much, a 300X loader, a 60" rear blade, a borrowed auger, and a 60" tiller. My wife and three of my daughters have used this tractor extensively with minimal training (they're smart girls but I'm crediting the tractor here). I've tried to take reasonable care of the machine and implements but have asked much in return. This little tractor has been strong, reliable, and has not given me a single problem. Congratulations to you, and I hope your tractor serves you well.

 

[Deaner]

Sweats62, thanks for the well wishes. I DID buy the used 3203, picked it up a few weeks ago. So far I'm happy, but I haven't used it for anything except clearing a couple of decent snows. We have a long gravel driveway and have been using the FEL to clear it.
The very first morning was quite cold (single digits F) and it wouldn't turn over more than once or twice and wouldn't fire. I put a trickly charger on the battery and it started right up after a couple hours of charging. I've read on other posts that the OEM battery is small and not very high quality, so I guess I'll need to replace that. Although it has been starting fine since.
I want to get a snow blade for the FEL but that will have to wait until next Winter as I've pretty much drained my toy budget for the year.

I'm glad that I found this forum, it's a great resource!