Bought a new RK 24

[dieselscout80]

The SSQA is a recent addition (2019). The older RK24 had a pin-on bucket like most subcompacts.

Thanks

 

[snymat68]

Thanks

This is true of the mechanical thumb on the backhoe as well. (Now standard.)
They are also now offering a factory 3rd function kit as an option.

 

[powrguy]

Can稚 be an honest opinion when he has been given all that equipment to play on. More like paid advertisements. Conflict of interest.

Absolutely....free stuff is not gonna be there if you bash the hand that feeds you, no matter how much denial.

I look for the few OWNERS who put down their own money, and can then honestly evaluate the product. Pandering for handouts seems to be the trend on YouTube now, and there are "sponsored" channels everywhere, and few non-sponsored reviews anymore, because it's so expensive to run a channel with quality video and audio, with all the time it takes to edit the videos to post. Forums like this are better places to get HONEST owner comments, to me.

 

[RK Tractor Guy]

Absolutely....free stuff is not gonna be there if you bash the hand that feeds you, no matter how much denial.

I look for the few OWNERS who put down their own money, and can then honestly evaluate the product. Pandering for handouts seems to be the trend on YouTube now, and there are "sponsored" channels everywhere, and few non-sponsored reviews anymore, because it's so expensive to run a channel with quality video and audio, with all the time it takes to edit the videos to post. Forums like this are better places to get HONEST owner comments, to me.

Interesting take. For the record, Mike Morgan of Outdoors With the Morgans YouTube channel did not approach RK, it was the other way around, so it is hard to say he was pandering for free stuff. Mike doesn't tell anyone to buy an RK Tractor, he just uses them to go about the work around his 100 acres and shares his opinion. He certainly believes it is his honest opinion. The whole idea of the arrangement is to simply to let his viewers see all of the ways that tractors and implements can be used. Mike is about as honest as they come. The agreement that we have with him states that he will only use the equipment if it is something he would otherwise purchase. Sure, human nature would indicate that there will be some bias, but Mike would not have the equipment if he didn't first understand the quality, features and price, and determine that this is something his viewers would like to see. There are indeed people with character using products provided at no cost because they both like them and need them. It is called a win-win, with integrity. That is the best way to characterize our relationship with Mike.

People that own an RK Tractor are of course the perfect source of information to provide to prospective owners. That is another important means for people to learn about products.

 

[Tennsawdust]

It's good that we have Outdoors with the Morgans because it offers an opportunity to see the equipment in real use. Mike has been completely honest about his relationship with RK Tractor and it would be a stretch to suggest that he is being dishonest simply because he is provided with the equipment. He has said several times that he would report problems if he had any, but that there simply hasn't been anything to report. One guy can only rack up so many hours on three machines. I don't see a reason to complain about his channel. Mike is about as straight a shooter as you will find. He shouldn't be your only data point when considering the RK tractors because he is only one operator and other view points are readily available. Most owners will never have a problem with their tractor so you need a large cross section to learn what issues might arise. Clearly, one operator, regardless of how honest they are, is not a cross section.

The reason you see so many "sponsored" YouTube channels these days is that since the Google takeover of YouTube the ad revenue that is fed back to the creators has been steadily decreased to a fraction of what used to reach them and what is there is now targeted to the channels that YouTube wants to promote. The only way many channels survive is through some commercial arrangement, whether that is simply supplying equipment or supplies, or if it is a situation with direct funding. Otherwise they either can't afford the production costs or their output ends up being too stale to draw viewers.

 

[snymat68]

It's good that we have Outdoors with the Morgans because it offers an opportunity to see the equipment in real use. Mike has been completely honest about his relationship with RK Tractor and it would be a stretch to suggest that he is being dishonest simply because he is provided with the equipment. He has said several times that he would report problems if he had any, but that there simply hasn't been anything to report. One guy can only rack up so many hours on three machines. I don't see a reason to complain about his channel. Mike is about as straight a shooter as you will find. He shouldn't be your only data point when considering the RK tractors because he is only one operator and other view points are readily available. Most owners will never have a problem with their tractor so you need a large cross section to learn what issues might arise. Clearly, one operator, regardless of how honest they are, is not a cross section.

