Comparable Tractors for JD 3320

[JimParker]

Guys, I have been lurking, reading, and generally educating myself. I'm reasonably familiar with the John Deere line (I think my wife bleeds green), but I have a much harder time making sense of the other manufacturer's websites.

We're purchasing 10 acres, mostly sloping (terraced) pasture with some scattered trees. Given all that we want to do, we've narrowed down our selection within the JD line to either the 3120 or 3320 (3120 would work, but it's only $300 more to get the 3320, so I'm leaning heavily in that direction).

I'm planning to keep the JD lawn tractor for close-up mowing around the house and "yard" area, so the CUT will be doing mostly mowing (72" MMM), FEL work, and some gravel road maintenance (60" BB). I think I can borrow a brush hog from a neighbor to make the first pass at the 4-foot high coastal grass, but once it's cleaned up, I figure I can keep it down to a reasonable level with the MMM. (Eventually we'll have some cows and horses to help with that.)

Before I go start settle down on the JD 3320, I feel like I should compare to a comparable Kubota, New Holland, and perhaps Massey.

I have to admit that I'm somewhat biased towards the JD line, not for the "usual" reasons, but because I love ergonomics - especially the e-hydro foot pedal arrangement. I have a bad ankle, and it's really hard to raise my heel as it looks like I would have to do on the Kubota and NH. (I've never seen a "live" Massey, but I've read good things on this forum. Does it also have the "rocker" pedal for the hydro?)

So my question for the group is: Which models of these other brands are most comparable to the 3320? Thanks for your feedback!

 

[jbrumberg]

JimParker:

Welcome to TBN ! I have a seriously rebuilt right ankle. After a long rehabilitation period I finally have full range of motion and I find that my NH TC29DA's rocker pedal does not put excessive strain on my ankle. I also like the ergonomics on this tractor that accomodate my aging, increasingly wide body frame. I suggest you test drive the newer NH TC series of tractors, I believe that the TC29DA has been upgraded to the TC31DA but I am not certain. The TC29 has "specs" are comparable/competitive to the 3120. The reason I replied to this post is a word of caution as to using a MMM to mow sloping pasture. The MMM would seriously reduce your ground clearance which you may need. I suggest that you look at rear mounted rotary cutters and/or rear finish mowers as they are easier to attach/detach, they allow for more cutting height variation, and they do not compromise ground clearance if that is a concern. Above all test drive tractors of interest, and just as important talk to dealerships to get a "feel" for the dealer. A good dealer is a valuable resource. Keep the questions coming, the TBN community has extensive experience and "wisdom"; but more importantly we love to help you spend your hard earned money as well as provide you the necessary "justifications" to explain your purchases to the "comptroller"/"She Who Must Be Obeyed" . Jay

 

[Croomrider]

Well, Kubota's website uses their L3130 to campare to the NH TC29-DA and the JD 3320. Take it for what it's worth. I did test drive one of the grand-L series with an HST transmission and was very impressed with how easy the pedal was to operate.

CR

 

[Dmace]

I just built a JD 3320 with HST, MMM, and FEL on their website (real cool feature). It came out to over $26,000 with no other accesories or add-ons and that does not include setup, delivery, sales tax, etc...

If there are any Kioti dealers around you, take a look at the Kioti CK30, for $26,000 I bet you can get a BH too! I can't say enough good things about my Kioti. The JD's just seemed too overpriced for a comparable tractor. The Kioti also has a 4 year parts and labor warranty.

Good Luck !

 

[JD3520]

If you go on the JD website they have a comparison button and give several tractors and their sats. Remember it is set up by JD and may be bias. I bought a JD3520 last year with loader, hog, post hole digger, and rear blade and spent $23,500 I believe (not at home so I don't have the exact numbers). I was comparing the JD3520 with a NH 35 hp tractor with their comparison button. When I saw the the two tractors in person the New Holland tractor was much larger. I say all of this to let you know nothing beats a side-by-side comparison

Just food for thought.

 

[Superduper]

either the 3120 or 3320 (3120 would work, but it's only $300 more to get the 3320, so I'm leaning heavily in that direction).

