John Deere fans, so many?

[unreconstructed]

I have a Jd chain saw, hedge trimmer, pole saw, brush cutter, dry/wet vac,LT 133, a walk behind, a 2302, and a 5203. All my tools were wore out and I just decided to buy everything at the same place (I know, I could have beat those prices). Parts guys are great--ones an ex Army DI and always asked about my son who has been in Afghanistan. Service guys are great. Can't stand the salesman and I bought the tractors from another JD dealer whose salesman I get along with.

I don't know if JD is better than any of the other brands or not. I don't care. I get what I want without any crap and they order parts for me for whatever I tore up on the weekend and get them in in a couple of days. I thanked the old DI for taking care of my piddly little business and he said he didn't care if all I ordered was 60 cents worth. No Brass, No Ammo Drill Sergeant. He's my man.


the orange dealers around here are also rental stores and they don't know squat about much of anything.

JD has the market here--Mahindra as of late has sprung up and you see a lot of little red tractors. Don't have a clue about their service or logistical chain.

Anyhow, that's my JD story and am not hyping JD whatsoever. Its where I trade for now and have been happier with the Deere products overall than I have with all the other assorted junk I have bought the last 30 or so years. Maybe its the color coordination training the Boss has given me over the decades. Can't buy blue because I am a Reb and my wife and friends would give me untold grief for riding on Blue machinery--heck--I don't even eat off a blue plate. (I never tell them that John Deere himself was a Yankee boy)) No disrespect for you boys living North of the Mason Dixon line--we all "Muricans" now.

 

[Keef]

Just got back from Japan...saw lots of farm land and of course everything they had there for equipment was Japanese equipment. They take pride in using Japanese farm equipment, cars and electronics. Most would not even consider using American brands. Imagine if we had that mentality here? Ford, GM, and Chrysler would be doing a lot better, and John Deere would benifit as well.

 

[tjkadar]

I'm not going to feel guilty for not buying a product because a company could not engineer a vehicle which suits my driving needs. Flag waving is not part of my purchase making process. In a global economy, it is pretty much a moot point anyway.

That said, 7 out of 15 vehicles on our farm are American made. The percentage would be greater, but I don't know of any cost effective dirt bikes that are American Made.

 

[MFRED]

Awsome. Topics like this always get hot. I'm no better, I've cuffed it out with more than one Deere fan when I had a temper. It's funny how brand loyal we can be. Green ,Red, Blue. Dodge, Ford, Chevy. Bud, Coors, Miller. It's always great for a debate.

My father bought a 4020 for us to cut with once. We had IH, AC & MF. I told him I wouldn't even get near it, cut the hay yourself. Ignorance, maybe, but that lonely green tractor found a home somewhere else. Another MF was had, it's all about product support. It doesn't matter how much you paid, how good it looks or what name is on the side. When it doesn't run it's junk & when it does it's the best machine ever.

 

[WTA]

My old JD wheat drill is sitting there ready to work as usual. It's older than I am and has planted this farm every year since it was new without ever a breakdown. I just hope my new blue tractor is home from the shop in time to pull it around next month. I might end up having to borrow the green one next door. It wouldn't be the first time.
In the last couple months, I've driven orange, red, green and yellow a whole lot more than blue which is what I own.

If I ever get enough hay in this year to make a profit, something that hasn't happened yet thanks to broke down blue, I will be trading it in on a nice shiny new green one as soon as possible!

It is 100% about product support!

 

[arrabil]

I'll tell you what I like about Deere: the online parts catalog and online parts pricing. I live in Deere country and my local dealer, is rude, pompous, incompetent, and never discounts off retail. And I couldn't care less since I don't buy anything but parts from them and do all the work myself.

And my property is rough on equipment and I don't baby it. More than once I've come in the house from mowing and thought I'd be welding the frame if I owned anything else. I totally beat on a GT242 before I could afford something better and I can't think of another machine that could have mowed my rocky acreage in that size. I got full retail trade-in on that GT242 because it was still like-new after I washed it. The X475 is pure joy to mow with and can't wait for another five years to go by so I can get an X749. I'm almost done "refurbishing" the new-to-me 4200 and can't think of how a tractor could be better built.

My neighbor paid less for an orange utility tractor AND diesel mower than the equivalent green utility tractor alone. And he mentions regularly how he wished he knew how to work on his own equipment because he would have just kept his 870 or gotten a 43/4400.

JD may have just as many screw-ups as any other brand but when they get it right, they get it WAY right.

