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 | Tom B.
Join Date: Posts: 1 
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1999-06-05 4742
I am considering the JD4100 or the Kubota B2100 or B2400. I am going to purchase about 6 acres on a lake. As of now it is vacant land and will require some cutting of tall weeds and such. Either brand I choose I will need a loader. The JD410 loader looks to have greater capacities and come on and off quicker. I am either going to get the 53"(most likely) or the 61"(doubtful) bucket. Is there an advantage to Kubota loaders that I am overlooking? Since I will be doing loader work with these machines I am going to go for the hydro. I am looking at the 60" mid-mount mower for each brand. Will these mowers handle the weed mowing I metioned earlier or should I get a rotary cutter? Also is there a kit similar to the deere's that holds up the mower so I can use the rear imp. sepretly? Because I will be doing a variety of different work I am considering the R4 tires. Should I get rear wheel wieghts or fill the rears with cholride for my situation? I am not getting the weight box because I will have a box blade on when using the loader. Any comments are appreciated. Thank you in advance!
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| Jack in Il
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1999-06-05 4743
You will really appreciate having a hydro for both loader and mowing. The JD loader and midmount mower can be used at the same time, but both are very easy to remove or install so it is unulikely you would leave both attached. You can mount or dismount the loader in 2-3 minutes and the deck takes about 5 minutes on or off. It is much easier if you do it on a concrete pad or garage floor for both loader and deck. You can get a Lift Latch Kit for the 4100 to hold the mower deck in the fully raised position and allow the 3 point to be used. I also use it to just hold up the mower lift linkage when the deck is removed. This provides more ground clearance. Any midmount deck will do a better cutting job on a lawn than in taller grass, but you can still use it in tall grass. It may take 2 or 3 passes to level the tall grass, but it can be done. On the other hand, you may want to consider having both a midmount for finish mowing and a 4 foot rotary cutter (bush hog) for the rough areas. Rotary cutters are relatively inexpensive in comparison to midmount mowers. You might pick up a used 4 foot cutter for $500 or less. A new one might cost $700-800. With regard to rear ballast, I definitely recommend 3 cast weights on each rear wheel per JD specs (leave them on all the time). Calcium chloride is a pain to deal with. It causes rusting, to check inflation pressures you need to park the tractor with the valve stem up, and if the tire is punctured, the calcium will kill the grass. With regard to comparing the hydro on the JD vs the Kubota, notice that the 4100 has the hydro pedals controlled by the right foot and the 2 steering brake pedals controlled by the left. Thus when making a hard turn or braking when backing up to an implement you use both feet. You can't do this on a Kubota that has all brake and hydro pedals on the right. Take a test drive on each one to see what you think. Have fun!!! ....
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| KC
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-05 4744
Another point is the dealer you will be going to! What ever tractor you get make sure the dealer will support you! Service is a big consideration! You only buy once but service is a life time! As for the brush hog if you are only going to us it once or twice consider renting, it is much cheaper!As for rear weight, I like the ballast box, you can remove it for mowing, even a smaller tractor 18 to 24 horse power will weigth in at over 1400lbs it can mess up your lawn!Also don't read to much in to stats, I think all the main tractors are very close to what there will handle!Hope this helps! ....
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| Roger L.
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 0
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1999-06-05 4750
The only advantage that calcium has compared to weights is that it is lessexpensive. Calcium is a corrosive, and a flat tire is a real hassle. go with theweights if at all possible. I would agree with using the box blade instead of a weight box. It is justas easy to dismount and if you get the type with a flip down cutting edge inreverse it is a handy tool at the same time. The only advantage to the weightbox is that it makes the tractor shorter and this is especially valuable if youare turning around in confined areas or next to a hill. this is because the three point does notlift implements as high as one would always want it to.Still, my preference would be for the box. That is what I use, and I have addedabout an extra 200 pounds in the form of steel plate bolted to the top of thebox blade. The top of the box blade can be an excellent place to bolt a large steel box for carrying tools. You will be surprised at how difficult it is to carry a few extra tools on a tractor. Things with handles - like a shovel - anda rake - can be real tricky to mount. Opinions vary on hydro or not. I like gears on a tractor even though Iprefer an automatic on my truck....my wife likes hers just the opposite.... What else...Oh, JD vs Kubota. A few years ago I would have said JD withouthesitation - and probably without much argument. Now I might even lean the otherway a tiny bit. Go with the dealer that makes you most comfortable. If you findone who goes out of his way to offer good service, I would feel comfortable saying to go with whichever mainstream brand that he is selling. The best wayI can think of to get dealers to understand the premium that customer servicecan mean to them is to call up a few of their past customers. I can't think ofany tractor owner who does not enjoy talking about their tractor. Final word: get more capability than you think that you need. You will useit. Roger L ....
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| DougH
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1999-06-07 4795
I have a 4300 with a belly mower and was out cutting very deep weeds and grass this weekend. It seems to work best to make two passes - one with the deck all the way up. It was still tough going in some places and if I took too big a bite of tough grass and weeds, the mower would bog down. But it can be done. My brother in law has the king kutter 5' rotary and it did not cut any better on a first pass.[it was $499 at the local farm store].I have hst and it is great. I am a stick shift person, but would not give up the HST. Makes everything so easy. Just slide your foot over 3".I have the R4 tires. When I drive / cut on wet ground, I can see some tracks. I drove through a muddy area this weekend and if I had had turf tires, I would still be there. ....
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| MCTS
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1999-06-07 4809
How do you know Turf Tires would not go through your mud puddle? you have no basis for your statement, If you had Identical tractors one with R3's and one with R4's and both went into your puddle and and the R3's got stuck and the R4's didn't then thats a fact and you can make your statment. I maintain that if you have a properly weighted tractor with R3's it will perform just as well as a R4 on a comparable compact tractor. I run a small tractor service and have both types and can tell no differance other than I can't drive R4's on nice lawns or it ruins them and that is a verifiable fact. Tom ....
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| Alan
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1999-06-07 4822
So..... your saying there is no downside to turf tires? Gee if I had known that I would not have gotten these R4s. They work great for traction but do tear up the grass a bit on turns. ....
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| JonB
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1999-06-08 4830
I have R1 Ag tires on my 4100, and am delighted not to have turf or R4 tires. Many times these R1 tires have started to spin. Using the differential lock just enabled my back tiresto spin together--but the 4WD got me out with no problem at all. A year ago I bogged down, got completely stuck, with a 4WD Bobcat with less than R1 tread (and much more weight on the back). I'm convinced that R1s have far more traction than turf or R4s. If they didn't, why are they made and dont' farmers go for the R4 and turf tires?Meanwhile, when comparing mowers, take a look at the Gearmore or other flail mower. My Gearmorecuts and mulches heavy 4 and 5 foot weeds for me, in one pass. More expensive than a rotary or finish mower, but it cuts much finer than the rotary, is much safer, and won't need two or three passes--saving time. It also cuts and mulches branches up to 2 inches in diameter. Best of luck. ....
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| MCTS
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1999-06-08 4859
Concure 100% that R1's are the best traction tires, but I wasn't refering to R1's I was talking R3's and R4's. Tom ....
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| MCTS
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1999-06-08 4860
Didn't say there was no downside to R3's (Turfs) They can add $300 to $500 to a compact tractor and dirt tends to stay in treads longer and can make a mess when it comes out. Tom ....
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