Any and all opinions wanted! ...

[pgsmith]

Hey y'all,
I'm in need of as many opinions as possible to help me make up my mind. I've recently moved onto 8 acres, with about 4 acres as field, the rest is lawn and trees along the creek and up the small hill. There's 40 years worth of the previous owner's junk that I need to clear out of one corner of the property since he used it as his own personal land fill. To me, this means that I'm going to need a good little tractor with a FEL to help get things under control. (woohoo, justification!) I read everything I could find about compact tractors, and now I'm trying to decide between these two:

The first is a Yanmar FX24D which was originally purchased from Stan Hoye. It has 1000 hours on it, has a Koyker 140 loader, and comes with a 5 ft King Kutter shredder and a box blade. Price is 8K. No ROPS, so I'll have to buy and install that.

The second tractor is a Kubota L2250 4X4 with 1200 hours on it. It has a BF400G loader, but no other implements. However, it is 1K less than the Yanmar.

From everything I've read, both are good quality little tractors. Price factor is about even since the Kubota costs less and it already has a ROPS. Both look (from their pictures) to be in pretty good shape and well cared for. Both are in my general vicinity so I could go and pick them up without any shipping costs. I haven't gone and actually driven either one yet.

So how about some unbiased (or biased) opinions from all you tractor afficionados out there!

 

[Sackett2]

I'd be leaning to the Kubota... 200 more hours are not much; would feel a bit more comfy with that name. Around my area, If it's not a JD, Kubota or the other major brands- good luck getting support.

 

[flusher]

Hey y'all,
I'm in need of as many opinions as possible to help me make up my mind. I've recently moved onto 8 acres, with about 4 acres as field, the rest is lawn and trees along the creek and up the small hill. There's 40 years worth of the previous owner's junk that I need to clear out of one corner of the property since he used it as his own personal land fill. To me, this means that I'm going to need a good little tractor with a FEL to help get things under control. (woohoo, justification!) I read everything I could find about compact tractors, and now I'm trying to decide between these two:

The first is a Yanmar FX24D which was originally purchased from Stan Hoye. It has 1000 hours on it, has a Koyker 140 loader, and comes with a 5 ft King Kutter shredder and a box blade. Price is 8K. No ROPS, so I'll have to buy and install that.

The second tractor is a Kubota L2250 4X4 with 1200 hours on it. It has a BF400G loader, but no other implements. However, it is 1K less than the Yanmar.

From everything I've read, both are good quality little tractors. Price factor is about even since the Kubota costs less and it already has a ROPS. Both look (from their pictures) to be in pretty good shape and well cared for. Both are in my general vicinity so I could go and pick them up without any shipping costs. I haven't gone and actually driven either one yet.

So how about some unbiased (or biased) opinions from all you tractor afficionados out there!

Before you spend hard earned $$$ on a used tractor, your first consideration should be--who will maintain it and who will repair it when it (inevitably) breaks. If the answer for both tasks is you, then either of those tractors would do for your use. If you need help with maintenance and/or repair, then you need to identify nearby dealers with decent repair capability or independent tractor repair shops that are able and willing to work on your tractor.

I've owned a new 2005 Kubota B7510HST with the LA302 FEL. Nice machine, excellent quality. I looked into used Yanmars before I bought the 7510 and decided my first tractor should be a new one. Right now I'm trying to talk one of my neighbors into giving me his beat up YM1300 (needs new front axle).

 

[Diamondpilot]

I would go with the Kubota also. That being said are you borrowing the money to buy it? If so look at a new Kioti. Good tractor and good financing which may make it about the same money.

Chris

 

[pgsmith]

Thanks for the feedback! Money for it is cash left from selling our other house. Didn't want to have to go into debt for it, which is why I was looking at used instead of new. New ones in the same power range were coming in at 12K to 16K. I can do the repair and maintenance on it myself, although I'd much prefer that I just didn't have to fix anything!

Any other thoughts and opinions are appreciated!

 

[Westendorf-RR]

Sounds like you have a lot of stuff to pick up. Is either FEL equipped with 3rd hydraulic function or does either tractor have extra ports at the rear to plug in extra hydraulic lines? A grapple would make your task much easier. Also, I'd look into each loader MFG's attachment line to see what your future options are for quick change implements.

 

[pgsmith]

Great ideas Westendorf! I will make a note to check that when I go look at them this weekend.

 

[jd2305cd]

I just went through this as well, went new.. The main reason is MFG warranty and cheap financing right now 0%-3% on new... It was s difference of 4-5g's but if it something your going to have for 10-20 years i would rather know it was treated good from the get go..

Now if your talking saving 10g's then yeah go USED!

Just my two cents..

 

[jd2305cd]

One more thing, either way you go make sure you have a great local dealer.. Its one of the big reasons I went with JD. Local dealer is great and 2 minutes down the road.

Kubota dealer rubbed me the wrong way and was 40 minutes away.. So I would atleast go check your dealers out and if they are a good dealer they will help with the pro's and con's of both.. Done rambling..

