Wanted - PT-425 or PT-1430 in good condition

[MossRoad]

While I love my 2001 model year PT425, it is not a good ground engaging machine for tasks like box blading hard soil. I have sandy soil. That would not be a problem. I have in the past, when our kids were young, used it to maintain little league and church ball diamonds. Those were surfaced with moon dust (granulated limestone). They get hard as a rock. The PT425 with a single tooth ripper had a hard time busting down through that. The machine would lift off the ground before the spike would penetrate that stuff. Same thing goes for hard, dry clay. Wet clay; no problem. Hard, dry clay, not enough weight to penetrate it. I'd have to get to an edge or find a hole in the hard pack to get under it. Once I was under it, the hydraulics had no problem pulling the ripper back up through it. But pushing down into it, like with rippers on a box blade, would not have been possible. If the machine is not heavy enough to push a single spike through the hard pack, it's not going to be heavy enough to push 4-5 spikes on a box blade through it either.

So I'm comparing the 1500# PT425 weight to my old IH2500b, which was an 8000# machine that could handle a very heavy 6' box blade. That machine was large enough to lift the heavy box blade, and had enough traction to pull it through hard soil VS prying out hard soil with the little 425.

For loose material, spreading, smoothing, moving, from point A to point B, things like mulch, gravel, landscaping materials, firewood, the little 425 is hard to beat. I'm still thinking of getting a tiller for it. The pallet forks, brush hog and finish mower are great, too. Plowing snow with the power angle blade is great too. However, as mentioned, there's snow, and then there's SNOW! I have no problems with 12-14" of snow. But wet heavy stuff can push the tractor sideways if the blade is angled. So it's again a matter of weight and technique.

But for the task that you mentioned, steep hill with box blading and snow plowing, I'd probably go up in size from the PT425.

 

[Goose1776]

If you are on the fence.
Go with the 1430
I’ve owned both. The 1430 is about double the machine and, The 425 was underpowered for my uses on steep hills

 

[ponytug]

I find breaking through hard, dry clay tough with my 1445.

All the best, Peter

 

[joshlee]

I am "this close" to purchasing a new one, but maybe there is a good used one out there somewhere. Will need to arrange to ship it to to WA State.

Thanks!

Thanks for responding!

I have 12 acres of woods and trails to maintain (the recent floods mangled the trails), and 1/2 mile of steep gravel driveway to keep level (with a box blade or Dirt / Snow Blade) so that I can use PT425 or PT1450 snow-blower to maintain access (when necessary) - and to clear out under the trees with the Brush Cutter to make things look nice.

I am sitting on the fence as to whether the 425 has got the guts (in general) to do the job(s), or go bigger with the 1450.

View attachment 733179

Hi there I just got done reading about the property you have and the type of machine your looking for. If I were you I wouldn’t go with a 425 or a 1430. A diesel machine would be more ideal for maintaining a long gravel lane like you have. Also, a heavier machine too, like a 1445 or 1460. I have a diesel 1430, but as you probably already know, they are not available anymore with the diesel. It would work my little 1430 quite a bit for maintaining a 1/2 mile lane.

I hope this helps.
Josh

 

[DTTNWO]

So, long story short...

• I "caved" and ordered the 425 a couple months ago due to supply chain risk with the 1430
  • They were still waiting on 1430 parts from last year
• The 425 hit the road on the shippers truck and got into an accident in Ohio
  • It was insured and all, but was taking a long time to recover and then re-ship
  • Power-Trac was going to replace anything that was damaged
    • A.O.K. !!
• Because the 425 delivery was janked, and the 1430 became available, I have purchased the 1430 instead as a replacement
  • I added a couple implements that I would have missed
    • Utility Grapple!
• As it stands, it shall arrive (accident free!) on April 30th

To be continued...

 

[MossRoad]

NICE!!!!!

Congratulations. We'll keep our fingers crossed for safe delivery.

 

[PowerTracManiac]

Congrats! and I hope u enjoy working with your new machine/grapple. Many storms here and the only way I could have cleaned up the property is with my grapple.

 

[johara1]

that maybe true except for cutting grass, heavy tears up more. BTW steep and gravel are not in the same sentence. If you had modified stone it packs and doesn't kick out like gravel...... Jim

 

[ponytug]

What a saga! Fingers crossed here for the safe arrival of your tractor.

Mine almost didn't arrive for different reasons; at delivery, it turned out that the freight terminal where it was due to arrive at could only take 40' semis. My 1445 ended up being shipped on a standard 64' flat bed. The guys at the terminal took pity on me and arranged for the semi to use the parking lot across the street for unloading, drove their forklift (with extended forks) over to get the PT off the semi, unloaded it (it was within 15-20lbs of the forklift's weight limit). I then got to put on my new PT forks and unload everything else on to my pickup and trailer, before loading the new PT up the ramps onto my borrowed trailer with 0.12 hours of seat time. Trial by fire as they say. In the end, no issues, but I will admit to some anxiety about whether the whole delivery was going down the tubes or not.

The next day, I dropped a couple case of beer for the team at the freight terminal.

All the best,

Peter

 

[MossRoad]

That reminds me of when my PT425 was delivered to us. It came to a freight terminal with two skids of attachments. A friend of mine and I took our pickup trucks over there to pick it all up. The freight folks kinda laughed and asked how I was gonna get all of that into 2 pickup trucks. I brought a gallon of gas with me, as directed by PT at the time. I cut the straps on one of the skids, pulled the pallet forks off, poured the gallon of gas into the PT, then used the forks to carry the pallets off of their dock over to the parking lot. I loaded the 4' brush cutter and the 60" finish mower into my friend's truck. I put the 60" snow plow in the front of my bed. Then I nested the small bucket in the big bucket and put the forks in that. Laid the ramps I bought on a grass berm that I'd backed up to, picked up the bucket/fork nest and backed up into my pickup. Put one ramp on each side of the bed and off we went. That was the first time I drove my PT425.