Comparison BX vs GC vs LS J-series SCUTs

[Poopdeck Pappy]

I think the J2023h is more tractor than either of the other two you mentioned. And I like Kubota BX's - I own two of them. But the LS J2023h is closer to the size of the Kubota B series, and I think you can buy the J2023h much cheaper than you can buy the Kubota or Massey.

For general tractor work, I'd go for the LS. But for lawn mowing, I'd go for the BX or, even better, for a zero turn as TSO suggested.

 

[Fiziksgeek]

I've ben mowing my 1.5 residential acres for the past couple years with my GC2400 and 60" mmm. It leaves a great cut. They just came out with a drive over deck, which will make it a bit easier to take on/off when doing other work. If you go with a Massey, look for a machine with the DL95 loader. They recently changed, I have the old loader mode, the DL100. The new one lifts ~30% more, and should be best in class for a machine of its size.

For a not significantly more money, you many want to consider going to a slightly lager machine. I think the new Kubota B series leads the pack here. I've been drooling over the new B2650, but the B01's are pretty nice too. They are only slightly heavier, 2-300 lbs than my GC2400. Larger frame and a little bigger displacement engine will likely handle the field mowing better. The B01 series still have a hanging mmm design, but the B50 have a floating deck design, which theoretically will follow contours better.

 

[Olympus]

I compared the same exact models in my search last year. I found no contest between the LS and the other two. Side by side, the LS is a much larger, heavier, and more capable machine. The BX and Massey are SCUT size and the LS is CUT size. I use my LS on 6 acres and I couldn't imagine going with a smaller unit. For 9 acres, there's no way I'd opt for a SCUT size of ANY brand.

Then came the price factor. Both Kubota and Massey were about $2000+ more than the LS. Why spend more for a smaller tractor with lower specs? Didn't make sense to me. Next came the warranty. LS has 3 year bumper to bumper and 5 year power train. Neither Kubota or Massey could come close to that. So you have a bigger, more capable machine for less money and a better warranty with quality just as good as the other two? No brainer to me. I bought the LS.

Now the 2023 model has been discontinued for 2015. What is currently available are all that are left. 2015 brought about the Tier 4 regulations and the new XJ2025 which is the same tractor with a Tier 4 engine. It will be more expensive. If you can find a new 2023 still, you better jump on it. I paid $12,200 for mine new last year.

Now about your mowing. I would highly recommend a zero turn dedicated mower for that much mowing. I mow 3 acres and I tried the tractor route and that was for the birds. Too slow. The zero turn will be more than twice as fast and give a much better cut quality than a tractor with MMM. It just depends on how valuable your time is. If you're retired and like to piddle and take your time, the MMM is a decent option.

 

[TSO]

I don't know that it will necessarily give a better cut... cut quality is all about deck design, blade sharpness, and blade tip speed. But you are correct that it will take roughly half the time with a zero turn. And really, it wouldn't cost all that much more, since a MMM isn't terribly cheap once all the components are added up. There is no way I would mow my property with a tractor. But, I understand sometimes people want to save money, or have just one machine to maintain, or don't have the room for additional machines ... and go with an all in one unit for those reasons

So again, the LS is heavier and therefore would be an all around better tractor for tractor work, but, if mowing is more of a main concern, and you don't want to get a zero turn, then I would opt for the lighter machine.

Also, Massey upped their warranty to 5 years with the tier 4 switch.

 

[Olympus]

I mean cut quality compared to a commercial grade zero turn...which I would recommend for that much mowing. I've never seen MMM that can cut and stripe nearly as well as a commercial grade zero turn. It will absolutely get the job done though.

Another thing to consider is whether the SCUTs have a full Cat 1 3pt or a limited Cat 1 3pt. The LS will be able to handle larger implements than either the BX or Massey.

 

[paulfun9]

My neighbor had a BX for a long time and I had a similar HP JD but in a bigger frame. Having run both tractors for all tasks from snow removal to ground engaging attachments right down to mowing the lawn I would honestly say I would have to choose the larger of the machines. In this case the LS would be the hands down winner.

For me its not the mowing abilities that would steer my decision but all the other tasks that a tractor is going to be used for. Mowing my yard is actually the easiest thing my tractors will ever do and the cut from any of the machines you have listed will be more than satisfactory. In my case I wont even use the MMM anymore after switching to a rear discharge 3 point finish mower, I wont go back to a MMM as long as I have a big yard to mow. The cut is faster and just as good with no windrows at all so it makes for less overall work.