 

[EddieWalker]

Kubota is about the best brand out there. While others will argue that what they have is just as good, Kubota is the company that has set the bar that all the others are trying to achieve. Yanmar is very big overseas and they have a pretty good presence here in the commercial diesel market. They don't have much of a dealer support market and parts can be iffy. Depending on where you live, you might get lucky and have a guy who can get you parts for it, but you might not. Every Kubota dealer will have the parts for you. They are very, very professional. If you need it, they will either have it in stock, or be able to get it for you. There really isn't anything else more important that that when trying to decide on buying a tractor.

I don't own either brands, and don't have any brand loyalty. I'm a fan of Kubota because they have earned my respect. There are a few other brands out there that I am also a fan of, but since you mentioned two brands, those are the two that I'm comparing against each other.

Good luck,
Eddie

 

[SPYDERLK]

I have a Kub L2550, the big brother of the 2250. The 2 speed PTO is a great feature. The tractor is bullet proof. The need for a good close dealer is debatable. When you look at the Kub tho, do observe the condition of the seat suspension system. I have never seen a company do any worse a job of designing a system that will last. If this assembly is in good shape on the one you see the tractor is either low hr, or used on smooth surfaces, or it has been replaced. You will need to make immediate simple modifications to prevent occurrence or recurrence or else spend $200 for new w/i a few hundred hrs. Beyond this the tractor and BF400G loader will present great reliability. I have the manual covering the 2250 thru 2850 series if you have spec questions.

Ido not know the Yanmar, but tractor power and loader capacity and lift height may shift in its favor. It will not be as reliable a tractor.
larry

 

[pat32rf]

We are on 80 acres of bush and our 30hp JD gets used for evrything from firewood, cleaning up to plowing snow and collecting sap. We are also about 1 hrs drive from ANY dealer so when something breaks, its nice (also crutial at times) to get parts the next day.
Also, since the tractor does so many different chores, the QD bucket gets QDed many times during the average summers week....

 

[pgsmith]

Thanks for all the opinions folks! It's good to just get other peoples views on things sometimes. Of course, I may just ignore everyone, but I can't say I didn't get warned one way or the other.

Got a little bit more information when I finally got to talk to the Kubota fellow. Seems to me that the seller of the kubota is not the original owner. When I talked to him, he said that the rear tires were new, and I had noticed in the pictures he sent that the front tires are really worn. I asked him a couple of times how he wore the tires down so much in just 1200 hours, and he kept quickly changing the subject. When I asked him how long he had owned the tractor, the subject quickly changed again. Sounds to me like there's something the fellow isn't telling me! Is it normal to be able to wear ag tires down that badly in just 1200 hours, or am I right to be concerned?

 

[SPYDERLK]

If used a lot in 4wd the front tires will wear out much faster than the back ones. No way the backs could have worn out. They may have been damaged badly by running over stobs and been replaced, either out of necessity or as a sales incentive. I cant understand why the guy would be evasive about time of ownership.
larry

 

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

If he's being evasive about the things you can see, what kinds of problems does the machine have that you can't see right away?
might not hurt to copy the serial number off the frame and ask your local dealer to check it against the national MIA (stolen) register.
even if it's not stolen, I would advise against buying that specific machine if only because the current owner is sounding less than honest.

good luck with your shopping - and remember - if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

 

[newbury]

Thanks for the feedback! Money for it is cash left from selling our other house. Didn't want to have to go into debt for it, which is why I was looking at used instead of new. New ones in the same power range were coming in at 12K to 16K. I can do the repair and maintenance on it myself, although I'd much prefer that I just didn't have to fix anything!

Any other thoughts and opinions are appreciated!

Just a word -
IF you go new or uaed and can get get one of those great financing deals, don't look down at it.
If you can "not spend" money thats in the bank look at taking the financing and putting the money in the bank on a deposit that makes has a higher interest rate then your loan.
For instance I put money in at 4.2% and financed at 3.75%.

 

[pgsmith]

Thanks for all the opinions guys, I finally decided on the Yanmar. Went out and looked at the Kubota. Turns out it was at a sales barn, and the salesman was pretty evasive about where it came from and past information on it. It looked pretty rough in person, and I got the impression from looking at it that it had been sitting for some time. Didn't see any evidence of leaks, but the machine was really clean, like it had been recently pressure washed. Had a little smoke for about a minute at start-up. The hydraulics all worked, but they seemed slow to me, and very loud. The whole deal just made me nervous.
Went out to look at the Yanmar on Sunday. It was a bit dirty. Needs a bath and a wax job, but overall in much better shape than the Kubota. Minor seepage in the loader hydraulics (you could tell because it needed a washing) but no bleedoff at all. Started right up, and everything seemed to work well, so I made the decision and brought it home with me.

Haven't had time to do any more than get it off the trailer and put it in the barn. I've ordered all new filters for it, and will try and change all the fluids this weekend. Anyone know what grade of engine and hydraulic oil I should get for it? Capacities would be good too.

The fellow that was selling it has some pictures up if anyone's interested ...
Side
Front
FX24D

Thanks again for thoughts y'all!

Paul

 

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

congrats!

 

[TerryJ]

Congrats on the new tractor! Hope you enjoy it.