Buying Advice Another n00b

[pmetal]

Howdy.

I'm in the market for my first tractor and, as y'all know, the options seem endless.

First, a little about the property:

My house sits on three acres, but most of the surrounding land is family, totaling about 40.
Gravel road is ~1/8 mile (circled in red in picture)
Paved road at the end is ~1/8 mile
Both roads are private. We maintain the gravel portion, and the newly built sub-division behind us is supposed to maintain the blacktop. They aren't always quick to remove snow, though.

The circled area in the pic below will soon be rid of trees. I want to open up the yard a bit, and get some of those old trees away from the house.

So, how will I use the tractor?

Maintaining that gravel road is the priority. Grading, spreading gravel and snow removal. Possibly, once I'm good enough on the tractor, I may try to create some ditches and real drainage. But, baby steps for now.

General cleanup in the woods. Possibly some trail making/expanding.

Building a pole barn to house this beast.

Won't be doing any mowing with it, as I have access to a ZTR.

I'm going to want a FEL and at the very least a box grader. Haven't decided yet on either front snow plow or rear blade. I've heard good arguments for both.

My initial look led me to the Kubota BX3200, basically because I "thought" it would be the right size for me. I went to the dealer, mentioned the 3200 and he took me to the L3200. Hmmmmm...that looked nice :licking:.

So, for what I'm gonna use it for, and the size of the area I'm maintaining, is that the right tractor for the job? Too big (no such thing, I know)? Too small?

Now I have a friend who thinks he can get me a good deal on a JD. Dealership is further away, though. I can't seem to find a JD that matches up to the L3200. The 3032E is close, but seems to be much lighter in weight. Not sure the FEL reach is as good. I thought I read that you're limited in what 3PH attachments you can use on the JD, but I could be mistaken.

The most difficult thing I'm running into now is getting the wife to buy off on this.

Thoughts?

Thanks fellas.

 

[bigbull338]

1st thing is go to both dealers an test drive both tractors.an make sure the loader you choose has enough lifting cap todo what you want.

 

[nybirdman]

If you don't need it to "mow",I think you would be happier with a larger machine,20-30 hp a B in the Kubota line.I am not familar with JD,tho a good machine also.I think a BX would have a harder time with a box-blade.The B's have more ground clearance.How much snow? Rear blade/FEl combo may work for you to start;front blades work good also.I use both,but we get quite a bit to snow.Lots of reading on tire choice....mine is R1's(AG) I don't need to get on the lawn.

 

[teg]

L3200 has an economy 3 point hitch that has been referred to as "Jerky". It's not the best for grading, it can be done. Make sure you test it out at the dealer... have them hook up a box blade and make very small adjustments in the "up" direction (as if you are letting material out of the rear of a box blade which is very important to get a smooth finish.)

It only happens going up, and if you move the lever pretty fast, it will not jerk until the end, you will not notice it. Spreading out gravel is one of the short comings of this tractor.

Compare: http://kubota.com/assets/product/comps/L3200/L3200_L3800_Comps.pdf

 

[KU Gator]

The tractor product lines are pretty confusing initially. About like trying to learn a foreign language. In the Kubota line, the BX group is the subcompact. The current series is BXxx60. The HP ranges from 18 to 26 hp so the BX2660 is a current series 26 hp subcompact. Probably not the best fit for your situation as they have less ground clearance.

The B group is from 23 to 33 hp. Except for one, they all have mid PTO's which give them the ability to have a mid mount mower or a front mount snow blower. Since you don't mention a need for either of these functions, it probably is not important and does add cost. The tractor you originally might have been thinking about is a B3200, not a BX3200. You might want to look at a B3300SU. It is packaged with a loader and withought a mid PTO which will save you some money. It has bigger tires than the 3200 and I think they tweaked the engine a little to get the 33 hp out of it. It has a 4 cyl engine with is sometime criticized for having excessive vibration, but that is mainly noticable at above 2000 RPM. Because you won't be using it as a mowing machine, you don't really need a lot of RPM for loader and ground engagement work. But try it out at various RPMs to get a feel for it. Most of the B group have a 1/4" valve system for the 3 pt hitch. The good news about it is that it is very smooth in operating up and down and small adjustments can be made. The bad news is that it will not hold an implement at a specific height. I find that annoying when mowing with a brush hog, but for other applications like using the box blade or rear blade, it works just fine. There is a premium tractor series for the B group. The Bxx30 and the newer B3000. These tractors have some nice features, but at a premium price.

