Buying Advice Looking at Kiotis

[boggen]

duel rear stearing brakes would be deal breaker for me. from back dragging, to snow, to just plain traction in mud and getting my rear un stuck.

differential lock, 4x4 / MFWD. ya ya... give me control over spin of tires so i can work my rear free to freedom vs walking home.

and more to the point make it so i can use both feet one for pedal and one on the go pedal/ hst pedal / fuel pedal.

run to many hills, to many muddy spots, to much snow. and working the pedals and the pedal works better than 4x4 / mfwd and/or differential lock many times for me. granted i still have used FEL and backhoe to get me out of worst situations yet. *looks innocent*

live vs independent PTO. *shrugs* i can live with that. tilling a garden about only issue for me would come up. rotatory cutter, PHD (post hole digger), doesn't really matter one way or another.
rotatory cutter i am setting PTO on and mowing for a few hours non stop, and PHD, backing up / moving forward, then stopping, to set the digger and then going with it.

===============
going smaller and getting all the little extra options....

bigger altenator
extra hyd remotes on rear
extra hyd for FEL
upper front and rear lights on ROPS
TNT (top n tilt) for 3pt hitch.
extra piece of attachment (3pt hitch or for fel)

those extras can make life easier and many jobs easier and quicker. vs going over your tracks multi times with a basic tractor without the extras.

granted bigger tractor is all good. just saying. it may not be ideal.

 

[TJP89]

Thanks for the replies. I see most of you are saying bigger, although only one person has actually addressed the size issue. The DK capacities are pretty impressive, and that's definitely a factor. Clearing space isn't a worry, I have to do it whatever I end up with, but with a 72" bucket, I think I need to clear some good size trees or do some serious rerouting. The issue is that the guy before me maintained the property and trails with a 42" garden tractor, so getting real equipment back there is a challenge. I'm going to check all the possible clearances in the woods today, and if there's anyway with the DK, that's what I'll do. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the CK should have plenty of power for my purposes, but the DK would just really insure that I never run out of power.

The dealer situation is interesting, as the CK price is from a dealer near Jackson, but the DK is from MIE.

Thanks for your help

 

[worthb]

I had to make the same decision. I chose the CK 35 HST. The DK was just too big for me to squeeze through the trees or to transport. I am happy with my decision. The loader could use more lift, but it sure beats what I had.

 

[k0ua]

Some of the big differences is ease of use, the DK is more deluxe in its controls, it is a joy to operate the DK. The loader lift, is well over a 2 to 1 ratio in favor of the DK. I don't know if you intend to lift any large loads, but most people find they come up against the loader lift capability all the time. In other words, there is always a "bigger rock" you want to lift. Keep in mind you can always get a smaller bucket for the DK, I have a smaller 60 inch Kubota bucket for my DK, it is handy when working around tight clearances. Of course your rear wheels need watching too, but sometimes if you have on a smaller bucket, you steering "swings" are more controllable. As for clearances in the woods, I make my own clearances. You will have a big powerful tractor, push out some of those pesky trees. It is what I do.

You need to spend some time with the treadle pedal vs. the twin pedals. Some people just cant get used to the treadle pedal, it is not problem for others. I have never heard anyone having trouble with the twin pedal setup. It is just a matter of personal preference.

 

[Threepoint]

Thanks for the replies. I see most of you are saying bigger, although only one person has actually addressed the size issue. The DK capacities are pretty impressive, and that's definitely a factor. Clearing space isn't a worry, I have to do it whatever I end up with, but with a 72" bucket, I think I need to clear some good size trees or do some serious rerouting. The issue is that the guy before me maintained the property and trails with a 42" garden tractor, so getting real equipment back there is a challenge. I'm going to check all the possible clearances in the woods today, and if there's anyway with the DK, that's what I'll do. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the CK should have plenty of power for my purposes, but the DK would just really insure that I never run out of power.

The dealer situation is interesting, as the CK price is from a dealer near Jackson, but the DK is from MIE.

Thanks for your help

Focusing only on the size issue, your property is mostly wooded, and you evidently plan to keep it that way. So you're right to worry about maneuverability. I have a Kubota B2150 open-station that I can't imagine doing without for tight spots. Not just in the woods. Our NX4510 has a cab, but even if it were open-station, it would just be a pain to try to get into tight places. It's also not just a matter of having 72" of clearance for the loader bucket. The bigger frame means a bigger turning radius, and less overall maneuverability, even if you can fit between obstacles.

That said, I'm guessing that in all the cases of "woulda, coulda, shoulda" among tractor buyers, more folks wished they'd gone with the next size or two up, rather than down.

