3000 hours on Kubota L4740 and looking at buying a backhoe bh92... dumb idea?

[Green Acres Homestead]

I have a kubota L4740 with 3000 hours and I am looking at buying a backhoe attachment BH92. I question is my tractor to old to be investing $12000 into an attachment. Question number 2 is what is the performance like. I heard conflicting stories. Could anybody shed some light on this.

 

[Grandad4]

I had an earlier generation 46 hp Kubota with the factory backhoe. It was a beast for its size and it did everything we wanted it to do. The guy I sold the tractor to a couple of months ago later told me it was "absolutely amazing" (his words, not mine).

Depends on your perspective. Can't expect it to do the same work as a full sized TLB, but it went places no big TLB could reach.

As for your 3,000 hour L4740, you know better than anyone what condition it's in. If cared for well, there should be many more hours left in that tractor. Howwver there's also some chance you might find a used BH90 or 92 and save some $$$.

 

[bspeedy]

For 12 grand, a 3 ton mini ex with a couple thousand hours will dig circles around a tractor mounted backhoe. Not sure if 12 grand CAD will buy one, but they are available for that price in USD around my area.

I've had several tractor backhoes and find that my mini ex is way more capable.

Your 4740 is somewhere between 50% and 75% 'used up' in my opinion. Not sure how many hours per year you put on her, but 3000 hours is getting up there. That machine should give you 4000 to 6000 hours of operation in its useful life.

I have an L3710 that's just a baby with less than 800 hours.

 

[Soldier415]

For 12 grand, a 3 ton mini ex with a couple thousand hours will dig circles around a tractor mounted backhoe. Not sure if 12 grand CAD will buy one, but they are available for that price in USD around my area.

Where are you finding min ex for those prices? In my area even used ones with 3k hours are going for $25k to $35k

 

[art]

Several things wrong here as a BH-92 for a L4740 is 9593 at retail with a 18" bucket. That is not installed or include freight so there maybe some charges but should not be at 12,000!!! The hours if it was a different make tractor would bother me but we do see many with thousands more hours! We have plenty over 8,000 hours and still going strong that kubota has produced to include the ZD lawn mowers!!!

 

[Green Acres Homestead]

thanks for all your insight

 

[FatTire]

Several things wrong here as a BH-92 for a L4740 is 9593 at retail with a 18" bucket. That is not installed or include freight so there maybe some charges but should not be at 12,000!!! The hours if it was a different make tractor would bother me but we do see many with thousands more hours! We have plenty over 8,000 hours and still going strong that kubota has produced to include the ZD lawn mowers!!!

Maybe some of the price diff is for hydraulic thumb? They are expensive but add s lot of capability.

 

[4570Man]

I wouldn't pay that much for a tractor backhoe regardless of the hours. I paid $4000 for my used BH-90. Id have a mini excavator long before I spend 12k on a backhoe attachment. As far as performance that's hard to describe but I'll try to answer any questions you have. The only mini x I have an experience with is a JD50D. It will absolutely flat out dig circles around a tractor backhoe. I'd expect a 5,000 pound mini would still beat a tractor backhoe.

 

[Monster5601]

I wouldn't pay that much for a tractor backhoe regardless of the hours. I paid $4000 for my used BH-90. Id have a mini excavator long before I spend 12k on a backhoe attachment. As far as performance that's hard to describe but I'll try to answer any questions you have. The only mini x I have an experience with is a JD50D. It will absolutely flat out dig circles around a tractor backhoe. I'd expect a 5,000 pound mini would still beat a tractor backhoe.

That is fine and dandy but there are is the small issue of used equipment availability (and the asking prices) in any given area versus timeline needs. Yes, an exavator will work faster than a backhoe but that also depends on the application. The big advantage of an excavator is it has 360 rotation make placing the material away from your work easier.

 

[Grandad4]

That is fine and dandy but there are is the small issue of used equipment availability (and the asking prices) in any given area versus timeline needs. Yes, an exavator will work faster than a backhoe but that also depends on the application. The big advantage of an excavator is it has 360 rotation make placing the material away from your work easier.

Also depends on where you do your work. My tractor + backhoe was often driven up to 5 miles to jobs without the need for a trailer. Wouldn't happen with a mini-ex. Also, many jobs involved both excavating and some significant grading or transfer of material, for which the FEL was excellent. With an excavator, any amount of that calls for another machine, typically a skid-steer. The point is, no single machine is always better in all situations. There are times when having a "jack-of-all-trades" TLB makes sense... often for a "weekend warrior" who does a lot of various jobs at various times.