Looking for tractor to maintain 8.5 acres in NH

[2ndhalf]

My wife is smarter than me and most of you on this site... I'm pretty sure Yes, she is also watching over my shoulder as I post this.

 

[AxleHub]

My wife is smarter than me and most of you on this site... I'm pretty sure Yes, she is also watching over my shoulder as I post this.

When uou see lions on nature shows . . the male is big and loud and the female does the hunting and protecting and training of the young ones. So it "seems" like the male has it made. But you never see him in the lion's den or out of the weather. So when you see the male lion in that separated location watching (or sleeping) from a distance . . don't ya kinda wonder that its really not the human version of "a man cave" amd that its more likely the lion version of being "in the doghouse"? Lol

Or maybe its the lion's only place where he csn be the king of the jungle . . Whe he's out of ear shot range of the female lol.


Say . . Wait a minute . . . I just posted about going to my dealer's seminar and open house and how eager my wife was to go see it too . .
. naw . . .she just likes tractors and implements . . . right??? she isn't going to keep an eye on me . . do you think ???? naw . . she knows I'm the king of the jungle . . right ???

 

[BigBoyToys]

The "QUEEN" in the THRONE!!!
It's not a BAD THING!

Based on your needs, you should be getting a CUT that the better half should be able to handle.
Take her along for the adventure.

The HST really makes it easy for her to drive. :thumbsup:
She has no desire to mess with the back hoe...yet!

 

[check]

The "QUEEN" in the THRONE!!! It's not a BAD THING! Based on your needs, you should be getting a CUT that the better half should be able to handle. Take her along for the adventure. The HST really makes it easy for her to drive. :thumbsup: She has no desire to mess with the back hoe...yet! <img src="http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=461072"/>

When I first got my BX25, the only one that could work the backhoe properly was my 12 year-old daughter, who mastered it in just a couple of minutes, making all my (male) friends who had rushed over to play with my new toy feel like IDIOTS!

Later, after everyone left, she pulled me aside and said, "Dad, all you had to do was read the instructions - they are printed right below the levers!"

She also admonished me to never lend the tractor to any of those guys. Wise kid!

 

[BigBoyToys]

Later, after everyone left, she pulled me aside and said, "Dad, all you had to do was read the instructions - they are printed right below the levers!"

She also admonished me to never lend the tractor to any of those guys. Wise kid!

"Common sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom."

Between social media, reality TV and the liberal left, "Common Sense" is not so COMMON among our youth today.
However...there are still some of us who can see beyond the fog and insure our kids will have a future!
There's no doubt in my mind your daughter will go far in life!!! :thumbsup:

 

[Snowback]

The "QUEEN" in the THRONE!!!
It's not a BAD THING!

Based on your needs, you should be getting a CUT that the better half should be able to handle.
Take her along for the adventure.

The HST really makes it easy for her to drive.She has no desire to mess with the back hoe...yet!
View attachment 461072

Agree with Big Boy Toys. Letting the Mrs. get familiar with, and enjoy the tractor is a win win for everyone! My wife handled a Max 25 SCUT with ease and has no problems with this mid size 2538 either. They're both HSTs. Happy wife, happy life!

 

[AxleHub]

Seeeee . . . this isn't the Dr. Phil show . . . its the "How to survive being married with a smile on your face" concept. At least for me . . its more fun, and alot easier than having half a tractor, half a motorcycle, and half a house as a negative result. And I already got one brain . . but have a second one in a wife version makes it sometimes venus and mars thing and sometimes a real benefit when my ideas aren't as sharp as hers

 

[GManBart]

Update:

Visited Mahindra and LS today.

Mahindra dealer was too busy to get hold of a sales person. I didn't have an appointment, and the guy I was going to meet had a line of customers waiting for him. I only had 30 minutes so I left w/a couple brochures after walking around the tractors.

LS dealer was excellent. Spent an hour w/me discussing the XJ2025H, implements, and general use. The dealer was an hour+ away in Beverly, MA, but said he's opening a location in Kingston NH soon. And this will be near my new home. Seemed like a great guy to do business with.

The XJ2025 seems like it would fit my needs, and is the least expensive option still. Seems like a good quality and very capable machine. Unfortunately the financing available is not super, and that might actually push me back towards Kubota.

The B2601 is more expensive, but it has some nice features that the LS doesn't have, and the 0% financing actually makes up most of the difference in price from the LS, at least w/my initial quotes. Will have to see if that changes by the time I'm ready to buy in May (perhaps LS will have a promo rate, or I can ask for a better deal).

The Kubota features that the LS didn't have: Split brakes, 3 range HST, extendable lower links. Also the cab layout on the B2601 worked better for me. The LS layout seemed a little too cramped for me (6'2). The brake pedal in particular was much too close - really had to lift my leg up to get my foot on it. But the 1 big benefit of the LS of course is the 1200+ loader lift vs 950 for the Kubota.

So... I left the LS dealer w/the XJ2025 at the top of my list. But after considering financing, the ~2500 price difference from the B2601 is actually insignificant, and that tractor has some nice additional features and probably better resale value. I will have to see if I can get a Kubota dealer to work w/me on price w/implements package. The Kubota delaer I visited will actually be quite far from my new home and I think there are 1 or 2 closer.

As I get closer to purchasing I'll have to get some firm / final quotes and see where the numbers fall. If the XJ2025 is significantly cheaper I'd go w/that. If not the Kubota might win. In the meantime I still need to go chat w/Mahindra and maybe Kioti. Not sure about MF or Yanmar. Didn't see anything too impressive in my research, but maybe I'm not looking at the right models.

Thanks

That was time well spent....nothing replaces seat time.

There area a couple of things that jump out to me that you may want to consider as you move forward. One, check with the dealers that the price they quoted was for a financed purchase. Often the cash price is different (lower) and what they will sometimes quote before you get to signing papers. Two, with Kubota financing you're obligated to use their insurance (KTAC) so you want to factor that cost in as well. Three, you can usually retrofit telescoping lift arms pretty inexpensively. I had them on my LS, and never used them once I added a hydraulic top link and Pat's Easy Change. Lastly, on HST machines you don't have to use the brakes as much as on gear machines (terrain factors in, of course), so a brake pedal that's too close may not be a huge problem in actual operation. Good luck and keep us updated!

 

[BigBoyToys]

:laughing: Axle...I think you're reading TOO MUCH into it!!!
Who said anything about 50-50 on everything.
When it comes to "TOYS"...my wife will be the first to admit, as Trumps says, "I WIN...WIN...WIN"! :laughing:

A few BIG BOY TOYS...

 

[AxleHub]

:laughing: Axle...I think you're reading TOO MUCH into it!!!
Who said anything about 50-50 on everything.
When it comes to "TOYS"...my wife will be the first to admit, as Trumps says, "I WIN...WIN...WIN"! :laughing:

A few BIG BOY TOYS...

That was funny Big Boy lol.

But actually when I was stating that . . it was the negative effect of not getting the wife included . . And then everything gets split down the middle. Me . . I want my wife involved in things because it would be way too hard to use half a tractor or half a motorcycle lol. And I don't make enough to enjoy only half an income.

Having the wife involved doesn't mean she needs to do all the same things as me . . so I get to use the tractor while she gets to use ???? Now if I do get her using the tractor as well as the mowers and small snowblowers and shovels . . . I want dibs on the warm snowfall days and cool mowing days lol.

But I'm just guessing "that ain't goin 2 happen" lol.

Not that she won't get interested in running the tractor . . but that I get the option of "dibs" on choice lol.