Tell what made you decide to buy the tractor you did, and what do like/dislike now

[tlm720]

There are many great tractors available on the market and the decision to buy can be overwhelming. Deciding on the right size/hp is just the start, then you have to pick a brand and dealer. I thought it may be helpful for new buyers if anyone who has been through the process already describe how and why they made their final decision and looking back now is there anything you regret or dislike about your pick.

I'll start. I bought a JD 4120 in 2006. Has almost 1500 hours on it now. At the time I looked at Kubota and New Holland in the same size/Hp. There are good dealers for each within 30 miles of my home. Briefly looked at Kioti but they did not have an HST transmission available in their equivalent at the time. Also tried to find a dealer that carried MF and didn't find one close.

I wanted a tractor that would do a wide variety of tasks, maybe not as well as a purpose built machine, but well enough to only own a single piece of equipment (sold two other tractors and a crawler loader/backhoe). This means finish mowing, snow removal, grading driveways, excavating, landscaping, brush hogging, plowing, discing, tilling, hauling/splitting wood, mowing/baling hay. Size wise I am happy with my selection. It's just big enough to get the jobs done, but not so big I can't mow the lawn. I am always amazed at how much work one can accomplish with these 4WD CUTs (I call them toy tractors)

As far as brand, I was almost ready to pull the trigger on a Boomer, then my dealer came down a little on the price of the Deere. What sold me on the Deere even though it was still a little more costly was the bigger 2.4L turbo charged engine which developed its power a lower RPM (=longevity I think), the ease with which the loader goes on and off (which happens frequently), the E-hydro, dealer and parts support (to me Deere is hard to beat for those), the most hydraulic pump capacity I could find in a CUT that size, the loader lift capacity is near the top of the class (Kioti beats it a by a little), visibility to the rear implement (especially compared to the Boomer) and of course the color.

What did I learn? Well, I never thought to ask if the 3pt had draft control when I bought it, and the first time I plowed I was surprised to find out it does not. I assumed all three point hitches had draft control (lesson learned). I love the e-hydro for almost everything, but if the proportion of drawbar work to loader/mowing/haying work was any higher for me, I think I'd rather have a shuttle shift. Luckily I have since picked up a JD 720 diesel that can be used for the heavier drawbar work. The hydrostatic consumes a lot of HP when pulling hard. And if I had it to do again, I probably would have spent the extra money and moved up to the 4720. Not that I run out of power, just that it bugs me that I can't "upgrade" an otherwise identical tractor to the higher horsepower and I didn't really think it through during the purchase decision. I wish Deere (or the aftermarket) would offer a kit to upgrade the Hp. And lastly, I have used a lot of B20 biodiesel in the tractor and it swelled my fuel tank and made the hood not fit quite right and it weakened the plastic in the fuel fill door so that the spring broke and does not work any more (gravity does the job). I mentioned these problems to the dealer and they said it should be okay to run B20 but I'm sure that is what caused my problems.

 

[bigbull338]

why i bought a tractor is kind of long.but we had a real wet winter stuck the 85hp 2wd cab tractor 3 or 4 times getting an putting hay out.had to get friends with 4wd to pull us out.i wanted an HST tractor that i could drive since my legg couldnt hold up to clutching alot.so as a joke went with a friend to look at equipment an found a mx5100 hst 4x4 with quicktatch loader an bought it.used the tractor for 2.5yrs haying an shredding.then this year we started baling our hay again.the 5 by 6 bales weighed like 1800lbs + so the mx5100 hst was pulling all it wanted.so i decided to trade for a 7040 hydro shuttle 4x4 with quicktatch loader this month.

