Anyone still running an L48 TLB?

[cstamm81]

I run in M but I have the newer trans with high and low that seems to be good for what I do......

The high low trans seems like the cats meow, full control at all times and shift on the fly. I wish they had them in the 48痴, or I could find an affordable 45. Those 47痴 look awesome as well, but kind of hard to justify as a homeowner ( in my case anyway).

 

[cstamm81]

Oh, important question... how is the visibility of the bucket / front mounted implement on the 48痴? It appears they have a fairly rectangular hood. Could you see the tips of 42 forks while seated? If not, can one operate the machine while essentially standing? I do this with my Mahindra a lot. I can comfortably stand, steer, and operate the hydrostatic pedals for fine loader work. I mainly do this when using paper forks and grabbing an ibc tote or a stack of pallets. Without being able to see the fork tips, it would be impossible to not destroy things. I知 hoping this is possible on a 48!

 

[4570Man]

The visibility is about the same as a tractor. Possibly a little better since you’re sitting higher. I agree that a medium size hoe is probably a better fit than a full size. The gearing in my M59 is a little slow but it’s workable. The medium and low is fine for work but I wish it would go down the road faster. 12-13 mph is a real snail compared to my 310 at 25-30mph. I wouldn’t want to use my M59 for bush hogging but for dirt work it’s fine.

 

[mikester]

If you already have a good little working tractor with 3ph Id get an older full sized construction TLB as suggested by previous posters. It will do all the heavy work you need and you can sell it at the end probably for what you paid for it. You will get more done with the Construction TLB at lower cost than the L48. Especially if you need a lot of backhoe work.

 

[Richard]

Hows a full size even a consideration for the OP if he stated he needs a machine for 3pt work? :confused3:
Im also thinking the OP isn’t digging deep trenches of doing heavy commercial work day after day.

Some people are blind idiots and missed critical criteria...but, I'm not pointing fingers to anyone!!! :duh:

With that said, (for me) the benefit of it digging 15 1/2 feet deep isn't that it digs 15 1/2 feet deep but rather, the extension it gives when reaching out and digging much more shallow or reaching out to wrap the chain to pull a tree out or something like that.

however, the missing 3pt is at least a modest difference since he would like one!

 

[fried1765]

Thanks for all the thoughts so far gentlemen. I have toiled with the idea of a full size, I致e rented one years back and it痴 amazing what they can do. I don稚 think I would use a full size near as often as I would a mid size though. Like I said, I壇 like it to double or triple duty with the 3 point hitch. I move a lot of firewood in IBC totes and they?*e a bit much for my little Mahindra, but it does do it. I知 thinking the L48 would get used a lot, and I know from owning a little Terramite years ago that ones uses for a backhoe are endless when you have one at hand all times. I simply feel I壇 get way more use of something in the L48 size, where a full size would sit most of the time. I don稚 have huge digging jobs at hand, and I plan on consistently improving my property over the years. I知 not looking at buying something then reselling anytime soon, I知 trying to set myself up with equipment that could potentially last my lifetime.

As others here on TBN have suggested, the L39/45/47/48/M59/M62 Kubotas and the JD 110, are the Swiss army knives of TLBs.

 

[Hay Dude]

Some people are blind idiots and missed critical criteria...but, I'm not pointing fingers to anyone!!! :duh:

With that said, (for me) the benefit of it digging 15 1/2 feet deep isn't that it digs 15 1/2 feet deep but rather, the extension it gives when reaching out and digging much more shallow or reaching out to wrap the chain to pull a tree out or something like that.

however, the missing 3pt is at least a modest difference since he would like one!

Blind idiots, eh ?
Well, least I have the attention span to read the guys list of requirements, but what does this farmer, carpenter, dirt contractor know.....:laughing:

 

[Industrial Toys]

I am guessing that the differences between the 35/48 and the JD 110 now become more apparent as age catches up to them.

I am also guessing that an old full size TLB could be a real moneypit, possibly with major repairs costing as much as the 48!

