My 1.9 cents...
With any of the tractors mentioned you will have a quality
machine. Will it do everything you want it to do? Will you
be as happy after using it 4 hours in a row as you are seeing
it in the showroom? Maybe. You really have to use one for a
day to know.
I had a BX.
Bad: (for me)
I found the rocker pedal for the HST impossible to get
comfortable with. I'm 5'8, my ankle and hip didn't like
it. Discomfort and sometimes pain afte hours of back and
forth.
With the engine powered up was never able to gently stop
and reverse the thing without looking like a whiplashing
clown. (Ow again) More seat time might have helped but
my ankle hurt to much.
The 3 point is marginally a Cat 1, more like a Cat 1*
with the * meaning BUY A QUICKHITCH or bust your A**
changing implements
The power steering rod is VERY LOW and in front of the axle.
I didn't see this initially a problem as this was to be a
machine to rake, let the wife use to move garden stuff etc.
When I used it a bit I discovered the loader was not a toy
loader as I imagined it would be but a bonafide DIGGER. I
found lots of things to do with this or would have done
with it but that rod is in a bad place. If the tractor wasn't
so low to begin with it might not be a problem.
I hated with a passion the 3pt control lever, or lack of
one, I think it's called lack of "position control" I was
totally frustrated by this and would NEVER buy another tractor
with this kind of setup.
GOOD
Super engine, loader, comfortable seat, easy to reach
controls. Appears built with the same quality as the
bigger machines (I have a bigger Kubota as well)
Extra set of tires and wheels (bar tires) were only $300!
Maneuverabilty. I also used this inside a building to
move stuff! A perfect back saver!
Resale value, sold after 3 years for 94.5% of purchase
price. Kubota seems as widely known as Deere.
*********
You have to somehow guess what you might want to do in the
years ahead, and any of these machines with maintenance and
care will be in good operating condition until you are BORED with
their color!
Maybe a taller tractor would make more sense...?
I sold my BX because of the pedal, the 3pt control and the
fact that I bought 10 more acres shortly after buying it.
If you look at the JD2210 it has the same problem with the
3point but is a little higher, a little longer and the steering
rod is better positioned. You may like the pedals a lot better.
I also have a JD garden tractor and I have always jumped on
that and had no problems.
If your property is not glass-**** smooth the shorter and
lighter the tractor the more your body will pay for it over
rough (even not visually rough) surfaces. Longer wheelbase
tractors and bigger tires smooth out those bumps. That was
another problem I had with that size tractor (regardless of
brand) I was getting beat to death.
I would find a dealer that has a demo you can take home (best)
or at least use in a "play area". Use it for a couple of hours
it may save you some unhappiness. If you can use the different
tractors on consecutivee day or same day you can really compare what you
like and dislike.
Make sure you are comparing PTO HP not anything else. The BX
for instance doesn't develope it's 22 hp till 3000+rpm which
is an annoying rpm to run it at. Some of the bigger Kubotas
B2410, 7500? seem to have not much more hp but in real use
the hp at lower rpm is nice. Torque is what really does
the work, those specs are sometimes hidden. HP is what they
use to advertise. I have a 230HP 3 litre Toyota and a 245hp
7.5 litre truck. The HP figure means nothing when it comes
to towing.
The bigger tractors are also heavier which again helps with the ride.I guess this depends on how hold you are and
how what kind of shape you are in or will be in later in life.
I also have a Kubota
L35 TLB which is currently at 6350lbs.
I replaced my BX with a JD4210 which is a 22PTO hp tractor.
It weighs about 3100 lbs with loader and wheel weights, it
is night and day nicer to drive over pasture etc. Not as nice
as the
L35 that feels like it is crushing down boulders
in it's path.
I also have had a Ford 1710 for 20 years which is built by Shibaura (sp) in Japan
This is what a current NH is really, a Shibaura (sp) with some different
body work. It has held up incredibly well for my 1300 hours. Above
and beyond the call. If you discount a couple of dumb
things I have caused it has been literally trouble free!
The Kubota and JD will have big shoes to fill when the Ford leaves here. With two tractors I'll probably never get the hours up to see if they hold up as well.
To sum this up, they are all good but try each one out
extensively before you buy and try to think ahead at the
vacation property you're going to be buying in 5-10 years...
If you are strictly snowblowing then of course much of
the above doesn't matter, but I think a poll of owners
here would tell you that hardly anyone isn't surprised
at all the OTHER stuff they are doing with their tractors
that they didn't plan on before purchasing.
have fun
del