 

[Guesseral]

I wasn't even looking for a tractor of any kind when I bought my Montana, I just found them on the internet one day and started doing research. I found out that they were made by LS who I didn't know anything about either then I found out that LS was a subsidiary of LG who I had definitely heard of and then I found out that they were going to make some of the NH boomers and my interest way definitely raised. After all that I found out that they were sold by a dealer that I had passed hundreds of times that sold farmtracs and I always wanted to stop because they were a very nice looking tractor. I started emailing back and forth with the dealer and I had pretty much as good as bought it before ever seeing and or driving it. Aside from all of the good things and positive things that I had found out about the tractor during my research the tractor was an 09 and it was 10 so it was a last years model (although last year was the last year for Montana) with a price that I just couldn't believe and or walk away from.

The tractor was just so nice looking and well built, that even though I wasn't looking I bought it anyways and I couldn't be happier with the decision. I really liked the fact that it had the two sets of remotes on the rear, the 7 pin electrical outlet, that it was a 4x4 and that it had a loader. Oh the loader that was one of the best points about it to me at least. I liked the rounded loader arms so I could see up front better (and I still like it even better that the new LS loaders that are sort of boxy) and the fact that the tractor had power steering that worked! You see my old ford with a loader has power steering but it doesn't work so well the pump doesn't even have a belt on it. I had even drove from Erie Pa to the other side of Detroit to pickup my 841 a month before and I had figured that that would be the last tractor that I would ever need to buy WRONG! Since buying the Montana I have restored the 841 and my jubilee (not just painting either) so now I have to figure out just what to do with those two.

Well that's my story and buying experience. :thumbsup: Only lesson to learn from my story is if you are not in the market for a new tractor just stay off of the tractor sites on the net!

 

[pinetree10]

I started looking into buying a tractor because I needed a PTO wood chipper to manage my woods and I planned on eventually getting a large front-mount snowblower to clear my long driveway and large turnaround. I originally did not intend to even get a front end loader but everyone I talked to urged me to do so and I'm glad I did because I've used it extensively since buying the tractor earlier this year. I looked at Case, New Holland, Bobcat, John Deere, and Kubota because all of those dealers are within a 30 minute drive of my house. I sat on all of them at the Empire Farm Days show here in New York and I visited all of the area dealers over a ten year period. I don't think Bobcat was ever a serious contender because I just couldn't find people who had experience using them. I really liked the Case and almost bought one but in the end JD had the fit and finish I liked, the weight and size that went with my needs, and all of the features I was looking for as a guy with less than 3 acres and no need to mow anything (my lot has just enough grass to cut with a push mower and the rest is dense woods).

I think I ended up with a green tractor because I liked the way it looked and they had some great selling points like the quick hitch and the easy to attach/remove FEL. I'll probably always wonder a little about what the Case, Kubota, or New Holland would have been like but I really like my tractor at this point. I'm sure they're all great tractors and all have their fans and critics. I've put fewer than 20 hours on it but it has been great for excavating a hole for a swimming pool, backfilling around a new detached garage, and running a PTO wood chipper. I also use it to pull my wood splitter into the woods when I need it and then back out again using the small hitch bar that came with the tractor. Some complain about the fact that it only has low and high range but I've had no need for a mid range so that isn't an issue. It doesn't excavate like a skid steer because it's relatively light at just under 2,000 lbs. but now that the pool is done I don't see any more major excavating in my future. It's going to be used mostly for snow removal (once my JD walk-behind dies or I get in the mood to upgrade to the 60" front mount unit), moving some top soil around as I repair the damage to my lawn from recent work, and running my wood chipper a few times a year. The 0% financing didn't hurt and I plan on storing it year round inside my new garage and maintaining it according to their recommendations. Right now I have no regrets spending the money on this machine because it has been so useful for the past four months.

As a side note, the Case dealer told me years ago that Case would be getting more into the CUT market for people like me. Does anyone own one of their smaller tractors and have anything to say about them? I'd be interested in knowing if they ever started to gear sales toward the smaller market.

 

[creekbend]

I went to several dealers and looked and drove many makes and models. I ended up with my L4400 because it met my needs, both for the present and future needs. The professionalism of the Dealer, Staff, and Parts dept. also played a key role.