Shop for used equipment carefully because the initial cost of used equipment is meaningless compared to the cost of repairs. Very often the most attractive deals are in fact the worst.

 

[fried1765]

Blind idiots, eh ?
Well, least I have the attention span to read the guys list of requirements, but what does this farmer, carpenter, dirt contractor know.....:laughing:

I find your "blind idiot" posts to be very thoughtful.

 

[fried1765]

Oh, important question... how is the visibility of the bucket / front mounted implement on the 48痴? It appears they have a fairly rectangular hood. Could you see the tips of 42 forks while seated? If not, can one operate the machine while essentially standing? I do this with my Mahindra a lot. I can comfortably stand, steer, and operate the hydrostatic pedals for fine loader work. I mainly do this when using paper forks and grabbing an ibc tote or a stack of pallets. Without being able to see the fork tips, it would be impossible to not destroy things. I知 hoping this is possible on a 48!

There is a 2015 L45 listed on SEARCHTEMPEST.COM for $14,300.
No hours are listed. It could have a blown engine, or is a scam, at that price.
Pictures look like it might be sitting in a Sunbelt Equipment rental yard.
Listing is for Chattanooga, TN., but also listed in Savannah, Ga.
SCAM? SCAM? SCAM?

 

[Hay Dude]

I find your "blind idiot" posts to be very thoughtful.

Except that “ Richard “ called me the blind idiot :laughing:
Maybe that will be helpful :confused3:

 

[Richard]

Except that “ Richard “ called me the blind idiot :laughing:
Maybe that will be helpful :confused3:

Negative, and my apologies if it read that way..... I was calling MYSELF the blind idiot for not reading it all ( hence the head slap emoji at the end)

Again, if it didn't read that way, my apologies. That wasn't my intent.

 

[rScotty]

The high low trans seems like the cats meow, full control at all times and shift on the fly. I wish they had them in the 48痴, or I could find an affordable 45. Those 47痴 look awesome as well, but kind of hard to justify as a homeowner ( in my case anyway).

I so wish that L48 had a thumb. I probably use the thumb on my M59 as much as any other feature on any of our tractors. Don't do much digging with the backhoe, but it's nice to have. Even when not digging, the backhoe is useful as a mobile crane for moving heavy things very precisely... and the thumb helps with that. A lot of what it does is simply the sort of thing I used to do by hand when younger. But now I like some help from a handy small tractor. The Kubota TLB all fit real well.
We also have a full size TLB with a cab. Wonderful condition and only 5800 hours. Yes, it was a good dollar purchase. We got a lot of machine for the money. It is mostly just for backup or very deep snow and cold weather. As far as being able to do work, either the M59 or the JD 310 will do similar work. Usually we end up digging with the M59 and carrying bucket full of dirt and rock with the JD. Small repairs to the JD can be expensive, however.

It's interesting how many of the Kubota TLBs on TractorByNet forums are ending up in the hands of us older guys. A lot of us are guys who are retired on a bit of land and no stranger to tractors - or to mechanical things in general. We know what we like. From the B26 on up these TLBs are just about the best "puttering around" and home project tractors ever. Ruggedly built and can do a bit of everything. If they have a downside it is the price to get into one. Even used ones hold high value. You will probably end up looking for good condition and extras rather than a low price. Nothing wrong with that....
rScotty

 

[fried1765]

I so wish that L48 had a thumb. I probably use the thumb on my M59 as much as any other feature on any of our tractors. Don't do much digging with the backhoe, but it's nice to have. Even when not digging, the backhoe is useful as a mobile crane for moving heavy things very precisely... and the thumb helps with that. A lot of what it does is simply the sort of thing I used to do by hand when younger. But now I like some help from a handy small tractor. The Kubota TLB all fit real well.
We also have a full size TLB with a cab. Wonderful condition and only 5800 hours. Yes, it was a good dollar purchase. We got a lot of machine for the money. It is mostly just for backup or very deep snow and cold weather. As far as being able to do work, either the M59 or the JD 310 will do similar work. Usually we end up digging with the M59 and carrying bucket full of dirt and rock with the JD. Small repairs to the JD can be expensive, however.

