Curtis Cabs -Does anyone own one?

DeereNut · Mar 10, 2007

I have a JD 3120 and JD does not make a Cab for this model. I found the Curtis Cab company that makes cabs for compact utility tractors and wondered about the quality of the Curtis brand. Does anyone own or know anything about them. Thanks!

Fieldman86 · Mar 10, 2007

I have owned a Curtis Soft-Cab on my MF1533 for about 9 months. Very well made. Very good fit. Very comfortable while snowblowing - even without a heater. The electric windshield wiper has come in handy in during snow and rain storms.

jcmseven · Mar 11, 2007

My local dealer has one on a 4520 at his shop which is currently leaking. The customer is justifiably "concerned" about this. The cabs are OK but not a JD level cab by any means. Ever considered trading to a 3320 cab tractor???

John M

TMcD_in_MI · Mar 11, 2007

I have a soft-sided Curtis Cab on my 4310 with a heater and I'm very satisfied with it. I've had no leaks, except that when I'm blowing snow, the wind can blow snow under the front lip of the cab roof, where it melts and drips down on my knees a little. This is just an occasional problem. Rain doesn't come in.

The cab does nothing for sound deadening, and may even amplify it a little bit. I always wear ear protection, unlike my neighbor with a big JD farm tractor with a factory cab. He says his is nice and quiet inside.

Tom

radman1 · Mar 11, 2007

I have been in a curtis cab hard cab on a Kubota rtv and small tractor. The sound does tend to be more amplified, probably because of vibration, hard surfaces and they are mounted and not isolated like OEM. No significant sound insulation in these cabs. The fit and finish is just not comparable to OEM. For winter use, they would definitley be a benefit to block the wind. For summer and warmer days, take off the doors. I suspect it would be difficult to recoop much resale out of them when the tractor is resold. They remind me of cab tractors in the late 60's. Don't have any experience with soft cabs.

lawn_king · Mar 11, 2007

I had a curtis soft cab on my kubota B7500, it was well made, durable and the heat was strong. It did exactly what i wanted it to do, protected me from the elements, had i not gone the factory cab route on my currant tractor, i would have purchased another curtis.

art · Mar 11, 2007

Curtis has been building a good cab for years. For the money they are tough to beat. You should add a cushion under the mounts to help the noise problem and a little added floor mat added to other areas help seal them up more. This is where rubber isolated floor boards, seat area and dash area help right at the start to help cut down on noise. Sim's has also built good cabs of equal quality on most models and better on others but I do consider many of those two companies product the same till you get to higher end cabs like Sims Dakota series and Laurin cabs.
You get what you pay for and with an approximate price increase of a thousand or two you get far better insulation between the cab and the tractor but you are also closer to a factory price.

TCowner · Mar 12, 2007

I have one on my New Holland TC40DA. For the money its a pretty good cab and provides good protection. I've not had any problem with water leaking although I take the cab off in the spring. The fit is actually quite good but there is some additional noise and vibration.

I have the 15,000 btu heater and am fairly impressed with the heat output. On most days I don't need a hat or gloves. I also installed a fan that keeps the glass fog free.

One of the side benefits of the cab is it provides a convenient place to add extra lights. I have two on the front and two on the back which provides excellent visibility.

As I said I take the cab off in the spring. Its about an hour and a half to take the cab off. Its about a half hour to drain the coolant, remove heater and lines, and refill the radiator. In the fall its probably 3 hours total as I have a tendancy to "piddle" a little more with cleaning, routing wires, etc.

I think the Curtis cab provides economical winter protection. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another one.

jdgreg · Mar 12, 2007

I've had a Curtis soft-side cab on my 4210 for 2 yrs now, and just love it. It does ampify the sound, so ear-protection is a must. I wear a pair of "music ears" anytime I mow, weed eat, etc, it helps cut down the noise in the cab. I have no leaks on mine, and if you seal it good you'll get very few drafts. I like the soft-side cause I can easily store the doors and roll up the back flap/windown, and I'm all set for spring/summer.

