Buying Advice TYM vs LS?

[joeyd]

Since this is an open forum I will add my 2 cents also. Granted I am new to tractors with only a dozen or so hours on mine but I have also recently compared the orange, green and red tractors before buying. All of the tractors are good, what sold me was a combination of weight vs HP vs my comfort with the dealer. The orange and green guys answered questions but gave me the impression they were not interested in going out of their way for me. The red dealer (TYM) really took the time to find out what I needed to do with the tractor, my topography and my price range. I chose the TYM 353 HST.

I easily could have chosen any of the colors but the dealers interest in my needs sold me as much as the iron.

 

[Shazbat]

This might be off topic, OK completely off topic, but has anyone else seen the Mythbusters episode where they actually put a bull (and then multiple bulls) into a "china shop"??? If I remember correctly, the bull(s) did not break any china!!!

I saw that, and from what I remember I concur.

Looking at various tractor specs again (For the 80,000th time) today, and walking around my property with a tape measure, and I'm having trouble justifying a smaller tractor for anything.

I had an opportunity to demo a Branson 4720i and I found it's maneuverability to be exceptionally better than I expected as a complete newcomer, and would have no problem mowing a lawn 1/8th of an acre with it if it came down to it. I suppose if you had areas that were too narrow for a tractor like that it would be an issue, but other than that and the weight issue when wet I'm having a hard time reconcilling the "too big" argument.

 

[DmansPadge]

I had an opportunity to demo a Branson 4720i and I found it's maneuverability to be exceptionally better than I expected as a complete newcomer, and would have no problem mowing a lawn 1/8th of an acre with it if it came down to it. I suppose if you had areas that were too narrow for a tractor like that it would be an issue, but other than that and the weight issue when wet I'm having a hard time reconcilling the "too big" argument.

My comment about the tractor being big for a couple acres is geared more towards cost/feasibility. You can put 100 HP tractor on a 1/4 acre but how much work can that amount of land possibly require to justify the tractor. Now the original poster has stated he would like more land and has other folks to help out so what he is looking at might be just what he needs. But for 2 acres I would rather a smaller, more economical tractor. More HP means more initial cost, more fuel, more oil to change, etc.

 

[tdkg]

Thanks everyone for your input! After hearing back from various dealers, I found a Kubota dealer (closer than the other Kubota dealer I first contacted), who will sell me an L3700su HST for almost $2K cheaper. The price is better than almost all the other brands for the amount of tractor. At this point unless I can find some compelling reason not to go with that machine, I think I will go with the L3700su.
Anyone have any experience with that model?

 

[BleedGreen]

At this point unless I can find some compelling reason not to go with that machine, I think I will go with the L3700su.

Ummmm... It's not green? Is that compelling enough? Seriously, Kub makes a good product and I am sure it will work well for you. If you care to look at green, the 3038E with 305 Loader would be comparable to the L3700SU. As you know, the dealer makes a huge difference as well.

Good Luck! :thumbsup:

 

[tdkg]

I have heard the John Deere 3038E can't take a backhoe, while the Kubota L3700 can. I'm not planning to get one with a backhoe at this time, but I want to be able to add one later.
I looked on the JD website and it wasn't one of the listed available attachments for the 3038E. The Kubota website (in their comparison to this exact JD) states the JD 3038E will not accept a backhoe attachment.