A little care in operating the machine, not making big impact type loads on the castings and you'll never break a JD110. They are a solid tractor. Like AKfish mentions, he has done a ton of work with his without issue. I do not think the JD110 is particularly weak in the bell housing, I just think it runs a really stout loader and if used like a "rental" you can break it. I would not let that affect a decision to buy one of these. If it isn't already cracked or broken, it is highly unlikely a careful operator will break it. If I didn't already have a skid steer and mini-excavator at home, I'd consider a JD110. I wish Mahindra made a dedicated TLB for the USA market. We sell a ton of backhoes on the smaller Mahindras and folks are happy with these just like the green JD and the Blue NH (as opposed to commercial units). But they are a small farm tractor with a backhoe attachment, not a dedicated machine. You give up some reach and strength for the versatility of being able to quickly dismount the backhoe and attach implements.
I think JCB makes a "midi" 50'ish HP TLB. I've not owned or used one, but that sounds like a good size.
