Another confused first timer

[Tony H]

Too bad you posted this late AND you didn't want to travel to NY. A friend, who is moving, just sold his Mahindra Max for $16,500. 24hp,backhoe, rear blade, box scraper and mower deck. It was 7vuears old but only 100 hours on it. He never used anything bit the FEL for moving snow. It sold in an hour from when he Craigslisted it. It was a steal

 

[bud70706]

Well here's the story....I have a 5 acre place in N Central Az. All flat, about 2 acres is horse pasture. Well not grass pasture, but dirt and rock. The other 3 acres are 'grassy' but not nice grass. Plus there are spots with rocks that need to be cleared and always DG to spread. I currently have a riding mower, but the mower deck just crapped out, and I use it more for dragging and cleaning the pastures anyway. My neighbors are great and stop by to help out with stuff, but I really need my own tractor, most people around here use them almost every day for something.

So after much searching, I basically know nothing much more than when I started looking. What I do know is that tractors are expensive!

Here are my parameters: Decent HP (24?) - 4x4 - rear box scraper - front bucket - canopy - mower deck. Other than that I'm flexible. Budget is under $20k. I'd like to go new to get a warranty, plus most manufacturers are offering $0 down and 0% financing which makes it doable....

Brand choice is another matter. John Deere is way too pricey, Kubota is a possible, Yanmar also.
What should I know or do to get this going? I'd like to have one by next spring.

All advice appreciated!

You can get a JD1025R with the attachments you want for what you are willing to spend. I have one with 60" MMM. The 60" has Thicker steel than the 54" or 72" and thicker than the competition. I use it on some pretty rough areas. It also does a great job on the lawn around the house. I have a 3046R I use for all my heavy work & the 1025 tills, mows hauls firewood and general yard & garden work. You get what you pay for.

 

[TeamJZ]

Local guy here, I can share a bit. I’m near Prescott Valley and I spend a lot of time in the Camp Verde/Cottonwood area. I’m guessing you are up near Chino Valley. I bought my Kubota L2501 about 5 years ago. I started with a John Deere in mind (growing up in Ohio, that’s the go to name that everybody loves), but as others have shared shop the dealership and consider what you are getting for the price. I ended up steering towards the Kubota’s. (With the market like it is now, you will have challenges finding any used deals on lightly used tractors, most want new prices right now. Local dealerships won’t have stock. Bingham sees 3 to 9 month lead times from Kubota.)

I’ve heard some good and some bad about the local JD dealership in Prescott Valley. (I really like the JD guys at the big place down near chandler. I bought some used excavator buckets off them and they are very friendly.) The guys at Bingham are good guys. Prices are sometimes a little steep, but the buying experience is good and they stand behind their reputation. I like working with Jessie over there. In AZ Bingham dominates the entire Kubota market. Wickham tractors out of the Colorado area seems to have some of the best prices in our area, but that‘s about a 10 hour drive. Southwest AG is up that way too (SWAG).

You can buy out of Phoenix or Wickenburg if you‘d like to. If you have a trailer to get down there for service it won’t be too bad assuming you are buying a reputable brand. Like others have said, there may be a thing or two right off that will need corrected. That would be a frustrating experience for me to load up and go down to get it worked out, but if I were retired I might view that trip differently. If you are buying a good brand, you will likely get a few things worked out right off the bat, then you will have some periodic services, but won’t likely need any repairs for a very long time. You can buy implements from anywhere and it makes a lot of sense to buy these used if at all possible.

They have Kioti dealers in northern phoenix and I think there is one in Wickenburg. If you want an older tracter for a few thousand bucks you’ll like have some friving ahead of you given our limited agriculture as compared to many of the states back east. Imperial valley area in CA and up in CO are your best bets. I think MF and Branson has a presence down in the Tuscon area, but that’s really getting out there. And like others have mentioned in our area, these dealerships seem to come and go. (Likely a result of our reduced agricultural needs and the strong presence of Kubota and JD.)

Oh and one other thing… there are times of the year where the L2501 struggles with the hard clay, expecially on a packed down road. But wait for a rain or a freeze / thaw cycle and you can do alot. Most of the year it does well. I just bought a rotary cutter and have not used it yet, but the dealer tells me that in our area it will run a 60” just fine.
My only short coming with the L2501 is that the loader only lift about 1000 lbs, which isn’t quite what I would like it to be but will likely meet your needs just fine. Its a great tractor all around. I think paid between $23k and $25k but a good chunk of that went into the grapple.

Good luck, and have fun!

 

[OzarkChris]

Well here's the story....I have a 5 acre place in N Central Az. All flat, about 2 acres is horse pasture. Well not grass pasture, but dirt and rock. The other 3 acres are 'grassy' but not nice grass. Plus there are spots with rocks that need to be cleared and always DG to spread. I currently have a riding mower, but the mower deck just crapped out, and I use it more for dragging and cleaning the pastures anyway. My neighbors are great and stop by to help out with stuff, but I really need my own tractor, most people around here use them almost every day for something.

So after much searching, I basically know nothing much more than when I started looking. What I do know is that tractors are expensive!

Here are my parameters: Decent HP (24?) - 4x4 - rear box scraper - front bucket - canopy - mower deck. Other than that I'm flexible. Budget is under $20k. I'd like to go new to get a warranty, plus most manufacturers are offering $0 down and 0% financing which makes it doable....

