BX1860 vs. BX2660 - Significant Difference Climbing Hills

TripleR · Oct 3, 2011

I have never been on an 1860, so I can't make a comparison. The only thing I can say is that my wife and I love our BX2660; it has plenty of power for mowing, running a 50" reverse rotation tiller, good FEL power and is very comfortable and really stable on steep slopes.

I am sure the 1860 is a nice tractor, we just liked the added power and comfort of the 2660.

ChuckinNH · Oct 3, 2011

Is it possible that the BX2660 still has some warranty. It doesn't seem to me they have been out that long, but I guess they have. I think the BX1860 would handdle all the chores you outline on your slopes, and I have been drawn to them too, but in the end I guess I would probably end up with the slightly larger BX. I have a somewhat larger unit for "tractor" work, but the impements I have could mostly still be run by a BX2360. They would be borderline on the BX1860 for sure. That is something to consider with your woods. Down the road you might enjoy tractor work enough to do more there, and want something with more clearance. The larger BX tractors are more interchangable with B size implements.

fclick · Oct 3, 2011

Thanks for the input, everybody.

I've dismissed the B-series at this point because I don't require the clearance and I do require the stability of the smaller machines. Originally I started out thinking B-series and have been talked out of it at every stage.

The BX2660 has low hours (100 or so) but is nearly out of warranty. It appears to be in great shape.

I could definitely price and consider the BX2360 new (and/or used) - I'll work on that today.

To clarify, I'm not building a house...I've purchased a relatively new house that requires some significant work to get it where I want it. At this stage, I'd rather keep my savings to deal with costs associated with the house, but I will not make a decision to buy an inadequate tractor based on that. The land that won't be mowed is primarily wooded...While I imagine I'll do work on that land eventually, my todo list for the 2 acres of pasture/garden/lawn will necessarily keep me busy for a few years.

Thanks again for the replies - helpful as always.

Kevinc2004 · Oct 3, 2011

I chose the BX1860 last year and i have NOT been sorry. I mow 3/4 acre of grass with PLENTY of obstacles. Mine handles the LA203 loader well, and i also got a 48 in disc harrow, 4 ft box blade and a single foot ripper to break up this wonderful NC red clay. Parker Farm Supply loaded my tires for the front end loader, and it is very stable on my hilly yard. The biggest difference is the manuverability as the BX1860 will turn in the same area as my old Deere 100 series mower!

wawajake · Oct 3, 2011

Ask the owner of the used BX2660 if he has had an troubles with the oring leaking on the hydraulic valve block (under the battery box) it would of happened if he had heavy FEl work use in those 100 hours. Many of the BX models had some problems with flares being wrong, and dealers fixed many.
(do search of my threads for more details) That being said my BX2660 has 380 hours on it now ( 2008 model) and the only time it was in shop was for the oring problems. I do my own maintenence because it is pretty easy. (see other threads on that. I use my BX2660 for firewood from my bushlot and winter driveway work and I am on hilly land her in Ontario Canada . I suggest that you need for extra HP for hills is valid , but also the extra HP you will have at the rear PTO will be important, because you may think now that you won't buy other implements. BUT YOU WILL ...... see the lists of implements on signature lines of everyone , you just can't help but see what else your machine can help you with, woodchipping , rototiller, snowblower.
100 hours on a machine is not that much . The flare problem might already be fixed , or if not it might be $500 to have done , but I suspect warranty might still apply because a service bulliten exists.

chucko · Oct 3, 2011

newdeal said:
The 2360 and 2660 can run a 60" deck, the 1860 is only a 54". If you are mowing two acres you may want the bigger deck (I did anyway). Also the 2660 has a nicer seat which can be important depending on your butt lol. The 1860 is a smaller tractor with less capacity. If I were you I would price out a new 2360 and compare to the price of the new 1860. As far as slopes go both will handle them the same except if they are steep and you are mowing the 1860 may slow down a bit more going up hill

the 1860 is only a 54". really? I run a 60" deck on my bx1800 when I bought mine the bx1500 was the only one limited to 54"

Danner · Oct 3, 2011

With that much land, I would (actually I did) go for the larger, more powerful machine. I don't think you'd ever regret the choice.

CHDinCT · Oct 3, 2011

I had a BX1860 for 2 years and now a BX25 which is basically a BX2360 with the addition of the backhoe and backhoe frame. The only times I actually noticed the hp difference was running my wood chipper (the BX25 would bog down less on larger limbs) and when starting up my 54" MMM deck. The BX1860 would put out a belch of black smoke when engaging the mid PTO while the smoke from the BX25 is almost undetectable. Once turning, they both ran the MMM just fine.

Not sure you would notice the hp difference mowing or going up a hill except if you had a max load on the 3PH. I will say that there is a tendency to find jobs and uses for your tractor that you did not envision at purchase, some of which benefit from higher PTO horsepower.