New Holland TZ24 vs. Kubota BX2230

[SeymourBota]

How much snowfall do you ususally get??
It will take 3-4 times as long and the job will not be as good with the FEL, but you can get by.
If you start dealing with snow in December and through March (or later), as we do, there is no question you would want the snowblower.

 

[Henro]

<font color="blue"> Does anyone have an opinion on using a FEL instead of a snowblower for snow removal? </font>

In my limited experience a cheap rear blade is better than the FEL for snow plowing.

The FEL is better if you have to pile the snow somewhere...

If you don't get feet of snow each time the sky dumps on you, you may get more utility on an annual basis from a FEL and cheap back blade for snow plowing than you will from the snow blower.

During the snow part of the year though, the snow blower must be king, from what I can see...but the year is not all snow, is it?

Good luck in your decision...

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

Ray,

Please do a search on this topic you will find many hours of reading. I went with a FEL and a rear 3pt snowblower, best of both worlds. The 3 pt is in the $1000-1500 range depending on the mfg and when you buy it. I picked up a Puma 54" unit in March of 02 for $1000.

 

[ByronBob]

I'll throw out an entirely different angle on this. If the primary use is mowing the lawn then a BX1530 can do all a BX2230 can do as far as mowing is concerned. You can plow snow on your driveway with a FEL. I did my 635' driveway that way. Yes it's slower and yes it's not as efficient as a blower but for $2750 the FEL is money well invested. And for the cost difference of a 1530 with FEL can cost as much as a 2230 without.
If money isn't an issue which I'm sure in some cases maybe it isn't. I'd spring for the FEL and find other ways around the blower unless you get feet at a time. The FEL will push 5" of snow the length of your driveway most times easily.

Welcome...................

 

[surfran]

For that length drive the FEL is acceptable in my mind. My 75' drive is done in 30 minutes and I typically go side to side so I don't have to worry about spill over. I also clear roughly 40-50' wide so I don't have to go back and do it again if we get a lot more snow. With the FEL you can pile much higher and always move it.

A blower would be great and probably faster, but not justified for my applicaiton and arguably yours as well. The FEL pays for itself over an over with uses all year around.

 

[CRaymond]

Thanks for the input and feedback. I’m leaning towards Kubota; however, I’m now considering the advice expressed by some to go with a compact over a sub compact.

Does the 24HP B7610 really provide more utility over the 22 HP BX2230? Or put in a different way - what can I not do with a BX2230 that I could do with B7610?

 

[jim_wilson]

Speaking as someone who bought a BX23 about 4 months ago and currently has approx 150 hours on it - most of which has been doing excavation and filling in for a new driveway I would say take a look at the specs for the B7610 over the BX and compare them closely. I have found that the BX will do a lot of work but I have run into more than a few situations where I really wished that the FEL had more lifting capability. If you got the 7610 with the heavier duty loader (cant remember the number) and were going to do a lot of loader type work I would say it is definitely worth it. The 7610 also has higher ground clearance which may or may not be important in your situation. I believe that the 3pt also has higher capabilities. While the slightly higher limits of the 7610 might not look like much on paper I can attest to the fact that I have wished a number of times the BX had just a little bit more power for the FEL.

 

[Henro]

<font color="blue"> Does the 24HP B7610 really provide more utility over the 22 HP BX2230? Or put in a different way - what can I not do with a BX2230 that I could do with B7610? </font>

There is a lot of difference between the BX and B series tractors. The BX is superior for grass cutting. The B series is superior for tractoring... /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

I have one of each, as do many others here...by the way, the TZ24 looks like a nice tractor that may have advantages over the BX...

But back to the B7610 question.

You cannot judge a tractor by engine HP really. You have to look at the package, the size, ground clearance, tire size, weight and so on.

The BX size tractors seem to have low ground clearance and smaller tires. The BX also has a plastic fan down under there just waiting for a stick to shatter it. Cheap part but expensive to get at apparently.

I have a B2910, which is a step larger than the 7610 if I got the numbers right in my head. In my case, the larger tractor does most of the work, and the BX does light duty jobs and grass cutting. The BX seems superior for cutting grass on side slopes, I am pretty sure it is less likely to tip over than the larger tractor is, all things being equal.

If you are going to only have one tractor and have real work to accomplish with it, the BX may be a bit on the small side.

Wear old clothes next time you go by your dealers, and lay on the ground under both thactors and look up (if you can find a bx without a mower on it...) Both have filters and things hanging out down there, but you will get an idea of what sticks and stones are seeing, and also of ground clearance issues.

With the larger tractor in addition to increased ground clearance, you also get a loader than can lift more (which means do more work in a given time) and maybe most important, a 3PH that is more usable than the mini 3PH on the BX. Read: you can use standard sized implements without any trouble...

The BX and TZ tractors are really nice, but have limitations if you want to do a lot of real work with them, in my experience with the BX anyway...

Hope these comments are of some use. I love both my tractors, but I see them for what they are and both have their strengths and weaknesses...

Whatever you end up buying, I am sure you will be thrilled with it and it will work harder for you than you ever imagined.

 

[RalphVa]

I'd add JD 2210 and maybe JD 4010 to your list. Test drive them at least. They're near identical in price and take almost the same attachments. The JD 4010 has cruise control, but the JD 2210 has a more precise mower height adjustment. Of course, the JD 2210 has 4.5 more hp, but I can't see as you'd need it for mowing. My Gravely at 12 hp will mow with a 50" deck. I've only the 30" deck on it and have NEVER bogged it mowing just grass.

I didn't like the pedal placement and driving the Kubota BX1830 nor the B7510.

I'm getting my JD 4010 with FEL and rear cutter. The cutter will spell (largely replace) my Gravely for trail mowing and bush hogging duties. Figure I'll try the FEL for snow. In the meantime, my main snow removal is the 48" snow plow on the Gravely with an old square chute snow blower and JD 4010 FEL as backup. For the snows here, going to a front blade may be the way, with the FEL around in case we get some real heavy stuff. (This is if I decide to sell the Gravely)

Need the FEL for turning big piles of compost and a little bit of dirt digging.

Ralph

 

[RalphVa]

Forgot. saw a TZ 18 at the county fair. NH puts their frames higher than JD. The frame on the oil filter side is right in front of the filter. The engine-access side panels on the JDs are duck soup easy to remove. The sales person at Kubota didn't know how to remove their side panels. Looked more complicated to remove.

Ralph