 

[Coyote machine]

I don't know your CK dealer but I do know MIE, and that's who I would buy any model Kioti from in your area. They have a stellar reputation and support. Bob and his son are great people to deal with.
If you get the DK you will be able to do anything you need to, including making tractor sized paths. For the $ difference the DK is much more tractor. I've never uncoupled the brakes to use them for turning. I use the fwd/rev pedals and a 'suicide' wheel on the steering wheel. I can turn faster than an Indy 500 race car making a left!:laughing:

 

[coobie]

I don't know your CK dealer but I do know MIE, and that's who I would buy any model Kioti from in your area. They have a stellar reputation and support. Bob and his son are great people to deal with.
If you get the DK you will be able to do anything you need to, including making tractor sized paths. For the $ difference the DK is much more tractor. I've never uncoupled the brakes to use them for turning. I use the fwd/rev pedals and a 'suicide' wheel on the steering wheel. I can turn faster than an Indy 500 race car making a left!:laughing:

++1 about buying from MIE.I have had outstanding sales and service from them.

 

[k0ua]

Here is an example of using your split brakes:

Say you need to grade dirt with your FEL right up against a house foundation. But you tractor is on a fair side slope that pitches the tractor away from the foundation. As you grade you front end will become light making the front steering less effective. You tractor will want to "run down hill" all the time away from the foundation. Using your steering brakes lightly, just apply a little "rudder to port" say with you left steering brake if the hill slopes to your right, and you will slew the bucket to the left to stay up near the foundation. It takes very little braking to drag one rear wheel just a bit to make the tractor slew slightly to stay on course.

That is only one use, of course when pushing snow, you will often need the split brakes when you are pushing a front blade or bucket or pulling a rear blade you will often be skewed sideways by the action of the blade, just give it some brake on the proper side to counteract the forces of gravity pushing the tractors sideways.

Of course split brakes can also be usefull for the original purpose of making your turning radius shorter when you are attempting to miss an obstacle in front of you.

Another use for split brakes, is they are sometimes more effective to get unstuck than the differential lock. The advantage is they can be engages at higher wheel speeds, and sometime you want to "screw the tractor sideways", something the differential lock function cannot do.

As an example say you are stuck in a mudhole, and the rescue vehicle can only get a recovery line on you at near a right angle. You can make the tractor "screw itself out of the hole" by say giving it some "hard right rudder" to stop say the right wheel from spinning at all, and making the other tire shove the front of the tractor in the direction that the recovery line is pointing. Of course you need to crank the steering wheel as far as possible in that direction also. These are just some of the uses of split turning brakes.

 

[TJP89]

You guys are clearly big on the split brakes. I already am on that boat as the H has split brakes and I don't think I could handle it without them. I also see the point of if I have a 45 HP tractor there isn't a whole lot I can't push over. But I did make it through the woods today. With some decent clearing, I could get the CK with 60" bucket and mower through to most places. Now some places I could do the same for the 72" DK. But there are a lot of places that I HAVE to get through that are constricted by either huge (2' thick, 80' tall) trees, or this stone wall made of the biggest rocks I've ever seen. The trees I couldn't get down if I wanted to, the rocks, maybe, but with a ton of work. Thus unfortunately 60" is the maximum I can get through. I see k0ua's point of getting smaller implements, but I think I would want 72" on the DK, and 2 sets of implements is something I don't have the money or space for. Now, I've sat on both tractors. The DK is nice, but I'm comfortable with the CK as well. The treadle doesn't bother me, unlike other treadles I've seen, but the brake placement is bad. You can use them with the cruise, but why Kioti didn't put the clutch with the treadle on the right and the brakes on the left is beyond me. The independent PTO isn't a problem as I've got to throttle down anyway to engage/disengage.

It seems that it comes down to either the brakes and power of the DK, and doing some serious wood work, or no brakes with less power but access everywhere.

In dealers, MIE has been great to work with, Budd's All Tractor has also been great, they have given more personal attention than MIE, but that's just because their a smaller younger dealer. I feel comfortable with both, so that is not an issue.

I won't be doing any serious earth moving or consistently going through mud, so I hope no fancy brake work will be necessary, I like split brakes but they are not an absolute necessity. Also, let's remember that it's not like the CK only has 1 brake, they're split, just hard, but probably not impossible to use.

I think it comes down to will the CK do everything I want. If it will, I'll probably go with it, otherwise it'll be the DK and I'll just figure something out with the with (like a 2nd tractor )

Sorry for the long post, but I would appreciate it if you guys would weigh in on the above question.

Thanks,
Tony

 

[k0ua]

Bottom line is the one your feel the most comfortable with and you like the best is the one you should get.