Are you "brand" person when it comes to your tractor?

[SgtSluggo]

So we are looking to move up to a larger tractor. I love my 1700 but I could have really used either a loader or more power in the last year or so. When discussing it with someone, I mentioned looking at this '97 JD 5300 for sale near us. It meets all our criteria (4x4, loader, hp, etc). And she said to me, "so you want to be a John Deere man?" It seemed like a weird question to me. Are most tractor owners extremely brand loyal?

I'd happily by a New Holland or Kubota if I could find one (those are the other nearby dealers I could get service at), but something like 9/10 used tractors around here are JD's. Just by statistics, its a lot easier to find a John Deere in a specific price or feature range than anything else. I was curious if this was something that actually existed among tractor owners or if people think its a John Deere thing (as is evidence by all the JD merch available).

(BTW any opinions on that 5300 would also be great)

 

[PuffyC]

I'm brand loyal to only one thing - my tractor. Or maybe I should say I'm loyal to the history and demonstrated commitment to being there locally to support me should I ever need it.

 

[Bill Guenthner]

I have a dealership that I stick with. They carry more than one brand.

 

[SgtSluggo]

I'm brand loyal to only one thing - my tractor. Or maybe I should say I'm loyal to the history and demonstrated commitment to being there locally to support me should I ever need it.

Part of what draws me to the JD, is precisely it's local popularity. There are more JD dealers here locally than anything else so service would be the simplest. The Kubota dealer is still fairly new (last 5 years or so) and I am worried that the dealership (not Kubota itself) won't survive very long. The NH dealer is more than an hour away. If one of the JD dealerships closes, there are 2 more less than 10min more away.

 

[WM75Guy]

I am brand loyal as I know what I am getting when it comes to my dealer and the manufacturer, New Holland. Parts are easy to look up and there are several sources available, such as my local dealer and Messick's. But parts availability depends on how many units of a particular model were made; the more were made the longer parts are available. The Ford 8N was built from 1948 to 1952 with over 500,000 tractors made. You can still get many parts for an 8N from New Holland. With so many different models being made today by any one manufacturer, the total number being made of any particular model will never get anywhere near that. Hence some common parts for the TC series are no longer available, such as the instrument panel. Something to think about when shopping, do you run the risk of ending up with an orphan model or even a brand.

 

[Hay Dude]

Nope.
Seen more rah rah brand-loyal guys go down in flames and end up with their tails between their legs because their sacred cow screwed them or went under.

Buy whats the best deal for the best tool at the right time and you’ll do better, but I would avoid “fringe” names of equipment.

 

[oldnslo]

Depends on you use your equipment.

If farmer or business and need the equipment to make your living then parts, dealerships, etc. become far more important than someone who uses their tractor a couple of hours on the weekend.

around here Deere is king with multiple dealerships in 30 mile radius. Same radius has one Case IH, one New Holland one Agco and three Kubota dealers.

 

[Joel/ak]

No. We only have a Massey tractor and a bobcat mini. I like them. Some quirks I don't like. If I'm looking to replace I'll look at specs and hopefully test other brands.

Overall I really like what we have but it won't stop me from going to another.

 

[Hay Dude]

Depends on you use your equipment.

If farmer or business and need the equipment to make your living then parts, dealerships, etc. become far more important than someone who uses their tractor a couple of hours on the weekend.

around here Deere is king with multiple dealerships in 30 mile radius. Same radius has one Case IH, one New Holland one Agco and three Kubota dealers.

That just means they have the area blanketed in one color/brand of tractor.
Trust me- as a farmer, one good dealer can convince me to buy a tractor from them over a dozen lousy dealers of the same brand.

# of dealers is almost irrelevant in comparison to quality of dealers.

 

[tacticalturnip]

Brand loyal with tractors? Nah, there is too much overall quality and innovation in the market to limit my interests to one brand. If anything it has reached a point where it's becoming harder to snub your nose at any one brand without having had a negative experience directly.