 

[tcreeley]

I'd wanted to get a tractor to replace my old Farmall cub- but never did. When my trucks snow plow winch died for the second time during the winter, I started looking. The local TYM dealer was selling LS tractors with an FEL. I looked the gear model of the 3010 over and really liked it. I knew the salesman from work. I was very close and was going to finance with so much down. What soured me on the deal was not the tractor, but needing to get insurance, and the fact that I could buy a used tractor- payed for - while I would still be paying for the new one. (Even talked to a dealer in Texas who was willing to ship/attachments a LS3010 for a few a thousand less than the local guy was asking- that's when I asked myself what was doing - trying so hard to find a deal.) I knew the local LS wasn't for me.

I found my NH TC30 in the ads, paid cash and brought it home in a snowstorm. The next day I was pushing snow. It was advertised as a 2001 but the date plate on the engine put it at a 2003 - which made sense looking at the features. It had 629 hours on it. I changed every fluid and filter, greased it. It is a gear tractor 9x3- and it has run great ever since. I use it for gravel, snow, scraping/ditching, bush hogging, plowing/harrowing - everything.
I liked New Holland as a kid, and its nice to have one- even though mine is Japanese made!

 

[Bird]

In 1995 I had bought 10 acres and wanted a small tractor, primarily to till a big garden and to run a rotary cutter in the pasture, but thought a FEL would also be handy. I first thought I wanted a Deere since the first tractor I ever used was a 1940 John Deere L that my Dad bought about 1952. But the 2 Deere dealers I visited acted like they were doing me a favor to even talk to me. And of course, their prices were high. I briefly considered a New Holland, but the one and only dealer I knew of at the time was primarily a fork lift dealer and had nothing in stock that I might have been interested in.

And then I had an old friend in another state who had bought a used Kubota in the early 70s, still had it and was very happy with it. And I knew where there were 4 Kubota dealers. So I visited each of those 4. And at one of them I took a brief test drive around his property. When I made up my mind to buy a B7100, I called each of those 4, told them exactly what I wanted and asked what was the best deal they could make me on it. I did not tell any of them that I was calling the others, but I bought from the one who gave me the best price. The little B7100 was a nice little tractor, but the lack of power steering was one disadvantage, then there were times I wished I had more power, both for pulling a box blade and power for the FEL. And occasionally, I wished it had more road speed. So in 1999, I just happened to be driving by the dealer from whom I bought it, and saw a new B2710, stopped and looked it over, liked what I saw and traded up with the same salesman I had dealt with 4 years earlier.

 

[JimRB]

When I was a kid of 5 to 10 I played on Grandpa's Johnny Popper next to the corn crib. When I needed a tractor I got a green one. It has worked out fine for me.

 

[swick1]

I had a john deere pedal tractor when i was a kid and was looking to buy a 10 acre property. I bought a 1026r to mow it and build a retaining wall. The deal fell through on the property and now it lives at my mom's house. It has been a blessing for her and a great toy for me to play with. I started working it in 2011 and ive paid half of the payments from the profit. Now i want a mini excavator and skid steer.

 

[Piston]

I thought about what I'd need for a tractor, after reading a lot on here and posting a bit about my dad's older tractors. I listened to the guys who said to buy one size up from what you think you need, so I did. I was only interested in buying used as I couldn't justify the price of a brand new tractor for my needs. I narrowed it down to either a L series Kubota or JD 4000 series. I was pretty ignorant and really didn't consider other brands, now that I know more, I would.

I bought the first tractor that I found for a good deal on craigslist. It was my current tractor, a Kubota L4610. I got some advice from another member on here who has the same tractor, and his words of wisdom and positive experience pushed me over the edge to make the purchase, and I'm glad I did. I have no regrets with my tractor, it does an amazing amount of work and has performed flawlessly. Since purchasing it, my needs have changed a bit, and continue to grow. I purchased a sawmill and find I need more FEL capacity. I'm now very open to other brands for my next tractor, and may purchase new.

