OP
Frank Sorbello
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2011
- Messages
- 361
- Tractor
- Power Trac PT-422
Does anyone know why PT doesn't offer the the Kohler engine has an option anymore?
Would you buy another PT?
- Thread starter Frank Sorbello
- Start date
- Views: 11047
Gravy
Platinum Member
Yes. Money.
Way back in 2004 when I bought mine, I asked that same question. IIRC, the explanation from the PT folks boiled down to Kohler deciding that PT didn't buy enough engines to qualify for quantity discounts, while Subaru Robin beat the Kohler wholesale price by several hundred dollars. The S-R is also a good bit more compact, making it easier and cheaper to design a tractor around.
The Robin engine can be nearly impossible to start when cold, and somebody at the factory needs to tighten the hose clamps on the oil cooler hoses just a bit more...
OTOH, some of the Kohlers have had serious problems with head gaskets and the valve train.
They are all built to a price point, and none of them are perfect. I'm thinking of trying to fit a Honda GX690 in place of my old Robin EH720D when the time comes...unless a workable diesel comes on the market.
Way back in 2004 when I bought mine, I asked that same question. IIRC, the explanation from the PT folks boiled down to Kohler deciding that PT didn't buy enough engines to qualify for quantity discounts, while Subaru Robin beat the Kohler wholesale price by several hundred dollars. The S-R is also a good bit more compact, making it easier and cheaper to design a tractor around.
The Robin engine can be nearly impossible to start when cold, and somebody at the factory needs to tighten the hose clamps on the oil cooler hoses just a bit more...
OTOH, some of the Kohlers have had serious problems with head gaskets and the valve train.
They are all built to a price point, and none of them are perfect. I'm thinking of trying to fit a Honda GX690 in place of my old Robin EH720D when the time comes...unless a workable diesel comes on the market.
coolconnection
Gold Member
Do you think any of those 2 cylinder air cooled diesels they sell from China would be any good? Wonder if it would be a good option when the time comes.
woodlandfarms
Super Member
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2006
- Messages
- 6,137
- Location
- Los Angeles / SW Washington
- Tractor
- PowerTrac 1850, Kubota RTV x900
If money was no object, I would look at an AEBI, Aebi Tractors front rear implement carrier steep slopes land care, an AGT Tractors AGT - Agromehanika d.d., But my favorite (and one we almost bought) was a Carraro http://www.antoniocarraro.it/na
This all said, I love my PT. And these machines above, I mean parts would be impossible, so would repairs, and just to buy one is 80K at least...
This all said, I love my PT. And these machines above, I mean parts would be impossible, so would repairs, and just to buy one is 80K at least...
MossRoad
Super Moderator
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2001
- Messages
- 57,994
- Location
- South Bend, Indiana (near)
- Tractor
- Power Trac PT425 2001 Model Year
Ahh, the dream machine.... if money were no object... :drink:
MossRoad
Super Moderator
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2001
- Messages
- 57,994
- Location
- South Bend, Indiana (near)
- Tractor
- Power Trac PT425 2001 Model Year
Personally, I like my PT425. I knew it would not lift high enough to load a pickup truck from the side, but I rarely take loose material away from my property. I bring it home. Also, a pickup truck was no longer practical for me, as I have a wife and 2 kids with friends. Even a quad cab pickup does not have enough seating capacity. So I bought an 18' car hauler trailer and towed that behind our van conversion, and now behind a Suburban. The car hauler trailer can carry the PT425 and ALL of my attachments if needed. I can load the trailer with loose material from the side with the PT425 if needed. I can unload the trailer with the FEL or forks by just driving right up on it. And the trailer can carry more than a pickup could anyway.
I really think the PT425 is the sweet spot for home use and small estate use. Couple that with a Suburban and a car hauler trailer and you can do just about anything. It was easy to volunteer the PT's services to our church/school and little league. I can take it to friends houses for an afternoon of fun (and beverages). I can take it to our rural property to do chores or gather firewood. It's just about the perfect machine for me.
