RK Tractor reviews???

[uptaker73]

I'm still uncertain on making a tractor purchase from a retail store. I haven't been 100% convinced they will still be in the tractor business 5 years from now.

 

[Threepoint]

I'm still uncertain on making a tractor purchase from a retail store. I haven't been 100% convinced they will still be in the tractor business 5 years from now.

I'm sure that uncertainty is shared by others as well, and that it factors into RK's introductory pricing.

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

I searched the Internet for a month gathering any and all info about SCUTS , creating spread sheets, comparing specs, and of course, a major player, price. I did come across the RK tractors and found them to be one of the top contenders. Unfortunately, there are no stores anywhere close. Shipping costs put them out of contention. If they opened a store within about 500 miles from me, I would buy one of their tractors.

I ended up driving 550 miles each way to pick up my LS scut. Basically the same identical tractor as the NH workmaster 25S. (It is the same tractor, "re-branded" as a NH, made by LS). Why would I pay $4-5K more just to have NH decals on it? I don't rely on the dealer to do any service. They have been excellent shipping a couple of 'factory service bulletin' parts to me, which I installed myself. Now that the local NH dealer is finally selling/servicing the workmaster line, I can get parts locally if needed. I have put 135 hours on my little SCUT so far and it has been fantastic!

What RK Tractor Guy states makes sense. If you cut out the middle man, that savings can be used to pass on to the consumer. Every tractor manufacturer can have a "lemon" or a certain line that has defects. So can Chevy, Ford, Toyota, etc... I would not base a decision upon who is selling, but rather base the decision on quality, price, and of course, bang for the buck.

My initial purchase was based on what I could afford at the time, and naturally 'the best bang for my meager bucks'. What I was able to get has helped me considerably. Was it what I wanted to get? No. Will it be my only tractor purchase? No. I will get another tractor, based upon my future needs, but not right now.

I think that RK is filling a needed void in the marketplace. They are creating competition between brands, which means better quality, price, and customer support is required to capture a market share. Brands like Kubota and Deere have already established themselves. It's now the other guys that have to prove themselves. There are only 3 "local" dealers near me, K, D, and NH. They all have the "I don't care" attitude, raise their prices competitively higher than other regions / states. They may have a proven track record, but I personally would never ever buy one of those tractors. I may be strange, have a different way of thinking, but maybe I just root for the underdog.

I hope RK does what they say, stands behind their equipment, and upholds their integrity. In today's day and age, that would make them a winner in my book.

 

[RK Tractor Guy]

I'm sure that uncertainty is shared by others as well, and that it factors into RK's introductory pricing.

Our pricing is not low because it is introductory, our pricing is low because we buy our tractors directly from the tractor manufacturer, built in our brand and to our specifications, and then sell directly to the tractor user. Every other brand sells to a dealer first. That means our cost is much lower than that of the dealers we compete with. Our pricing will be adjusted once per year on Jan 1 based solely upon any changes to what our manufacturer charges us, but every brand sees annual price changes. We will always be far below anyone else.

As for whether we will be around in five years selling tractors, our company is a family and employee owned, American business began in 1960. We launched RK Tractors at seven locations in April 2017, ranked 14th of 14 under 60 HP tractor brands in the U.S. in unit tractor sales because we started at zero sales. We are at 40 locations today, and we will be at 60 locations by March 2019, and at all 115 Rural King locations in 2020. We won’t reveal where we rank now in Sales other than say we have already passed many brands that have been around for 10 years or more.

We’ll be around in five years, and 25 for that matter. We do understand why we need to keep sending that message though. All we can do is share our plans and stick to our commitments.

 

[uptaker73]

Good morning RK tractor guy! Great to see you involved in this thread. My quote involving 5 years from now didn't necessary refer to RK in general but the tractor sales and service. My RK is actually only 5 minutes from my house so the convenience is awesome. The tractor guy at my local RK store (Joe) is awesome and yes he has sold me on the tractor but I would love to see the service side of RK. When spending potentially 30k a person has to be 100% sure of everything. I love the RK37 size and features. I may see if Joe can allow me to walk thru the service area and talk to who may be over that as well. Our Morganton RK seems to be always busy!!

