Northland
Platinum Member
I have been one of the people vacillating between buying a used B20/21 or a BX23/24 for some time. I have pretty much decided to buy the BX23 or 24 this week but wanted some advice as to what all you guys with experience would suggest.
I live in Northern Ontario, in a mountainous area, just north of Lake Superior and Michigan. My 16 acres of maple forest is hilly and rocky. I had an excavator put in some trails a few years ago and I need the TLB to pull wood out of the forest, plough snow (10+ feet each winter), dig holes, move some of the smaller rocks around and do general landscaping. My land is surrounding by 10000 acres of railway land that has just been selectively logged so I can easily hook up to the skidder trails to pull out the left-behind maple tree tops. Since moving here 4 years ago I have a had a guy with a plough truck come in and plough my 100 yard driveway for $400/season.
The Kubota dealer 40 miles east of me has a used B20 with 800 hours for CDN$19000, a new BX23 for CDN $19986 or a new BX24 for CDN $21236. I could also go down to Michigan and buy a new MFGC2310 for US$16000 (CDN$ 17920) or go south to Flint and buy a used GC2310 w/128 hours for US$13500 ($15120). As much as I would like to save $ there if I go with either MF I would have to buy a trailer (US $2250) and trailer the MF back to Canada. There are no MF dealers any where near me in Canada so I would have trailer it to the US for warranty work-crossing the border is a real pain at times.
So, I am leaning toward the Kubota's as the dealer is local and will deliver either unit to my door. He will also pick the unit up for servicing as he has parts being delivered in and around the area often. I would prefer to find a used 16" tandem trailer in the next few months and save myself a $1000 or so. Also I thought I use the loader to plough snow this winter and buy the front blower next winter. I have tried to think through the B20/21 vs BX series and I figure that the smaller units would be more versatile for me and I could hire a big backhoe (as I have done in the past) when I need some serious grunt work done. I do use a 65cc Husqvarna chainsaw, a 26cc JD chainsaw and a 36cc Husqvarna clearing saw for bucking firewood and keeping my trails clear so I am aware of the benefits of power.
For $1250 more the BX24 seems to offer the following benefits over the BX23 that appeal to me: higher departure angle on backhoe (good for my hills), 2" higher ground clearance - 8.7"?, curved backhoe, hidden hoses, more foot room and lever boots. The ground additional ground clearance and departure angle seem to be worth the extra cash.
I also want to buy the BX thumb and skidplates from Bro-tek who is on this forum. That and a tooth bar as well as a block heater.
Any suggestions or comments on my rationale for buying what I think I need would be appreciated. Sorry for the long story but I have been waiting too long to buy myself something and I want to get it right
I live in Northern Ontario, in a mountainous area, just north of Lake Superior and Michigan. My 16 acres of maple forest is hilly and rocky. I had an excavator put in some trails a few years ago and I need the TLB to pull wood out of the forest, plough snow (10+ feet each winter), dig holes, move some of the smaller rocks around and do general landscaping. My land is surrounding by 10000 acres of railway land that has just been selectively logged so I can easily hook up to the skidder trails to pull out the left-behind maple tree tops. Since moving here 4 years ago I have a had a guy with a plough truck come in and plough my 100 yard driveway for $400/season.
The Kubota dealer 40 miles east of me has a used B20 with 800 hours for CDN$19000, a new BX23 for CDN $19986 or a new BX24 for CDN $21236. I could also go down to Michigan and buy a new MFGC2310 for US$16000 (CDN$ 17920) or go south to Flint and buy a used GC2310 w/128 hours for US$13500 ($15120). As much as I would like to save $ there if I go with either MF I would have to buy a trailer (US $2250) and trailer the MF back to Canada. There are no MF dealers any where near me in Canada so I would have trailer it to the US for warranty work-crossing the border is a real pain at times.
So, I am leaning toward the Kubota's as the dealer is local and will deliver either unit to my door. He will also pick the unit up for servicing as he has parts being delivered in and around the area often. I would prefer to find a used 16" tandem trailer in the next few months and save myself a $1000 or so. Also I thought I use the loader to plough snow this winter and buy the front blower next winter. I have tried to think through the B20/21 vs BX series and I figure that the smaller units would be more versatile for me and I could hire a big backhoe (as I have done in the past) when I need some serious grunt work done. I do use a 65cc Husqvarna chainsaw, a 26cc JD chainsaw and a 36cc Husqvarna clearing saw for bucking firewood and keeping my trails clear so I am aware of the benefits of power.
For $1250 more the BX24 seems to offer the following benefits over the BX23 that appeal to me: higher departure angle on backhoe (good for my hills), 2" higher ground clearance - 8.7"?, curved backhoe, hidden hoses, more foot room and lever boots. The ground additional ground clearance and departure angle seem to be worth the extra cash.
I also want to buy the BX thumb and skidplates from Bro-tek who is on this forum. That and a tooth bar as well as a block heater.
Any suggestions or comments on my rationale for buying what I think I need would be appreciated. Sorry for the long story but I have been waiting too long to buy myself something and I want to get it right