Anyone have a 5103, 5203 or 5303?

[Keith_B]

When I was checking prices of the Deeres I found that the '03 series 2wd is very comparable in price to the 990 with MFWD.

Our land has plenty of hillside and a loader is a must, which is the reason I was leaning toward the MFWD. However, I now see that the basic utility tractors, like the 03 series, have some really good prices.

Do the 03 tractors have enough weight to be stable on hills? And enough power/weight combined to enable ease of loader use without the MFWD?

I know the '05 series is available with MFWD, but doubt I can get one of those with a loader for my self-imposed $20K limit.

 

[cowboydoc]

Keith,

I have the 5303 and really like it. If you are doing loader work on good dry ground then you won't have any problems. I've put out some hay bales with it in some thick mud and it didn't turn the greatest. My 4600 worked much better. I think the weight is ok and you can put weights on the wheels or the front end. Overall it's a very nice tractor for the money. Basically you get the expensive 20 series drive train on a 5303 body.

On hills you can change the tire setting to any number of sizes. This will get you the stabilization you need. The tractor is lower to the ground than most and so it is going to be good on hills even with the wheels narrow. I mowed some pretty good hills with my 12' mower this fall and it was just fine.

If you want to do a little bit of loader work and generally use the tractor for other tasks it will be a good tractor for you. If you have alot of loader work to do you may be disappointed in it.

 

[Keith_B]

Thanks! It definitely sounds like it is very worthy of consideration when I get down to brass tacks in a month or two.