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Bob A.
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2000-02-21          13033

I'm really not trying to start a "Holy War" here, but as an inexperienced city boy I can really use some advice on the trade-offs among these GREAT tractor brands. I'm merely looking for some friendly advice.All prices (with HST and R4's) are (roughly) within $500 of each other JD4300 $16K, L3010 $15.8K and TC33D $15.4K. All dealers are good, friendly and reputable. JD is only 15 minutes up the road and this town is clearly a JD town (I'm almost afraid to buy something else - someone might throw rocks at me...I'm joking). NH dealer is 30 minutes and KU is 45 minutes away. I have 6AC's of rough, hilly land (4 field and 2 woods) and plan on doing lots of mowing, tree pruning, brush cleanup and hauling down-trees uphill. I'll most likely do some landscaping with a loader, gardening (less than 1/2 acre) and post-hole digging.My humble opinions so far: JD4300 is a great machine with a very good dealer close by and...well...it's a JD. The TC33D felt great, very light, comfortable, nimble, good visibilty and seems to cater to us newbies. The L3010 really appealed to the engineer in me - it felt like a tank under me, low center of gravity yet still nimble. I guess I must love all tractors because I can't find anything wrong with any of them - just things I like. Whatever tractor I happen to ride that day is the one I wanted to buy. If I sound like an idiot, I probably am.I'm very, very concerned (almost paranoid) about flipping. Like I said, I have some hills to be negotiated and am inexperienced. Does anyone have a feel for, or can tell me how to determine, which would be LEAST likely to flip? Is heavier better? Or should I look at the wheel base? What?Does the location of the dealer matter THAT much? I'm thinking that these are all good machines so I don't intend to take many trips. Or, will I be making more trips or depend more on the dealer than I think? Afterall, I'm buying this expensive machine to improve my productivity and save time so distance could be a factor.Is there something(s) very different about one of these that (in your opinion) puts it ahead of the others for my purposes that I missed?Thanks a ton,Bob A. - Bahama (near Durham), NC

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Kruser
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2000-02-21          13041

Well, here's my 2 cents on how I settled on blue (TC29D last fall): I looked at green, blue, and orange. Like you, equally good dealers for all. Kubota literally didn't fit me - I'm over 6 ft and over 200 lb, with arthritis affecting my knees. The operator platform on the Kubota B series cramped my legs too much, and the L series were a little more tractor than I wanted. JD - I was put off by the first-year production problems reported here, and by the long lead time. NH was comfortable, "tried and true" construction, and readily available. Don't have many hours yet, but so far I'm happy with my choice. ....

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DennisCTB
Join Date: Nov 1998
Posts: 2707 NorthWest NJ
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2000-02-22          13048

The following posts for this topic were moved here to consoliidate this thread after the duplicate topics were deleted
dsg
2000-02-21----------------------------------------------------------------------
Bob; I am a JD fan myself. That said, all of the leading brands ( JD, Kubota, NH) are very close in all catagories. You must make the choice yourself by test friving, the feel, etc. I do however feel that the JD has a quality you will find now and 20,30 years down the road. It's a built in quality, better steal, better plastic, better rubber. IMHO only, this is why one sees more older JD's than any other brand. I guess it's just (you gotta own one to know). David
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DennisCTB
Join Date: Nov 1998
Posts: 2707 NorthWest NJ
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2000-02-22          13049

The following posts for this topic were moved here to consoliidate this thread after the duplicate topics were deleted

Ray Holland

2000-02-21
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Hi Bob, When I wanted a tractor in 1985 I researched and tested the John Deere, Kubota and Ford. Deere had more of the features I wanted, it seemded to fit me better and I felt more comfortable using it, so I bought the JD755 Hydro 4 wheel drive, with a loader, bucket, bush hog and a log splitter. In 1998, after putting 650 of problem free hours on my Deere, I decided I wanted a new tractor. I placed an ad in the paper and received over 100 responses, and do you know the one thing that everyone wanted, it was a John Deere with 4 WHEEL DRIVE. Every caller said they could find 2 wheel drive JD, but not 4 wheel drive JD. I absolutely had my pick of buyers, I qualified my buyers and narrowed it down to 3 buyers....and picked the one who had immediate cash and paid me $200.00 more than I paid for the 755 and attachments new in 1985. Cost in 1985 was $11,400. and 14 years later I sold it for $11,600. I think Deere compacts have excellent resale value, I'm a Deere believer....and remember you will resell it........And then in early 1999 the fun began, looking for a new tractor, here again I tested Deere, Kubota and Ford, and again I felt Deere had more of what I wanted and I already knew about Deere quality and resale value. I bought the Jd4300 Hydro 4 wheel drive and I love it, its just the best toy I have ever had. And when you look around at who owns what brands, you see more John Deeres than any other tractors. Ray

