JD Next generation TLB, replacement for the 110

[Piston]

We've all heard that the 110 TLB, that so many people love, has been discontinued. Are there any rumors of any sort of replacement for it?

I can't imagine JD completely giving up on the compact dedicated TLB segment. As of now, there really isn't anything to compete with the M59. I'd imagine JD would be working on a larger, more powerful TLB than the 110 was, to compete with the M59. Hopefully, it would come with a factory cab available! :thumbsup:

It would be nice to see something like the M59 with just a bit more power at the PTO, and maybe one of those fancy cabs that the Deeres are so famous for.

Anyone have any inside scoop? What would you like to see in the next generation Deere TLB?

 

[kennyd]

I "heard" they where not going to replace or update it. The downturn in the economy sent the sales into the toilet since most of them went to small/medium sized builders, contractors, and construction companies.

 

[dave1949]

I'm sure a smallish TLB has it's uses, but skid-steers and mini-ex's have to be tough to compete against in that market segment.

 

[jenkinsph]

I haven't heard anything about a replacement for the 110 and am glad I was able to get a new one when I did. I was concerned when Deere dropped the 110 as I think it is a very convenient size tlb for my uses with alot of transporting. Kubota's L45 and M59 are very good machines too so atleast this segment of the market is still well covered. All of these are good machines for a wide variety of small jobs but if you have alot of larger jobs the choices open up quite a bit and the larger backhoes and excavators will dig faster and deeper. The larger machines are more task specific though and if you wan't the tlb flexibility the M59 is a good choice in new equipment.

There are times I could use a larger tractor, excavator, wheel loader and the truck trailer to move them but I am not willing to go to all the expense in todays economy. While the larger equipment is more efficient for the big jobs it still takes alot of time and money and good jobs to pay for it.

My point is that you can always wish for a little more power, lift and reach and that is never ending. For your clearing work I would still recommend you get an excavator in there that can pluck out those stumps without fooling around. Whether it is smart to buy it or hire it is the more important question.

 

[Piston]

I can see the point about the skidsteer and mini ex combo being a much better situation for contractors, but I feel like there is a decent market for these in the "homeowner" segment. There are a lot of us who spend some considerable coin on brand new, very expensive tractors, and I would think that the TLB sort of fits into that category as well? It seems like the majority of the 110, L35, L48, and M59 owners are using them for more personal use and not commercial.
Then again, I guess it takes a LOT of wealthy homeowners to make it worthwhile for the manufacturer to produce them, so I can see both sides of the discussion. I believe that something like the M59 with more PTO HP would sell better, but I know there is a tradeoff there too, the more power you want in the PTO, the less you get for hydraulics, assuming the same size engine. Of course you can put a bigger engine in but also increase the cost.

I know some people use them for commercial use and can see the argument about it not being far off in price than the full sized TLB's used in construction, which are obviously a lot more capable.

Steve, do you use your 110 or 4720 more for jobs? Do you think a higher HP M59 would be a good fit for someone like you? Or is 2 machines still better? I see the advantage of 2 separate machines more and more lately.
I posted this more as a discussion to see if JD was planning any replacements. I always like to see what tractors/equipment they're coming out with. I completely agree that for my clearing project the ex is the way to go, even a higher powered M59 would be no comparison in clearing effectiveness.

There's no plan on the horizon for Kubota to stop making the M59 right? That'd be a shame.

 

[capt_met]

I use a Bobcat B300 commercially. I would have liked the 110 but there were a few issues that made it less appealing. The lack of a spin around seat, inability to lift a 3600 lb. block and no factory cab has kept me n the Bobcat. The M59 seems like it would be a good fit but I can't find one locally to demo or rent prior to purchase. Also, Kubota still has no factory cab. At this point I'm probably going to end up with a full size used tlb and mid sized tractor. Both these can purchased for the same price or less than a 59, especially one with a cab. I guess this is what makes this size machine so tough to build. when the price gets too high it opens more options for skid steer/ mini ex combo's or full sized machine slightly used. If john deere would build one I would definitly buy one though.

 

[Rock knocker]

I'm sure a smallish TLB has it's uses, but skid-steers and mini-ex's have to be tough to compete against in that market segment.

