New B2601

[Kubotadude]

Hello all. I'm a new old member. Been on this site for years, finally signed up again as I forgot my old login and email! I'm trading in my beloved BX2660 for a B2601. After 3 years with the BX, I decided I needed a bigger tractor. That decision was made a few weeks ago when we were doing some logging, and almost tipped over my machine with too much weight in the bucket. And I had mowed for 3 hours out on our little farm, and my back was killing me. Mows great, but rides rough. I have to take my Woods 52 tiller to the dealer so he can lengthen the PTO for the new tractor, and waiting on the mower to be delivered. Drive over deck looks like a great upgrade, especially for me missing a disc in my back. Since I can't lift or pull heavy objects the deck stayed on the BX most of the time. Anyway, I get to spend one last weekend with the BX tilling up some garden patches and deer plots. And mowing. I'm pretty excited.

 

[CaveCreekRay]

Good for you! Congrats.

Send us a picture of your new machine...

Ray

 

[ItBmine]

You will love the drive over deck. The B2601 is an excellent tractor.

 

[TripleR]

Congratulations, you'll love it, if we didn't have other tractors, we would have to do the same thing.

 

[mickeyd]

Welcome to OTT forum KubotaDude. What part of Illinois are you in? I have a sister that lives in Pekin. Congrats on the new Bota. Pictures are always welcomed.

 

[chim]

I had a B7500 for about 10 years and I know how nasty the seat can be. There were a few uneven places that when hit at the wrong speed would go SLAPSLAPSLAP to my body parts before I could get my right foot to leave off the pedal. After a season or two of enduring that I bought a spring suspension seat. It helped a lot. The L3200 came with a seat that rides a lot better, but had to be shimmed in the front to keep my butt from sliding forward.

 

[Kubotadude]

I live in a small town outside of Springfield, and we have a small hobby farm and timber west of Beardstown. Pekin is about 90 miles away from me.
Chim - I read a post either here or in Tractorbynet about a guy's grandfather driving his BX. The elder gentleman used his vast years of experience and removed the springs from the seat, and then put a wheelbarrow inner tube under the seat. I tried that, and instant air ride suspension! It was better, but still not acceptable. The seat on the B2601 is very comfortable, and I have already talked with my dealer about how we can shim the seat up a bit so it leans back. He also suggested cutting one length out of the rear coil springs to lower the back of the seat a bit. And the longer wheelbase and bigger tires should help the ride greatly. I mow a lot of acres that were originally farmed back when my wife's dad owned the place, so some parts are rough. Mowing around the old farm house is fine, as the yard is smooth. That is my therapy on weekends. Nothing like the sound and smell of a diesel, cruising for hours and watching nature!

 

[Kubotadude]

A few pics of the 2601. One at the dealer's after I bought it, and one at the State fairgrounds where I first saw it during the farm show.

 

[Kubotadude]

Tractor scheduled to be delivered tomorrow afternoon! I'm off today, as my wife is having hernia surgery. I'm anxious about the surgery, but excited about the new B2601.... The PTO shaft for my tiller didn't need to be replaced after all. It was still long enough to work even after being cut down to fit the BX2660.

 

[wngnut]

They're just now delivering it? What took so long?? LOL I closed the deal on my 2650 on the phone last Friday and they delivered it on Monday morning bright and early....and it came from Illinois too.

The seat on my 2650 is pretty nice...even better than I thought it would be. Not only is it a suspension seat but there's 4 or 5 stiffness settings to adjust the ride. Is it the same seat on the 2601? The seat combined with the much bigger tires made it a much improved ride over the JD2305 when mowing the backside of my property.

 

[Kubotadude]

The original delivery date was tentative, as we were waiting on a date for my wife's surgery. Bill at Rolph's Implement kindly rescheduled for me.
As for the seat, it isn't a spring suspension like on the 2650, it has coils. But the seat itself aside from the suspension is more comfortable to me on the 2601. I'll see how it works out. I was going to originally buy the 2650 because of the seat, but after seeing it in person it was just too big, especially for my wife. The 2601 felt Just Right! And I might buy a suspension kit to put under the seat if need be. I am still having second thoughts, but it is what it is!

 

[wngnut]

What's the difference between the 2601 and the 2650? I didn't really even look at other models because I decided if I was going to upgrade to a bigger tractor I was going to have a cab.

 

[1970cs]

What's the difference between the 2601 and the 2650? I didn't really even look at other models because I decided if I was going to upgrade to a bigger tractor I was going to have a cab.

2601 is economy tractor with analog gauges.
2650 is a deluxe tractor with digital gauges, nicer sheetmetal, front axle steering set up is different, larger tire package, larger lift capacity in the loader and three point.

And you can only get factory cabs on deluxe tractors.

Pat
Kubota dealer

 

[Kubotadude]

And the 2650 w cab weighs about 675 pounds more.

 

[wngnut]

2601 is economy tractor with analog gauges.
2650 is a deluxe tractor with digital gauges, nicer sheetmetal, front axle steering set up is different, larger tire package, larger lift capacity in the loader and three point.

And you can only get factory cabs on deluxe tractors.

Pat
Kubota dealer

Thanks!! I was just curious.

And the 2650 w cab weighs about 675 pounds more.

Wow!!...that's a lot more than I would have guessed.

 

[Kubotadude]

Economy?! In all of my research, that's the first time I've heard that term. It has most of the features of the 2650, including tilt wheel. Must be a marketing phrase!

 

[TripleR]

Economy?! In all of my research, that's the first time I've heard that term. It has most of the features of the 2650, including tilt wheel. Must be a marketing phrase!

The improvements on the B23/2601 have really narrowed the gap between the B23/26/2920 Series and B26/3350 Series. Labeling can often be misleading or blurred and this is certainly a good example.

Kubota has several blurred issues especially in some of the bigger L Series vs GL and an MX is called a UT while the big GL same weight, power etc. is considered a CUT.

 

[Kubotadude]

Hey Wngnut Pat - I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday, and he was buying a new Kubota. I told him I had just purchased a B2601. He said he considered it, but didn't want the ECONOMY model (2601). He bought the Deluxe model with a cab. You were right on with your description of Economy model! In any case, mine has been delivered and I will get to use it this weekend. I'll post pics of the finished product with Loader and Tiller. It was sad to see the BX 2660 go. In the small amount of time I had to test it after it was delivered, it seems to ride much better than the BX.

 

[wngnut]

I didn't really look at other models in the Kubota lineup since my main "have to have" if I was going to trade up was the factory cab. There were times when the JD2305 wasn't quite big enough but it did 90% of what I needed. I really didn't need something as big as the B2650 but figured if I was buying a new tractor I was gonna have a cab this time. LOL

Looking back at the specs, if the cab wasn't a big deal, it looks like the B2601 would have been the smarter buy between the two as they appear to be pretty much the same tractor.

If John Deere made a smaller tractor with a factory cab I would have bought it probably over the Kubota.

 

[Kubotadude]

I now have 5 hours on the 2601. I absolutely love this tractor. Here are a couple of pics. Getting ready to till the ground now that we've burned it off.