Would you buy the same tractor again or a different one?

[OntheRidge]

Please show me where I ever stated the 2502 was my only experience with tractors. I have been operating tractors of all sizes/brands for decades. I also have quite a bit of experience with diesel engines and the emissions issues I've personally seen from them. As well as the testimony from my brother-in-law who manages a very large tractor service center... I never suggested anything but you certainly seem to have assumed a quite a lot. But now that you mention it, yeah, the 2502 is the best for my needs/wants.

There are a few people that just like to stir the pot, the ignore feature is a great tool.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

Good day.

that’s a great question. As I read this forum couple times a week and see others machines and tasks it’s easy to start spending money.

So which purchase are we talking about? I am up to 4 tractors purchased and 3 of them I still have on hand.

For me, it’s all about timing and change of situation that drove my purchase decisions. I stand by all with the info available at original time of purchase. With info currently sure I would have changed some things. (But I did not have that point of view then).

So this is what my past purchases have been:
1. BX main purpose was for mowing and diesel powered wheel barrow for my residence.

2. When buying a second property, sold the BX and went to a B (main reason was I wanted more weight & lift capability). I wanted and L250x, however I was stuck on keeping MMM for around my residence. In doing that B was undersized for the second property. I thought I would buy something larger if ever move to the second property just before retire.

3. Then came COVID and 2020 election, after that shit the bed, it was easy to see that economy in trouble and I decided if my dollars are going to devalue I was going to buy A larger machine early and pay the 0% with yesterdays dollars. Best thing I ever did…could not go wrong with that forecast / buy timing….so I went with MX (with BH) thinking that would be more than enough for the second property and not need another tractor…maybe a CTL later.

4. Last year I bought a third property and added yet a few more acres. Along with that I ended up with the previous owners Ford 8N…not really needed but it was a good value for getting a running machine and a really good brush cutter, back blade and a old disc that is left with it. Did not needed but it was a good deal and I can use for mowing and for putting around maybe pull a wagon.

so where does that leave me looking back?:
Well I should have started with a small riding lawnmower and not gone down the road of MMM. If I did that I would have then bought a TLB (probably B or L…I think I would get more use out of a smaller BH) and then I would not have needed BH92 and if went L48, then not need the MX at all. Then I would either settle on an M or a CTL. Plus the Ford for kicks.

I don’t regret any of the purchases they have all been great machines, but they are very different machines as my needs have changed. I went from mowing and small garden to small homestead(s) to small farm. Right now I want a pair and a spare, which is what I have. I could have done the first one differently though but my futurecast was not so clear and our needs and hobbies have changed dramatically.

Either way I most certainly am not done. There will still very likely be an M of some sort or a CTL. I am sure the Spousal unit will be buying me one any day now.

 

[Elliott in GA]

After 3.5+ years, I am still very pleased with my choice. It has done and will do the work I need, and it is also a value for money issue. If I had spent more, it would have saved me a little time, and if I had paid lots more I could have saved a little more time. However, it would not have been worth the extra expense (in both cases) to save some time. I paid ~$15,700 in 2021 (the COVID black hole) for a new LX 2610 SU, and it has already paid for itself and implements/attachments (grapple, rotary cutter, finish mower, box blade and spreader). The only thing that I have rented since buying the tractor was a Ditch Witch. I dug a 180 foot trench with a $30K+ piece of equipment for less than $175 (I made it back in time for the 1/2 day rate).

I have a Stihl Farm Boss Chainsaw (20 inch bar, well 2 bars and chains for self-rescue). I could have bought a bigger saw, but it would not provide the value for money that my current saw does. My current saw does everything I need it to do. I have had a few tasks that required wedge cuts due to the diameter of the tree, but again paying more to save a little time on a few occasions is not worth it.

 

[GrassLakeRon]

I love the lines on my B8200! Would I buy another one, yes....so I could own two. Seriously...... I would get an L or LX if I had more property to deal with. I will never sell or out live my 8200.

 

[fried1765]

Lucky kid your son is! I have been searching heavily for a late 70's F series 4x4 truck for a while now. Most you find are butchered up disasters.

Son is hardly a "kid",......he is my youngest, and is about to turn 53.

