Thanks @dirtydeed. Just curious - why R4's over R14's? I'd be using this in a riding arena, on grass, woods, and dirt (mostly clay here in NC).
Im new
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dirtydeed
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Lifetime Member
Equipment
B2650 BH77, U27-4R2, BX23TLBM, box blade, rear blade, flail mower, Stump Grinder
Great to know - thanks. I see there are 2 sizes of tires for the LX2610. does that contribute significantly to the ground clearance, or does the LX2610 have better clearance even with the same site tires as the B2601?
Yotekiller
Well-known member
Equipment
Kubota L2502, LP 60" BB, LP pallet forks, 60" KK Tiller, 55" HSI root grapple
Having used both R4’s and R14’s I much prefer the R14’s and my tractor spends the majority of time in the woods. There are some people saying that the R4’s are 6 ply and the R14’s are 4 ply but that isn’t true. The R14’s on my 2502 are 6 ply so just as stout as the R4’s. And the R4’s will wreak terror on your grass. I have used my R14’s in mud, snow, and grass and they perform well in all. I have zero complaints.
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dirtydeed
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Lifetime Member
Equipment
B2650 BH77, U27-4R2, BX23TLBM, box blade, rear blade, flail mower, Stump Grinder
The LX just has better ground clearance than the B (and actually, I think it's even better than the small frame L's) even with the shorter rubber. You should be able to find it in the machine specs. I don't have the oversized tires on mine, just the standard. My tractor just makes it under my 8' tall garage door with the ROPS up. I don't think that would happen with the larger tire option.
That ground clearance does come with a drawback...I'd suggest getting some rear wheel spacers (mine are 2.5") that make the tractor feel much better.
BAP
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Lifetime Member
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2012 Kubota 2920, 60MMM, FEL, BH65 48" Bush Hog, 60"Backblade, B2782B Snowblower
But R-4’s stink in gummy muddy situations particularly in clay type soil. They become useless as far as traction.
Elliott in GA
Well-known member
Equipment
LX 2610SU w/535,LP RCR1860,FDR1660,SGC0554,FSP500, DD BBX60005
FWIW, I have R4s, and I have never had a problem in the Georgia clay or even digging up 10 tons of sand and gravel from a sand bar in a creek bed for my BIL. Heck, the hole/strip was filling up with water as I dug. However, I do have an LX SU, and it has the larger (large for its size) tires.
The R4s are definitely superior for loader work and toughness in the woods. It was not long ago that a member posted that he punctured his R14 tire by driving over a stick - probably a rare situation, but R14s do not have as high a weight capacity as R4s.
It is a choice between two goods, not a good versus bad.
The R4s are definitely superior for loader work and toughness in the woods. It was not long ago that a member posted that he punctured his R14 tire by driving over a stick - probably a rare situation, but R14s do not have as high a weight capacity as R4s.
It is a choice between two goods, not a good versus bad.
R4's were originally on construction backhoes and similar construction machines. It required a heavy tire to hold the machine and wide to prevent disruption of ground on job sites. Very little construction goes on when soil is too damp to get around.
Tractor owners liked the idea of wide tires that provided protection from debris and began using them making them popular. Each type of tire performs well for what it was designed. Tractor owners get to make one choice and live with the results. Many buy a tractor not knowing much about tire usage/function and then complain it doesn't do what they desire.
I just went through that and decided I wanted simple mechanical injection with no computer or egr so stayed under 25 hp because I don't run a tractor hard enough under load. The newer over 25 hp machines are not horrible but do need a computer and software if something goes wrong I have been told.
Depends who you are and what you need. I think a lot of younger people are more comfortable with emissions controls, as are many people who have them on other vehicles. This forum does have a pretty solid contingent of older guys.
