Buying Advice Kioti DK4510HS vs LS XR4150HST

[marke409]

New member here. Looking to purchase my first tractor. I live on 35 acres of rocky/steep terrain in the Rockies of Colorado. My tractor purchase will be mostly for landscaping, road maintenance, hauling timber, etc. So a lot of loader work and work with box blade/rear grader.

Following are the quotes for the tractors

Kioti DK4510HS = $23,900 for tractor, FEL, 6' Box Blade, engine block heater and rim guard in the rear tires.
LS XR4150HST = $25,600 for the tractor, FEL, 6' Box Blade and rim guard in the rear tires.

From what I've read it seems like these prices are pretty comparable to what others are getting quoted.

My Kioti dealer is less than 10 miles away and the LS dealer is about 45 miles away.

Obviously the LS has the hydrostat transmission which would be good for the FEL work and my hills. The Kioti has the hydraulic shuttle transmission. I feel like it'd be fine for FEL work and the hills, but hard to tell till I actually get it on my land.

Any advice would help. I've driven them both and feel like I'm a little stuck. TIA!

 

[Msamt]

Rumor is that Kioti is releasing a hydrostatic version of the DK in the next month or so, may want to query the dealer on what he knows and if he can get one.

 

[3Lfarms]

For a “lot of loader work” like you said, I think you would be happier with the HST.
Besides the transmission choice, I am curious, which machine did you like more? Which was more comfortable?

 

[marchanna]

I have a Kioti DS4110 with shuttle shift and without synchro-gears (can’t shift on the fly). Once you get used to it, it’s a non-issue, plus you get a little more torque and power to the final drive. Hydrostats are nice, but there is a trade-off.

If you’re doing a lot of landscaping, you may want to consider a backhoe also. We have a lot of rock here, which I’m sure you do too, and the backhoe with thumb has proven indispensable for digging and picking them them up.

 

[Omega Woods]

Did you consider a Branson?

+1 on the backhoe.

 

[marchanna]

Ignore this post.

 

[marke409]

Rumor is that Kioti is releasing a hydrostatic version of the DK in the next month or so, may want to query the dealer on what he knows and if he can get one.

I've read about this on some of these threads. I'll ask my dealer and look into it. I'd like to see how it specs out as far as hp differences and price, but as of now I don't see anything on the Kioti website about it.

 

[marke409]

For a “lot of loader work” like you said, I think you would be happier with the HST.
Besides the transmission choice, I am curious, which machine did you like more? Which was more comfortable?

The Kioti feels a little better to me when I'm on it. I agree with you about the HST being better for loader work. The H-Shuttle is pretty easy to operate when it comes to loader work. No need to clutch between forward and reverse, just select a gear and get to work. My concern with the H-Shuttle is having to clutch between gears on my steep land. Going to roll back a little when having to do that.

Side note, the LS does come with 2 pairs of rear remotes. The Kioti does not. The LS seems to have more 'extras' but the Kioti just feels like a more stout tractor.

Like I said, I feel like I'm at a bit of a crossroads. I'm planning on driving them both again tomorrow to make my mind up. Just want some thoughts from the TBN community.

 

[marke409]

I have a Kioti DS4110 with shuttle shift and without synchro-gears (can’t shift on the fly). Once you get used to it, it’s a non-issue, plus you get a little more torque and power to the final drive. Hydrostats are nice, but there is a trade-off.

If you’re doing a lot of landscaping, you may want to consider a backhoe also. We have a lot of rock here, which I’m sure you do too, and the backhoe with thumb has proven indispensable for digging and picking them them up.

I feel the same about the HSTs. I like the ease of use, but seems like there's a power tradeoff that could potentially be useful at my elevation of 8,700'.

I'd love to have the backhoe....but that's not quite in the budget at the moment. It'll have to be an extra for the future.

 

[marke409]

Did you consider a Branson?

+1 on the backhoe.

Unfortunately all of the Branson dealers that are kind of close to me deal in only second-hand Bransons. There's nothing wrong with buying used, but they just don't have anything in stock that fits my needs. The closest one that carries new is almost 300 miles away. The dealership proximity kind of ruled them out for me. They seem like nice machines though.