I'm trying to think of a way to keep my current tractor AND buy a bigger one, but I'm not sure I'll be able to do that! I just can't see selling this one though :laughing:

A word of wisdom to potential buyers. Really think hard about the IMPLEMENTS you think you'll need, and use, as well as what size you want to use. Then decide on the size tractor you need. Rather than spend all your money on a fancy brand new top of the line tractor, and not have any left over for implements, consider buying used for your first tractor, and leaving some money for implements. This has worked out really well for me, but there is a definite risk to buying used.

What I really like about my tractor, is the HST transmission, it was a perfect starter tractor for me. It does a good amount of work and I haven't had any problems with it.

What I don't know about it, it didn't have hydraulics when I purchased it and I didn't know how much I would use them. I added them aftermarket. I can't say anything bad about my tractor, it does everything it was designed for, and then some. I "should" be using a larger tractor, but it's working out the way it is.

BTW, good idea for a thread. :thumbsup:

 

[oosik]

I bought my Kubota because of dealer service on my previous tractor. In 1982 I bought a new Ford 1710 from this dealer. It was the ideal size for everything except maintenance of my mile long driveway. It wasn't heavy enough to plow deep snow with the back blade and didn't have sufficient power to crown, ditch etc in the summer. I ended up using a snow thrower in the winter - have any of you cleared a mile long driveway with an open station tractor and a snow thrower? For some reason no matter where the discharge chute is pointed it blows back on you. Then after a couple hours driving in reverse your neck gets so stiff you think it will never straighten out. In the summer the little Ford & I would make dust clouds up and down the driveway and hope that helped. In 2009 I bought my current Kubota from the same dealer. The Kubota is more than enough for driveway maintenance. Its heavy enough to not be deflected when plowing deep snow with the back blade and its got enough power to thunder down the driveway pulling an 84 inch wide grading scraper. There are other brands of tractor in this area but dealer service and assistance means an awful lot out here where I'm located. None of the other brand dealers seemed too real concerned about whether or not I bought their tractor. Besides, the original dealer gave me a fantastic trade in on the little Ford. I've had no problems what-so-ever with the new 2009 Kubota. At times I wish I would have bought the cab model but I used the little Ford - open station - for so long I don't think I could get accustomed to a cab. I dress for the weather, like the wind in my face and the smell of pine trees. I also own and ride a Harley.

 

[SageBrush]

We had really old tractors before the little Kubota L4330, even did the Russian Belarus stuff. After lots of research we settled on Kubota in 2003. Its been a great machine, no issues. I knew going in it was a compromise tractor, R4 tires for loader duty, GST trans since we do a good bit of soil work. The 4 cylinder engine has been smooth and strong for it's size.

A cab would be nice, but that would keep me out of the yard more. I do lots of brush cutting and the 4x4 has been great in the rough woods with water crossings. We just have 84 acres and I only have about 2 acres of garden. I've pulled many trees and hauled lots of the logs to the splitter. Its a flexible machine and has been completely reliable. Hasn't failed me once so far. Just filters, oil, fuel and one battery since 03. I would purchase another one, I think the 4330 was the right size for my application. I'm very glad we didn't get the 30hp version. The 40hp is just enough for our needs, good fuel burn, doesn't bog down too much but it does get "worked" still.

 

[wcampbell47]

Ok here goes. I owned an orange 21 hp 4 wd that I used to clean up around my place. Neighbors, then contractors, asked me to do work for them. I realized I need more hp and a larger loader bucket. I opted for a B3200. I wanted a more powerful but not large tractor as most of my work is around established homes and yards. I wanted an HST. The dealer let me load the tractor on my trailer and haul it 80 miles to give it a try. Brought it back the following day. Purchased it a week later.