 

[dlsmith]

My BX2230 does everything I need a tractor to do, so if I did buy another tractor, it would b a BX. Although I might splurge and get one with a backhoe next time.

 

[mcmxi]

You may regret your choice but I certainly don’t mine.

I don't regret my choice, but I'm also open to the idea that there could be a better option for me. You clearly aren't, so good for you.

 

[jyoutz]

W

So your only experience is with the 2502 and yet you're convinced that the 3560 would have been a worse choice? Unless you've owned and used a variety of tractors you have no idea what would work best. It's enough to say that you're happy with your 2502, but any suggestion that it's the best choice is utterly ridiculous.

I can only comment on the differences between a BX25, an MX6000 open station, an MX6000 cabbed model and an M6060 cabbed model since those are the models I've owned or own. I'm happy with them, but have no idea if I would enjoy an L6060 or M7060/M4 over what I currently have.

As to your question, yes I'd buy an MX6000 again (I did it twice already), but if ordering an M I'd upgrade to the M7060, M4 or M5 models. I bought the M6060 because it was on the lot, it was a great price and I knew if I waited a year or two I'd be paying $15k to $20k more. The M6060 is close enough to my "ideal" M that it's not something I'll be upgrading. My next big Kubota purchase will be a KX057-5 or similar.

Deleted

 

[airbiscuit]

It depends ..... in the end YES
Sometimes the best tractor you can buy is the best tractor your budget allows

15hp Shibaura SD 1500AO $2,500
24 hp John Deere 850 $6,000
34 hp New Holland 1925 $10,500
40 hp New Holland T2310 $18,500 Yes- that's the tractor I really needed

I sold every previous tractor for as much or more than I paid for it after using it for several years
I had what I could afford at the time, and I had a ball.

 

[BT3101]

I have 14 acres with about 30% wooded. Also, there is a 4-acre hay field. I live in S Indiana, so not a lot of snow. In 2007 I bought a slightly used (125 hrs) Grand L3130 open cab. HP (31) wise it's the perfect tractor for my property. It has the glide shift trans with FEL. I have mower, pallet forks, and box blade.

I bought the GST model because I share the tractor with my father, and he was recovering from cancer at that time and was too weak to be continually pushing a clutch or hydrostat pedal. Had that not been the case, I probably would have tried to find hydrostat, but in the end, I'm fine with the GST.

After putting about 800hrs on the tractor I can say it's an awesome machine and I have no regrets. Would definitely buy it again. Still need to add 3rd and grapple, but that's another story.

 

[Yotekiller]

Similar here. The L4701 is my first Kubota and the first tractor I have owned but it’s FAR removed from the first tractor I’ve operated. There is quite a lot of value to spending a few hundred (or a few thousand) hours on a variety of machines. The ones I’d operated previously belonged to my father, or a couple of employers, or farmer neighbors who knew I could operate a tractor and needed some help. When I bought my L, the Kubota salesman, as he should have, asked me what I planned to do with it. After my 90 second summary, he suggested a smaller frame tractor in the 30hp area. Maybe I explained my planned usage poorly.

If I had nothing but dealer recommendation; no prior experience and no friends with equipment to irritate with dozens of question, I probably would have gotten a big B (LX series wasn’t a thing yet). And if I had, maybe I wouldn’t have known what I was missing, but more likely I would have been trading up for more power in a larger frame and would have had a variety of implements that were undersized for the correct size machine.

There’s nothing like struggling along with undersized, underpowered, feature poor machines for far too many years to educate you on what you really need. At least that’s been the case for me.

There’s some lesson to be learned when you’ve spent hours wide open in first gear plowing a blue clay creek bottom field with a pair of 16” moldboards behind a 9N and shortly after get into the cab of a 130hp Allis Chalmers pulling 5 moldboards at about 6mph to help your neighbor finish before impending rain. For me, the lesson was get the right tool for the job unless you just can’t afford it.

I agree with everything you said. You see a lot of people with tractor remorse because they didn't know any better when they bought their tractor. I lived on a 534 acre farm as a kid and grew up with tractors. I also at one time worked for the state DNR where I operated a tractor, back hoe, or loader all day, every day. But even with all the experience I have with tractors, I still needed to do a lot of research before I pulled the trigger on the one I felt would be best for me.

