now i are a powr trak guy!

[MossRoad]

That is my Christmas wish... making the pilgrimage to Tazewell someday... /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Well, not really. I have a few more important wishes, like world peace, healthy family, etc... but it is high on my wish list. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

goog for you - your going to love this machine

Happy Holidays -edm

 

[bryce]

Charlie, what improvements are on your wish list? I just want to get the basic machine. I can add on as the CFO allows. I am trying for a PT422 w/ a 48" bucket (while supplies last).
Robert

 

[duane]

Ken,

Congrats. Post the good, bad and the ugly. Don't worry, most of it will be good!

Duane

 

[Charlie_Iliff]

<font color=red>Charlie, what improvements are on your wish list?</font color=red>

Robert:

My wish list is not comprised of immediate requirements for anything I need to do. In part, I am interest in conceptualizing the gadgets, rather than actually building or using them -- a lot less effort that way.

In current order:

1. A cooling air filter system for high-chaff mowing. Currently I have the engine compartment covered with insect screen.
2. A boom mounted grapple. (I don't really need this, but Bubenberg does a lot of cleanup work on properties beginning rehab, and needs to pick up a variety of things.)
3. A boom mounted string trimmer for under fences. (I have one partially built. I suspended work in the heat of the summer - it was too hot. Now it's too cold to work on it.)
4. Better lights, up under the canopy. (I don't work at night much, but lights are neat.)
5. A post driver. It is $2500, and I can't justify it, but someday...
6. A large mulch bucket with auger in the bottom and pipe/chute so mulch can be delivered into a flower bed instead of just dumped. (I'd only need this for a couple of days a year, but Bubenberg and anyone else doing commercial work would have a lot of use for it.)
7. A couple of wing mowers so I can cut 14' at a time.
8. A winch to skid logs.
9. Grapple arms for the forks. (MossRoad: How's your bucket grapple project coming? With a bit of modification, that could work on forks, too, right?)
10. Swivel adapter with hydraulic control to tilt attachments horizontally.
11. ???

Yesterday, I crossed one thing off. My wife gave me a carry platform that goes on the back, in the 2" receiver. It is rated for 1000 lb., although it is cantilevered pretty far back on my machine because the receiver sticks back a bit. I will add bungees and tie down straps to carry a tool box, chain saw, smoke wrench, 2d auger or other implements of destruction selected for the job at hand -- or maybe a few bales of hay for my wife's horses, to supplement the stack on the pallet on the forks.

In fact, making up wish lists may be the number one talent of the denizens of this forum. I think MossRoad started it all. Take a look at the Power Trac Customization thread in the Customization forum. <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.tractorbynet.com/cgi-bin/compact/showflat.pl?Cat=&Board=custom&Number=99458&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=0&fpart=>LINK</A>

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Ken,
Congrats on your recent acquisition...did you make the "pilgrimage" to Tazewell prior to ordering or go on the "pioneering" efforts of Mossroad & others who ordered on faith. In talking with Kathy(?,the one who prepares shipping quotes) last week, she remarked how busy she was getting shipping quotes for Hawaii and other places around the country. I thought, then, what an influence this TBN has had on their(PT) fortunes...

Thanks for sharing your initial impressions...helps to minimize the anxiety for those of us still close to purchase...

Regards,
Bruce

 

[Kaon99]

bmkar,

I went by Tazewell in June, but to be honest, I was disappointed in the ability of the pt425 to do serious "dirt work" like dealing with major erosion. What made my decision for me was a lot of honest thinking about what I need to do most of the time. I finally realized that no single machine would be suitable for all my chores. Emotionally, I wanted a big 'Bota that could rip stuff out of the ground, but in reality most of what I do doesn't require a 40 hp, 3000 lb tractor. I cut alot of grass and brush, move some dead trees and railroad ties,dig some post holes, plant some trees, till flower beds. In short, a thousand small to medium tasks. I don't have much time, and I switch chores frequently, so the quick attach looked very, very sweet to me. I have a few big jobs that really require serious weight and power. I will probably hire those jobs out (or get big 'Bota - yea!). I finally decided to get the machine that would give me the most relief on the chores I have to do most of the time. That turns out to be the pt425 that I just bought. I probably would have been happy (and somewhat poorer) with a Kabota bx22 (fel+backhoe) with a mid-mount mower. In the end the versatility and price of the power-trac won out. Also, if I decide ((that is, my wife decides) to move back to town, the power-trac will go with me, but a bx22 would be sold. I don't think the pt425 has enough history to say what it will run like in 10 years. I'm hoping that with my weekend useage, it will still run fine. My advice is to take your time and figure what you really need to do most of the time, and learn the details on the real capabilities of alot of tractor options. You may find bigger is not necessarily better for what you need to do. Well, that's a very long answer to a short question. I hope it helps.- Ken in Mississippi

 

[waterglyn]

You could do like I did and not consult the wife and get a PT425 and a BX22. The wife will eventually ease off. I found it easy to take the loader and backhoe off and put them back on the BX22, but the mid mount mower is a pain to remove and also to hook back up. The BX22 will be used mainly for loader and backhoe work and the power trac will be for everything else.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Kaon99,

That is sound advice and I have agonized over this for too long...I think my wife is more anxious to get this thing now, while I'm still rationalizing/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif...I have gone through those same thought processes and arrived at the same destination...I need that versatility...won't be long now.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Hey Scott - how much does the BX22 weigh - it does not provide all the specs on the website - the backhoe digs 6ft right - or is there a larger one? - lenght and width I think is similar to the 425 - but it must weigh more