New 2305! I'm an idiot...

[fgross335_2210]

Boy this all sounds familiar. When we moved to our 6 acre place in 2001 we started out by selling our little LX188 and bought a used 335 with 54" deck. That did OK with the mowing (about 3 acres) and snowblowing but little else. I kept dropping hints about this 'new' scut that JD was bringing out (the 2210, this was in 2002) and how much more I could get done with it. Never got much of a response from the wife and wasn't sure how far to push.

Fortunately my wife had turned 40 the previous year and I had bought her a baby grand piano (with payment book of course). So when it was my turn to get old in 2003 she surprised me with the 2210, 62C, and 210 loader. Of course it came with a loan too but I didn't care about that!

So after I get the tractor I start looking for other stuff like a bushhog, rear blade, work lights, folding ROPS, bar tires, etc, etc. This was when she realized that the initial purchase was only the start! At first she really struggled with this (you already have a tractor what more do you need?) but after she saw some of the equipment at work on our property she quickly became a big proponent of the 2210 and all it's goodies.

It's now 8 years later and the 2210 is pretty much part of the family. We use it year-round for all kinds of outdoor work and I get zero complaints from the wifey.

My next goal is an upgrade. Son heads off to college in just over a year so I see the need for a 2720 or 3320 with 72" deck, snowblower, bigger loader, etc. I've already started to mention it, and guess what? My 50th birthday is only two years away! Guess I'd better get her something really nice for her 50th this year, so I can set things up correctly.

 

[hink10]

Boy this all sounds familiar. When we moved to our 6 acre place in 2001 we started out by selling our little LX188 and bought a used 335 with 54" deck. That did OK with the mowing (about 3 acres) and snowblowing but little else. I kept dropping hints about this 'new' scut that JD was bringing out (the 2210, this was in 2002) and how much more I could get done with it. Never got much of a response from the wife and wasn't sure how far to push.

Fortunately my wife had turned 40 the previous year and I had bought her a baby grand piano (with payment book of course). So when it was my turn to get old in 2003 she surprised me with the 2210, 62C, and 210 loader. Of course it came with a loan too but I didn't care about that!

So after I get the tractor I start looking for other stuff like a bushhog, rear blade, work lights, folding ROPS, bar tires, etc, etc. This was when she realized that the initial purchase was only the start! At first she really struggled with this (you already have a tractor what more do you need?) but after she saw some of the equipment at work on our property she quickly became a big proponent of the 2210 and all it's goodies.

It's now 8 years later and the 2210 is pretty much part of the family. We use it year-round for all kinds of outdoor work and I get zero complaints from the wifey.

My next goal is an upgrade. Son heads off to college in just over a year so I see the need for a 2720 or 3320 with 72" deck, snowblower, bigger loader, etc. I've already started to mention it, and guess what? My 50th birthday is only two years away! Guess I'd better get her something really nice for her 50th this year, so I can set things up correctly.

My problem was that I should have bought the diamond first! When we finally went to look at the tractor and she started thinking about it, the first thing she asked was what else do you need to buy for it! She knows me well, once I get into something, it's hard to stop. For years I did mods to my diesel Excursion. I don't even know what I spent, but it was a bunch.

It's not going to be as easy to sneak in an implement as it was a set of gauges! I'm pretty sure we will all be happy with the tractor. My wife asked me last night if I was excited to get it. I said yes and asked her if she was going to drive it, told her it had power steering.

 

[dcyrilc]

My wife asked me last night if I was excited to get it. I said yes and asked her if she was going to drive it, told her it had power steering.

Ya gotta be careful there........

...you might end up being a two tractor family just so that you can get some seat time too.

 

[hink10]

Ya gotta be careful there........

...you might end up being a two tractor family just so that you can get some seat time too.

Don't have to worry, tractors & that stuff don't do much for her. Plus, her back is destroyed from gymnastics when she was a kid. That's why I need to be more careful with mine. I did mention that everyone says the wife ends up using the tractor, she just rolled her eyes at me.

 

[megaboz]

Congrats Hink... I hope you find too useful!

Since everyone else has a story, I will share too:

I almost dumped my girlfriend (now my wife) over a hot tub. We weren't even dating yet, I told her about this 9 person hot tub that I was going to get for $300 (used of course) and she asked "Why do we need that?". I told her to get out, we weren't even living together yet. Later I wised up, convinced her to come back and the deal ended up falling through anyway.

A couple of years later there was a hurricane coming, so I went and bought one of the last generators I could find. She was like, "we don't need that thing". 20 minutes after the hurricane hit, our power went out for 2 weeks. She was very happy with me for a long time and bragged about how I made life bearable for her.

