TBrown
Silver Member
Well, here's my story.. early in 2003 I started toying with the idea of buying a compact tractor to replace a bunch of older equipment I'd been muddling along with. I began seriously looking around August, and fortunately I stumbled onto TBN. You folks are great, I learned more from pouring over the posts here than I ever could have on my own. I imagine that every time you answer a newbie's questions, you're actually helping hundreds of lurkers like me to make informed decisions as well. Anyway, for awhile I was leaning heavily towards one of the small Power-Trac machines. The only problem was that noone here on TBN had any experience with the PT snowblower, and efficient snow removal was one of the big reasons I wanted a new machine (its too late for me, but one of you PT guys has got to bite the bullet and be the snowblower guinea pig !)
In October, I'd settled on the McCormick G30R. It has a reversable driving position, similar to the much larger NH TV145. A press release on the McCormick website (which has since disappeared) said that a front-end loader was available for that tractor. My thought was that I could use both the FEL and a 3pt hitch mounted snowblower to clean the driveway, driving forward no matter which implement I used. Well, in November the McCormick arrived at the dealer, but the FEL turned out to be a REL. The loader mounted to a subframe on the back, and the 3pt linkage had to be removed. The dealer and I went through a confusing week or so, when some McCormick people said that a FEL could be had for that tractor, some said it couldn't, but in the end it was determined that the loader had to be mounted on the back. The dealer was great about it, refunded my deposit immediately, but the next size larger McCormick is the GXH 40, too big for me and my needs, so I was back to my search.
I visited a dozen or so dealerships up through early February, and saw a few nice tractors, but nobody seemed to have alot of compacts in stock during the winter. Also, prices in NY tend to be a bit on the high side, which is fine, I know the cost of doing business in NY is high. But.. I was getting some whoppers ! I thought the Kioti CK20HST with FEL was perfect, but when I was quoted $13,800 my jaw hit the floor. I ended up getting fairly discouraged, and eventually decided to keep muddling along with what I had. I started looking for an entry-level utility vehicle instead, something a bit handier than a cart behind my lawn tractor, and something I could use at hunting camp.
Well, February 28 was a gorgeous day in upstate NY, and my stepfather gave me 3 tickets to the NY Farm Show, so I loaded up my wife and daughter (had to bribe her by saying we'd stop at the mall on the way back /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif) and headed for Syracuse. I figured it'd be a great way to see most of the UV's in one place, and with the crowds, I could probably avoid the long-winded sales pitches (long-winded, like this post). I just wanted to look, not buy. After all, the snow won't be gone from my yard for another two months.
Well, there's now a new Mahindra 2015 HST with FEL and 60" Bush Hog finish mower in my drive, right beside a new Snapper Grounds Cruiser.
Sure, it was embarassing, begging and pleading on my hands and knees to my wife, in front of all those people... but it was worth it ! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
In October, I'd settled on the McCormick G30R. It has a reversable driving position, similar to the much larger NH TV145. A press release on the McCormick website (which has since disappeared) said that a front-end loader was available for that tractor. My thought was that I could use both the FEL and a 3pt hitch mounted snowblower to clean the driveway, driving forward no matter which implement I used. Well, in November the McCormick arrived at the dealer, but the FEL turned out to be a REL. The loader mounted to a subframe on the back, and the 3pt linkage had to be removed. The dealer and I went through a confusing week or so, when some McCormick people said that a FEL could be had for that tractor, some said it couldn't, but in the end it was determined that the loader had to be mounted on the back. The dealer was great about it, refunded my deposit immediately, but the next size larger McCormick is the GXH 40, too big for me and my needs, so I was back to my search.
I visited a dozen or so dealerships up through early February, and saw a few nice tractors, but nobody seemed to have alot of compacts in stock during the winter. Also, prices in NY tend to be a bit on the high side, which is fine, I know the cost of doing business in NY is high. But.. I was getting some whoppers ! I thought the Kioti CK20HST with FEL was perfect, but when I was quoted $13,800 my jaw hit the floor. I ended up getting fairly discouraged, and eventually decided to keep muddling along with what I had. I started looking for an entry-level utility vehicle instead, something a bit handier than a cart behind my lawn tractor, and something I could use at hunting camp.
Well, February 28 was a gorgeous day in upstate NY, and my stepfather gave me 3 tickets to the NY Farm Show, so I loaded up my wife and daughter (had to bribe her by saying we'd stop at the mall on the way back /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif) and headed for Syracuse. I figured it'd be a great way to see most of the UV's in one place, and with the crowds, I could probably avoid the long-winded sales pitches (long-winded, like this post). I just wanted to look, not buy. After all, the snow won't be gone from my yard for another two months.
Well, there's now a new Mahindra 2015 HST with FEL and 60" Bush Hog finish mower in my drive, right beside a new Snapper Grounds Cruiser.
Sure, it was embarassing, begging and pleading on my hands and knees to my wife, in front of all those people... but it was worth it ! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