The L group has a bigger frame than the B group. The L tractors that have numbers ending in 00 are the basic series. Teg has already alerted you to the jerky hitch isssue. The L series tractors ending in 40 are the Grand L's. They have the premium features and will not suffer with the jerky 3 pt hitch.

In the end, no amount of reading will substitute for going and trying some out. Have a good time doing it.

 

[Grandad4]

A couple of comments:

1. Don't know if your experience will be anything like mine, but my 10 acres are just the starting point for my tractor work. Between family, neighbors, the church, the private road, etc., my equipment does chores across another 40 acres, easily. So within some kind of limits, the work seems to expand based on how much capability your equipment has. Being that you have 40 or so acres of nearby family land, that may also happen in some degree for you as well.

2. There is an "economy of size" relationship when buying tractors. That is, you pay relatively more for a small tractor vs. a larger one. You may pay 50% more for a larger tractor, but you get double or more the capability. So buying too small ends up being quite costly in both dollars and time spent.

Given those considerations, I'd suggest you begin by looking at the mid-sized compacts, meaning those in the 30-40 hp range. You may conclude that such equipment is more than you need, but the overall acreqge would suggest that size as a good starting point.

 

[pmetal]

Awesome!

Thanks guys.

Teg, I had heard about the hitch issues, but wasn't sure how that would affect grading. Thanks for the heads-up. Will definitely keep that in mind.

Grandad, I can definitely see my work expanding to the neighbors, both family and otherwise. That's why I'm leaning toward the bigger sized tractor.


Thanks again for the responses. I'm open to any and all ideas. Been lurking here for a bit and have learned quite a bit from y'all.

:thumbsup:

 

[teg]

Well, :welcome: to the "posting" side of TBN ... Pretty sure it's the bright side Good luck with your purchase. Trying the tractor out and attaching/removing implements lets you get more than a feel for the tractor but also for the dealer, too. Telescoping 3 point arms are nice for that feature but it costs more.

Nobody is better at spending your money better then TBN :laughing:

 

[flusher]

Working in the woods, cutting/maintaining trails-- you need a tractor with high clearance for these tasks--damage to oil/hydraulic filters, radiators, hoses can happen to low-slung tractors like a lot of the B-series Kubotas. If you're hard over on Botas, L-series is a better choice. My neighbor has an L4400 with FEL (6-ft wide bucket) that's a very nice machine. My first tractor was a new 2005 Kubota B7510HST--nice tractor but I'd never use it in the woods. I traded it in for a new 2008 Mahindra 5525 (54 hp engine, 45 hp pto, 2WD, gear tranny 8F/2R, power steering) with the ML250 FEL (6 ft wide bucket, 2950 lb lift to 10.5 ft height, skid steer quick attach option). Paid about $19K for it.

 

[pmetal]

Man, there is soooooooooooo much info out there. I'm overloading. :confused2:

Definitely need to go out and put my butt in some seats.


Just started reading up on Kioti. Kioti vs Kubota, now there's another can of worms!

Would the Kioti CK35HST be somewhat equivalent to the Kubota L3200?

 

[teg]

If I were to do it again, I would look very hard at Kioti...

 

[flusher]

Man, there is soooooooooooo much info out there. I'm overloading. :confused2:

Definitely need to go out and put my butt in some seats.


Just started reading up on Kioti. Kioti vs Kubota, now there's another can of worms!

Would the Kioti CK35HST be somewhat equivalent to the Kubota L3200?

Answer is yes--unless you define "somewhat equivalent" more precisely.

When comparing brands, you need to compare dealers since you'll be relying on your dealer for parts and service. Check out the service department (does it look like a full service operation or just some lashup with a few floor jacks and a bunch of hand tools) and the parts department (does he carry a full line of parts or just filters). And ask yourself if the dealer is like to be in business for awhile. My first tractor was a new Kubota B7510 that I bought in May 2005. In Jan 2006 that Bota dealer shut the door after 30+ years in business. Also, around here several Kioti dealers tend to be guys who rent old gas stations, have 6 or so new tractors on display, no service, no parts. They don't last very long.

