B3030 Cab - should I purchase?

bullseye · Jan 15, 2007

Hello all, I'm thinking of purchasing a small compact with cab primarily for snow removal and grass mowing. I'm mowing approx 5 acres of lawn and have developed bad allergies over recent years and am thinking a small cab tractor may be the answer as my allergies really flare up when mowing. I also have about 700 ft of paved driveway with fairly steep slope which I need to keep clean during the winter months here in Central Pennsylvania. An FEL would be nice but I don't really need it since I have a large farm tractor with FEL. After looking at Kubota, John Deere and Massey Ferguson on the internet, it appears the B3030 Cab tractor would be the best machine. I'm interested in opinions on the above or any other options. Also, any other pertinent info such as problems, reliability, limitations, cab noise and etc would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for your help.

mikeyd · Jan 15, 2007

I live in upstate ny, my driveway is a good 800ft. First winter there plowed driveway with a 3030, no cab. Tractor was plenty strong enough with curtis 6ft plow but I nearly froze to death. That summer traded the 3030 for a 5030 with cab. Now I plow with a t shirt on while listening to the radio, nothing could be finer. Plus in the summer I love the enclosed cab, a/c blows cold and don't have to worry about bee's when using a brush hog. You will love the cab and as far as I am concerned is an absolute necessity in the winter or you will freeze.

amigauser · Jan 15, 2007

I love my B3030 cab ;-). If you can swing the extra $4000 or so over a regular B3030 then go for it. For Winter plowing/blowing it is very nice to have and is great in the Summer dust/heat season to.

I believe JD also just came out with a CUT with a factory cab but I am not sure what the $$ compared to Kubota. You may want to check them out to.

Norm

Piperflyer · Jan 15, 2007

Sims Cab Depot makes a cab for the 3030 for $2400.00. You could save yourself some money & tax buying this cab. Might not have all the bells & whistles the Kubota cab has & you would have to install it. I think Curtis Cabs make cabs for the 3030 also.

OrangeGuy · Jan 15, 2007

Last night in Minnesota we had approximately 5" of snow. This morning it was about 8 degrees. I plugged in my Kubota L3430 HSTC (factory cab) at 6:15 am just before I left for a business meeting. My Suburban had no problem getting out my 1000' driveway. When I returned at 9:00 am, I started the tractor and moved it outside to warmup. 15 minutes later I returned to a toasty cab. It took me about 45 minutes in shirt sleeves to plow out the driveway. The conditions were perfect; cold, fluffy snow, gravel driveway frozen hard and no wind. I used my rear 7' blade and FEL. I wish I had more driveway.

The factory cab is a must in my opinion; warm in winter, cool and clean in the summer.

OrangeGuy

bullseye · Jan 15, 2007

amigauser said:
I love my B3030 cab ;-). If you can swing the extra $4000 or so over a regular B3030 then go for it. For Winter plowing/blowing it is very nice to have and is great in the Summer dust/heat season to.

I believe JD also just came out with a CUT with a factory cab but I am not sure what the $$ compared to Kubota. You may want to check them out to.

Norm

I'll have to take another look and see if I can find the JD equivalent. I also heard Massey is either coming out or has recently come out with a small CUT with cab. Not sure if I want to mess around with a first year model though.

Oleozz · Jan 15, 2007

Around Christmas time someone posted pics of their cab 3030 and it was a neat looking tractor. I think he was going to use it to plow snow.
If you live anywhere near Mifflinburg you should check out the Kiotis at Hoover tractors. They have a CK 20 or 25 with a cab that just might be the ticket but the cab is an add on, I think it is a Sims. Good Luck with your search, you won't regret purchasing a tractor with a cab.

lawn_king · Jan 16, 2007

The 3030 factory cab is very nice, im always warm-cool-dry. Its worth the 4 grand. once you close the door there is a large drop in the noise level, enough so you can really enjoy the stereo.

MessickFarmEqu · Jan 16, 2007

The B3030 factory cab is about $500 more than taking a Sims, Curtis, or whatever and adding heat and installation costs. If your looking at a new tractor, its almost silly not to buy it over an aftermarket.

As I recall, Kubota is the only company selling a tractor in this size with a cab. Deere, Massy, etc do have cabs on compacts - but they are larger models.

Volfandt · Jan 16, 2007

I test drove/worked a B3030 w/cab during a hot 90 degree day last summer and I was sold on it right then and there

It didn't take long for the AC to completely cool the cab, it was nice and quiet and comfortable and the tunes sounded great. The engine didn't seem to loose much if any workable power when running the AC either.
But,,,,, and unfortunately, even the B3030 was just too big for my needs (too many trees w/low over hangs and other obstacles to manuver around so I'd have to use a smaller machine to mow/maintain a good 1/4 of my 4 acres) so unless I relocate or get rid of all the obstacles, I'll just keep my little ole BX23 (that works great btw) and enjoy being one with nature during my most enjoyable seat time