Dealer service, price, size, horsepower, and transmission all played into the mix on my decision. The zero down and zero percent interest rate played a large role in the purchase as well. I billed $4k in work by the time my first payment was due.

 

[DT86]

For me it all started when the old tractor was about to bankrupt me in repair costs. I had a big project coming up and couldn't depend on it anymore. Having bought a RTV 900 the year before and loving it I went straight to the Kubota dealership. I had already compared tractors online and had seen all I really needed to know. I know the dealer from my younger running around days and he treats me right. I had a size bigger than I needed picked out but he didn't have one so he cut me a sweet deal on the next size up (HP wise).

 

[Gary Fowler]

When BIL and I purchased our 42 acre farm, we had no tractors or equipment. The place was grown up badly so BIL hired a local non-profit group to bushhog with a 750 JD with a 4 foot BH. He ending up buying that little tractor. We needed a tractor with a FEL and something larger than the 750. I had been reading how well the greymarket tractors performed and how cheap they were so I ended up with a 45 HP Yanmar with FEL. It really performed well once I got all the gunk out of the hydraulic system.

After a couple of years of sweating in the heat on the Yannie and my BIL had stepped up to buy a NH with AC Cab, my wife said "Why don't you buy a tractor with an air conditioned cab like Rodger's. Well I didn't need a lot more encouragement. I asked my BIL what his cost and he said about $30K so I went looking for something in that price range. I was brand blind and shopped at all the dealers everywhere I went for the next couple weeks checking tractors and prices. Friend of mine was very happy with his Mahindra, so I put them on my list to find a dealer. JD guy didn't have any CUT tractors on the lot, just large AG tractors, so his name came off the list. I had to return to work overseas for 8 weeks and I spent a lot of time internet searching tractors and reading TBN for opinions.
When I returned home I had an internet deal worked out with a local MF dealer on a 1652 Cab with QPS but when I actually sat on it, it didn't fit me at all. The price was $35K IIRC. So I recommenced my shopping, stopping at two Kubota dealers on the way home (both owner by same guy)> Left my info with the salesman at the first place who had no cab tractors in stock and suggested that I go to the main shop in Hot Springs which I did. The only salesman there was too busy to talk to me "as he had to get a new sale ready to ship out" at least that is what he said. He did give me a brochure after I explained that I was looking for something in the 50 HP class with a cab and he suggested that I look for a Grand L but didn't bother to show me around. I left my phone number and asked him to call me ASAP as I was ready to buy a tractor. NO CALL so I called him back a few days later, got voice mail, left message and still NO CALL BACK.

I had ran across the LS brand when I was looking for a Kioti dealer in Baytown Texas who had quit selling Kioti and switched to LS. I like the way they were built and the guy gave me some pricing on a 50 HP but without a cab and he had none coming in with cabs (this was in Houston 8 weeks ago) so I had kinda put them out of my mine a bit. I was looking for a Mahindra dealer about 90 miles from my house but when I got there he sold LS along with Mahindra and had 2 of the P 7010's both with Cabs and all the other tractors were open station. I compared the Mahindra's with the LS and found that I liked the LS much better. He gave me a first quote price of $35,500 which was just a bit more than the best deal I could work with the MF on a 50HP tractor. I continued to get some prices from all the other dealers (except Kubota who to this day has not returned my call, maybe next time I am in there getting parts for my B26 I will just let him know how he missed his chance) Anyway, I found another LS dealer a bit closer and talked to him about the 7010 at the other dealer. I had killed over a week of my 3 week vacation tractor shopping and was ready to close the deal. I told him that if he would get the tractor from the other dealer for the same price, I would buy it. I was ready to pay cash but he said they had a 0% financing plan for 24 mo. same as cash so I filled out the credit app. left him a check for 10% down and left. The next morning he called and said he was going to go pick up my tractor. We had looked at an 8 foot rake while I was there so I asked if he would bring that out with him and I would pay him when he off loaded the tractor. Well at 4 PM he had my tractor in my yard with a full tank of diesel with my rake on the back. This is how I ended up with a 70HP tractor when looking for a 50HP.