I see 110-sized machines going the way of 40 hp dozers like the old JD 300 and 350's, and thre IH 500C. Peole using it for work need more umph.

 

[dave1949]

I see 110-sized machines going the way of 40 hp dozers like the old JD 300 and 350's, and thre IH 500C. Peole using it for work need more umph.

Can't say from personal experience, but I think a tracked skid steer and a tracked mini ex have to be more productive than a wheeled TLB of similar capacity and oomph. For machines doing similar-sized jobs, time is money for contractors.

I guess it depends on other things too. If you have a 110 tlb, you can trailer it about anywhere in one trip, and you have a hoe and bucket on-site when you get there.

 

[jenkinsph]

In a perfect world you could choose the machine best suited for each project. In my world I make do with what I have.



Piston,
I probably use my 110 a little more than the 4520. I prefer having the separate machines for convenience and quite often have both of them working at the same time. If I need something larger I would consider adding a wheel loader, excavator and larger tractor but I would keep what I have for the close quarters and small jobs. Skidsteers have their good points but are not as well suited for my work as articulated wheel loaders, my money would go for a 10k to 14k lb wheel loader. Another way to go might be with a 210LJ landscape loader with 3PH and all hydraulics to cover loader and larger tractor in a single package and then get a larger excavator to dig.

capt_met,
The 110 size has its limitations but i ordered the Laurin cab with mine and have been well satisfied with it. I would prefer to have more fel capacity sometimes but 90% of the time it works well and I feel that is about par for the course. If you have enough room to use it a larger backhoe will certainly outperform the 110.

 

[jenkinsph]

Can't say from personal experience, but I think a tracked skid steer and a tracked mini ex have to be more productive than a wheeled TLB of similar capacity and oomph. For machines doing similar-sized jobs, time is money for contractors.

I guess it depends on other things too. If you have a 110 tlb, you can trailer it about anywhere in one trip, and you have a hoe and bucket on-site when you get there.

And a compact tractor with top n tilt hitch too.

 

[AKfish]

When you're a "hobby" contractor and taking on projects that fill-in here and there and make you a bit of money that adds to what "you really do to support yourself and family" the 110 is/was a great platform. It's OK to drop the hoe and hook up the 3pt hardware to do the landscaping chores. Just takes a bit more time. Or, it's OK that the hoe will only effectively work with crawl-space sized excavations. You don't take on those full basement jobs.

Or, the loader won't pick up full pallets of sod or pavers. You just off-load a few from the pallets - by hand. Just a bit more time; is all.

But... when you grow and expand and take on the bigger jobs or you decide that being a full-time plumber or electrician is not what you like doing, anyway - and then make the move into full basement digs and trenching in irrigation lines, etc.

The 110 is not "efficient" enough any more. Time is money... and getting the work done efficiently with fewer missteps and fubars is how you stay competitive and in business.

The market niche for the part-time, small job contractor shriveled; dried up with the economic downturn. The bigger guys started working lower in the food chain and competing with those part-time guys. The small job guys quit - moved on.

Deere, etc. sold fewer units. Closed the line down.

I hated to see it. That's life..

AKfish

 

[AKfish]

But... the real question is: do you think the construction, home-building, real estate, landscaping businesses are robust enough to support a small-TLB entry by Deere? How about home owner's... do you think there are enough home-owner's in the country interested in a small TLB and/or willing to take on additional debt to buy a small TLB?

Economy rebound enough that the bigger contractors are willing/able to give up enough space for the small-job guys to get back into the game?

I don't see it - yet..

AKfish

 

[dave1949]

As a home/acreage owner I know a 110 tlb is not worth taking on debt for. It just isn't big enough to do what I would do with a real tlb. Something in the JD 310 to 410 range is what I would need. Of course, that varies by the terrain in different areas, rocks, etc. and what is to be done.

I see the 110 as a contractor/landscaping/nursery niche tool, and as AKfish points out, that niche is getting squeezed by the economy. I think mini-ex's and skid steers are also eating into its market space.

