So why do you buy Kubota? Even though Roy says JD's best? :)

[crazyal]

Got a link to that thread? I searched for user Talon Dancer and found nothing.

It's actually TalonDancer, one word. Here's one of this posts where he talks about it:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...6-grand-l-40s-hydrostatic-transmission-3.html

If you read post 26 he talks about adjusting the cable. I haven't tried to adjust mine because I really haven't had much time to play with my 4240 yet.

 

[DiezNutz]

Naw, DiezNutz. After searching for half an hour or so I was finally able to figure out how to adjust the seat. But anybody who thinks there's no difference in the operating position "feel" between a 6' person with the seat all the way back and a 6'4" person with size 14 boots with the seat in the same position wouldn't understand what I meant, I suppose--or maybe I didn't explain it well. With some compact Kubotas (the B2630, which I otherwise really liked, is a good example) the forward HST pedal fit my boot toe fine; but to go backwards required lifting the entire weight of my leg off the pedal and moving my boot toe to the rear end of the rocker pedal. Because of the combination of a fairly low seat height and limited rearward seat adjustment, it was impossible for me to stretch my 68 year old Achilles tendon far enough to press the rear HST pedal all the way down without shifting my entire leg/foot. I could only get about 1/3 to 1/2 travel on it. What's the point of paying for HST for loader work if I have go through gyrations like that? Heck, I might as well clutch and shift every time and save the HST expense.

I didn't try the L or M series, I'm sure they have more room, but I wasn't interested in those lines, only the mid size B's. All other things being more or less equal, JD's twin side-by-side HST pedals simply worked for me where other setups don't. The difference is meaningless to many, it meant a lot to me.

To make you feel better, I've since looked at small backhoe attachments from green and orange, and to my mind orange kicks butt in that category. So everybody does some things I like better than others, it appears. That's what makes the world go round!

Howdy Picker,

Judging from your reply, it seems perhaps you thought my comments about the seat were directed toward you, but they weren't in particular, just a general response to various comments about the operator stations being cramped.

Your explanation about the seat height in combination with the HST treadle makes sense. I like the fact that I can plop my right foot down on the treadle and not have to move it from that spot to do everything, but I had to concede in another thread that some folks might not have the same range of motion in their ankle. I hope my ankle always stays this flexible, or else I might have to modify the treadle at some point down the road.

You have to admit, at 6'-4" you're at one of the skinny ends of the Bell curve.

 

[DiezNutz]

I'm glad to see a few folks mention the 0 down/ 0% financing. I know Kubota isn't the only manufacturer to offer promotions and incentives like this, but it's still worth pointing out.

They do seem to offer the 0D/0% deals pretty often, and the best part is it includes any attachments or implements for the tractor, even non-Kubota ones your dealer might carry. That's why if you can responsibly afford the payments, it's often to your advantage to buy them with the tractor as opposed to later on with your own money. :thumbsup:

 

[LostInTheWoods]

I'm glad to see a few folks mention the 0 down/ 0% financing. I know Kubota isn't the only manufacturer to offer promotions and incentives like this, but it's still worth pointing out.

They do seem to offer the 0D/0% deals pretty often, and the best part is it includes any attachments or implements for the tractor, even non-Kubota ones your dealer might carry. That's why if you can responsibly afford the payments, it's often to your advantage to buy them with the tractor as opposed to later on with your own money. :thumbsup:

Very true, and another reason I personally went with Kubota.:thumbsup:

 

[Sam Mac]

My Kubota dealer is outstanding and my JD dealer sucks.

 

[bp fick]

I have not spent a moment of time operating a two pedal hydro, although I'd like to be better able to compare. I only know that the front/aft pedal certainly fits my "world view". I adjusted to it instantly, finding it intuitive and natural.

Those of you who jump back and forth between side by side pedal tractors and the forward/aft style might be better able to say whether that would be a deal breaker? Just something to get used to? No big deal either way?

I didn't buy my Kubota because it had the fore/aft, nor avoid it because it did. Honestly didn't give it a whole lot of thought one way or the other.

 

[TripleR]

I have not spent a moment of time operating a two pedal hydro, although I'd like to be better able to compare. I only know that the front/aft pedal certainly fits my "world view". I adjusted to it instantly, finding it intuitive and natural.

Those of you who jump back and forth between side by side pedal tractors and the forward/aft style might be better able to say whether that would be a deal breaker? Just something to get used to? No big deal either way?

I didn't buy my Kubota because it had the fore/aft, nor avoid it because it did. Honestly didn't give it a whole lot of thought one way or the other.

I mowed with a JD 425 with side by side HST for years and then bought our first BX for a variety of reasons one of which we preferred the heel and toe HST.

