I answered your question with real answer, and because it is correct and promotes the bigger companies it is then considered 'ducking'.
You never answered anything.
I asked if you had been an engineer at any of the tractor companies, to qualify your statements on relative engineering levels. You didn't answer.
I asked if you had ever seen an LS, worked on one, or taken one apart. You didn't answer.
I asked how it made sense that NH charges $8,500 more for a Boomer 50 than LS does for an R4047, when they're the same machine. You didn't answer.
Since you've said that the higher price indicates a better product, I asked how that played out with the Boomer being so much more expensive than the LS....you said higher price equals higher quality, but didn't explain how this could fit the NH/LS scenario.
I spent 12 hours bucking around on my tractor yesterday, and I cant tell you for a fact that the most important quality aspect between tractors is ergonomics. The perfect example is a 1969 Peterbilt 359 versus a 2013 Peterbilt 359. To the average eye these tractors look EXACTLY the same from the outside. However one is almost 45 years older. The difference comes in the interior and the ERGONOMICS. The engineering of the truck is COMPLETELY different. Air ride suspensions, cabs, seats, air assist fifth wheel, make the ride better but then when you turn to the inside you couldn't write down all the changes in a 30 page book. These tractors WILL do similar work, and haul similar loads. However after making a 6,000 mile round trip from NY to California and back I can guarantee that the operator in the 2013 will experience less fatigue and therefore be more efficient.
Wait, now it's ergonomics, not the actual engineering, and quality, of core components like the transmission, differential, or engine that really makes the difference? Is that what you're switching to in a desperate attempt to justify having paid more? Seriously, the best you can do is ergonomics? Sure, ergonomics are worth something, but not 40-50% more...not even close. I can run my LS all day long, and could do the same with any of the big brands, and not have any issues. The biggest concern with my LS is that I would like a little more room for my feet to slide past the brake pedals when I'm getting on/off....wow, spend another $10K to get rid of that!
I love the trucking example. I started driving heavy trucks when I was 17, in Autocars with Spicer twin stick 5 x 4 transmissions (yes, I learned two-handed split-shifting), no air-ride, no air-anything. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven the first time I got to drive a brand new Mack with a Cummins 350, and a 13spd Eaton in it...(guy was sick that day). The difference between a Deere and an LS or Kioti isn't even remotely the same as the difference in the trucks you're talking about. Even the most advanced CUT, is a very simple machine compared with a big truck. Heck, when Detroit Diesel asked me to visit a few months ago, they gave me an insider tour of the facility, and I noted that their DD16 weighs as much as my 8N, and the emissions system looked like it came out of the space shuttle....simply no comparison to how tractors are today. Heck, the platforms the engines move down the line are computerized robots that cost six figures! Wanna try airplanes, or motorcycles next?
By the way, if I am an unqualified person making acquisitions, what does that make you?
Someone who isn't claiming to know that any particular brand uses more advanced engineering, or higher quality materials. You made the claims, not me. I just asked how you knew (as opposed to thought), and you didn't answer.