Brand choice is another matter. John Deere is way too pricey, Kubota is a possible, Yanmar also.
What should I know or do to get this going? I'd like to have one by next spring.

All advice appreciated!

It sounds like you are in the market for a subcompact unit. I agree with a couple of folks that have said TYM, LS, Mahindra, etc will give you more bang for your buck. However, I believe the best tractor brand you can buy is the one that has the best dealer by you. Go to your local dealers, talk to them, tour the service department. If they happen to have a similar tractor to the one you are looking for, do a test drive in a dirt pile. Any dealer that refuses to let you drive around a tractor needs to be removed from the list, regardless of the tractor color. Since you are somewhere around central Arizona, you might consider a cab, unless you are more in the mountains - I remember those 120+ degree days.

 

[Mart5130]

Well here's the story....I have a 5 acre place in N Central Az. All flat, about 2 acres is horse pasture. Well not grass pasture, but dirt and rock. The other 3 acres are 'grassy' but not nice grass. Plus there are spots with rocks that need to be cleared and always DG to spread. I currently have a riding mower, but the mower deck just crapped out, and I use it more for dragging and cleaning the pastures anyway. My neighbors are great and stop by to help out with stuff, but I really need my own tractor, most people around here use them almost every day for something.

So after much searching, I basically know nothing much more than when I started looking. What I do know is that tractors are expensive!

Here are my parameters: Decent HP (24?) - 4x4 - rear box scraper - front bucket - canopy - mower deck. Other than that I'm flexible. Budget is under $20k. I'd like to go new to get a warranty, plus most manufacturers are offering $0 down and 0% financing which makes it doable....

Brand choice is another matter. John Deere is way too pricey, Kubota is a possible, Yanmar also.
What should I know or do to get this going? I'd like to have one by next spring.

All advice appreciated!

Check out Kioti

 

[kpsp50]

If you want new with a good warranty at a very reasonable price that is under your $20,000 check out Branson tractor at Keno tractors.com that's where I bought mine and they will ship it down to you you can't go wrong

 

[DGHudson]

Well here's the story....I have a 5 acre place in N Central Az. All flat, about 2 acres is horse pasture. Well not grass pasture, but dirt and rock. The other 3 acres are 'grassy' but not nice grass. Plus there are spots with rocks that need to be cleared and always DG to spread. I currently have a riding mower, but the mower deck just crapped out, and I use it more for dragging and cleaning the pastures anyway. My neighbors are great and stop by to help out with stuff, but I really need my own tractor, most people around here use them almost every day for something.

So after much searching, I basically know nothing much more than when I started looking. What I do know is that tractors are expensive!

Here are my parameters: Decent HP (24?) - 4x4 - rear box scraper - front bucket - canopy - mower deck. Other than that I'm flexible. Budget is under $20k. I'd like to go new to get a warranty, plus most manufacturers are offering $0 down and 0% financing which makes it doable....

Brand choice is another matter. John Deere is way too pricey, Kubota is a possible, Yanmar also.
What should I know or do to get this going? I'd like to have one by next spring.

All advice appreciated!

 

[DGHudson]

Well here's the story....I have a 5 acre place in N Central Az. All flat, about 2 acres is horse pasture. Well not grass pasture, but dirt and rock. The other 3 acres are 'grassy' but not nice grass. Plus there are spots with rocks that need to be cleared and always DG to spread. I currently have a riding mower, but the mower deck just crapped out, and I use it more for dragging and cleaning the pastures anyway. My neighbors are great and stop by to help out with stuff, but I really need my own tractor, most people around here use them almost every day for something.

So after much searching, I basically know nothing much more than when I started looking. What I do know is that tractors are expensive!

Here are my parameters: Decent HP (24?) - 4x4 - rear box scraper - front bucket - canopy - mower deck. Other than that I'm flexible. Budget is under $20k. I'd like to go new to get a warranty, plus most manufacturers are offering $0 down and 0% financing which makes it doable....

Brand choice is another matter. John Deere is way too pricey, Kubota is a possible, Yanmar also.
What should I know or do to get this going? I'd like to have one by next spring.

All advice appreciated!

I suggest you check out brands like Kioti, Tym, Mahindra, Kubota.
Important item is your dealer. How long have they been established. How close are they? Can they serve your needs.
I’m partial to Kioti, and Kubota, I have one of each. Dealers for both are relatively close by. Order early, as all
Manufacturers are having delivery issues. COVID has caused supply problems for most if not all manufacturers. I had limited choice, and had to wait for my new Kioti last year.
Happy I bought the Kioti, very satisfied with my choice.
Good luck with your hunt!

 

[DGHudson]

No intention of starting a brand war, but I have always had Kubota tractors and mowers. I just hate the thought of rebranded tractors, particularly the numerous orphaned machines.
I full realize that I paid more for the name, but also for parts, service, warranty, longevity, and resale value.
I don't think a $20k budget will buy a new Kubota L2501, but they are a very popular machine for what you are needing to get done.

Agreed, that’s why I have Kioti, and Kubota, the only two who make their own complete machines

 

[DGHudson]

You get what you pay for. Stick to a brand with some history and a serious presence in your area stay away from economy brands and keep it Deere Massey new Holland or kubota if you want to be able to get parts and have some resale on your machine. These guys that go no name China and Korea brands and going to all be complaining in 10 years when they can’t get parts for the cheap tractor

You can add Kioti to your list. Kioti and Kubota make their own complete machines. The others don’t.