Hello, I'm not qualified to comment on anything but the Deere as I don't own any other brand so I can't tell you but I can tell you that price was a big consideration for me. Locally, the kubota and new holland dealers weren't interested in dealing too much and for what they were offering, pricewise vs. product capability, it was a no brainer to go with the Deere 3120 which has exceeded my expectations. I looked at both the Kubota line as well as the New Holland line in person. There were many factors before I made the decision and I won't go into them here as I tend to get fairly long winded. But suffice it to say that after comparing everything, I felt that that the 3120 was the best choice for me.

As for the price of the 3320 being only $300 more than the 3120, that is not entirely correct. The 3120 comes standard with eHydro transmission while the 3320 comes standard with gear transmission. The eHydro transmission option is $825. I'll never turn down more horsepower, but you'll need to make your own decision regarding whether the additional horsepower is worth the extra cost. Keep in mind that the Deere tractors come with loadmatch and mine is on all the time. With this, I've never been able to bog/stall the tractor.

 

[aesanders]

The 1533 Massey Fergusen would be the closest Massey tractor to the JD 3320. The hydro pedal is a split pedal design. It is similar to a rocker pedal but has a forward pedal and a rear pedal. It's a nice machine. I don't think it is as ergonomically put together as well as the Deere (none are in my book), but will perform just as well and probably could be had for a little less change.

 

[JimParker]

Well, Kubota's website uses their L3130 to campare to the NH TC29-DA and the JD 3320...

CR

There's part of the problem. When I look at the Kubota website, I only see 4 "L" models: L2800. L3400, L4400, and the Grand L30. People keep referring me to models that I can't find, making me wonder if I'm going nuts! (A distinct possibility... The longer I hang out on this board, the larger and more complex my tractor needs become, and the more implements I feel I can't do without...) Is the L3130 an older model that's no longer made?

 

[JimParker]

The reason I replied to this post is a word of caution as to using a MMM to mow sloping pasture. The MMM would seriously reduce your ground clearance which you may need. I suggest that you look at rear mounted rotary cutters and/or rear finish mowers as they are easier to attach/detach, they allow for more cutting height variation, and they do not compromise ground clearance if that is a concern.

Good point - especially since I have the lawn tractor to trim around obstacles.

but more importantly we love to help you spend your hard earned money as well as provide you the necessary "justifications" to explain your purchases to the "comptroller"/"She Who Must Be Obeyed" . Jay

"She Who Must Be Obeyed" is the family member who bleeds green. And who also insists that we buy "new" instead of "inheriting someone else's problem". I can live with the latter, and she would find a way to forgive me if I really felt like another brand was the way to go. I think.

 

[JimParker]

As for the price of the 3320 being only $300 more than the 3120, that is not entirely correct. The 3120 comes standard with eHydro transmission while the 3320 comes standard with gear transmission. The eHydro transmission option is $825. I'll never turn down more horsepower, but you'll need to make your own decision regarding whether the additional horsepower is worth the extra cost. Keep in mind that the Deere tractors come with loadmatch and mine is on all the time. With this, I've never been able to bog/stall the tractor.

I know there's more difference in the list prices, but my local dealer (AG Power in McKinney, TX) gave me a list of their "standard selling prices" for the 3X20 line, all equipped with e-hydro, and the difference is a little over $300. He said Deere was giving them some incentives on the 3320 and they just pass them through. The jump to the 3520 is closer to $2K.

By the way, these guys have been great to deal with on my smaller lawn tractor, and have been extremely nice to deal with on the CUT, and seem to be offering very competitive pricing (at a very early stage in the buying process), so I'm inclined to buy from them again...

 

[browns40]

Kubota Canada has a nice comparison feature on their website.

Compares the Kubota with the JD & NH in the "same" class spec by spec, but offers no pricing information...

Never has been updated from comparing against JD's 4x10 lineup, but the 3x20's are identical spec-wise, just powered differently/meeting emissions requirements... I believe they also are creating more torque.

4210=3120, 4310=3320, 4410=3520 for comparisons sake.