Having said that, it's pretty clear that if you need, say, 30HP, you might as well buy 25HP and avoid emissions. It's cheaper, and easier to maintain. That's why there's not a lot of tractors for sale in the 25-30HP range. But if you need 35HP, or 50HP, then no point in buying a 25HP machine. They all have emissions, so you just have to deal with it.
Good day.
Couple thoughts from me (I have one with and one without):
If I could have a 60hp machine w/o would I choose to buy a machine with fewer parts? Absolutely.
Would I buy a smaller machine because of the bigger engine emissions boogie man? Absolutely not. If concerned about it, buy a machine from reputable company and get a warranty that you have confidence they will stand behind their product and make it right if something not right. I believe Kubota is a good example. I also think important to read manual and understand it.
Any troubles with the emissions? No, it’s been much ado about nothing (knock on wood). So far the regen happens while running and it makes no difference (there is a faint odor while it regens) It’s got some scary flashing lights and a really mean beep
, but that’s about it. Joking aside it’s still early but so far no. I am not using it to put around, and most info indicates fewer issues if working them hard / running hot. Whether I would have bought the emissions if I had a choice aside, I believe they are cleaner…this can be witnessed by sight and smell…so there is that. Is it really any better, that I don’t know, but on MX I haven’t noticed the puff of black smoke at start up or noticed the smell of exhaust during normal operation on the Mx (as compared to my B which I do notice those things).
IMO if you operate the machine appropriately I thinks it’s a non issue (in full transparency this only my opinion based on sample size of 1 machine with emissions and that really isn’t worth much…it’s a sample size of 1). (But sure there are more parts and potential extra problems). I think it comes down to your comfort level. I think if you get some data points from people that have first hand problems, it would be interesting to know / witness how they normally operate and maintain it. Personally I’d ask your dealer service and see what type of problems they see related emissions and thoughts on why they happen and frequency.
That's not true. I just bought a new Lariat Ranger and Touring Forester for my wife that both have every option available. My tractor I want simple and easy to fix because it's a
A few random comments after reading some of the responses:
Tires - Last 3 tractors had liquid-loaded R4's and most of the use has been mowing the yard with a rear finish mower. I can mow the yard a day or two after a flood with the loaded R4's. The R4's on the last two tractors were grooved and never needed chains in the snow. The new R4 patterns are interesting, and so are the R14's. I could try either at sometime in the future. The Ford has R1's and If I had mud to deal with, R1's would be a good choice unless the yard had a tendency to be soft. When my only tractor was the tiny Ford with R1's I had to wait a lot longer to run where the yard had flooded.
Size - I could have kept the B7500 I bought in 2002 without ever going bigger. It is often said that a smaller tractor will do everything you need, it'll just take longer. That's true for mowing or moving a pile of dirt, etc. It is not true when it comes to picking heavy things with the loader that need to be taken in one bite like getting equipment on and off a trailer. Could have been creative (ramps, winch with snatch block in tree, etc.) and gotten by with a weaker loader.
User Friendly - I mentioned in other threads that the L4240 turns sharper than the two other tractors I compared it with. Not long after getting the 4240 I noticed it felt more nimble. Upon measuring the 4240 turned a circle 27" smaller than the L3200 I'd been using for mowing and 9" smaller than the Ford 1210. I'm not sure what to think about the current DPF junk. In 2018 I made it a point to buy a clean used tractor in lieu of dealing with it. Many here say it's no longer something to be concerned with. Others who bought bought B3350's say otherwise
Tires - Last 3 tractors had liquid-loaded R4's and most of the use has been mowing the yard with a rear finish mower. I can mow the yard a day or two after a flood with the loaded R4's. The R4's on the last two tractors were grooved and never needed chains in the snow. The new R4 patterns are interesting, and so are the R14's. I could try either at sometime in the future. The Ford has R1's and If I had mud to deal with, R1's would be a good choice unless the yard had a tendency to be soft. When my only tractor was the tiny Ford with R1's I had to wait a lot longer to run where the yard had flooded.
