Down to Orange

[dlroy101]

John,

I do appreciate the reply and if I was going to be clearing large portions of the property I know a larger tractor would have been in order. I did hesitate to eliminate the larger tractors on my list, but knew after really thinking about it that they just weren't going to work for me. I could just see myself trying to squeeze between trees and banging into them constantly. I might have some of the same problems with the smaller tractors, but hopefully not as many. The tractors that remain on my list are not too far apart in performance, so the decision has become tougher now.

Thanks again,
Darrell

 

[daTeacha]

Well, they say bigger is better and if you really need a backhoe, that is pretty much true. On the other hand, I've moved a lot of lumber and logs with my subcompact B7100DT which weighs in at less than 1300 lb, loader and all, and had only 16 engine hp when new. It has an unknown number of hours on it since the previous owner disconnected the hour meter at 1490 or so. It's about 25 years old.

I've used it in the woods, carrying or dragging logs of decent size but nothing really big. A 12' piece of hickory 15" in diameter is about all it will lift and it's pretty tippy both side to side and front to back with that load, even with a 6' blade hanging on the back. Are you doing actual logging, or just cleaning up the woods, maybe after a logging operation?

If dragging logs, the trick is to keep the front of the log off the ground so it doesn't plow a furrow, in which case you want to get something strong enough to lift it or you want to get or make a wheeled cradle which picks the log up when you move forward. A big tractor is pretty hard on the woods. I had my place logged with horses. The loggers had a 50 hp NH which they used for directed falls only, but I can still easily see the ruts the thing left when a tree dragged it backwards as it fell. The horses and cradles did so little damage that people came by the next summer and asked if I had decided against the logging.

I'm looking to move up in size for stability and ergonomics, but don't rule out the little guys when considering a tractor. You can do a lot if you aren't in a big hurry.

 

[LouVA]

I bought a used B2410 last spring and put 60 hours on it this past summer cutting about 15 acres of grass with a 5' KingKutter finish cutter on very steep hills in the western Virginia Alleghenies near the West VA border. I drove it up from central Florida on a single axle 5 X 8 flat bed trailer into these mountains with a 4 cylinder Subaru Forester some 800 miles north. Without any equpment it weighs about 1450 lbs. and fit right on my small 1 ton trailer. It's so easy and fun to drive that I am disappointed when I run out of fields to cut. I have only a 5' scraper blade for it besides the cutter since I do not farm.

 

[dlroy101]

I have quotes from two different dealers on the models I'm interested in. They are:

B7610 - (1) $13,300 and (2) $13,800
B2410 - (1) N/A and (2) $13,400
B7800 - (1) $14,650 and (2) $15,400
B2630 - (1) $15,250 and (2) $15,900
B3030 - (1) $16,550 and (2) $17,100

5% MD Sales Tax would need to be added. I like both dealers. Both said they would deliver to my home. Dealer 2 is only 10 minutes from home. Right now I'm thinking it's between the B2410 or the B7800. My wife likes the B2410. For her the smaller the better. It's a tough decision.

Darrell

 

[daTeacha]

Have you told each dealer you are shopping hard between the two of them? You might get some service work or other goodies thrown to sweeten the pot a little. Drive around the area and look for Kubota's in private hands. It seems nuts, but stop in and ask the owners where they got their tractor and why. In other words, get references about the dealerships to help you make up your mind.

In all the discussions I've read here about which tractor to buy, nearly everyone agrees that the dealer is the single most important since the tractors can more or less all get the job done.

 

[flusher]

Don't know where your pain threshold is on bottom line price, but here's what I paid for my setup last May:

B7510HST with LA302 FEL ---$12,600
KK brush hog (48") ---------- $675 at TSC
KK box blade (48") ---------- $375 at TSC
Used Yanmar RS1200 rototiller (48") -------- $300

Don't know if the B7510 is enough machine for your needs, but it's around 2000 pounds with the FEL. You could get by with a $2500-$3000 double axle trailer to haul the tractor/FEL.

You'll have to figure out how to get your implements to your site, unless you want to leave them there. For example, my KK brush hog weighs about 425lb. You'll need space on the trailer for it if you want to truck it back and forth.

Problems, problems.

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I'm going to leave you in the good hands of those experienced with the machines you have in mind. )</font>

Ah, another broken promise. I always knew I was cut out for public office - when I move to Washington I'll look you up. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif


B3030. B3030. In conclusion, B3030.