It's interesting how many of the Kubota TLBs on TractorByNet forums are ending up in the hands of us older guys. A lot of us are guys who are retired on a bit of land and no stranger to tractors - or to mechanical things in general. We know what we like. From the B26 on up these TLBs are just about the best "puttering around" and home project tractors ever. Ruggedly built and can do a bit of everything. If they have a downside it is the price to get into one. Even used ones hold high value. You will probably end up looking for good condition and extras rather than a low price. Nothing wrong with that....
rScotty

The OP could probably buy an aftermarket hydraulic thumb from Woods, but I am sure it would be rather costly.
A thumb is really an efficiency tool.
For anyone not believing so, just try picking things up with your hand, without using your thumb.

 

[Hay Dude]

Negative, and my apologies if it read that way..... I was calling MYSELF the blind idiot for not reading it all ( hence the head slap emoji at the end)

Again, if it didn't read that way, my apologies. That wasn't my intent.

:thumbsup:
It seemed like it made no sense

 

[PsRumors]

There is a 2015 L45 listed on SEARCHTEMPEST.COM for $14,300.
No hours are listed. It could have a blown engine, or is a scam, at that price.
Pictures look like it might be sitting in a Sunbelt Equipment rental yard.
Listing is for Chattanooga, TN., but also listed in Savannah, Ga.
SCAM? SCAM? SCAM?

If it isn't a scam....that's a phenomenal price. Looks to be in nice shape

 

[fried1765]

If it isn't a scam....that's a phenomenal price. Looks to be in nice shape

It just has to be a scam.
Nobody sells a 2015 L45 in the condition that appears to be, for $14,300.
That is $15,000 under the market.

 

[Hay Dude]

Scam 100%

 

[cstamm81]

The OP could probably buy an aftermarket hydraulic thumb from Woods, but I am sure it would be rather costly.
A thumb is really an efficiency tool.
For anyone not believing so, just try picking things up with your hand, without using your thumb.

I have never run a hoe with a thumb, but I am sure they are extremely handy. If I find a machine without one, I'll either weld on a manual one, or bite the bullet and figure out the auxiliary hydraulics needed to add a hydro thumb. I will be consistently dropping black walnut and ash trees on my own and neighbor's properties, and I can see how nice it would be to grab logs with a backhoe thumb, and buck them in the air! I've got a pile of about 50 black walnut logs to process as we speak.

 

[rScotty]

I have never run a hoe with a thumb, but I am sure they are extremely handy. If I find a machine without one, I'll either weld on a manual one, or bite the bullet and figure out the auxiliary hydraulics needed to add a hydro thumb. I will be consistently dropping black walnut and ash trees on my own and neighbor's properties, and I can see how nice it would be to grab logs with a backhoe thumb, and buck them in the air! I've got a pile of about 50 black walnut logs to process as we speak.

Thumbs are handier than you know. I wish I could express just how much. It isn't that they make things easier as much as they make the tractor into a whole new type of machine - One that becomes more important when you get past a certain age.....that age being when lifting heavy things is less of a challenge and more of a concern than it once was.

The thumb is especially nice for working timber. Not only will it grab a log for bucking and hold it all day at waist level...but it will stack the rounds when you are done. And if you want to move the log somewhere, you can curl the log in close and then swing the hoe to the side so that the thumb is holding the log into the bucket like a jousting lance. In that position a tractor carrying a big log is only slightly wider than the tractor itself. You can drive with the log right back down that narrow trail you came in on.

And for picking and placing rocks for landscaping or stone walls....well with a thumb you can make a move that that a bucket alone just cannot do.

Downside is the expense. I'd go hydraulic and aftermarket on most, but the L48 has a kit that is probably still available. My first choice would be to look for one of those and hang the expense. This is a once in a lifetime investment in a good back. Your back will thank you. Mine does.
rScotty