 

[WFM]

My regret is many in life.
But tractor wise if the 38 hp new holland has a lift capacity of 2200 lbs.
I regret I didn't look at New Holland.
Water over the dam now.
I like my kubota and learn to live within the limitations I'm given.

 

[DaveFromMi]

I could have gotten by with an L2501 and avoided future emissions issues. No problems with the L3901 yet. I was looking for a tractor with similar HP rating as an old JD 830 that my Dad had.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

I love the General Lee.....Thats for sure.

I have not regretted it at all, but I did accidentally sit on an M62 TLB the other day.......and that was a cool machine for sure.

However, I am 93.67% sure I would get the 2501 again.

 

[BBFarmer]

Got our 3301 one week after signing papers on our blueberry farm in '19. Had no tractor experience at all.

Immediately realized that working 20 years outside in mississippi heat has still not conditioned me to come home and want to stay out in it.

Between that and the massive horseflies we have, I said I would get something cabbed as soon as I financially could.

During our U pick season, I cut every friday afternoon. I'm cutting in the dead of summer, 100+ heat, thick ass towel laid across my back. Still gettin my ass tore up. Finally said no more.

Wanted to stay with the standard L but the wifes only stipulation was that she was going to want to cut with me from time to time. She's small framed but I felt like I barely fit in the standard L cab, so we went to the 3560.

Made a little stool to clear the pedals on the left side and bam, everybody is happy.

Now I have no regrets.

 

[skeets]

I love my BX the little beasty has done everything I have asked over the years,, however knowing what I know now I would not buy a B 2601 again, in MHO it sits to high for the narrow rear end for any work on hills. Were I to do it over I would have opted for the then B2650, the LX now yes a bit larger but I think it would have served me better, perhaps a loaner for the one you like and play with it before you plop money down,,,, aww well maybe next time

 

[Daylight]

With the slopes and narrow passages I have to deal with, I couldn't use anything bigger than the BX. I AM thinking though about getting one of the old tractors (+/- 1970) in my neighborhood (ancient David Brown and IH) if/when one comes up for sale. Not for work, but just to drive it from time to time - love the sound and feel of the things!

 

[fried1765]

I love the General Lee.....Thats for sure.

I have not regretted it at all, but I did accidentally sit on an M62 TLB the other day.......and that was a cool machine for sure.

However, I am 93.67% sure I would get the 2501 again.

There is NOTHING quite like an M62!
I would like one, but .....You.... NEED one!

 

[DonP]

Bought a 3560 HSTC Cab 805 loader with BH92 Backhoe and 72" LandPride Grapple

After the dealer (White's in Canastota NY) Boogered it up during warranty service, i thought about trading it for a 4060 (8" or so longer base and a bit taller but with a 4 cyl engine vs a 3 cyl...) decided to stick with what I had...). all the implements will transfer over. I own $20,000 of a $57,000 purchase... so thats kind of making me say do I want to trade it just for a bit more to what I would rather of had would I have known better...

I was looking 2501 initially non cab and New.

On a whim I looked at the 3560... asked about price, and I was sold (0% interest) . Staying away from others troubles in used equipment, and depending on Kubota's warranty to keep me happy.

Mostly it's been a good machine with Kubota, not so much with the dealership side of things... but more recently Evans in Remsen NY has supplied me with good service.

 

[johnjk]

I went with a used B3200 that had around 89hrs on it in 2016. All service records since the dealer did it every year. Older gentleman had all fluids and filters changed annually. FEL was never used and only reattached when it was traded in.
Pro’s 4 cyl, no emissions, low hrs (just rolled 250 today)
Con’s. No SSQA, no cab, no 3rd functions

Would I buy it again? Similar sized tractor? Probably not. I’ve found that I need a bit more HP when pulling my land plane or box blade. I’d have to research what I would buy but it would have a cab because I’m sensitive. Uh, not really. Just tired of getting covered in dust from gravel and brush hogging. Would need to do some canopy clearance in the woods though.
Wouldn’t trade the B3200 in. Doesn’t take a lot of room and overall is a good little machine.
Now the B1700……. Still running great. MMM is showing its age and will need replaced in the next 3 yrs. It came with no FEL so if I had to do it again, I’d probably get a zero turn mower for that role.