Size - I could have kept the B7500 I bought in 2002 without ever going bigger. It is often said that a smaller tractor will do everything you need, it'll just take longer. That's true for mowing or moving a pile of dirt, etc. It is not true when it comes to picking heavy things with the loader that need to be taken in one bite like getting equipment on and off a trailer. Could have been creative (ramps, winch with snatch block in tree, etc.) and gotten by with a weaker loader.
User Friendly - I mentioned in other threads that the L4240 turns sharper than the two other tractors I compared it with. Not long after getting the 4240 I noticed it felt more nimble. Upon measuring the 4240 turned a circle 27" smaller than the L3200 I'd been using for mowing and 9" smaller than the Ford 1210. I'm not sure what to think about the current DPF junk. In 2018 I made it a point to buy a clean used tractor in lieu of dealing with it. Many here say it's no longer something to be concerned with. Others who bought bought B3350's say otherwise
I have about 10 acres, mostly wooded, and i bought a b2601. It's mostly used as a overgrown lawnmower with a grass catcher on it. The grass catcher btw, althought it works well, requires you to remove the 3 point lift, as well as the back tires, in order to remove and install it, wish i would have known that before i bought it. Other than that, i use the tractor for light loader work too. I have a brush hog that I only used on it once, and to be honest the tractor struggled quite a bit in heavy stuff, anymore I only brush hog with an old 45 hp massey ferguson i have, way too hard take the grass catcher on and off, and i was never impress with the B's performance with that. Cuts finish grass great though and the belly mower is way more convenient that a pull behind.
I don't know if your dealer is anything like mine, but it seemed like they tried to do everything in their power to talk me out of the B and try to sell me a bx. I think it's mainly because they had the BXs in stock. They got a little irritating, to be honest. I am VERY glad i held out and waited for the B though, the extra power and ground clearance has really come in handy, i really don't think a bx would even be able to travel through some areas of my property, as i even bottomed out on my mower deck once or twice with the B. I will say overall, i wasn't blown away by my local dealer, but I can't say i've been impressed by any dealer of any car or equipment within the last decade or so.
As for cons, i don't think the b2601 is really the most high quality machine. It has plastic body panels that are VERY thin, i could probably break them with my bare hands if i really wanted to. quite a number of things on it have a pretty cheap feel. The lugnuts on the front tires, btw, are very low quality nuts that aren't even lugnuts actually, but just cheap hardware store nuts with lockwashers. The dealership actually stripped several of these by trying to put them on with an impact, and shipped it to me with like half the nuts stripped and several studs damaged. I just repaired it myself, because honestly the dealer isn't the most pleasant to deal with (it took them like a month and a half to fix a problem i was having with a hydraulic valve). Anyway, the factory style front lugs are so cheap that after taking them off 2 or three times, the threads will actually wear out to the point they won't tighten anymore. I eventually just got some grade 5 flange nuts and replaced that with them, i don't think the factory ones are even like grade 2.
Another thing that was wrong too, straight from the factory, is that the third function lockout switch on the loader lever basically just fell apart the first time i used it. I don't have much need for it, so i don't really care, but annoying. The front end loader, the la435 btw, is NOT very easy to get on and off, several vids i've seen on youtube show that many people seem to have problems with them. I eventually figured out that mine was pretty much set up wrong from the dealer and i had to make a bunch of tweaks to it just to get it to sit right on the ground when off and make it going on and off easier, but even then it's very tricky and you got to have a lot of experience with the thing to get it on and off easily. It HAS to be on level, flat ground for one, don't even think of trying it in gravel or dirt, the resting legs will dig in several inches into the ground and you'll never get it back on. I eventually figured out that putting one of those tractor supply rubber mats on concrete works best as a platform to take it on and off. Bare concrete will get the heck scratched out of it by the loader, or you could even gouge concrete pretty easily if the loader legs aren't adjusted right (which i think very few dealers actually know how to do, because apparently the service manual for that loader isn't available)
Overall, the tractors performs well but they definitely cheaped out on some things, and it makes me wonder how well it will hold up.
