New member and a question

[jhagerty]

Hello all, I just joined, great site!

I guess I’ll jump right in with some questions, first I did do multiple searches on the subject but really did not find much info on this particular question. I’m interested in buying the BX1500 so I read-up on all the info I could find from this site (and others) then went to the 3 dealers in my area (in MA).

All the prices I got were within about $300 so it really comes down to who I think will give me the best service. My question is, one of the dealers said he does not really want to sell me BX1500 with a 54 inch deck (with a bagger) because his experience is that the machine is not strong enough at only 15hp. He said that if the grass was wet at all or if I had any slight hills the machine would stall. He insisted that I go with a 48 inch deck and I would have better luck. My land is pretty flat but the grass is pretty juicy until July so I’m concerned about his comment

Neither of the other two dealers even mentioned this an in fact said “do not be fooled by the HP raiting, this machine has plenty of power”. I have not seen any info on this site that backs-up the claim about the 1500 not being powerful enough to handle the 54" deck. any thoughts on this?

By the way, the quotes I got were all around $13,500 for the BX1500, FEL, 54" deck and a bagger (including tax). I am thinking about going up to the BX2230 but I think that will about $2000 more, is that about right? I have 2 acres of lawn and another 1 ½ acre of woods.

 

[Boondox]

Welcome aboard! Now, having said that, I'm absolutely unfamiliar with smaller tractors, but would encourage you to fill out your profile as a lot of the old timers and keepers of the brain trust use the info in a member's profile to tailor their responses.

But most of all I just wanted to be the first to welcome you to TBN! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Pete

 

[Killer_B]

J

Welcome aboard.

If you do a search for BX1500 you'll find a bunch of posts. I think you would be hard pressed to find any saying that the tractor is underpowered for a 54" deck. You will certainly find numerous opinions to the contrary.

Good luck and enjoy the hunt.

 

[Henro]

The BX 1500 is a nice little tractor, but when I looked at them and the BX 2200, a year and a half ago, I just did not feel they gave the best bang for the buck.

I wanted a small tractor, but I finally settled on a BX2200 with 60" MMM. No bagger.

For me, I liked the idea of a 3 cylinder more than a 2 cylinder. I like the increased hp. And I like the wider mowing deck, which may be better designed/more durable to boot.

When I bought mine, in the summer of 2003, they were in short supply around here and I paid a premium. I paid $10,500 for the BX2200, 60" MMM, heavy duty alternator, and block heater. I thought at the time that was about $300 more than it should have cost me.

At the time, the price difference here between the BX1500 and BX2200 was about $2,000 also.

Buy what is best for you, but think carefully since it is a big expense and best done right the first time.

I wanted a small tractor since I already had a larger one, but I just could not go smaller than the BX2200. It just looked to me like it was not physically that much larger than the BX1500 and that it gave the most bang for the buck. I guess I already said that... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

For me, I made the right choice. I would like to think it may be the right choice for you too, since you have a couple acres of grass and 3.5 acres total to deal with.

Whatever you get, get the widest mower you can. It makes cutting close to things much easier, and leave a smaller uncut circle when turning. (voice of experience learned with the other tractor... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif )

Also give serious thought to the bar tires. Like several others here (maybe more) I have a set of turf tires sleeping in my shed. I could have had either, but bought mine with turffs and ended up spending an additional $300 later for a set of bar tires which I keep on all the time...

 

[Tom_H]

Henro's right about the tires. Junkman and I both have extra turf tires sitting in storage too. I just sold my bagger to Junkman because my mulching system works well for me. I have a dry summer though. I can irrigate on Sunday and Monday then mulch cut the following Saturday when I know it will be dry. Mulching systems are far cheaper than the blower/bagger. You might want to go back and search all the threads about the pros and cons of mulching. The mulch kit and blades are about $300 whereas the blower/bagger is about $1500. If you decided you could mulch and not get the blower/bagger, you'd be $1200 closer to the BX2230. You'd probably even be at the break even point on a BX1800.

 

[DmansPadge]

Welcome to TBN! This is a wonderful site full of info and great people who are willing to help.

This isn't a very good comparision, but, I can tell you that I have a B7300 that is 16hp and 12.5 PTO hp and recently bought a 4ft. brushhog. I have only had the chance to use it once (what a shame!!).... but I had no trouble cutting 2ft. tall growth at a decent speed. The land I was cutting was my neighbors who didn't mind me trying out the new hog. It wasn't real thick but was quite grown up. The 16hp engine didn't even blink. I ran the engine at the appropriate rpm (about 2800) for the 540rpm rear PTO. To be honest... it surprised me that the little 3 cyl. 16hp engine could do it without breaking a sweat!

Like I said... that's not really what you are doing but it is something to compare too.

Good luck!

 

[gsxr1100]

welcome to TBN! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I would contact Jim at Emerichs and see what he wants. I know my local dealers (and many in our wonderful state, not) are very high. He was about $3,000 cheaper then any dealer around here (western MA) on my bx22.

Here is email.

EMERICHSALES@AOL.COM

 

[rbarker]

Welcome to the group!

I have a BX2200 so I can't really comment on the 1500 from first hand experience. I do know that many people here in the forum have 1500's with the 54" deck and no complaints. Give it a day or so and they will speak up. If your plan is to do mostly mowing then the 1500 may be enough.

Some advantages to the 2230 are more lift capacity from the loader (about 70 Lbs.), more ground clearance by 1.7 inches, obviously more HP, and more weight. Also, it will take a 60" deck that is very popular amoungst the owners here.

It really comes down to what you want to accomplish with the tractor and personal preference. I set out to get the 1500 like you but wound up with the 2200 because I just liked it better. Maybe the 1500 would have met my needs, but the 2200 has exceeded expectations.

As for New England dealers, the prices tend to be higher than some areas of the country so shop carefully. Also, the whole bagger vs. mulching discussion is going to depend on your lawn and mowing habits. Some folks here have great luck with mulching but New England isn't always the best area for that. Mulching works better if the grass is dry and not too long. If you go too long without mowing then your results won't be as satisfactory.

Good luck, and I'm sure you will enjoy whichever tractor you decide to buy.

 

[sneaky_pete]

I have a 16 hp G1800 garden tractor that has a 54" or 60" Kubota MMM and it has never stalled, in fact it will spin the tires on most any surface (turf tires!). You need to mow at high throttle settings (no tach) in 1-2 feet tall grass, but other than that no problems at all.

Pete

 

[jhagerty]

Thank you all for your quick responses, I appreciate it! All of you are pretty much confirming what I thought that the BX1500 can indeed handle the 54" deck with no trouble.

I still have not made my decision but I am leaning toward the BX2230 just to have that little extra if I need it. I figure I’m going to have this thing for 20 or more years so better to go up a level.

I think the bagger/blower is important to me as the grass around here is pretty juicy and does not lend itself to mulching very well. They have actually lowered the price on the bagger/blower by a few hundred, it’s down to $1199, I think it was $1499 not to long ago.

I do have another question, if I go with the 2230 do you think the bagger/blower would work ok with a 60" deck?

again, thank for the replies!

Mike