Is a 3320/3520 to big for my needs?

zr2blz · Mar 31, 2014

topstoy said:
What broke with the 2520, I have the exact same set-up. So far it has not let me down.

Hydraulics, 1st the steering (had to keep turning to go straight). Dealer worked on it and it came back worst (now trans was acting up). Dealer took another shot at it and said they needed new trans / pump system and would take long time to get parts. I waited 4-5 weeks and needed a tractor asap so traded up to 3320. I did put 125 hours on it in 2-3 months.

Below took me 3 weeks 40'x70' x 3-4' deep. Footing for 24'x30' 3 stall. 2520 started acting up right after this. After 1st fix I did some more backhoe'ng (lot was 100+ miles from my home and 120+ from dealer).

600xc4me · Mar 31, 2014

Wow I'm surprised at the amount of votes for something even bigger than 3000 series. I hadn't even remotely considered a 4000 as I thought the 3000 might be to big already lol ill have a closer look at them but I don't think there is any chance of a 4000 series because of the cost, the 3320 is pushing my budget as is. I'm sitting on 10 acres, with only about 3 currently cleared. But I'm glad you mentioned the 4000 series. Ill look into them a bit. I'm open to a used deal if a good one pops up.

DennisFolsom · Mar 31, 2014

If you can find a nice, lightly used, 4XXX series machine, you have the best of both worlds (cost and function). Three years ago, I bought a JD 4600 HST, with loader and backhoe, and only 435 hours on it, for less than half what a new 3XXX with loader and backhoe would cost. Now I have about 750 hours on it. While it's 2 or 3 generations old now, It still performs like new. I love it. I'm glad I didn't go smaller!:cool2:

The 3XXX machines are nice, too. When I look at them on the dealer's lot they look awfully small and narrow, compared to what I'm used to.

sethtex · Apr 1, 2014

I will weigh in with my humble opinion. I just purchased my first tractor larger than a lawn mower. I recently moved to 11 acres of trees and wanted something to help with clearing some of the trees, splitting some wood with a splitter, and clearing snow from about 1,000 ft of driveway with a fairly steep hill. I did alot of online research, at first thinking the Kubota L3800 was the way to go. After watching countless videos of L3800s in action I decided it may not be enough for what I wanted to do. I started looking at other options and really liked the John Deere 5045E. My local dealer got in a barely used 5055E (same size) so I went to check it out, and it was too big. They also had a demo 4720 open station that they had rented out some, actually sitting next to a demo 3720. The 3720 was just too small for me, but a nice tractor for sure. I really liked the size of the 4720 and they offered to put a brand new loader and box blade on it and drop it off at my house to try it out. Here's where I finally get to my point. I used it for a few days navigating through some pretty tight spaces, a few times thinking a 3x20 would work just as well, but then on a few occasions I would push over a really solid stump that took all the power it had (66hp), or curl out a root ball where it took the max loader power, and I realized...THIS is EXACTLY the right tractor for me! I also got the tractor in near mint condition with 600 hours on it for half the list price and a full 2 year warranty. It's your money so buy what you want and enjoy it, I just wanted to share my experience in case it helps you.

DennisFolsom · Apr 1, 2014

sethtex -

Your experience shows that narrowing the field down a bit, then doing a trial, is a good way to go. I like your tractor. One great thing about buying slightly used is that someone else has taken the big hit on depreciation. You and me are in a similar situation in that regard. Our tractors are still worth pretty close to what we paid for them!

arlen4720 · Apr 1, 2014

I would give serious consideration for the 4x20 also. The main reason is that you are talking about handling round bales. I feed my cows with my 4720, and it's not any too big for round bales. You have to go slow and be careful, I would like to have a 5 or 6 series for max safety and stability on slopes with round bales.
Another nice thing about the 4x20's is all the castings are steel, and the rear final drives are planetary.

dusty3030 · Apr 1, 2014

arlen4720 said:
I would give serious consideration for the 4x20 also. The main reason is that you are talking about handling round bales. I feed my cows with my 4720, and it's not any too big for round bales. You have to go slow and be careful, I would like to have a 5 or 6 series for max safety and stability on slopes with round bales. Another nice thing about the 4x20's is all the castings are steel, and the rear final drives are planetary.

I'd agree with that. I feed 4x5's of tight packed Bermuda with a 4120 and it will pucker you a little taking one down from the top triple stacked sometimes.

600xc4me · Apr 2, 2014

What would you guys consider to be lightly used? After how many hours would you no longer look at a used unit? I would love to go new as possible obviously, but the dollars are limited.

I can see areas where I could go bigger and think in my mind that it makes sense. But I'm still not sure about the long term? I'm used to a little 455 garden tractor so anything larger than the 2000 series looks big. Ill look at the 4120 a bit more, but I'm a still unsure that it won't end up being to big. My brother in law finds his 3720 to big for some of the smaller tasks, so I'm thinking I might end up feeling the same way? I would love a demo though!

As for the round bales, I won't be running a farm by any means. Just one bale every couple weeks if it ever comes to that. It's a long term dream but not anywhere near reality for the next 5 years or so. From what I have seen of the 3720, it is to small if you handled a lot of bales on a daily basis, but seems to work fine for the job from time to time.

Where does the kubota L series fit into the JD line up? i was looking at the L3200 at first but felt the chassis was maybe to large, so i moved down to the b3350. I appreciate all the comments! Keep em coming.

El Wood · Apr 2, 2014

600xc4me said:
What would you guys consider to be lightly used? After how many hours would you no longer look at a used unit? I would love to go new as possible obviously, but the dollars are limited. I can see areas where I could go bigger and think in my mind that it makes sense. But I'm still not sure about the long term? I'm used to a little 455 garden tractor so anything larger than the 2000 series looks big. Ill look at the 4120 a bit more, but I'm a still unsure that it won't end up being to big. My brother in law finds his 3720 to big for some of the smaller tasks, so I'm thinking I might end up feeling the same way? I would love a demo though! As for the round bales, I won't be running a farm by any means. Just one bale every couple weeks if it ever comes to that. It's a long term dream but not anywhere near reality for the next 5 years or so. From what I have seen of the 3720, it is to small if you handled a lot of bales on a daily basis, but seems to work fine for the job from time to time. Where does the kubota L series fit into the JD line up? i was looking at the L3200 at first but felt the chassis was maybe to large, so i moved down to the b3350. I appreciate all the comments! Keep em coming.

I also considered lightly used when I bought. What I found out is it's actually cheaper to get a new machine at Deere's 0% interest for 5 years versus a used machine with bank's added interest on the loan. I think JD knows these machines hold their value so they combat buying used with 0% interest on new.