I immediately took off the rake, put on my box blade and headed to an area where I was to build a small pond. I worked about 3 hours that day, got up early the next day and before dark had my little pond dug. A few days later I was back at work in Africa and my baby was setting alone under my shed patiently awaiting my return and other projects.
Turn forward a couple years and I was doing my favorite thing, reading TBN and I got a PM from a member way up north about a guy way down south selling a B26 TLB for $25K with 69 hours on it. He was thinking to sell his B21 and buy it but was having some problems selling and said if he couldn't sell in a couple of weeks, he would pass the deal to me. The owner was also a TBN member and we exchanged several PMs on the tractor info. I didn't think too much about it since it was still in my northern friends bag, but decided to do some checking. After doing online pricing of new tractors and Tractorhouse.com comparison to prices,It looked like a very good deal and after a week or two of checking, my PM guy said that he would pass the deal to me if I wanted it as he had had no luck with selling his TLB. I decided that I could use a TLB especially since my P7010 was too big for a lot of my chores now. We made the deal via email and I explained that I was overseas and wouldn't be home for a few more weeks which was ok with the seller. I ordered a 20 ft. -12K rated car hauler to be delivered to my daughters house in Houston so when I came home I could drive down, visit a day or so, take the trailer and go pick up my TLB. Did exactly that, then headed North to visit two of my sisters. Made the 1000 mile trip dragging the trailer and tractor about 600 of those miles, visited daughter and grandkids, 2 sisters and made it home 3 days after I left with a new addition to the crib. Now I end up using the TLB more than the LS. I still can hardly believe how versatile a TLB is and how much I use it. Cant believe that I got by without one for so long.
We are kind of tractor poor on the 42 acre farm now with a 19HP JD, 26 HP Kubota, 45 HP NH and 70HP LS but we have sure spread the money around amongst different brands. Also indispensable on the farm are BIL's JD Gator and my Kubota RTV900 which are daily users for both hauling and just plain save the legs transport. That is another thing I didn't think would be needed but soon realized the importance of having transport around the hills, creeks and 1/4 mile x1/4 mile property

 

[ajd187]

I bought a Deere X320 in 2010 because we just bought a house with a 2 acre yard, all grass. Coming from the suburbs with a 0.25 acre lot, my little 24" push mower wasn't going to do the job. I bought mostly because of brand recognition and the fact that it was priced fairly competitively against Kubota, Cub Cadet, etc. I chose a lawn tractor over a ZTR because I thought I would mount a snowblower to it to clear our 150' driveway. But once I saw the cost of doing that, I bought a 30" Troy Bilt snowblower instead.

Well after 3.5 summers and 3 full winters, I realized all the equipment was too small. I was going to get a ZTR and a plow contract. But then I found the cost of plow contracts! So I decided on a 1025R instead. Before buying I priced the Kioti CS2410, MF GC1705, and Kubota BX series. I ended up going with the Deere because the pricing was close and they have a few premium features that the others don't. Plus I had dealt with the same sales guy on my X320 a few years back, and my wife went to college with the service manager at this dealership.

 

[Beltman60]

first thanks to Tim720 for starting such a cool thread

My experience with tractors started at birth with my grandfather owning 60 acres of some pretty hilly land
Buy the time I was about 12 I was runny his tractors doing anything he would do with them
He had a Massey Harris 50 with a gravity loader and trip bucket
With no power steering and him raising about 50 head of cattle a year made me get some big arms at an early age cleaning the barns out about every 2 months

His other tractor that was mostly for the field work was a MF165 diesel
Great tractor for plowing, planting, and hay making

Now when I was 14 my parents moved the family to a 42 acre farm that was mostly flat hay fields
My dad bought a JD 2010 diesel that would really like to drink the fuel
It did a good job at making hay at first then plowing, planting and working the fields