We later bought a JD2305 to use at another location. As our son and grand kids would be using it as well as the JD425, we felt it would be safer to stay with the same setup.

We both now swap back and forth between our "new" BX2660 and JD2305 without any problems. While we both prefer the Kubota HST, it is no big deal and would not base a purchase decision on it.

 

[picker77]

When your ankles get to be in their sixties and your Achilles tendons (along with all other tendons) naturally begin to shrink, you'll appreciate JD's two-pedal setup. In my case, I was doubly blessed with semi-old age and 30 years worth of trail and hill running with numerous twisted/turned ankles during that time. My Achilles tendons simply won't stretch enough to allow proper "heel-sitting" or "heel-pedal-pressing" any more. I haven't been able to properly squat on my heels in 20 years or more, I have to be rocked forward and balanced on my toes instead. Doesn't really bother me much, except when I try to use a heel/toe HST pedal at my Kubota dealer. :laughing:

 

[TripleR]

When your ankles get to be in their sixties and your Achilles tendons (along with all other tendons) naturally begin to shrink, you'll appreciate JD's two-pedal setup. In my case, I was doubly blessed with semi-old age and 30 years worth of trail and hill running with numerous twisted/turned ankles during that time. My Achilles tendons simply won't stretch enough to allow proper "heel-sitting" or "heel-pedal-pressing" any more. I haven't been able to properly squat on my heels in 20 years or more, I have to be rocked forward and balanced on my toes instead. Doesn't really bother me much, except when I try to use a heel/toe HST pedal at my Kubota dealer. :laughing:

I can sure identify with that. I have arthritis in my knee, hip shoulders etc., so at times some movements are uncomfortable. Heck, I use my cane to engage 4WD and have a strap tied to it to use in disengaging. I also use it to use diff lock. I can hardly use my left leg, so I clutch with my right foot.:laughing:

Old guys have to approach things in a different way than some others. I am sure people wonder what the heck I am doing on my tractors sometimes.

 

[montelatici]

As your right knee gets older you begin to appreciate the Kubota set up where you don't have to reposition your leg just to go into reverse. Going into reverse by lifting the forward pedal of the Kubota makes it even easier and requires less movement than pushing the reverse pedal with your heel. Far better system for us older folks.

 

[hawkeye08]

I see the 0% financing mentioned a few times through this thread. I'm reasonably sure that it is not 'free', but it is convenient and allows some folks to get into a tractor that otherwise couldn't (if they were going to finance anyway).

We save and pay cash, we're not much for payments. One of the things that caused us to purchase now (recently) was that our savings was not growing as fast as the prices of tractors was going up.

My dream tractor (for my current needs) would be the same size frame as we have, more HP (to run AC) and a cab. I have allergies and asthma and have to be careful to avoid a trip to the ER. The Gravely tractors we have took too long to keep all the areas mowed.

Another thing that always hangs in my mind, most of the rental yards have Kubotas around here. Rentals get beat up pretty good, so they need to be reasonably easy and inexpensive to maintain or the rental yards would not keep them. I also thought about ease of use, if the rental yards use Kubotas, then they must be easy enough for renters to use (or folks would not rent).

I'm sure each brand has their problems, I think the most important thing is to get the one that you are comfortable with. Some folks over analyze and expect that the tractor they buy will be the same as their analysis. Some tractors never have any problems, some have many problems.

Get one you like, keep the maintenance up, enjoy it. :thumbsup:

 

[rjkobbeman]

We save and pay cash, we're not much for payments.

The problem with that is you are losing money.

My experience with Kubota is they will not give you a "better deal" if you pay cash. Whether or not the 0% is factored in to the price can be debated until the cows come home, but if the "cash" guy and the "0%" guy pay the same price for the tracto (which they do), the "cash" guy is losing money. Why? Because if the "cash" guy left his money in the bank or invested it, he would be making money on his savings.

I totally understand NOT wanting to finance if it costs you money. But if you have the cash to cover the loan, why not take the free financing and make extra money with your savings?

For those manufacturers that give you a better deal if you pay cash, well that is different. My dealer didn't care if I paid cash or financed the whole purchase with no money down. Same price.

 

[montelatici]

I see the 0% financing mentioned a few times through this thread. I'm reasonably sure that it is not 'free', :thumbsup:

If I were to have paid cash, I would have taken it out of my non-retirement trading account. As you can see it has made about $25K on roughly 165K that was there at the beginning of the year (about 15% over 7 months). Realistically I expect to get about 20% return per year on these investments.