Could there be improvements from the factory? Sure. But I can customize it myself as time and budget allows and tailor it to my needs, which may not be the same needs as the masses. I still cannot find another machine that can do so much for so little. It just plain runs circles around a conventional tractor of the same size doing the tasks I need to do. If I needed to pull, that's the only thing a conventional tractor of the same size would out-perform in. And most home owners/small estate owners do not plow dirt that couldn't be done with a tiller.
Just this weekend I pulled about 30-40 firewood trees out of the woods over to our landing with the PT425. They varied in diameter from 6" to 18". Some of the smaller ones were 60' long. The larger ones had to get cut into manageable lengths. But I just popped on the forks, chain up the tree to the forks, drag it out to the landing, pop off the chain and wrap it around the forks, use the forks to stack the logs and back to the woods again. Haul after haul, 8mph in both directions. In a couple hours I was done. Just like that. You can't drive a conventional tractor over that kind of terrain at those speeds in both directions. It just can't be done.
Pound for pound, the PT425 is pretty formidable. Yeah. Formidable
for·mi·da·ble
/ˈfôrmədəbəl,fôrˈmidəbəl,fərˈmid-/
adjective
adjective: formidable
1. inspiring fear or respect through being impressively large, powerful, intense, or capable.
I really think the PT425 is the sweet spot for home use and small estate use. Couple that with a Suburban and a car hauler trailer and you can do just about anything. It was easy to volunteer the PT's services to our church/school and little league. I can take it to friends houses for an afternoon of fun (and beverages). I can take it to our rural property to do chores or gather firewood. It's just about the perfect machine for me.
Could there be improvements from the factory? Sure. But I can customize it myself as time and budget allows and tailor it to my needs, which may not be the same needs as the masses. I still cannot find another machine that can do so much for so little. It just plain runs circles around a conventional tractor of the same size doing the tasks I need to do. If I needed to pull, that's the only thing a conventional tractor of the same size would out-perform in. And most home owners/small estate owners do not plow dirt that couldn't be done with a tiller.
Just this weekend I pulled about 30-40 firewood trees out of the woods over to our landing with the PT425. They varied in diameter from 6" to 18". Some of the smaller ones were 60' long. The larger ones had to get cut into manageable lengths. But I just popped on the forks, chain up the tree to the forks, drag it out to the landing, pop off the chain and wrap it around the forks, use the forks to stack the logs and back to the woods again. Haul after haul, 8mph in both directions. In a couple hours I was done. Just like that. You can't drive a conventional tractor over that kind of terrain at those speeds in both directions. It just can't be done.
Pound for pound, the PT425 is pretty formidable. Yeah. Formidable
for·mi·da·ble
/ˈfôrmədəbəl,fôrˈmidəbəl,fərˈmid-/
adjective
adjective: formidable
1. inspiring fear or respect through being impressively large, powerful, intense, or capable.
cqaigy2
Super Member
Ditto:laughing:
BAGTIC
Silver Member
Probably won't buy another because I haven't worn this one out yet and at my age it looks like I probably won't.
My 425 is about six years old and has about 2600 hours on it. Is it perfect? No. It is very useful. I have had two wheel motors rebuilt (seals). I have had my share of flats on my turf tires but considering where I take it I doubt any other machine would have fared better. I have twice had problems with the electric solenoid not cutting off the gas supply and ending up with a crankcase full of fuel. I have replaced the ignition switch twice, probably should have kept it under cover. During recent record could spell there were a couple of minus zero degrees when I could not get it to start. Not because it wouldn't turn over but because the choke cable had frozen and would not move. When it thawed it started right off.