 

[Martian]

One thing I always consider before I would purchase a compact is you can do 99% of jobs with a larger tractor that you could a smaller but only do about 25% as much with a smaller tractor. I have a JD 3120 right now and it is a great tractor but right now I'm clearing a bunch of land I just bought and it struggles. My father has a horse farm (just a small hobby but still) he has a 2001 JD 5410. Wish I would have went the way he did. When he bought it I asked why the heck he would overkill that much. Well a bigger tractor just does more. Picking up a down tree or just trying to scoop up something with his tractor is like slicing butter to slicing a rock with a butter knife with my tractor. Albeit his tractor is a lot larger, costs a lot more but for the few obstacles that my 3120 can maneuver better I would way rather have his. Right now I am actually looking to get a mod 90s backhoe that will deliver a lot more power and you can do a ton more than you would ever realize with a backhoe. Taking up stumps 5' around is done in minutes. I would highly advise you to look used even at a compact. You can find year or two old tractor with 50-150 in like new condition for 25% off. There's plenty of deals out there just look at craigslist. You'll be able to find what you want you want for a lot less used. My other advise is to look at a John Deere then look at another John Deere then to look at another John Deere until you find a John Deere to suit you needs. These new Kubotas are good but nothing runs like or lasts as long as a Deere. Your original investment may be more but over time the Deere will more then pay for itself. Designed built and made with care and love in America unlike these Kubotas made in Japan. Deere has the best dealer network and never known anyone to complain about a Deere. From the comfort to the options Deere has Kubota beat on everything besides price. Don't make the mistake I did though and take your time. Although I am happy with my tractor I wish I had spent more and got at least a 40 HP tractor. Take your time and you'll find the Deere just right for you.

 

[pmetal]

^ So you're saying I should look at John Deere?

Going down to look at Bobcats today. Have a friend whose family has known the dealer for years. Might be able to get a good deal, if I can find one I like.

Thanks again for all of the input.

:thumbsup:

 

[TripleR]

One thing I always consider before I would purchase a compact is you can do 99% of jobs with a larger tractor that you could a smaller but only do about 25% as much with a smaller tractor. I have a JD 3120 right now and it is a great tractor but right now I'm clearing a bunch of land I just bought and it struggles. My father has a horse farm (just a small hobby but still) he has a 2001 JD 5410. Wish I would have went the way he did. When he bought it I asked why the heck he would overkill that much. Well a bigger tractor just does more. Picking up a down tree or just trying to scoop up something with his tractor is like slicing butter to slicing a rock with a butter knife with my tractor. Albeit his tractor is a lot larger, costs a lot more but for the few obstacles that my 3120 can maneuver better I would way rather have his. Right now I am actually looking to get a mod 90s backhoe that will deliver a lot more power and you can do a ton more than you would ever realize with a backhoe. Taking up stumps 5' around is done in minutes. I would highly advise you to look used even at a compact. You can find year or two old tractor with 50-150 in like new condition for 25% off. There's plenty of deals out there just look at craigslist. You'll be able to find what you want you want for a lot less used. My other advise is to look at a John Deere then look at another John Deere then to look at another John Deere until you find a John Deere to suit you needs. These new Kubotas are good but nothing runs like or lasts as long as a Deere. Your original investment may be more but over time the Deere will more then pay for itself. Designed built and made with care and love in America unlike these Kubotas made in Japan. Deere has the best dealer network and never known anyone to complain about a Deere. From the comfort to the options Deere has Kubota beat on everything besides price. Don't make the mistake I did though and take your time. Although I am happy with my tractor I wish I had spent more and got at least a 40 HP tractor. Take your time and you'll find the Deere just right for you.

I own a John Deere too, have owned several, mine has a Yanmar engine, built in Japan, just like yours. Some John Deeres are made in other countries and some Kubotas are made in the US.

 

[bp fick]

Designed built and made with care and love in America unlike these Kubotas made in Japan.

On the whole your advice/guidance was pretty good.

But THAT part is pretty much a demonstration that someone has perhaps sniffed far too many fumes from green paint. (please excuse my warped sense of humor, no harm intended, just blowing the BS whistle on that) The small Deere's are made in Japan, mostly Yanmars. Don't over-sell your Deere=Red, White, and Blue.

TripeR is also right in that Kubota builds a number of tractors in the USA.

'Tis a brave, new, global world we live in.