 

[RTBee]

Are your holes sloppy? That will make them shear...

Imho, I would care less about the mower gearbox than my tractors pto...

Good luck

It seems like a pretty snug fit. I'm using 1/2" bolts. I'm wondering if maybe I should be using metric bolts. They might be a mm thicker? I'll have to do a little research.

 

[Threepoint]

Our pricing is not low because it is introductory, our pricing is low because we buy our tractors directly from the tractor manufacturer, built in our brand and to our specifications, and then sell directly to the tractor user. Every other brand sells to a dealer first. That means our cost is much lower than that of the dealers we compete with. Our pricing will be adjusted once per year on Jan 1 based solely upon any changes to what our manufacturer charges us, but every brand sees annual price changes. We will always be far below anyone else. [snip]

RK Tractors has developed its own business model, and I sure don't mean to be argumentative, but be careful what you promise. Saying that your future pricing will be adjusted solely upon any changes to what your manufacturer charges you leaves decisions on price increases exclusively to your manufacturer. Doesn't that essentially put handcuffs on RK's bean counters? :laughing: It limits the potential for increasing profitability strictly to growth in volume of future sales.

Every other tractor brand is free to increase prices based in large part on demand, not just cost. And many have done that, as their reputation, cachet and brand loyalty have grown over the years. In a free-market economy, why would RK give that opportunity up? No one is expecting the family to run its tractor business as a public-service enterprise!

 

[majorwager]

Threepoint,

As stated, it appears RK is in this for the long game. The conditions and variables you suggest are years down the road. Believe the objective is to first prove to the tractor buying community that they are committed to this tractor endeavor.


Secondly, it is important to secure a sound position in overall market share. Getting to the # 1 position and remaining there are two different scenarios.


Thirdly, RK can see how price inflexibility and arrogance is currently undermining those that share the current top positions. It is an advantage to start at the bottom and observe what is and is NOT working for the market leaders.


Lastly, the RK philosophy, as they also sell many different products, is too demonstrate a VERY COMPETITIVE posture in the marketplace. This is their historical profile since the beginning. Since the leopard does Not change its' spots, it is reasonable to expect RK to employee the same marketing approach to tractors, LONG TERM.

They aren't just another one trick pony, they have a traceable track record, and I believe they have their sights set upon the LONG GAME, Sell for a reasonable competitive price, and sell more...…………..

 

[TractorNH]

I'm still uncertain on making a tractor purchase from a retail store. I haven't been 100% convinced they will still be in the tractor business 5 years from now.

I was thinking the same thing when you consider all the people who got screwed on warranty buying from Cabella's BUT I do believe there's a big difference between Cabella's and RK. Cabella's is more of a sporting goods store that happened to try selling tractors whereas RK is an actual farm type store. IMO that is a HUGE difference going into it because tractors seem like a good fit for the RK product line but it would still make the decision more complicated for me as well. Cabella's really had no business getting into the tractor business.

 

[majorwager]

Tractor NH,

I think the Cabella issue is exaggerated. We need to be careful when equating warranty support and long term dealer support. If the #'s were as inflated as suggested, there would have been multiple class action legal actions.
Lexis Nexis did not reveal any class actions?


Do YOU personally know anyone affected by a failure to execute warranty support? No one wants to see their dealer cease operations. A question was posed to RK if they would provide parts for Cabella owners? The answer is affirmative.


No ONE likes what occurred w/ the Cabella situation, but at this point it doesn't serve anyone's interest to paint RK w/ that same brush. RK had NO connection to that relationship. Let's analogize and draw a correlation on a much more personal level.

Presume for a moment, a member of YOUR family committed a crime against society. Shall we ALL then assume that since this is YOUR relative, YOU are likely to also commit a similar crime? Is that fair?. Well it is not fair to RK either!!!