Going from John Deere to Kioti

[Diggin It]

I raise the arms all the way and put an angle iron on the cylinder when parking so it can't lower. The bucket is curled all the way back so gravity keeps it curled.

not to mention safety!

Parked, unattended or with others around, the bucket should be on the ground, never raised.

 

[Diggin It]

Thanks to everyone for the information. The Kioti salesman stopped by last evening to look at my trade in. I hope to get final numbers today or tomorrow.
It has been 2 weeks since I first stopped in at John Deere & asked for a price on a tractor. I also stopped in a couple of days later. I still do not have anything from them. They are making this switch easy.

I would have considered Mahindra, but the closest Mahindra dealer to me is over 50 miles.

Another option though I'm not sure where the closest dealer would be:

XJ Series | LS Tractor

Also: Products | Tractors | RK Tractors

And TYM, Yanmar, Massey .....

 

[Threepoint]

Chevy, a few thoughts here, although I've been very impressed with Kioti.

I'd follow up with the John Deere dealer once more, and this time ask for the sales manager or general manager. Someone in the sales department may just have dropped the ball, had a death in the family, gotten ill, etc. Dealer responsiveness is important, for sure, but before writing a small business off, I like to give it the benefit of the doubt. Also, if this is the same dealer you've been dealing with for your current and prior Deere tractors, have you been satisfied with them, otherwise?

Regarding Mahindra and other brands, 50 or even 70 miles for service is not much at all, IMO. They'll almost certainly throw in delivery at the front end to make the sale. After that, even if you have to pay for pickup and delivery for warranty work and scheduled maintenance, they may subsidize transport charges over that distance to compete with closer dealers. It's worth asking about, anyway.

You mention that you've driven the Kioti CK3510SE HST. It's a nice tractor. Very quick and nimble for its size, both in terms of ground speed/maneuverability and FEL function. (If you want a cab, I'd suggest going to the CK4010SE HST/cab to make up for the increased weight and the a/c).

As for your question on leak-down, I think all brands have some of that over the course of a few hours. Short of that, I haven't noticed it in my Kiotis, either in the FEL or the 3-point link arms. My top n' tilt cylinders leak down more quickly, but that's never an issue in use, especially since I installed restrictor orifices in both hoses of each cylinder.

 

[chevy]

As for the John Deere Dealer. I have done business with them since 1999. I have always used the same salesman. My salesman is also the store manager. All but 2 of the items listed in my signature & a lot more equipment not listed, came from this dealer. The 2720 & the box blade came from another area John Deere dealer. I purchased from this dealer because they had hired me to remodel their offices. That dealer was recently purchased by my original dealer. Taking a long time to get back with me on a quote is standard business at this dealership. This has gone on since I went there to purchase my first tractor from them.

I am not looking to buy a Kioti because I am unhappy with my John Deere dealer. Had they gotten back to me quicker, I would have purchased from them. I was not looking at anything other than JD. Kioti was not even on my radar. I spent 2 days at the National Farm Machinery Show in February. I must have walked past the Kioti booth dozen times. I never stopped once to look at anything.

It was a youtube video the made me take notice of Kioti. I follow the Tractor Time With Tim channel on youtube. I met Tim at the farm show. He is mainly a John Deere guy, but does some reviews of some other brands.
He did a video on the Kioti CK3510SE about a year ago. I have not idea why I did not see it until I started wanting a larger tractor. One day the video just popped up. From that video, I saw all of the things I really wanted in a small tractor at a very reasonable price.
The size of the Kioti CK3510SE tractor with the loader is about 10" longer & 9" wider than my current 2025R with loader, but the Kioti weighs about 1700 lbs more. The lift capacity of the Kioti loader is about 1000 lbs more than my current tractor & has a lift height of about 25" more. The only John Deere tractor that is in the ballpark of matching these specs & options is a 3033R at over $8,000 more money. This is why I am looking at the Kioti.
The lift h

 

[Tractor Time with Tim]

As for the John Deere Dealer. I have done business with them since 1999. I have always used the same salesman. My salesman is also the store manager. All but 2 of the items listed in my signature & a lot more equipment not listed, came from this dealer. The 2720 & the box blade came from another area John Deere dealer. I purchased from this dealer because they had hired me to remodel their offices. That dealer was recently purchased by my original dealer. Taking a long time to get back with me on a quote is standard business at this dealership. This has gone on since I went there to purchase my first tractor from them.

I am not looking to buy a Kioti because I am unhappy with my John Deere dealer. Had they gotten back to me quicker, I would have purchased from them. I was not looking at anything other than JD. Kioti was not even on my radar. I spent 2 days at the National Farm Machinery Show in February. I must have walked past the Kioti booth dozen times. I never stopped once to look at anything.