As for tires, it came with hybrids, which kind of annoyed me because i asked the dealer specifically for turf tires, as it's primarily a lawnmower and i have very soft, often times wet, ground. The hybrids would really rut up my lawn even in good conditions, so I got ahold of the parts department and they tracked down a set of turfs for me. I think i can see why the sales team didn't get them for me because apparently they weren't easy to track down, had to wait several months for them. I still use the hybrids in snowy weather, as i set the tractor up for plowing in the winter. Wish i could say how well it works, but ever since i've owned the tractor we haven't had a single heavy snow in my area, and it's been going on 3 years now.
I don't know if your dealer is anything like mine, but it seemed like they tried to do everything in their power to talk me out of the B and try to sell me a bx. I think it's mainly because they had the BXs in stock. They got a little irritating, to be honest. I am VERY glad i held out and waited for the B though, the extra power and ground clearance has really come in handy, i really don't think a bx would even be able to travel through some areas of my property, as i even bottomed out on my mower deck once or twice with the B. I will say overall, i wasn't blown away by my local dealer, but I can't say i've been impressed by any dealer of any car or equipment within the last decade or so.
As for cons, i don't think the b2601 is really the most high quality machine. It has plastic body panels that are VERY thin, i could probably break them with my bare hands if i really wanted to. quite a number of things on it have a pretty cheap feel. The lugnuts on the front tires, btw, are very low quality nuts that aren't even lugnuts actually, but just cheap hardware store nuts with lockwashers. The dealership actually stripped several of these by trying to put them on with an impact, and shipped it to me with like half the nuts stripped and several studs damaged. I just repaired it myself, because honestly the dealer isn't the most pleasant to deal with (it took them like a month and a half to fix a problem i was having with a hydraulic valve). Anyway, the factory style front lugs are so cheap that after taking them off 2 or three times, the threads will actually wear out to the point they won't tighten anymore. I eventually just got some grade 5 flange nuts and replaced that with them, i don't think the factory ones are even like grade 2.
Another thing that was wrong too, straight from the factory, is that the third function lockout switch on the loader lever basically just fell apart the first time i used it. I don't have much need for it, so i don't really care, but annoying. The front end loader, the la435 btw, is NOT very easy to get on and off, several vids i've seen on youtube show that many people seem to have problems with them. I eventually figured out that mine was pretty much set up wrong from the dealer and i had to make a bunch of tweaks to it just to get it to sit right on the ground when off and make it going on and off easier, but even then it's very tricky and you got to have a lot of experience with the thing to get it on and off easily. It HAS to be on level, flat ground for one, don't even think of trying it in gravel or dirt, the resting legs will dig in several inches into the ground and you'll never get it back on. I eventually figured out that putting one of those tractor supply rubber mats on concrete works best as a platform to take it on and off. Bare concrete will get the heck scratched out of it by the loader, or you could even gouge concrete pretty easily if the loader legs aren't adjusted right (which i think very few dealers actually know how to do, because apparently the service manual for that loader isn't available)
Overall, the tractors performs well but they definitely cheaped out on some things, and it makes me wonder how well it will hold up.
As for tires, it came with hybrids, which kind of annoyed me because i asked the dealer specifically for turf tires, as it's primarily a lawnmower and i have very soft, often times wet, ground. The hybrids would really rut up my lawn even in good conditions, so I got ahold of the parts department and they tracked down a set of turfs for me. I think i can see why the sales team didn't get them for me because apparently they weren't easy to track down, had to wait several months for them. I still use the hybrids in snowy weather, as i set the tractor up for plowing in the winter. Wish i could say how well it works, but ever since i've owned the tractor we haven't had a single heavy snow in my area, and it's been going on 3 years now.