The reason you see so many "sponsored" YouTube channels these days is that since the Google takeover of YouTube the ad revenue that is fed back to the creators has been steadily decreased to a fraction of what used to reach them and what is there is now targeted to the channels that YouTube wants to promote. The only way many channels survive is through some commercial arrangement, whether that is simply supplying equipment or supplies, or if it is a situation with direct funding. Otherwise they either can't afford the production costs or their output ends up being too stale to draw viewers.

 

[coastie15078]

I dont think I would attack a mans character because he was chosen to test a product. With anything, you do your due diligence and seek answers. I can tell you this, if you buy a new car or truck or house and expect to never have any issue, you will be disappointed. I feel the man is giving his honest opinion, and we are all able to express our own opinions.

 

[capnkelly]

Just took delivery of our RK24. So far, its everything it is advertised to be. We got ours configured with the loader, grapple and backhoe. I've been using the grapple all day today, and am not disappointed at all. There are a couple of things that I hope RK will change though.

1. The step up for the backhoe is small. You can see it to put your foot on when you are climbing up to operate the backhoe...but when you are ready to get off, you cannot see it from the operators position. Maybe it could be a little larger?

2. The tool box is mounted on the side of the ROPS. When you are climbing onto the backhoe...it's in the way. And if you exit backing up..you'll hit it everytime.

3. The viewing window for the hydraulic fluid is extremely difficult to see with the backhoe attached. Maybe come up with an alternate way to check the fluid level.

4. Maybe add some tie down points.

Please don't let these minor items discourage you from considering the RK24....for it's size and price, you cannot go wrong.

 

[powrguy]

Okay.... lol! So someone gives you a loan for $50,000 and you eventually give them back $25,000. Is that a loan?

In other words get new Equipment worth $50,000 and use it for 5 years and give it back with its value at half.

My point is he is basically doing paid advertising. If he bad mouthed the Equipment I bet you big that RK would come collect their toys and head home. (0:

Great for he and Rural King. Just be aware his views can稚 be unbiased like the OP痴 who purchased his machine with his own money. There痴 a lot of questionable product reviews on YouTube.

Well Said !

:drink:

 

[BigSchmitty]

So after reading this forum, doing my own research, and visiting different dealerships I bought a RK 24 yesterday. There were many factors that influenced my decision. Some being unbiased and of course some biased.
Unbiased:
I obviously really like the price point. I couldn’t get the same value with comparable models and attachments from JD and Kabota. (I bought the RK24 with FEL and 60” belly mower).
Location of the rural king dealership is 2 miles from my home. Closest JD is 40 miles and and Kabota is about 15 miles. It’s just to easy for me to transport 2 miles if needed.
I have friends that work at RK that I trust their honest opinion.

Now to the biased:
I’m actually a big JD fan and my family has never owned anything else for the past 30-40 years, but I’ll explain a little more of my decision.
I live in a little town of 4,500 people. That town happens to be Waverly, Ohio. We are small and have struggled economically for decades. We use to have a large factory �� in town but years ago they closed up shop. We happen to be very fortunate that Rural King stepped in and decided to invest in our community! They now have a large store here (2nd largest in their company I believe), a distribution center here, and they also assemble the tractors �� here. I’m very proud that I bought a tractor here in my own town knowing that I’m helping our struggling community. As I said though this is my biased reason for making the switch from JD.

The end result though is I strongly believe I would have bought the same tractor regardless of where I live based on my personal visits to check each tractor out in person and the spec sheets.
I’ll definitely have to give a review of it after putting it through its paces as I have 65 acres that needs work done.

 

[snymat68]

:welcome:

I helped out your town a little while back too!

 

[Tennsawdust]

So after reading this forum, doing my own research, and visiting different dealerships I bought a RK 24 yesterday. There were many factors that influenced my decision. Some being unbiased and of course some biased.
Unbiased:
I obviously really like the price point. I couldn稚 get the same value with comparable models and attachments from JD and Kabota. (I bought the RK24 with FEL and 60 belly mower).
Location of the rural king dealership is 2 miles from my home. Closest JD is 40 miles and and Kabota is about 15 miles. It痴 just to easy for me to transport 2 miles if needed.
I have friends that work at RK that I trust their honest opinion.

Now to the biased:
I知 actually a big JD fan and my family has never owned anything else for the past 30-40 years, but I値l explain a little more of my decision.
I live in a little town of 4,500 people. That town happens to be Waverly, Ohio. We are small and have struggled economically for decades. We use to have a large factory �� in town but years ago they closed up shop. We happen to be very fortunate that Rural King stepped in and decided to invest in our community! They now have a large store here (2nd largest in their company I believe), a distribution center here, and they also assemble the tractors �� here. I知 very proud that I bought a tractor here in my own town knowing that I知 helping our struggling community. As I said though this is my biased reason for making the switch from JD.