It was a youtube video the made me take notice of Kioti. I follow the Tractor Time With Tim channel on youtube. I met Tim at the farm show. He is mainly a John Deere guy, but does some reviews of some other brands.
He did a video on the Kioti CK3510SE about a year ago. I have not idea why I did not see it until I started wanting a larger tractor. One day the video just popped up. From that video, I saw all of the things I really wanted in a small tractor at a very reasonable price.
The size of the Kioti CK3510SE tractor with the loader is about 10" longer & 9" wider than my current 2025R with loader, but the Kioti weighs about 1700 lbs more. The lift capacity of the Kioti loader is about 1000 lbs more than my current tractor & has a lift height of about 25" more. The only John Deere tractor that is in the ballpark of matching these specs & options is a 3033R at over $8,000 more money. This is why I am looking at the Kioti.
The lift h

Lots of tractor for the money!

Would be interesting to see the difference in resale value.

 

[chevy]

Lots of tractor for the money!

Would be interesting to see the difference in resale value.

It is a lot of tractor for the money.

I have never considered what the resale value would be on any of the other tractors I have ever purchased.
I just want them to complete the tasks I purchased it for. If the tractors & equipment no longer fit my operation, I change.
I do not know anyone that owns a Kioti tractor.
I am basing this potential purchase on the reputation of the dealer & the length of time they have been selling Kioti tractors. This is a very large dealership chain. I do not believe they would continue carrying the Koiti line if it was not dependable.

 

[Tractor Time with Tim]

It is a lot of tractor for the money.

I have never considered what the resale value would be on any of the other tractors I have ever purchased.
I just want them to complete the tasks I purchased it for. If the tractors & equipment no longer fit my operation, I change.
I do not know anyone that owns a Kioti tractor.
I am basing this potential purchase on the reputation of the dealer & the length of time they have been selling Kioti tractors. This is a very large dealership chain. I do not believe they would continue carrying the Koiti line if it was not dependable.

There is a good Kioti dealer here as well. The video I did with the CS3510 was at that dealer.

Why resale is not a factor in purchase price?

Resale value gives you options. Sure you can hold the tractor for the rest of your life, but what if something changes?
What if you want a larger tractor?
What if you move to more acreage?
Or you just want a new one for no good reason?

Or the opposite, what if you decide to downsize when you get older?
Physical/medical issues prevent you from using the tractor?

My thinking here really has nothing to do with Kioti...sorry. Just a general thought of resale value when purchasing.
We think the same way when buying vehicles. Some styles (pickups) and brands (...) resell much better than others. This makes it much easier to trade at some point in the future.


Now, back to Kioti. They are less expensive new than the ‘big two’, so obviously they would have lower resale value...but that isn’t necessarily bad. The question is what is the total cost to own over say a 5 yr period? Even with lower resale, the total outlay might be lower with the Kioti. I dunno.

This kind of thinking fascinates me. Sorry for the long post!

 

[cat fever]

Now, back to Kioti. They are less expensive new than the 礎ig two? so obviously they would have lower resale value...but that isn稚 necessarily bad. The question is what is the total cost to own over say a 5 yr period? Even with lower resale, the total outlay might be lower with the Kioti. I dunno.

This kind of thinking fascinates me. Sorry for the long post!

My Kioti will be 5 years old in December. I have used it on a farm setting. The only money I've spent on it is fluid changes/grease per owners manual. Everything just works!

I dug my leach line up with the FEL. 3' deep on one end 7' deep on the other end 60' long. Moving dirt around. Lots of post hole digger work. Lots of haying/seeding type work. Currently I have mountains of dirt (new home) that need to be spread/leveled out. As soon as I can (it's muddy) I'll get it all leveled.

Now I know any tractor can do the things I've mentioned. The question is; can they do it for the money I spent on my Kioti?

Couple work pics.

 

[Diggin It]

I never consider resale, not even on houses or cars. I buy to use and keep. I don't buy to sell. I don't recall selling any yard machine or tool I ever bought. I use them until they die then toss them in a pile to be hauled off some day.

But then again, I don't try to get my name, face and varied exploits of driving stuff around my yard on every website as a popularity contest either.

 

[Tractor Time with Tim]

But then again, I don't try to get my name, face and varied exploits of driving stuff around my yard on every website as a popularity contest either.

Wow. Ok. Sorry. Didn’t think I said anything offensive. Not sure the reason for this response.
If I’m not welcome here, I’m happy to go somewhere else.

For what it is worth, I really liked the Kioti we drove. LOTS of features for the money.

Tim