 

[cmperry]

I have used a B7510 all summer now on 10 acres and have used it hard. No trouble hauling (3).. 8 inch white birch, tree length,,,box blading 300ft of driveway,,and alot of general things that need to be done while building a new home. My advise is to forget about the B7610 and use the money difference on implements,,$1000 is alot for the small pto HP difference. I have a co worker with a B7510 and a 60 inch snowblower here in Maine and he has never been lost for pto HP. I have not ran up against anything that 1-2 pto Hp would have cured. Tried the B7800...nice tractor but alot more money...go slow and they both can do the same job..

 

[cart99]

Hi neighbor sort of. I live in Lovettsville and my sister-in-law lives in Capon Bridge. I'd say get the biggest tractor you can afford, which would probably be the B7800, but splurge on the B2630 or B3030 if you can wing it. The "nice" features are really worth the extra money.

I don't want to complicate your decision too much, but you should consider giving Neil Messick a shot at your deal also. His Kubota dealership is not that far from Frederick. He's got a solid reputation and is active on these forums, which I considered a major plus.

Also, feel free to PM me on local dealers, my opinions, etc... I own a B3030, and three of my neighbors have Kubotas so I'm familiar with several of the tractors on your short list.

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

To all:

I'd like to elaborate on my previous post. I don't want to come across as being insensitive to, or ignorant of, the cold hard reality that we can't always get what we want, and are darn lucky if we have all that we need. (I wanted a Holder C8.72HF, but that's another story).

It's just that a tractor purchase is a very big decision for most of us, and we'll probably be sitting on that tractor for a long, long time. Once you're sitting on it, you can never cough up the extra cash and turn it into the tractor you might wish you had bought. You usually get one shot at it per many years. Regret is a terrible feeling to have, for me at least. I've eaten a lot of spaghetti and beans to get the tractor I wanted, but I have very few, if any, regrets.

Why B3030, B3030, B3030? First, I think the 2410 is a little too much on the small side for the tasks described (and tasks unforeseen) and the acreage involved. After all, larger tractors such as the L3400 and NH TC33 were under consideration, but had to be ruled out due to weight/towing considerations. Plus, I would hate to give up that middle hydro range. To me, that leaves the 7800 (and it's "kissing cousins"), and that leads directly to the 3030. (OK, or maybe the 2630 - insert Tim Allen snarl here). There's a great thread - "B3030 vs. B7800". For anyone in Darrell's situation, I think it's worth reading. The consensus in it, and elsewhere, is that the extra $1,700 or so is definitely worth it. It's not like I'm advocating leather seats and a Bose stereo.

That thread points out many of the plusses. Proportional 3PH vs. quarter-inching (HUGE IMHO); telescoping 3PH arms; independent PTO; hydrostatic power steering; better cruise control (OK, so I never use mine); and the creature comforts: tilt wheel, better seat, or so I've heard (good seat = better seat time?), cup holder (HUGE /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif); and with all apologies to the B7800 owners that I'm ticking off, I think the 3030 just plain looks cooler, dare I say more "modern"?

I'd add to that list the very important fact (again IMHO) that the rated power is developed at 2600 rpm vs. 2900, and that HAS to mean longer engine life, and probably quieter operation. And it weighs only 111 lbs. more than the 7800. Very towable.

I've read a few posts about guys converting the 7800 over to telescoping 3PH arms for $200-300; asking how to convert the quarter-inching 3PH to proportional; trading in a 7800 with low hours for a 3030; and others expressing REGRETS, there's that ugly word again, about not having gotten the B3030. Nowhere have I heard anyone say "darn, why on earth did I waste my money, I wish I'd gotten the 7800 instead".

So there it is, and to all the B7800 owners out there, please take this post in the spirit in which it is written; to paraphrase Marc Antony, I come not to bury the 7800, but to praise the 3030. I am absolutely sure that the 7800 is rugged, reliable, and powerful (hey, it's a Kubota) and can do more in 100 hours than I could do in a lifetime. There's just so much bang for the buck in going for the 3030 (similar to the step up from the B3030 to the Lxx30) that it makes bank robbery seem a lot more understandable - in fact, just short of acceptable.

We can't always get what we want - but isn't it awfully nice when we do?

Man, am I going to get slammed - oh well, nice knowing y'all /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

John D.