The end result though is I strongly believe I would have bought the same tractor regardless of where I live based on my personal visits to check each tractor out in person and the spec sheets.
I値l definitely have to give a review of it after putting it through its paces as I have 65 acres that needs work done.

Very good reasons to buy the RK! If you can help out your neighbors then all the better. It isn't like JD actually makes their small tractors here. They are basically bolting on wheels and green plastic - not a lot more than RK does.

 

[zmad5306]

Agree, I arrived at about the exact same conclusions, that's why I now own an RK24. We are only a little over an hour from Waverly. Figured if our local store can't fix it surely the plant can (in the event it needs it).

I haven't used it much yet but I really like it, going to save my back when doing firewood. The grapple is awesome!

 

[RodgerF]

Hello all, sorry to dig up an old thread but I thought I'd give a bit of an update. I didn't realize this thread went on as long as it did and I'm kind of hit or miss on forums. Mostly miss! :laughing:

I think all the questions have been answered by now but yes, my loader has the pin on bucket and later models have the QA bucket. Another update is the belly mower attachment/linkage. The tractor and loader have been great and are more capable than you would think for a tractor this size. I've moved a lot of dirt, brush, logs and firewood and it's always ran great!

I have had problems with the mower deck though. Since the beginning I've had problems with the linkage bending and the right front tire catching and lifting the deck in a right had turn. I think the tire rubbing problem is what's causing the lift rods to bend. I've taken it back a few times but the issue was never resolved. I was told the bent rods would not be replaced under warranty even after I showed them how the tire caught and lifted the deck bending the rods. The guy at the store said he would talk to corporate but if they denied the claim I would have to pay for the parts. I told him to order them and see what corporate would do. I never heard back about a decision or the parts and ended up getting a local machine shop to make new lift rods. I have since fixed/adjusted it myself to where I can mow with it but the front tire still catches the deck in a tight turn, I just have to be careful of that.

In my experience the tractor and loader are fine, the mower deck leaves a little to be desired though. I do wish I had the QA bucket of course and the new mower linkage may eliminate the issues I've had. Another thing to think about is the weight. The tractor is a bit heavy for mowing and can cause a bit of rutting if your yard is soft. Not that it tears anything up but it can cause some mild rutting. Anywhere else the weight is a plus! Another thing that would be nice is a way to lock the deck in the "up" position so you can use the three point hitch without having to remove the deck. I don't know if that would be possible or not.

I haven't been to RK yet this spring for tractor parts but as of last fall the system still wasn't optimal. It's hard to find someone to deal with parts and when you do it's usually someone that's doing three other things. Things can be a bit chaotic. I'm going to try to get one more year out of the "big" tractor before it's retired and the RK74 is looking good. Hopefully parts and service will come up to the same level as the tractors are. Online parts ordering would be a good start.

 

[beungood]

This is an interesting topic and one that requires some clarification. We cannot stop anyone from buying one of our tractors whether they live next door or a thousand miles away. This is America, and there are free commerce laws in play. However, we strongly discourage anyone from doing so if they do not live within a reasonable distance from an RK Tractors location. Some customers decide not to, some move forward with the understanding that they need to bring the tractor to the closest RK Tractor location for any warranty service. A lot depends upon how experienced the buyer is, and that can go both ways. The first time buyer sometimes doesn’t understand the implications until the first time something happens, or they take the advice and decide not to purchase the tractor. Experienced buyers can go either way too. If someone does go ahead and buy, we make sure they understand the warranty guidelines, and that they have a means to transport. Now, without getting into confidential business areas, this issue will occur less often in the future.

Is there a list of all the RK tractor locations and service areas?

 

[Comancheria]

Looks great! Your also near my area, I am in Beaver County... hill country.

I grew up in Beaver county myself.
Great place to grow up if you like the woods……best hunting on the planet, seen the biggest buck I will ever see there on my father in laws farm in Hopewell twp on Monaca Rd.
I’m in Ga now and we have great deer here but not the monsters like we had in Beaver county.
If you could go a winter without hitting a deer with your vehicle. You need to play the lottery.