Good Dealers?

jwstewar · Jul 23, 2004

I meant to post this earlier, but it slipped my mind. Gettin' old I guess. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I bought my tractor from Cross and Sons in Jackson, OH. They have been great to deal with. They had the best price of any of the NH dealers I had looked at. They were even willing to get real close on price to that of a Kubota B7500 even though it was a smaller, "economy" tractor (no disrespect intended /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif). I got a couple of hats, a keychain, and a couple of toys for the kids and deals on other toys for the kids.

After I had made the deal on the tractor I decided that I wanted the block heater and the grill guard. I called him on a Saturday (I made the deal on Wednesday) and the tractor was to be delivered the following Saturday (he had to get one) to tell him that I wanted the guard and heater and them to install them as well. Didn't miss a beat had them installed and the tractor delivered when promised.

I had a couple of minor issues when I first got it. At that point the farmers were starting to hit him pretty hard and we talked and he asked if it were already if he didn't come for 2 or 3 weeks as the farmers were "killing him." I wasn't down, so I said no problem. By the they picked the tractor up I was close to 50 hours so I had been asking about the cost of the filters (I did not negotiate a free 50 hour maintenance). I told him I would get back to him if I wanted him to send them with the driver when he brought the tractor back. I forgot to call him back, he remembered to send the filters. Dropped them there at the house even though nobody was even there to pay for the filters and trusted me well enough to pay him. Even though we had only talked a few times.

Again I have no complaints other then I wish I had more money to go back and buy more toys .....er tools (well toys too for the kids /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif) from him.

Yankee · Jul 23, 2004

"They were even willing to get real close on price to that of a Kubota B7500 even though it was a smaller, "economy" tractor (no disrespect intended ). "

The flip side of this characterization was given in another post recently to the effect that one difference between the compact tractor market and the larger tractor market was that the latter aren't taken in by all the marketing BS represented by "deluxe" features.

SO ... *you* can feel good about not overpaying for them! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Poncho · Jul 24, 2004

I can also vouch for the dealership KiotiJohn mentioned... Big Tractor Supply. At KJ's recommendation, I contacted them about a Kioti.... talked to Dave. Very personable over the phone, answered all my questions.... and even said some nice things about KJ! The only local dealership I've been happy or impressed with is South Georgia Tractor supply on South Monroe here in Tallahassee. The salesman came out and spent time with me... got keys, let me drive several tractors (Kubota) and did everything to earn my business. I was most impressed with dealerships outside the Tallahasse area.... Swearingens Equipment (Massey & JD) in Marianna, Dermott Tractor (Massey & Mahindra) in Moultrie Georgia and Gordon Tractor in Madison (NH & Kubota). All these dealerships offered any information and pricing asked, offered to get keys and let me drive any tractor..... something the local JD & MF dealerships didn't offer. I've had mixed experiences with Tallahasse NH, with the last being good. They actually stayed after closing (got there right at closing on a Saturday) and they let me drive a TN65 and worked up pricing (I thought $24m was a little steep for a "program" tractor).

jwstewar · Jul 26, 2004

Oh, but the one "deluxe" feature that I got that I really do like is the position control. It was worth the little difference in price by itself. Let alone the HP. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

chrise · Aug 17, 2004

I'd liek to recommend Jim at Northeastern Forklift in Epsom, NH - he couldn't have been nicer to deal with and I think I got a pretty good deal.

Mahindra 2015HST with FEL $12,500
Sitrex conical spreader $425
Woods 6 ft rake $630
Woods gauge wheels for 6 ft rake $235
Woods 60" blade $450
4X6 utility trailer $575
Woods 48" brush bull cutter $1095

total about $16K of which $12,600 or so was at 0% financing.

Todd_C · Nov 30, 2004

I enjoyed dealing with Boone Tractor in Salem, VA. They also have another store in Bedford, VA. If you go to the Salem dealership ask for Pat. This dealership is located off exit 134 on I-81.

Bob_Skurka · Nov 30, 2004

I can't speak highly enough about DON BALES TRACTOR in Lowell, Indiana. They don't always have the best prices, but they are always fair. They offer Kubota, Cub Cadet, Case/Farmall. Located on Rt 2. Gary Bales is the guy to deal with.

For New Holland, Dixie Chopper, Land Pride & Branson the dealer to go to is DeJong Equipment in Beecher, Illinois. They have a large ag client base, big service, sales and rental equipment departments and are easy to deal with. Their prices have always be at or near the lowest I've gotten and their service is exceptional. Dick Zimmerman is a great guy there, but I've bought from a couple others and everyone is great there. I called them on the phone, having never seriously talked to anyone in the dealership before that phone call when I wanted to "look at" a TC24 they ordered one in for me to look at and asked me exactly what I might want, they ordered the tractor that I thought I wanted and called me when it arrived later that week. I was allowed to play with it in any way I wanted, in fact they ordered it HOPING to sell it to me, but said if I didn't want it that was fine. The first day I actually met and "seriously" talked to anyone there was after that machine arrived. And they had prices lower than big internet dealers.

For Ventrac the guys up a Central Lawn & Turf in Wisconsin cannot be beat. Don is the owner and a great guy. I wanted to try a Ventrac, he sent one down to me (about a 5 or 6 hour drive) for me to try, with no obligation to buy. How can you beat that?

Jubal · Nov 30, 2004

I bought a DX48 Case/Farmall from Raders Equipment in Bremen, IN (just a mile away) . Highly recommend this dealership. They are fair, honest, and obliging. Learned a lot from Dave. He can make good suggestions for newbys such as myself. Confirmed most of what I learned on this excellent web site ! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Regards, Jubal

keeney · Nov 30, 2004

From my previous post concerning buying my used tractor from a dealer in another state based on the JD MachineFinder website:

I was very happy with the sales process considering the machine came from a dealer in another state. Greg Pearson at Holland's West in Princeton IL made the buying process work remotely, including staying late Saturday afternoon when we drove down from MN to pick it up.

...

When we arrived, the machine was all shiny and cleaned up (not dirty as shown in the photo) and had new oil, filters and lube. Also, the mower gaurds were all in place, and the ROPs had been re-installed. They also had found all the user and installation manuals to go with the machine.

They also helped me load everything onto my truck and trailer.

To top it off, they added a "choice" of a toy from the showroom for my wife.

Considering that I am an out-of-state customer, their level of courtesy, flexibility, and assistance greatly exceeded my expectations.

I am taking delivery of a new snow blower for this machine from a local dealer next week. Hopefully they will provide as good as service as Holland's did!

Update:

Greg at Hollands sent me a Christmas card that year. The machine has had no un-expected issues that I dodn't know about before I bought it, and I have yet to have as good of an experience with any other tractor dealer (some have been OK, others mediocre to poor).

- Rick

rpeter · Dec 1, 2004

This thread is a good idea KiotiJohn. Thanks for starting it. I have not made my tractor purchase yet so I can not yet add to the thread. Hopefully I will be able to next spring. I enjoy spending my extra time on Tractorbynet, but there never seems to be enough time to read all I want. Do you think there is any way the site could condense this list and keep adding to the condensed version as the list gets long. Just a thought! You "old timers" keep posting so I can keep learning!! <font color="black"> </font>