Here's a post from our last good snow storm, shows the cab pretty well.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/owning-operating/95214-finally-some-snow-pics.html

DeereNut · Mar 12, 2007

Thanks to everyone for your input! I am a new JD owner and thought I did all of my research, so when I found out that the 3120 does not have the cab option I was a little upset. The 3120 and the 3320 have the same frame size, you would think the cab would fit both.......... I still love this tractor. Thanks again!

kennyd · Mar 12, 2007

The 3120 and the 3320 have the same frame size, you would think the cab would fit both

JD's new cab tractors are not "options" per say, the entire machine is a integrated system designed to work together. You can not go back and get a JD cab added later.

canEHdian · Mar 14, 2007

DeereNut said:
Thanks to everyone for your input! I am a new JD owner and thought I did all of my research, so when I found out that the 3120 does not have the cab option I was a little upset. The 3120 and the 3320 have the same frame size, you would think the cab would fit both.......... I still love this tractor. Thanks again!

The Sims Cab for this model fits JD 3120, 3320, 3520, 3720, 4200, 4210, 4300, 4310, 4400, and 4410. I'm not sure about Curtis, though. The Sims Cab you can get hard or soft doors and steel or ABS roof, depending on how much you want to spend. Check it out here

Dmace · Mar 16, 2007

I have a Sims cab on my Kioti CK20 and have been very pleased with it. I have glass front and rear windows with wipers and heat. I got the soft doors since the hard ones weren't available yet. One side is a door, the other is velcroed and snapped on. It's nice to remove the doors in the summer and have it open. It's definitely quiter with the doors on too. Click on my pics link in my signature pictures of it.

daveinnh · Mar 19, 2007

I have a Curtis cab (soft cab with opt. rear glass & hot water heater) on a Kubota L4310.

It does sound louder than w/o. I don't have snow coming in as TMCD noted, though. I wish a window opened slightly though (as is, you either close or remove door).

Cost is quite a bit cheaper (~$1700 w/ glass & heater) and doesn't have nice features that original cab or other after-market cabs have (e.g. Jodale Perry - $5000?).

You'll want to mount lights atop cab (2 forward + 1 rear) and maybe add a an interior fan and light - I'd price out the Curtis wiring panel.

If you install yourself, it's like a big "erector set", but pieces are heavier.

Wanabgreen · Mar 22, 2007

Does anyone know if a JD 2305 or a JD 2320 with Cabs will fit into a garage
80 inches high?

kennyd · Mar 22, 2007

Wanabgreen said:
Does anyone know if a JD 2305 or a JD 2320 with Cabs will fit into a garage
80 inches high?

Unless they changed something, the cabs are just shorter that the ROPS, So if it fits without the cab, it'll fit with the cab.

billyvan · Jan 22, 2011

Been looking at the Curtis cab the last few days, thinking of purchasing a nice warm cab and the 59" snowblower for my 3120. Can't decide on soft or hard doors, would likely take them off in the summer. Would be nice to not have snow banks, they make my driveway drift in when there is wind.

Brent.Roberts · Feb 26, 2011

We had a Curtis cab put on our small Deere before it was delivered to us. It fell apart the second year. Piece of $#@!

aczlan · Feb 26, 2011

We have one on our BX2660. Soft sides, hard roof.

The cab kit didnt seal around the seat or the control levers, there is a draft if the wind is just right (from behind) but otherwise the cab is great. The heater keeps it warm enough to plow in a long sleeve shirt when it is in the teens and blowing outside.
In the summer we use it as a canopy by pulling the windshield, doors and back.

The only downside is that the new location for the lights (hooked to the lower hinges of the door) puts them out where they can easily be snagged by fences and such. One of these days I need to extend the wires (solder and shrinkwrap) so that I can mount the lights to the upper hinges where they will be out of the way.

Aaron Z

freddyr · Feb 26, 2011

aczlan said:
We have one on our BX2660. Soft sides, hard roof.

The cab kit didnt seal around the seat or the control levers, there is a draft if the wind is just right (from behind) but otherwise the cab is great. The heater keeps it warm enough to plow in a long sleeve shirt when it is in the teens and blowing outside.
In the summer we use it as a canopy by pulling the windshield, doors and back.

The only downside is that the new location for the lights (hooked to the lower hinges of the door) puts them out where they can easily be snagged by fences and such. One of these days I need to extend the wires (solder and shrinkwrap) so that I can mount the lights to the upper hinges where they will be out of the way.

Aaron Z