In 76 he bought one of the best tractors I feel at the time were out there
A Deutz diesel 6206 that would pull hard and sip the fuel
He still has it today with 7800 hrs and it still looks almost new (still gets a wash and wax job every year)

OK now my story
When my wife and I were in the process of buying a farm for my daughters horse habit I gave my dad 10k in cash to go find me a tractor that would fit our needs
After about 30 auctions and numerous driving around to see the best tractor in the county (yeh right) he came up with nothing
In the mean time he let me bring his Deutz down and use it to do some bush hogging and other stuff
Even growing up using that tractor I was intimidated around the barns and knew I didn't want anything that big

He said that he had 2 auctions within about 30 miles coming up on a Sat and I should come with him and see what was out there
we go to both auctions and they have what I think I'm looking for (something in the 40HP range with a FEL)
So we go and start the bidding on a JD 2020 leaking oil everywhere with what looks to have 6800 Hrs (broken tach)
I go up to 8k and the bidding continues up to $10200.
I look at my dad and he says see what I mean they go for a couple of grand over for what they sold new 40 years ago

Well we don't even go back to the other place because it had a newer tractor in better shape that was larger
On the ride home I was pretty disappointed in the fact that I didn't think I would be able to buy a tractor but needed one in the worst way once the weather broke

You see I have one of those penny pinching wives that told me under no circumstances we are going to buy a new tractor
So I've been looking into all sorts of tractors on for about 6-7 months now and finding nothing
I start looking at things about 5 years old only to find that they go for only a couple of grand less than new

So despite the wrath of a woman I go and price out new with her not knowing of coarse
I go and check all the different colors, just need a tractor

I end up going out to a place my dad had done some business with over the years and talk to the salesman he knew him pretty well
He spends about 2 hrs. with me looking over his inventory and other stock he can get
He also lets me know about there zero % financing for 72 months
So I go home and with my tail between my legs tell the wife what I have been doing the past month
She is a little upset but heres me out
I tell her on monday for lunch we would meet out there and consider buying new as we would not have to let go of the 10k I gave my dad and we could use that for other things her and my daughter wanted or needed and our payments would only be $200/ month
She looked at me and said why do I need to go you already made your mind up and thats it
I said we go out there and you don't approve we won't get it but think about what I said for the next day and a half and meet me there

Monday comes and the wife is hardly talking to me
On the way out the door to go to work I ask her if I should pick her up at work or will she meet me over there?
She says she'll meet me

We get there about the same time and meet with the salesman and he has it right up front by the front of the sales office
All nice and clean and ready to go
I ask my wife do you want to get on it and drive it?
She looks at me and says what do I know about driving a tractor
I tell her because it is hydrosatic it drives just like her automatic car
So she hops on it to amuse me and I show her how to start it (you know turn the key thing)
And have her put it in gear lift the FEL and show her the forward and back peddles and off she takes
Goes down the drive and on the way back I notice a slight smile
She pulls up to where the salesman and I are standing and releases the forward peddle and almost comes off the tractor
Looks up at us and says might take a little getting use to
She says go ahead if thats what I want

So go in to have him price some things I want on it (rear remotes and a few other things) and ask him about service and cost to pick up and deliver it for service (we have a JD dealership about 10 miles from us and he is closer to my dad and about 30 miles away) and he says for the next 3 years any time they pick it up and deliver it it will cost $50
I said DEAL

So in April of 2011 I became the proud owner of a NEW JD 3032E
It now has close to 300 hrs on it with no service needed only required maintenance

I use it hard for it being the little thing that it is and it hasn't let me down
I've had it on 2 wheels too many times and in mud down to the axles

Now that wife of mine who was totally against getting a new tractor, well after a month or so she tells me I don't know how we did without it the first 8 months and go ahead and sent in 2 payments
I told her not while paying 0% on that money but I get the hint

All is good