I think about other uses like snow removal, driveway maint, or in general 3 point attachments and the work that I need to do with the loader and for all of them the LS would be the clear winner.

 

[antlers125]

Any reason not to consider a rear finish mower? With that the j2023 is considered a CUT which means you are getting a much larger - more capable tractor. And like mentioned before a much better price - under $13,000.00

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

Any reason not to consider a rear finish mower? With that the j2023 is considered a CUT which means you are getting a much larger - more capable tractor. And like mentioned before a much better price - under $13,000.00

So many options flying around here. If we're comparing larger machines now, just wanting to point out that you can buy a tractor loader in either a BX-Series or a B-Series under that price as well. Its hard to give all the comparisons when there are a half dozen models flying around in one thread. Kubota quality, 3-speed rear, etc.

 

[BXpanded]

Now about your mowing. I would highly recommend a zero turn dedicated mower for that much mowing. I mow 3 acres and I tried the tractor route and that was for the birds. Too slow. The zero turn will be more than twice as fast and give a much better cut quality than a tractor with MMM. It just depends on how valuable your time is. If you're retired and like to piddle and take your time, the MMM is a decent option.

I seem to be missing something here... To the best of my understanding, mowing speed is limited by the horsepower to cut width relationship (as well as top speed of the machine). It takes X amount of power to cut X amount of grass. How does a zero turn or tractor with rear finish mower cut more than twice as fast as a sub compact tractor like the BX with equivalent sized MMM and comparable horsepower?

I have a property that I cut with my BX with 60" mmm. It is directly beside a property that gets cut by a commercial mowing service with a good sized commercial zero turn. I've made it a point to match up on passes as we were both mowing at the same time. I can mow just as fast as the ZT, even though my property is a little rougher and my grass is better. In this wide open area, I don't see the ZT cutting any faster at all. In my actual yard, the ZT would be maybe 10 minutes quicker with the tight spots, but again, I don't see it as much faster in the open areas. The 60" mmm trims as close to beds and retaining walls as would a ZT. The trees have to be trimmed up with the string trimmer whichever mower is used. I also find the 4WD that I need to engage occasionally, quite handy.

I mow at full throttle, in high range and often at full speed of 8.6 mph where the ground is smooth enough. After watching the ZT operator's head and neck snapping around on the rough spots, I'm certain I'm more comfortable on my fat tired little tractor than he is on the ZT. I know some of the most expensive ZTs will do 15 mph if the grass is thin enough and the surface is smooth enough. I just don't have any large areas that are smooth enough for that to be any significant advantage.

BTW, I use 18 psi in the front tires and 11 psi in the rears. That seems to give a good ride. I raise the front tire pressure to 25 psi for loader work.

 

[paulfun9]

Side discharge limits the speed at which the mower can get rid of the grass your feeding it. Having more than twice the opening across the rear means that you can get more in faster achieving the same cut quality and in some cases better with out ever having to hear the engine bog down like we all do from time to time in the thicker grass or on the occasion we let the grass grow for an extra week or two.

So yes your missing something its called volume! Every mower just like a snow blower is limited not just by its overall size or HP but also by the amount of grass or snow it can discharge at a given speed of induction. Simply put why can you lift a guard on a MMM when it tall grass and it will help it get threw it just a little faster? Or why when in tall grass do many folks cut it twice rather than one single cut ? Both answers are simple based on the volume it can handle the side discharge mower cant make the same speed in the deeper grass because its working past its limits and forcing a slow forward advance and in most cases leaving behind a poor cut while doing so because everything is getting backed up inside.

As for the neighboring machines and their perceived abilities you would need to do a much more comprehensive test than just a half hearted side by run without knowing exactly what the operators intent is. My one neighbor appears to cut rather slow in an area that appears to me from a distance to be better than my side of the field but in reality when I drive over there and see all the holes and ruts it is in fact worse and I couldn't cut any faster than he does with any machine Also lets not forget that even zero turns are not all what the name states to us. In fact there are many poor quality zero turns out there with side discharge and limited abilities as well as there are good ones so we would also have to compare the actual machine to other zero turns and add that into you comparison as well as the operator as we all know some folks just are not qualified to run any machine right on down to the shopping cart at the local store so that will also have to be figured into it.