B2601 - So far So good

[Tim1983]

These forums were helpful in guiding our purchase, so I wanted to give some initial feedback after the first few months with our B2601.

The B2601 so far has been a good size. I have no desire for anything larger. And I suspect a BX would have done almost all we have done so far. Maybe a little slower. Our main uses so far are lawn mowing, digging some stumps, planting trees, moving sand for kids sand box, planting 5 acres of food plot, dragging some big rocks, moving pallets around to clean up the yard.

TRACTOR

1. -R14 Tires: No issue with yard damage, other than where I spun the tires trying to dig out a stump.
2. -60" MMM: Maybe my only question mark, size makes mowing parts of our yard a challenge. Some mulch and landscaping will help that. There is a little scalping on some "bumps" in the yard. Taking it off and putting it on is a sub 5min task.
3. -60" Bucket: need a tooth bar to get it to dig into turf. But the large size will be nice when we get to the aforementioned mulch.
4. -Loader: It doesn't pop stumps out as easily as I had hoped, but still a lot better than a shovel. When I have time I may look into adjusting pressures.
5. -Size/Power: This has not been an issue. I feel no need for something bigger. Would it be helpful at times, yes. BUT, I like the smaller size for moving around our yard and trailering.

OTHER

1. 60" Disk Harrow (Kin Kutter) - So far so good. Has a harder time with the soil at my property. Mostly due to the turf build up I need to kill. It pulled like a breeze through the sandy soil at my brothers yard. The 5' size has been a good compromise for both.
2. Titan Stump Buster: It doesn't pop buckthorn stumps out with a single motion, but much easier than a shovel. Also does a good job digging 20"-30" holes for planting trees.
3. Titan Pallet Forks: Easy to put on and adjust the width. Did knock a fork off trying to "Pull" a big rock. The big challenge will be moving some half full rain barrels, assuming it ever rains again.
4. Land Pride Rotary Cutter: Minimal experience with this, but seems to work fine. (idle it down before engaging )
5. 18' Trailer pulled by GMC Canyon: This worked great. Did a 160mi trip across across WI and it pulled fine. Below the speed limit on hills, but nothing too bad. Averaged 14mpg. For the limited amount we will trailer, this will work fine. Have yet to have the brush hog and disc on it at the same time, but other than the hassle of loading that should not be an issue. Sure, bigger would be nice. But I like my smaller truck for the 90% of the time I don't need a truck, for the 10% I do, it works fine. (Watch the 2' drop on steep driveways)

DEALER
Service Motor Company in Fon Du Lac, WI was great. We ended up getting a used one. The lead time for new kept getting pushed and seemed to be a big unknown. I don't mind delays, the lack of info was scary. I asked about used and and they got me a a quote for a 2019 set up exactly like we wanted new. R14, beat juice, remotes, etc. The price seemed very good and within 2 weeks we had our tractor for $4300 less. 50hrs and still had warranty left. Even with the initial delays, I was very happy with their communication. They are not the closest Kubota dealer, but I am happy we went with them.

Only problem. My wife has absolutely no fear of it and keeps mowing the lawn for me.

 

[sdk1968]

glad you are happy with it.

loved my 2601, just needed a bigger tractor... wish i still had it. cause everyone needs 2 tractors at a minimum!

with all the great things the B3601 is/does=== something for you to watch for since you are already trying to pop stumps up & do heavy bucket work.

This is the only complaint i had with these: that FEL will get crooked if you try to do anything heavy or what Kubota says is "out of range" for the little tractor. Doing exactly what you are with a stump popper & a tooth bar..... my FEL just kept getting further & further out of level. Kubota says i was twisting it because the tractor/hydro is too strong for the FEL.

with that said: the B2601 is WAY better than a BX at almost everything.

 

[Tim1983]

glad you are happy with it.

loved my 2601, just needed a bigger tractor... wish i still had it. cause everyone needs 2 tractors at a minimum!

with all the great things the B3601 is/does=== something for you to watch for since you are already trying to pop stumps up & do heavy bucket work.

This is the only complaint i had with these: that FEL will get crooked if you try to do anything heavy or what Kubota says is "out of range" for the little tractor. Doing exactly what you are with a stump popper & a tooth bar..... my FEL just kept getting further & further out of level. Kubota says i was twisting it because the tractor/hydro is too strong for the FEL.

with that said: the B2601 is WAY better than a BX at almost everything.

I do wonder if they could make it stronger if it wasn't a "quick" disconnect. I have yet to take the FEL off. Maybe it is really easy to do, my guess is it is still a challenge. I would rather it be a 60 min task I only do once a year if it resulted in a stronger FEL.

 

[Rdrcr]

The B2601 is a great tractor! It will serve you well!
Thanks for posting your feedback!

My B2601 sold over the weekend and the new owner is picking it up this upcoming Friday. If I didn't have a need for a larger tractor, I'd have kept the B2601.

Mike

 

[River19]

Love my 2601 so far as well.

Good call out on the FEL and pushing it too far.

I have some drainage ditch work to do this summer and I am waiting on a tooth bar to come in so I can make digging and handling the larger drainage rock a little easier. I will keep in mind taking several smaller "bites" is bigger than fewer larger bites.

 

[Tim1983]

Love my 2601 so far as well.

Good call out on the FEL and pushing it too far.

I have some drainage ditch work to do this summer and I am waiting on a tooth bar to come in so I can make digging and handling the larger drainage rock a little easier. I will keep in mind taking several smaller "bites" is bigger than fewer larger bites.

I just remind myself that a small bit with the B2601 is a lot bigger than what I can do with a shovel.

 

[GSD-Keegan]

Same here. Loving my B2601. Wife even used it to move a couple cases of beer and some bags of softener salt to out basement walkout!