 

[Keef]

I'll tell you what I like about Deere: the online parts catalog and online parts pricing. I live in Deere country and my local dealer, is rude, pompous, incompetent, and never discounts off retail. And I couldn't care less since I don't buy anything but parts from them and do all the work myself.

And my property is rough on equipment and I don't baby it. More than once I've come in the house from mowing and thought I'd be welding the frame if I owned anything else. I totally beat on a GT242 before I could afford something better and I can't think of another machine that could have mowed my rocky acreage in that size. I got full retail trade-in on that GT242 because it was still like-new after I washed it. The X475 is pure joy to mow with and can't wait for another five years to go by so I can get an X749. I'm almost done "refurbishing" the new-to-me 4200 and can't think of how a tractor could be better built.

My neighbor paid less for an orange utility tractor AND diesel mower than the equivalent green utility tractor alone. And he mentions regularly how he wished he knew how to work on his own equipment because he would have just kept his 870 or gotten a 43/4400.

JD may have just as many screw-ups as any other brand but when they get it right, they get it WAY right.

If I were you I would go to another JD Dealer in your area and give them your business. I would also complain to JD corporate about your experiences with your local dealer. If you don't do anything, things won't improve.

 

[carl6583]

My family started in the cattle business in 1947, and have been in some form of production agriculture since then (cattle, cotton, corn, soybeans, timber, hay, etc.), and far and away the most common products on our farms thru the years were John Deere, mostly due to dealer proximity and their product support. John Deere products have plowed, planted, cultivated, mowed, baled, and maintained our fields for 60 years now, starting with an M, going thru current models 6430, with a healthy representation of everything in between.

Deere got where they are because they produced excellent products, coupled with a very solid dealer network. Some of their products were revolutionary, some were merely very good, but don't think for a second it was because of something besides quality and engineering. Deere Credit has always been extremely easy to work with and flexible, and during the Great Depression, never repossessed a single piece of equipment, if the farmer was willing to work with them. In the early 60's though, is when Deere really, really started to come on strong, and really set the bar for everyone else to respond too.

The 4010 and 3010 were the first tractors that really combined hydraulics, PTO operation, 3 point hitch, transmission, and operator comfort. There were good tractors before then, from Allis Chalmers, IH, Deere, Ford, Ferguson, but the 4010 really raised the bar and forced the competition to respond, and most of them were unable to over the coming years. IH had GREAT engines, but never could get the trannys or hydraulics right and the disaster following the rear end failures in the 460's and 560's always haunted them, Ford's powershift failed miserably, but Deere just kept stepping it up, the 4020, the Generation II tractors with the first cabs that felt like they were part of the tractor, turbocharged aftercooled engines, A/C units field tested from Delco that provided a lot longer life than anything else on the market, and transmission options that weren't available anywhere else. They've had bad engineering mistakes too though, just like everyone else, the 1010 and 2010 were horrible, and Deere's Moco's used to be the worst on the market.

But by and large, Deere garnered so many fans because they constantly worked to stay ahead of the curve thru solid engineering, good dealer support, and the production of good machines. I really like my 6430, it's got the same excellent balance and power to weight Deere's have always had, and good hydraulics, easy on fuel, short, narrow hood, with a comfortable cab that's easy to see out of. I won't try to comment on Deere's smaller lines as I have no experience with them.

But be assured, Deere earned their place, at least in my opinion.

 

[unreconstructed]

I spent a lot, I mean a lot, of hours on a 4010--good 6 row row crop tractor. Most of our neighbors had JDs. My Dad in the 50's went to Molines, then an Oliver 1850 in 1965, and his last tractor was an IH bought in 1977. He did not like the local JD dealer at all so we had yellow, off green, and red tractors. Pop's been gone 5 years now--his IH is still sitting out there with the tranny locked in reverse. The Oliver I have had running and think I may try to restore it. Sure wish he had of kept the old A. would love to have that thing to entertain me as I retire in the next couple of years.

 

[Revelation]

I spent a lot, I mean a lot, of hours on a 4010--good 6 row row crop tractor. Most of our neighbors had JDs. My Dad in the 50's went to Molines, then an Oliver 1850 in 1965, and his last tractor was an IH bought in 1977. He did not like the local JD dealer at all so we had yellow, off green, and red tractors. Pop's been gone 5 years now--his IH is still sitting out there with the tranny locked in reverse. The Oliver I have had running and think I may try to restore it. Sure wish he had of kept the old A. would love to have that thing to entertain me as I retire in the next couple of years.

Please don't tell me you are selling the farm to a developer who wants to make more houses.