B3030 or L3430 or ?

[ronjhall]

Last year I thought about moving up to a Grande L tractor. Did a lot of comparison. Decided that the 3430 was a better tractor than the 3130. Checking spec's on the 3240. The 3240 does not have as much HP as the 3430. 1 hp may not be much but task like bush hogging can use all the HP available.
I do not believe you will need weights on the tractor.
As you have already stated. A 5' MD BH would be to much for a B series tractor. I have a JD 5' LD rotary cutter for my B2910 (B3030 replaced this model) It is about all the tractor can handle.

 

[IslandTractor]

A 5' MD BH would be to much for a B series tractor. I have a JD 5' LD rotary cutter for my B2910 (B3030 replaced this model) It is about all the tractor can handle.

Why buy a tractor to fit a bush hog when the total amount of bush hogging is six acres four times a year. That is not MD bush hog territory. Sell the MD and get a 5ft LD bush hog which is more than adequate.

 

[bill333]

That's a good idea...unfortunately, the BH doesn't belong to me! I was just trying to see, all else being equal (if that is ever possible) if I could avoid buying a new BH for my infrequent use. I'd rather put the money on the right tractor and get something like the extra hydraulics and a grapple attachment for the bucket, and/or whatever else...

 

[bill333]

Last year I thought about moving up to a Grande L tractor. Did a lot of comparison. Decided that the 3430 was a better tractor than the 3130. Checking spec's on the 3240. The 3240 does not have as much HP as the 3430. 1 hp may not be much but task like bush hogging can use all the HP available.
I do not believe you will need weights on the tractor.
As you have already stated. A 5' MD BH would be to much for a B series tractor. I have a JD 5' LD rotary cutter for my B2910 (B3030 replaced this model) It is about all the tractor can handle.

Ronjhall...did you buy that 3430? And did you find out any other differences between the 3430 and the 3420 except the new HST?

 

[IslandTractor]

That's a good idea...unfortunately, the BH doesn't belong to me! I was just trying to see, all else being equal (if that is ever possible) if I could avoid buying a new BH for my infrequent use. I'd rather put the money on the right tractor and get something like the extra hydraulics and a grapple attachment for the bucket, and/or whatever else...

By getting the B rather than L (I haven't priced them recently so I don't know the exact price differential) I assume you would save enough to buy your own bush hog ($800-900) (by the way, we tend to use the abreviation BH to mean backhoe not bush hog on TBN) and still have money left over to buy an appropriately sized lightduty grapple (700+) and maybe even the rear remotes (400). For the type of work you are doing, using the available budget for a B3030 armed with these extras would give you a more efficient tractor set up than a bigger L series tractor without the extras.

 

[ronjhall]

Ronjhall...did you buy that 3430? And did you find out any other differences between the 3430 and the 3420 except the new HST?

Nope. The price for the L3430 was about $7000 more than I wanted to spend. Decided to keep the B. None of my B attachments would fit the L.

 

[lawn_king]

Nope. The price for the L3430 was about $7000 more than I wanted to spend. Decided to keep the B. None of my B attachments would fit the L.

Thats where i landed ron. When i purchased my B3030 all my implements were performance matched to my B7500.

 

[bill333]

By getting the B rather than L (I haven't priced them recently so I don't know the exact price differential) I assume you would save enough to buy your own bush hog ($800-900) (by the way, we tend to use the abreviation BH to mean backhoe not bush hog on TBN) and still have money left over to buy an appropriately sized lightduty grapple (700+) and maybe even the rear remotes (400). For the type of work you are doing, using the available budget for a B3030 armed with these extras would give you a more efficient tractor set up than a bigger L series tractor without the extras.

Thanks for the tip on abbreviations! I think this is good advice. I think at this point I'm going to have to take my wish list and get a series of quotes for the B and both L's. Difficulty here is that there is one local dealer, pretty close by, but he is so bad that no one buys anything from him (I can't believe Kabota lets him stay in business -- everyone drives 2 hours away to avoid him). But no one will do quotes over the phone or by fax (it's amazing isn't it -- you can buy a car or a computer or whatever online, but can't get a tractor quote!) so it kills a day by the time you go to to the dealer, wait for them to get off the phone, wait for them to look up everything in various phone book sized price lists, etc etc...Whining aside, I am looking forward to the purchase!

 

[Jaybr]

What part of VA are you in? I'm outside Richmond and recently purchased a Kioti. I was shopping for a Kubota but wasn't real happy with any of the 3 dealers around here, prices where high and none had a B3030 that I was interested in.

If your not opposed to driving a bit, try Carver Equipment in NC. They sent me a quote via email, and where priced a good bit lower than local dealers.

 

[crbr]

Carver's is a good place to do business.