For its capability, it is priced too high for most homeowners. Who wants to be in debt for a machine that can only do half of what you want to do? That's my personal take on it.

 

[DFB]

There was one at the landscape business/tree farm I worked at for a while. It was actually the least used piece of equipment we had and sat in the yard most all the time. Usually just loaded salt onto the trucks with it in the wintertime and I was about the only one who operated it. It had a cab and was difficult to fuel up. The skidsteers were more popular with most of the younger guys even for snow removal and we used a Komatsu backhoe/loader for all the digging.

 

[94BULLITT]

I always thought that the 110 was a nice looking machine and had good specs. I don't know why they would have cancelled it. I thought it was a good size machine for rental companies to have also. The skid steer mini ex combo would be nice but that would be a lot more money than a 110 and be more to haul around. I have heard the Kubota is going to add a factory cab to their TLBs.

 

[dave1949]

I always thought that the 110 was a nice looking machine and had good specs. I don't know why they would have cancelled it. I thought it was a good size machine for rental companies to have also. The skid steer mini ex combo would be nice but that would be a lot more money than a 110 and be more to haul around. I have heard the Kubota is going to add a factory cab to their TLBs.

Well, for whatever reasons, the market has made its choices. Going back to the original post question, I don't know what could be added to a 110-type machine to give it a bigger piece of the pie.

We don't know for example, if Kubota TLB sales in the USA alone keep that product line alive or not. Maybe they don't, perhaps Kubota has a broader market position globally for that machine than Deere developed.

These days, what happens here in the USA is far from the entire picture.

 

[capt_met]

AKFish is correct the market niche did get hammered with the economy but for me has been coming back the last 2 years. I have been able to stay pretty busy enough of late. The smaller B300 is a beefier machine than the 110 in it's lifting abilities. I don't think I could go lighter. The benefits of the smaller machine for smaller machine for smaller jobs has been great. No interest in going the skid steer route. I can tow with a 1 ton truck safely, Fuel use is minimal compared to a full sized tlb. When doing jobs I can only run one machine at a time so the skid steer/mini ex combo of the same capabilities is a lot of money for a machine compared to the smaller tlb's. In my opinion the 110 was just a little light for construction but could handle most landscape jobs short of lifting heavy pallets or block. When I build retaining walls each full block weighs 3600lbs. I am looking down the road for a replacement as Bobcat no longer builds the B300. Hopefully there will be one or I will have to go the larger route.

 

[Piston]

...I have heard the Kubota is going to add a factory cab to their TLBs.

Now THAT, would be a tempting machine. :thumbsup:

I really like the ability to use skidsteer implements on the front, things like a hydraulic snowblower just aren't capable of being run on our smaller tractors, whereas the M59 should put out sufficient flow/pressure to the front. Also, it's a lot easier to find rental implements that would work on the better hydraulic systems of the TLB's, rather than PTO driven implements. I can easily source a hydraulic power rake or rock rake, but finding a PTO version isn't so easy.

 

[jinman]

My personal take on the 110TLB is that it hurt JD's sales of larger machines. It also may have represented a maintenance nightmare for contractor/owners who worked their machines hard and had wear/failures. The machine would be perfect for homeowners or most of us, but the bigger commercial TLBs can take a lot more abuse and keep going. Kubota has small TLBs, but they have no commercial sized machines to be threatened by sales of smaller machines. Perhaps if JD had painted the 110TLB green instead of yellow, more people would think of it as more of a tractor than a full-time workhorse.

These are just my random thoughts and based on what I've thought about that machine from the beginning. It's a great machine, but I doubt it can take the rigors of daily construction site work. I don't think it can compete well with the many offerings from Kubota in small TLBs and also mini-excavators. All of this is just speculation. . .

 

[capt_met]

There was one at the landscape business/tree farm I worked at for a while. It was actually the least used piece of equipment we had and sat in the yard most all the time. Usually just loaded salt onto the trucks with it in the wintertime and I was about the only one who operated it. It had a cab and was difficult to fuel up. The skidsteers were more popular with most of the younger guys even for snow removal and we used a Komatsu backhoe/loader for all the digging.

Want to expand on how reliable your source was about Kubota coming out with a factory cab?