Hove both. Had teeth bar added to small one. The loader is good for scooping and loading but not for excavating. The tractor simply does not have enough weight to break packed earth. I resort to using the 'potato digger' to first rip the soil and the bucket to scoop it. I have 14" and 30" augers. They have been very useful for me on the farm. I wore out the cutting edges on the 14" one because of our rocky flinty soil. May get another smaller auger for planting nut (walnut, pecan) trees with their long taproots. The 14" make too big a hole hard to backfilled and water in. I have 48 inch finish mower. Wish I had gotten the 60 inch as those few extra inches would make it a lot easier to mow right up to foundations, walls, fences. 48 inch rotor tiller works about like most similar rototillers but better if hydraulic flow is reverse so tines turn upwards. I have always wondered if it would have been better to have gotten a powered landscape rake as it may have pounded less and been less prone to balling up with weeds. The rake is the most useless implement I have. Too few tines to rake leaves and grass and too weak for twigs, rocks, etc. I have added broadcast seeder, 55 gallon sprayer. trailer hitch, hydraulic boom chain saw. Trailer hitch is great for pushing a 16 ft flatbed trailer around the farm. Pushing lets me go places I could have never gone towing and I don't even need to hook it up. Slip ball under trailer coupling and tongue weight holds it until I drop it. Carries firewood, fertilizer, generator, tools, fencing, lumber, rocks, etc. right up front in plain sight. Front mounted hitch is GREAT. Handy parking boat trailer and hooking up Brush hog to farm tractor. All in all a very useful tractor.
The cramped engine compartment is a P.I.T.A. I don't weld but I finally found some one who said he could install a detachable floor plate in the engine box for clean out & maintenance and stifle the loud muffler. These are my two biggest complaints. Also wish wheels attached with studs instead of those damned little bolts. I am getting too old to squat on the cold icy ground when changing a flat.
If I were designing a version of my own it would be similar but it would use a bigger engine (38-40 hp w/ fuel injection?). Derated to 2400 rpm it would provide more net power at lower rpm with no more fuel consumption and longer engine life. An extra 100-150 pounds in the back would also help lifting. I can't quitter lift even the small round hay bales with mine and had to get an old farm tractor just for that and field mowing.
My 425 is about six years old and has about 2600 hours on it. Is it perfect? No. It is very useful. I have had two wheel motors rebuilt (seals). I have had my share of flats on my turf tires but considering where I take it I doubt any other machine would have fared better. I have twice had problems with the electric solenoid not cutting off the gas supply and ending up with a crankcase full of fuel. I have replaced the ignition switch twice, probably should have kept it under cover. During recent record could spell there were a couple of minus zero degrees when I could not get it to start. Not because it wouldn't turn over but because the choke cable had frozen and would not move. When it thawed it started right off.
Hove both. Had teeth bar added to small one. The loader is good for scooping and loading but not for excavating. The tractor simply does not have enough weight to break packed earth. I resort to using the 'potato digger' to first rip the soil and the bucket to scoop it. I have 14" and 30" augers. They have been very useful for me on the farm. I wore out the cutting edges on the 14" one because of our rocky flinty soil. May get another smaller auger for planting nut (walnut, pecan) trees with their long taproots. The 14" make too big a hole hard to backfilled and water in. I have 48 inch finish mower. Wish I had gotten the 60 inch as those few extra inches would make it a lot easier to mow right up to foundations, walls, fences. 48 inch rotor tiller works about like most similar rototillers but better if hydraulic flow is reverse so tines turn upwards. I have always wondered if it would have been better to have gotten a powered landscape rake as it may have pounded less and been less prone to balling up with weeds. The rake is the most useless implement I have. Too few tines to rake leaves and grass and too weak for twigs, rocks, etc. I have added broadcast seeder, 55 gallon sprayer. trailer hitch, hydraulic boom chain saw. Trailer hitch is great for pushing a 16 ft flatbed trailer around the farm. Pushing lets me go places I could have never gone towing and I don't even need to hook it up. Slip ball under trailer coupling and tongue weight holds it until I drop it. Carries firewood, fertilizer, generator, tools, fencing, lumber, rocks, etc. right up front in plain sight. Front mounted hitch is GREAT. Handy parking boat trailer and hooking up Brush hog to farm tractor. All in all a very useful tractor.
