Of all the tractors I tried out, the R2844 and R3644 were two of the best. At first I thought I wanted a TC30 but the R3644 blew it away for about the same money. The farmtrac 270dt is nice cheap (no longer available) and the same as the montana 2740.
I too have made inquiries here about the R2844 but have gotten very few if any replies (probably because of the stupid name I chose - I was hungry at the time).
The ergonomics of the R series are excellent.
The loader, when adj properly, is powerful.
rear remotes are a big big plus.
great 3 pt lift specs.
very good working synchro shuttle- It did not grind for me when I even used it without a clutch - not recommended though. It seemed to work better for me than the Kioti ck35 shuttle (notice I said for me so that I don't get attacked by Kioti lovers)
mitsubishi 4 cyl - great power - I could not get it to bog down before spinning tires (2844) in low range but a little loud with the R3644.
I really like the parking handbrake
The only dislike I have is with the transmissin speeds. Why bother having a 12 speed trans if there is no crawl speeds. I will be rototilling and snow blowing and sometimes you need to go less than 1.03 mph especially with a 28 hp machine (I try to never ride the clutch). Who really wishes they had more choies between 8 and 13 mph? not me
Oh yeah- the plastic pto drop speed adj knob is cheap- light duty feeling.
could be wrong though.
The best price of the 3 Montana dealers in my area were:
$15500 + tax for a left over R2844
$16500 + tax for a 07 R3644
If I were offered a R3644 for $15,000 I would not think about it long that is a very great price.
By the way, one of the montana dealers offered me a list of references on the R series. Of all the ones he sold he has had only 2 repairs - a blown hose and a broken joy stick.
I myself am down to the wire and the R2844/3644 is still in the final cut. The 3040 has the crawl speeds but no more are available in my area.
Good luck on a tough decision.