 

[Impala]

Liking my 2601 so far. Upgraded from a BX to the B. Took 5 month to get it. Was 19 and change with 60" quick bucket, filled tires, 3rd function with grapple. Worth the wait. I loved my BX but when running the rotary cutter I felt like I was pushing it pretty hard. Also the ground clearance was horrible. No regrets.

 

[Tire Biter]

Happy to hear yer liking it. I’ve had mine nearly three years and 373 hours and no problems at all. I use it for mowing cuz I can’t use a 0 turn on my place in some sections, but it cuts pretty nice. Works a 6 foot box blade and a rake no problem. the loader is good for light duty work, but beats a wheelbarrow .

 

[greg86z28]

I just remind myself that a small bit with the B2601 is a lot bigger than what I can do with a shovel.

Exactly! These machines aren’t Cat D9 dozers that can withstand anything. They are basically super garden tractors. You can break them easily.

They are there to assist you, but you still must think and be smart/strategic about what you are doing. Avoid brute force.

 

[PaulL]

the loader is good for light duty work, but beats a wheelbarrow

Also a B2601 owner. Yes, light duty work (compared to a big machine). But the gap between the B and a wheelbarrow/shovel is massive. A day worth of work I can do in less than an hour (if we're talking moving mulch, moving dirt, levelling ground). Some things I just couldn't do (lifting my diesel tank off the truck, moving firewood).

It's a small machine, it only does what a small machine does. But that is an awful lot when compared to not having a tractor, and it's a fair bit more than my BX used to do.

 

[alfb]

These forums were helpful in guiding our purchase, so I wanted to give some initial feedback after the first few months with our B2601.

The B2601 so far has been a good size. I have no desire for anything larger. And I suspect a BX would have done almost all we have done so far. Maybe a little slower. Our main uses so far are lawn mowing, digging some stumps, planting trees, moving sand for kids sand box, planting 5 acres of food plot, dragging some big rocks, moving pallets around to clean up the yard.

TRACTOR

1. -R14 Tires: No issue with yard damage, other than where I spun the tires trying to dig out a stump.
2. -60" MMM: Maybe my only question mark, size makes mowing parts of our yard a challenge. Some mulch and landscaping will help that. There is a little scalping on some "bumps" in the yard. Taking it off and putting it on is a sub 5min task.
3. -60" Bucket: need a tooth bar to get it to dig into turf. But the large size will be nice when we get to the aforementioned mulch.
4. -Loader: It doesn't pop stumps out as easily as I had hoped, but still a lot better than a shovel. When I have time I may look into adjusting pressures.
5. -Size/Power: This has not been an issue. I feel no need for something bigger. Would it be helpful at times, yes. BUT, I like the smaller size for moving around our yard and trailering.

OTHER

1. 60" Disk Harrow (Kin Kutter) - So far so good. Has a harder time with the soil at my property. Mostly due to the turf build up I need to kill. It pulled like a breeze through the sandy soil at my brothers yard. The 5' size has been a good compromise for both.
2. Titan Stump Buster: It doesn't pop buckthorn stumps out with a single motion, but much easier than a shovel. Also does a good job digging 20"-30" holes for planting trees.
3. Titan Pallet Forks: Easy to put on and adjust the width. Did knock a fork off trying to "Pull" a big rock. The big challenge will be moving some half full rain barrels, assuming it ever rains again.
4. Land Pride Rotary Cutter: Minimal experience with this, but seems to work fine. (idle it down before engaging )
5. 18' Trailer pulled by GMC Canyon: This worked great. Did a 160mi trip across across WI and it pulled fine. Below the speed limit on hills, but nothing too bad. Averaged 14mpg. For the limited amount we will trailer, this will work fine. Have yet to have the brush hog and disc on it at the same time, but other than the hassle of loading that should not be an issue. Sure, bigger would be nice. But I like my smaller truck for the 90% of the time I don't need a truck, for the 10% I do, it works fine. (Watch the 2' drop on steep driveways)

DEALER
Service Motor Company in Fon Du Lac, WI was great. We ended up getting a used one. The lead time for new kept getting pushed and seemed to be a big unknown. I don't mind delays, the lack of info was scary. I asked about used and and they got me a a quote for a 2019 set up exactly like we wanted new. R14, beat juice, remotes, etc. The price seemed very good and within 2 weeks we had our tractor for $4300 less. 50hrs and still had warranty left. Even with the initial delays, I was very happy with their communication. They are not the closest Kubota dealer, but I am happy we went with them.

Only problem. My wife has absolutely no fear of it and keeps mowing the lawn for me.

I bought the same tractor last September and have been very happy with it. I also got a backhoe for it, though I can't really couldn't justify the price I really use it quite a bit. My only damage so far is breaking the fuel filter with a piece of pvc sticking out of the ground. So I might have to get a an aftermarket guard which I have seen on this forum. The dealer had a bunch of fuel filters in stock which tells me that it's not unusual to break them.

 

[Impala]

I was thinking about the fuel filter. Is there a brand name for it?

 

[alfb]

I was thinking about the fuel filter. Is there a brand name for it?

Do you mean the guard or just the filter. If your talking filter I bought my filter from Amazon since I broke it on a Saturday and I didn't know if Kubota had them in stock which they did and half the price. It is a Kubota brand either way though Amazon does sell knock off's.

 

[Impala]

I was referring to the guard. I found one out there for $85. Just looking to see if there is something else.

 

[River19]

Any link to said guard? I wouldn't mind taking a look.

I have no doubt in a bout of stupidity I can clearly break off a fuel filter.......lol

 

[Impala]

B2601 Fuel Filter Guard

B2601 Fuel Filter Guard

www.specialtyrepairscustommods.com

Here is 1 option. Looking for more.