 

[Croomrider]

There's part of the problem. When I look at the Kubota website, I only see 4 "L" models: L2800. L3400, L4400, and the Grand L30. People keep referring me to models that I can't find, making me wonder if I'm going nuts! (A distinct possibility... The longer I hang out on this board, the larger and more complex my tractor needs become, and the more implements I feel I can't do without...) Is the L3130 an older model that's no longer made?

Jim,

When you get to the page you refer to, click on the Grand L30. It branches to a whole line of tractors they refer to as Grand L's, with 30 being the current series. It comprises six sizes of tractors which are L3130, L3430, L3830, L4330, L4630 and the L5030. The first two digits represent the HP rating of each tractor and the 30 represents the series. Good luck!

CR

 

[390GT]

In my experience the product comparision pages all are biased. One needs to search the Specs. for each model on the manufactures pages, print them out and make comparisions from there . More important is to go look at and hopefully operate each model. Greg

 

[Iowachild]

In my experience the product comparision pages all are biased. One needs to search the Specs. for each model on the manufactures pages, print them out and make comparisions from there . More important is to go look at and hopefully operate each model. Greg

I agree competely with this.

 

[JimParker]

As for the price of the 3320 being only $300 more than the 3120, that is not entirely correct. The 3120 comes standard with eHydro transmission while the 3320 comes standard with gear transmission. The eHydro transmission option is $825.

Seemed odd to me, also. But here's the link to the website:
http://www.ag-power.com/Midfram%203000%2020s%20(2)%2008022006.pdf
On this link, you can see that the 3120 eHydro is $14,774, whereas the 3320 eHydro is $15,035. These guys have always treated me well, (I bought a lawn "tractor" (mower) from them 10 years ago). They always seem to put together some "super-duper" packages for their display at the State Fair of Texas (in Dallas, starting Friday). I'm going to have to go to the fair, just to see what they are offering.

By the way, these seem like pretty competitive prices, considering this is with absolutely no negotiation at all. Do you guys agree?

 

[canoetrpr]

There's part of the problem. When I look at the Kubota website, I only see 4 "L" models: L2800. L3400, L4400, and the Grand L30. People keep referring me to models that I can't find, Is the L3130 an older model that's no longer made?

The Grand L30 refers to a whole series of Grand L tractors vs the L2800, L3400 and L4400 which are the so called "Economy L" series.

Just click on that link and select "Specifications" to take you to the long list of Grand L models.

I think that the L3430 is the best comparison to the L3320. I totally second the idea of going with the extra HP in the same frame. The L3430 is a 34hp model compared to the L3130 - on the same frame with more HP.

On the Kubota's the LA723 loader is optional but it is a must in my opinion if you are going with the Grand L3130, L3430. So if you end up comparing on loaders - this one is the one to compare with.

Other than keeping with the extra HP suggestion, here are some other thoughts:

- The JD3120, 3320, 3520 are really nice tractors. I don't think that you could really go wrong with this series vs. the Kubota Grand L if it "feels" right to you. Definately keep an eye on which dealer will be better for service.

- I think you should rethink the idea of not getting a rotary cutter for you pastures and using a MMM instead. A MMM is great for turf in my opinion but not for pasture. I considered a finishing mower for my pastures - thinking that they were in fairly good shape but would have regretted not getting a rotary cutter. Unless it really is turf - its not level, will have rocks, sticks etc.... and you will be MUCH better of with a rotary cutter for your pastures.

- I would stick to the Grand L or JD 3130, 3330 line vs. the economy line that each manufacturer offerss... particularly if you value the creature comforts. I went with the L3400 and love it but if I were to do it again I think I would find it hard to pass up the opportunity to go with the luxury models.

- Think HARD about some of the little extras and get the negotiated into the deal and done before the tractor is delivered. Much harder to justify adding them later and much more of a hassle (having to pay to send the tractor to the dealer). Some suggestions:

- Rear remotes: 3 of them.
- Hydraulic top and side links (top-n-tilt)
- Loaded tires
- Chain hooks welded on loader bucket
- Implements you will need.

Have fun making your decision.