The cramped engine compartment is a P.I.T.A. I don't weld but I finally found some one who said he could install a detachable floor plate in the engine box for clean out & maintenance and stifle the loud muffler. These are my two biggest complaints. Also wish wheels attached with studs instead of those damned little bolts. I am getting too old to squat on the cold icy ground when changing a flat.
If I were designing a version of my own it would be similar but it would use a bigger engine (38-40 hp w/ fuel injection?). Derated to 2400 rpm it would provide more net power at lower rpm with no more fuel consumption and longer engine life. An extra 100-150 pounds in the back would also help lifting. I can't quitter lift even the small round hay bales with mine and had to get an old farm tractor just for that and field mowing.
ovrszd
Epic Contributor
- Joined
- May 27, 2006
- Messages
- 32,246
- Location
- Missouri
- Tractor
- Kubota M9540, Ford 3910FWD, Ford 555A, JD2210
Personally, I like my PT425. I knew it would not lift high enough to load a pickup truck from the side, but I rarely take loose material away from my property. I bring it home. Also, a pickup truck was no longer practical for me, as I have a wife and 2 kids with friends. Even a quad cab pickup does not have enough seating capacity. So I bought an 18' car hauler trailer and towed that behind our van conversion, and now behind a Suburban. The car hauler trailer can carry the PT425 and ALL of my attachments if needed. I can load the trailer with loose material from the side with the PT425 if needed. I can unload the trailer with the FEL or forks by just driving right up on it. And the trailer can carry more than a pickup could anyway.
I really think the PT425 is the sweet spot for home use and small estate use. Couple that with a Suburban and a car hauler trailer and you can do just about anything. It was easy to volunteer the PT's services to our church/school and little league. I can take it to friends houses for an afternoon of fun (and beverages). I can take it to our rural property to do chores or gather firewood. It's just about the perfect machine for me.
Could there be improvements from the factory? Sure. But I can customize it myself as time and budget allows and tailor it to my needs, which may not be the same needs as the masses. I still cannot find another machine that can do so much for so little. It just plain runs circles around a conventional tractor of the same size doing the tasks I need to do. If I needed to pull, that's the only thing a conventional tractor of the same size would out-perform in. And most home owners/small estate owners do not plow dirt that couldn't be done with a tiller.
Just this weekend I pulled about 30-40 firewood trees out of the woods over to our landing with the PT425. They varied in diameter from 6" to 18". Some of the smaller ones were 60' long. The larger ones had to get cut into manageable lengths. But I just popped on the forks, chain up the tree to the forks, drag it out to the landing, pop off the chain and wrap it around the forks, use the forks to stack the logs and back to the woods again. Haul after haul, 8mph in both directions. In a couple hours I was done. Just like that. You can't drive a conventional tractor over that kind of terrain at those speeds in both directions. It just can't be done.
Pound for pound, the PT425 is pretty formidable. Yeah. Formidable
for·mi·da·ble
/ˈfôrmədəbəl,fôrˈmidəbəl,fərˈmid-/
adjective
adjective: formidable
1. inspiring fear or respect through being impressively large, powerful, intense, or capable.
After a chest thumping proclaimation like this post I had no choice but click on the little tractor for video proof. Yep handy "little" implement. Nimble. Practical for light work. Variable in it's abilities. Formidable,,,, nope. Does just what it's designed to do with no fear or respect through being impressively large, powerful, intense, or capable.
MossRoad
Super Moderator
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2001
- Messages
- 57,994
- Location
- South Bend, Indiana (near)
- Tractor
- Power Trac PT425 2001 Model Year
After a chest thumping proclaimation like this post I had no choice but click on the little tractor for video proof. Yep handy "little" implement. Nimble. Practical for light work. Variable in it's abilities. Formidable,,,, nope. Does just what it's designed to do with no fear or respect through being impressively large, powerful, intense, or capable.
Sounds like someone has Corvette syndrome.