When we moved to WV, I was doing the hinting about needing a tractor, and making no progress, so I decided I would show her why, so I put my 300 lb body on my Murry mower and proceeded down the hill, about 10 feet later I was free willing from the slipping belt and almost went over the cliff. Once I got back to the top she ran over and took the key out and told me to find a tractor!

 

[hink10]

When we moved to WV, I was doing the hinting about needing a tractor, and making no progress, so I decided I would show her why, so I put my 300 lb body on my Murry mower and proceeded down the hill, about 10 feet later I was free willing from the slipping belt and almost went over the cliff. Once I got back to the top she ran over and took the key out and told me to find a tractor!

I had the same problem with my Cub, it's a little thing and every time I go down the hill I end up building some pretty good speed! I have to ride the thing like a bull to keep traction up or down hill! I've only got 175 lbs. or so of "body ballast" so traction is terrible. I know the wife would watch and knew I needed something better, I don't think she was envisioning a $20k tractor! I can't wait to sit back and let the machine do the work! I told her 4wd was a must.

Steve

 

[fabsroman]

You are right about the tractors, tools etc. paying for themselves buy doing it yourself. I've always found that to be true. I have a host of Stihl gear, my wife was skeptical, but now she sees the value, some of the best money I've spent. I think I'm the only one in the neighborhood that has nice clean edging and all debris blown clear. Like to keep it tidy. I've only been here 3 years, don't know most in the neighborhood well. I know they thought I was the lawn boy for the first couple of years. My neighbor is a plastic surgeon that hires everything out and there I am dirty, sweaty with a backpack blower. I don't exactly fit in sometimes but I'd rather do for myself. I've never hired work done that when completed thought I could have done better (with the exception of a tree crew, those guys knew their work).

I believe in having the right tools and usually go overboard, but if I can buy the tools for what it costs to hire a job done, then I just got some free tools right? I have plenty of jobs for the tractor, probably more than I know. I could do them all and in five years sell it for good money and be ahead. I know, I won't want to sell it... not unless I want to upgrade to the new series! BTW, we also got the top of the line washer/dryer when we moved in although I don't consider that her thing only.

Yeah, I have never, ever, operated a washer or drier in my life and I turn 40 this year. Those things are definitely her things. I don't think I have even moved a load of laundry from the washer to the drier the 8 years that we have been together. I wouldn't even know where to start to do laundry.

Have fun with the new tractor. Me, I'm just drooling over 3720's and trying to figure out if I can afford a new one with a cab or if I should buy a used one with a cab or if I should buy a new one without a cab. Decisions, decisions. I'll probably go with the cab since I foresee me keeping this tractor for the rest of my life.

 

[Foxtrot08]

Wow I feel lucky!

I'm 26, just bought a house about a year ago. For the last year my neighbor has been kind enough to mow my grass for me. With all the rain we've had in Ohio this year, it's been to muddy for his zero turn.

My fiancee then told my parents how she felt about the long - nearly knee high - grass. Who then asked why I never bought a tractor. My parents and I farm about 100 acres, I live in a community and have roughly an acre - plus we all pitch in to take care of green space around the lake and such. So my family's pair of 60+ HP tractors would be too big for the situation. My fiancee and I determined we should get a mower, of some type - her family, having horses helped her mindset, I believe. She said spend as much as I can and get the biggest one possible! After doing the research and seeing what was around, the JD 2305 seemed like the best deal. I'm picking up a 'used' JD 2305 with a 200CX and a 62in belly mower on Thursday. It was the dealer's demo unit then owned by their parts guy who retired and traded it in on a bigger unit - with 147 Hrs on the clock, it seems brand new to me! All I have to add is a weight box. I don't need a backhoe or the like - have a Cat 301.5, JD ZTS50 and a JD310C for digging work. (We do all our own dirt work / construction.)

I feel lucky my fiancee is so supportive of the venture. I feel sorry for anyone that has to fight for helpful toy! (Although, I did promise this winter we'd remodel the kitchen....)


I also would like to thank all you on this forum. Really helped me make my decision on which to buy and why.

 

[SARG]

All I can say about that Hink fella is that his kind are the ones that makes it very hard for the rest of us that have convinced the wife that upgraded diamonds are only due after 25 years.

 

[tkoza]

All I can say about that Hink fella is that his kind are the ones that makes it very hard for the rest of us that have convinced the wife that upgraded diamonds are only due after 25 years.

if you dont want to get her diamonds

buy her a corvette, a z4 bmw convertable, or a porche cayman and offer to drive her where ever she needs to go - the worst thing she could say is " you drive like and old man"