Suggestions to narrow the hunt - 25hp, 4x4, HST - Branson, Mahindra, Kioti, JD, Ford?

Gittyup · Feb 19, 2015

Olympus said:
Have you demoed a hydro and a shuttle shift? I think you'll regret not going with a hyrdo tranny, no matter what brand you decide.

I spent a lot of time recently pushing snow. Having previously had a geared tractor and now moving to hydro, i can't imagine now being without a hydro or going back to a geared tranny.

HST is better, but a shuttle shift isn't that much worse. It's not quite like a straight manual. And you get more power at the PTO. All loader-type work HST is a must for that fine control. But, straight line tasks, the shuttle is better. At least that's how I feel, owning both types of machines. And backhoe work, tranny matters not. If looking at a tractor that is marginal on power for its weight, the shuttle helps there too. I don't regret getting a shuttle. Serves me well and I kept the $1500 in my pocket.

Poopdeck Pappy · Feb 19, 2015

ChrisintheMojave said:
. . . I have one "likely" candidate but it's 9 hours drive from me...

A 9 hour drive doesn't sound that bad . . . until you're in your driveway about to leave home and the thought occurs to you "Why am I doing this?"

We're all different, so you may not mind it. But I'd rather pay a little more and avoid that drive.

McREBEL · Feb 19, 2015

Poopdeck Pappy said:
A 9 hour drive doesn't sound that bad . . . until you're in your driveway about to leave home and the thought occurs to you "Why am I doing this?"

LOL. That takes me back to the morning I was pulling out of the driveway to get my tractor. And it was only a 4.5 hr drive. That was at about my limit. Had a blowout on the trailer on the way back. I am glad the trailer was a tandem axle. I recommend a tandem axle trailer for the trip if you make it.

Olympus · Feb 19, 2015

Poopdeck Pappy said:
A 9 hour drive doesn't sound that bad . . . until you're in your driveway about to leave home and the thought occurs to you "Why am I doing this?"

We're all different, so you may not mind it. But I'd rather pay a little more and avoid that drive.

I'll have to agree. Good tractors are not hard to find. Patience is key. Keep an eye out for something closer that fits your needs. You'll find something when you least expect it. And the market is quiet now because of the season. Come warmer weather, you'll start seeing more and more new ads for tractors.

DavesTractor · Feb 20, 2015

Olympus said:
I'll have to agree. Good tractors are not hard to find. Patience is key. Keep an eye out for something closer that fits your needs. You'll find something when you least expect it. And the market is quiet now because of the season. Come warmer weather, you'll start seeing more and more new ads for tractors.

Out west it is warm, we had 70 degree days most of January and so far in February here in Northern California. We are certainly in tractor season and good used tractors are far and few between in our area. It is true that with enough patience you will find one, but other patient guys are waiting as well. I wish I could find a couple dozen nice used tractors to sell.

Pierrepont · Feb 20, 2015

Olympus said:
Couple more photos of my LS from today. We got over 12" of snow and I spent the day working on my place, then a couple neighbors places. This was the first time I've used this tractor in the snow and I was very impressed. I could do all the work at about 1/2 throttle.

Cute little bugger!

ChrisintheMojave · Feb 23, 2015

Thanks all,
I'll likely end up HST, still hunting...
The 9 hour drive is possible. It's like the cute girl that's "Geographically undesirable"...I'd like to see her, it's just a long way!

DavesTractor · Feb 23, 2015

Chris, if you end up going with a new Mahindra, just pull the trigger before all the Tier III Mitsu models are gone. They are going pretty quickly. The new replacement for the 3016 is the 1533, and it is sweet, but nearly $4k more $$ and is a Tier IV. As far as the big drive, if you had a for sure done deal with a private party or a dealer, perhaps you can meet in the middle geographically, that way both the dealer and the customer have a one day "there and back" drive. Or just figure gas is cheap and you need a road trip.

oldpilgrim · Feb 24, 2015

If I go new I think, I'll go 3016. Might have to give up HST to get there...

You will sooner or later wish you'd gone with the HST.

The 3016 is a heckova good machine. I got mine last summer and it has never disappointed me. We've had a tremendous amount of snow and cold and it's been used about every day for about 6 weeks. The 'extra' width over the slightly smaller units makes it much more stable. My brother has a Kioti CK20 which is about the same size as the MAX series Mahindra, and he bought wheel spacers for it as he felt it was too tippy feeling when using the FEL or driving over uneven ground in the woods.

Load the tires...you'll be thankful you did. It feels like a totally different machine.

You'll also appreciate the extra FEL capacity over the Max 28.

I spent about 4 months deciding what to get, like you are now.

I have no regrets at all about my purchase.

Besides all the good stuff about it, it's pretty too !