MTL Grapple Review

[DingDangKid]

I just wanted to throw in my 2 cents. I ordered a 48" Root Rake Grapple on 3/10 and had it was delivered to my work on 3/13. The total price after tax was $943.40 via eBay. It was 100% plug-n-play with the Land Pride 3rd function kit on my Kubota L3800. I have not had a chance to weigh it yet but have no problem picking up 6-foot lengths of 3" concrete sidewalk. Its main purpose will be to be move logs to my portable sawmill and have carried y 9-foot x 20" Ash and Oak logs so far with no problems.

 

[fried1765]

I just wanted to throw in my 2 cents. I ordered a 48" Root Rake Grapple on 3/10 and had it was delivered to my work on 3/13. The total price after tax was $943.40 via eBay. It was 100% plug-n-play with the Land Pride 3rd function kit on my Kubota L3800. I have not had a chance to weigh it yet but have no problem picking up 6-foot lengths of 3" concrete sidewalk. Its main purpose will be to be move logs to my portable sawmill and have carried y 9-foot x 20" Ash and Oak logs so far with no problems.

An excellent inexpensive grapple producer is Mid-State Attachments, in Denton, NC.
Mid-State and MTL are often confused by buyers.
Mid-State does have better reviews.
Grapples made by Mid-State are also sold by others on E-Bay, but calling Mid-State directly, will get a MUCH better price.

 

[DingDangKid]

Interesting, I see the 48" on their website but not on their eBay page. They are priced slightly higher though $1k + shipping vs $890 w/ free shipping. Your advertised price should be your last, best, and final price. I'm not going to call around every vendor out there for their prices.

 

[fried1765]

Interesting, I see the 48" on their website but not on their eBay page. They are priced slightly higher though $1k + shipping vs $890 w/ free shipping. Your advertised price should be your last, best, and final price. I'm not going to call around every vendor out there for their prices.

"I'm not going to call around every vendor out there for their prices."

Manufacturers, may or may not also be vendors.
The direct from manufacturer delivered price for my grapple from MS Attachments is $1,152.
The E-Bay "vendor" delivered price for the exact same unit, from the exact same manufacturer, is $1,294.
The $142 dollar difference(for the exact same item) does make a phone call or two worth it to me.
Perhaps you spill more than $142 at suppertime daily, so it may not matter to you.
I try to be a bit more careful with my dollars.

It may also have something to do with why I retired 20 years ago..... at age 60.

 

[TYM 474 Owner]

Which grapple did you purchase and are you pleased with it so far? Thanks

 

[fishingtiger]

I had a very similar experience with the purchase of my 5 ft root rake grapple this year. Terrible customer service! It took numerous attempts to get someone to get back to me and when they did, they said "you broke it, you fix it" via text. I was simply just trying to figure out how to get the replacement part. I have given up dealing with these folks and will never do business with them again.

 

[MSUBulldog]

I just bought a 54” HD tractor grapple from them. The one I chose was supposed to weigh approximately 360 pounds. When I got it, the serial number plate listed a different model and a weight of 530 pounds. Since they don’t read email, I was forced to text the owner. My text inquiring about the accuracy of my order was sent within business hours. I received a reply about an hour later informing me to put it on my tractor and use it. If I didn’t like it, I could send it back. He then made a point to say that I had contacted him after hours. I promptly sent him a screenshot of the time the text was delivered (4:38 EST to be exact) and blocked his number. He never answered my questions or verified that the unit I received was correct. I have read other posts where he would got into a cursing fit if you questioned him. Really didn’t want any part of that. I will never do business with them again. Their service/response after the sale is garbage. My advice, go with Everything Attachments or another reputable company. Many of the others have good reviews with regards to customer service. MTL, not so much.

 

[fried1765]

I just bought a 54” HD tractor grapple from them. The one I chose was supposed to weigh approximately 360 pounds. When I got it, the serial number plate listed a different model and a weight of 530 pounds. Since they don’t read email, I was forced to text the owner. My text inquiring about the accuracy of my order was sent within business hours. I received a reply about an hour later informing me to put it on my tractor and use it. If I didn’t like it, I could send it back. He then made a point to say that I had contacted him after hours. I promptly sent him a screenshot of the time the text was delivered (4:38 EST to be exact) and blocked his number. He never answered my questions or verified that the unit I received was correct. I have read other posts where he would got into a cursing fit if you questioned him. Really didn’t want any part of that. I will never do business with them again. Their service/response after the sale is garbage. My advice, go with Everything Attachments or another reputable company. Many of the others have good reviews with regards to customer service. MTL, not so much.

The owner of MTL has been widely reported as being a complete A-hole!
As an alternate, Mid-State Attachments in Denton, NC is known to be a good company to deal with.
I have a Mid-State Attachments grapple.
Of course if cost is not an issue, EA makes the very best of everything!

 

[MSUBulldog]

I just bought a 54” HD tractor grapple from them. The one I chose was supposed to weigh approximately 360 pounds. When I got it, the serial number plate listed a different model and a weight of 530 pounds. Since they don’t tead email, I was

The owner of MTL has been widely reported as being a complete A-hole!
As an alternate, Mid-State Attachments in Denton, NC is known to be a good company to deal with.
I have a Mid-State Attachments grapple.

i really wish I had reached out to you everyone here first before buying. I know that in general retail, one deals with a lot of customers who want to play the victim. However, those who buy equipment tend to know what they are looking for, know what they are looking at, and generally don’t fall into the “always a victim” category. Therefore when a company they do business with treats them like they are incompetent or doesn’t support the product they sell, that raises a red flag. In this case, there is some legitimacy behind the complainants against the owner of MTL. Oh well. Lesson learned.

 

[MSUBulldog]

**Update** I just received a call from Cliff (owner) who proceeded to accuse me of being ticked that they didn’t respond when I texted. He also assured me that I got exactly what I ordered while talking over me the entire time. And lastly informed me that a 1* review would void the warranty of the grapple I purchased. He then hung up. I think that the above description sums this guy up. Once again, steer clear of this company.