I was told they would give me a discount of $1,000 if I paid cash. If I had taken 20K out of this account to pay for the tractor. I would have lost out on returns of $4,000 per year over 5 years or $20,000. Ok, I am a pretty good investor, I have gold, silver and currency stocks, Norwegian oil, and Chinese mobile networks. An eclectic mix that gets me relatively high returns, but even if you consider only 10% return, you would lose $2,000 a year for 5 years. $1,000 discount is just not sufficient even if you have the money to buy the tractor. So to me the zero 60 month financing is not only free, but allows me to make $20,000 over the five years, about the cost of the tractor.

Hope this helps.

SymbolSorted in ascending order. Click to reverse. Description Quantity Most
Recent
Price Most
Recent
Value Change
Since
Purchase $ Change
Since 1/1/2010
Purchase %
FDRXX * FIDELITY CASH RESERVES 8,681.160 $1.00 $8,681.16 Not Applicable
ANCJQ ANC RENT CORP NO STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY 04/16/04 37.000 n/a n/a $263.80 n/a n/a
CHL CHINA MOBILE LTD SPON ADR REP 5 ORD HKD0.10 400.000 $52.74 $21,096.00 $19,209.35 +$1,886.65 +9.82%
GLD SPDR GOLD TR GOLD SHS 250.000 $121.23 $30,307.50 $22,460.40 +$7,847.10 +34.94%
GOLD RANDGOLD RESOURCES ADS EACH REPR 1 ORD USD0.05 600.000 $91.75 $55,050.00 $49,050.09 +$5,999.91 +12.23%
MCD MCDONALDS CORP 300.000 $73.74 $22,122.00 $20,173.56 +$1,948.44 +9.66%
MERKX MERK HARD CURRENCY FUND INVESTOR CL 977.125 $11.37 $11,109.91 $10,000.00 +$1,109.91 +11.10%
SLV ISHARES SILVER TR ISHARES 2,500.000 $18.81 $47,025.00 $40,306.20 +$6,718.80 +16.67%
Total: $195,391.57 +$25,510.81

 

[LostInTheWoods]

Hmm. With my dealer, we never even talked about how I was going to pay for it until after we had batted around the price. Maybe he just assumed I'd be doing the 0-down/0% finance?

 

[TripleR]

Hmm. With my dealer, we never even talked about how I was going to pay for it until after we had batted around the price. Maybe he just assumed I'd be doing the 0-down/0% finance?

We established the price then threw in the question of cash v financing and we saved by paying cash. We will be writing it off as it was a business/farm expense.

 

[hawkeye08]

rjkobbeman & montelatici; take a deep breath and ease up...:laughing:

I shared what worked for me. I don't buy on payments. We don't have any loan payments and we like it that way.

Whatever floats your boat...:thumbsup:

 

[montelatici]

rjkobbeman & montelatici; take a deep breath and ease up...:laughing:

I shared what worked for me. I don't buy on payments. We don't have any loan payments and we like it that way.

Whatever floats your boat...:thumbsup:

Sorry we presented financial reality :laughing:

I shared what worked for me. We don't like throwing money away, so we analyze a financial transaction and take a decision based on the merits.

Sorry if this approach upsets you. :confused2:

 

[rjkobbeman]

rjkobbeman & montelatici; take a deep breath and ease up...:laughing:

I shared what worked for me. I don't buy on payments. We don't have any loan payments and we like it that way.

Whatever floats your boat...:thumbsup:

I could care less what you do with your money... no need to take a deep breath. I was just saying you are losing money by paying cash and not financing. If you like losing money, all the power to ya! :thumbsup:

Unable to finance? Different story.
Get a big discount on tractor by paying cash? Possibly a different story.
Able to finance AND pay the same price for tractor whether you finance or pay cash? You spend MORE paying with cash.

 

[LostInTheWoods]

We established the price then threw in the question of cash v financing and we saved by paying cash. We will be writing it off as it was a business/farm expense.

Ah. Sometimes I think about trying to raise some animals or garden crops for "business" reasons. But unlike you and many other people here, I don't actually know enough about it. I also wouldn't have the time to dedicate to the task, and I couldn't honestly say I had any real profit motives. Business deductions for my tractor expenses would be nice though...

 

[hawkeye08]

Sorry we presented financial reality :laughing:

I shared what worked for me. We don't like throwing money away, so we analyze a financial transaction and take a decision based on the merits.

Sorry if this approach upsets you. :confused2:

I could care less what you do with your money... no need to take a deep breath. I was just saying you are losing money by paying cash and not financing. If you like losing money, all the power to ya! :thumbsup:

Unable to finance? Different story.
Get a big discount on tractor by paying cash? Possibly a different story.
Able to finance AND pay the same price for tractor whether you finance or pay cash? You spend MORE paying with cash.

You did not upset me, but it appears that I upset you, sorry.