I purchased my first orange machine in 1999, a used 1987 B8200 with a 60" hydraulic snow blade, 72" York rake and new 48" Bush Hog Squealer. I thought that was all the machine I'd ever need for maintaining my 30 acre property consisting of about 5 acres of overgrown meadow and 25 acres of woodlot. That was until I walked in to my local dealer 5 years later and fell head over heels for the BX23TLB on the show room floor. Central NY winters convinced me that I desperately needed a FEL once the snow banks froze solid and the lure of a backhoe was too enticing to pass up. 10 years, a lot of back surgery and 1100 hours later I realized I needed something bigger, easier and more flexible. Dropping the backhoe, installing the 3-point and attaching the Bush Hog was an hour long operation which left me dripping in sweat. The light duty Cat 1 3-point struggled with the 48" Bush Hog almost as much as I did, so the meadow only got shredded once a year at best. And the backhoe? Well, it was handy for a while, but underpowered. After digging on a stump for 6 hours and finally breaking it loose, it often required a come-along to assist in getting it out of the hole. It was becoming apparent that I needed a tractor with more ground ability and that I'd pretty much dug all the holes I needed to dig. When the NEW local dealer started showing their wares, my interest started growing. Last week I said hello to a new B2601 with FEL and quick tach hydraulic snow blade with 3rd function valve and bye to the BX23. With only 6 hours on the clock, I'm sure I've made the right decision having resurfaced my driveway and having moved several tons of firewood. And changing implements is a 5 minute job with slide and pin system on the 3-point. I'm looking forward to learning from this forum instead of using the "seat of the pants" approach I've used for the past 15 years.