PaulB

2000-02-21
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Just couldn't shut up, so here goes. Nation wide, Kubota owns 50 % of the compact tractor market. Period. Those "old John Deeres" you see are old John Deeres, the 4300 is a Yanmar. Before you argue with me that it is made in good old Georgia, look under the hood and read the nameplate on the engine. If my Suburban had a Honda motor and drivetrain in it, it would be a Honda in my book. Please do not let mom, baseball, and apple pie decide which tractor to buy. They are all as Japanese as sushi, and all excellent. You should test drive each of them ON YOUR LAND ON YOUR HILLS and then decide. If a dealer won't let you do that, your choice just got narrowed down.


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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999
Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada
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2000-02-22          13055

As someone who depends on my equipment for my 'bread & butter', I, after MUCH experimenting, settled on Kubota for 2 reasons, and only 2, that is IN MY EXPERIENCE they are the most dependable, and second, my local dealer is OUTSTANDING. If I have a problem that cannot be quickly fixed (read 3 hrs. max, in the field) then he sends his truck out with a replacement (a trade-in usually) for us to use till mine is ready. This level of service is not required for everyone, but for me it is. For the AVERAGE user, it is like pick-up trucks if you like GM drive one, they're all basically the same. If, however, you are one of the few percent who use (abuse?) them on a daily basis, average isn't good enough, my customers wouldn't accept it, why would I ? Best of luck...and happy motoring. ....

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Randy Eckard
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2000-02-22          13068

Posted to this earlier and it disappeared so here goes again.
When searching for a compact tractor I drove all the name brands. Kubota and JD were definately on top. The deciding factor ended up being a demonstration by the JD dealer on removal of the loader. I had seen a Kubota loader romoved and installed and it averaged 1/2-1hour. The JD took less that 5 minutes will no tools or hammers(both were required by kubota). The JD mid mount mower also took less that 10 minutes while the kubota required the front end lifted over the deck, a hammer, and at least a half hour. Being able to remove the attachments was very important in my decision. Ask the dealer of each to demonstrate how the attachments are removed and installed. Then decide based on how the tractor drives and fits you. The dealer himself should also be considered.
As always, just my opinion.
Randy ....

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Frank R Taylor
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2000-02-23          13106

Last year when I was in the market for a new machine, I finally decided on orange. It was mainly because of the dealer and availability at the time. By the way, my loader comes off and on in 2 minutes or less without tools. Randy must have been looking at an old, old Kubota. I don't think that there is realistically all that much difference between the different makes. It all depends on how comfortable you feel when working with it and the dealership itself. As Murf said, it may be worth paying a "few" dollars more for the tractor if the dealer is really good. Travelling time to the dealership is a minor consideration with any of these tractors provided you can do the required maintenace yourself. It takes about as long to load it on to the trailer and tie it down as it does to get to the dealership. My only advice would be to get one that will not only do what you need to do now but also anything you may want to do in the future .... make sure it's big enough. I'd also recommend hydrostatic and 4-wheel drive on these smaller tractors. Make your decision, put your money down and have a ball. ....

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Randy Eckard
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2000-02-23          13107

The Kubota I am refering to is 5yrs old and and is an "L" series. I am also not as impressed with Indirect Injection. It is not as efficient as direct which is why large tractors went away from it many years ago. But to drive one verses the other you would never know the difference. Although indirect is definately quieter although harder to start.
Randy ....

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Alan L. Lewis
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2000-02-23          13111

I would put direct vs indirect injection about item number 99 in a list of 100 factors deciding between 2 tractors. My Kubota is indirect injection and it couldn't start or run any better, plus the fuel economy is excellent. Its a non-factor in my opinion. ....

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Randy Eckard
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2000-02-23          13112

Nice feature to this board to automatically have your comments priortized from 1 to 100.
Just a little humor!
Randy ....

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MichaelSnyder
Join Date: Jun 1999
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2000-02-23          13117

I have to agree with Alan,
I've also heard through the grapevine that direct injection is more effficient but louder than indirect. Could explain 1 reason the little VW jettas that pull up to the fuel pumps are so darn quiet. Especially compared to my 5.9L Cummins.
All posts so far seem to indicate a common statement. All are good, a few may fit your needs a little better than others. Guess it comes down to what is most important to you and what you plan to do. ....

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Jim Hutchins
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2000-02-24          13141

Have you ever heard of steiner, the other red machine. Check one out before you spend all your pennies. This machine is in a ball game all to it's self. Yes they can be a little on the higher dollar side but, you get your money worth. ....

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