37 Hours Until I Have Own My First Ever Tractor, Thank You TBN!

[webweary]

About 2 years ago when I bought a gorgeous (in my mind) 40 acre tract in rural Tennessee, I knew I was going to have to one day get a tractor. About a year ago, the wife and I relocated to a Boston suburb with 2 acres of its own. Needless to say, there was not better time than the present!

I'm not sure why, but I knew from the beginning I was going to get a Mahindra. While the other brands have dedicated followings, I just kept hearing from folks I spoke to that they wished they had given Mahindra more of a chance when they were most recently in the market for a tractor. I kept hearing "great tractor, good quality, great value."

For the past 6-8 months I've been a regular lurker on these forums and the experience has been amazing. Mostly I wanted to affirm my decision... I was looking for reasons NOT to buy a Mahindra as much as I was looking for reasons TO buy a Mahindra. But I read a lot of good advice along the way... and I wanted to sum it up for any other "first timers" out there who are looking to invest in a tractor:

1) Size matters, but only insofar as what you plan to use the tractor for (more on this later)
2) Whether you go green, orange, red, or blue, you are going to get a quality product that you should expect to be capable and reliable
3) HP doesn't matter, PTO HP matters a little more, but Torque is really important and harder to ascertain
4) Determine what you want/need to do and then figure out what attachments / implements you should get
5) A great dealer should strongly guide your choice of tractor brand, they're going to be your partner in crime for years to come, for richer or poorer, in good times and bad

So now I'm going to detail how each of the above lessons applied to MY situation, just because I think it's important for anyone who's researching their next tractor purchase...

Size: I had my mind made up that I was going to get a 2538. Reviews are out of this world. Price is right. Owners love them. I finally got to the tipping point (you know you're going to buy but don't want to admit it so you make up an excuse to go visit the dealer - the reason is everything BUT 'I'm about to buy') and decided to get online quotes from the 2-3 "local" dealers in my area. More on this later, but when I finally went to the dealer and saw the 2538 in person I knew right away it wasn't the right tractor for me. My 40 acres in Tennessee are pretty hilly and one of the things I want to do is improve 40 year old logging trails for my ATVs. Since I've tipped the ATVs on these trails riding for fun, there was NO WAY I was going to bring this tractor on them. Way too big. For me. And that's the point. I still think the 2538 is the bees knees, but I was scared to death that I was going to tip that sucker and plummet 400+ feet once I started improving the old logging trails. I said "what's this beautiful little guy?" next to your 2540 (dealer actually didn't have a 2538 in stock yet) and learned about the MAX 26XL. Several nights and hundreds of hours later on TBN and I was confident the Max series was going to be just fine.

Brand: Like I said, I knew I was going to get a Mahindra. I don't really know why. John Deere has excellent options and so does Kubota. I really like NH, but they don't really have something as small and powerful as the Max (and Kubota and Deere) and there wasn't a dealer anywhere near me. What I feel confident about is - no matter which of these brands I chose, I was going to get a great piece of equipment.

HP: I've never owned a tractor, so I reserve the right to change my position, but from everything I've read (and I've read a lot of posts, I mean THOUSANDS of them), there are very few people disappointed in their tractor selection. Some of that might be saving face, but it seems that everything from the 20HP to the 32HP SCUTs (that's Sub Compact Utility Tractor for us newbies out there) get the job done. As my dealer said, this (the Max 26XL) can do everything the 2538 can, it's just going to take longer. But HP on the PTO seems to be important, so look at that and how you're top choice performs. And Torque is really really important, but the info is not readily available. I found myself looking up archaic OEM manuals to find the actual diesel engines that were being used in each tractor and what their foot pounds output was. And for us TRUE NEWBIEs out there, YES, there is a HUGE difference between diesel engine HP and gas engine HP that you see advertised on our fancy lawn tractors.

EXTRAs: Following a lot of the guidance and advice found throughout THIS forum... I made a list of the things I wanted to be able to do with my tractor... remove stumps, move logs, cut trenches, dig small foundation holes, move sand (small rock, mulch, dirt, loam), clear entire acres and areas of brush, pick up and move dead trees and bramble, clear trails and cut grass. It was a long list and even though I am fortunate that budget wasn't the biggest constraint, I prioritized the list I came up with. Then I did more research on what implement or attachment did the best job for each. I'm not going to list how I matched each because 1) everyone's budget is different and 2) it's part of the fun of owning a tractor, figuring out how you're going to tackle each project. So telling you how I matched them up would be depriving you of your own enjoyment of ownership and that just sounds, well, unAmerican!

Dealer: Someone (I forget who) on this forum is quite well known for saying "just like in real estate, it's all about location, location, location; in tractors it's all about the dealer, dealer, dealer." I couldn't agree more. Find a dealer who's been there, done that. Find one you're comfortable negotiating with, but also happy to make sure they made a profit so they stay in business and help you for the life of your tractor. Find one that's willing to say "you know what, I don't know, but I will find out." I haven't even taken possession of my new baby, but the interactions with my dealer have put the entire process in perspective and made me feel great about my decision. Buying your tractor is just the start of your dealer relationship. You should expect that, they should know that.

That's it... that's my long winded THANK YOU to TBN and its members for helping me through this decision process as well as my manifesto for all new, first-time tractor buyers who - like me - are on their journey, lurking in the background, taking in as much information as they can so they feel good about the $20-30,000 investment they're about to make.

For the record, here's what I'm getting...

Max 26XL
FEL and Backhoe
5' Box Blade
4' MD Rotary Cutter
4' SSQA Grapple
18' carry-on trailer (7,000 lb)

The trailer alone was about $3,400. The grapple and third function hydraulic was $2,800. All of that and the taxes were paid in cash. The rest was just under $27,000. As it shows in my profile, I'm in Mass, and what I've learned is that it's pretty expensive here. You can expect to do better in other areas, especially in the South.

 

[brasco426]

Congratulations webweary, sounds like you made the best decision for You! I love my Max 24, I can imagine the 26 is more of that. I did the same as you, chose for myself. I did that because I knew I didn't need a machine that was too big. More often I see someone ask for suggestions and before long we're at a SCUT is out you need 40 hp, a zero turn to mow, and only 5 acres to maintain. Lol to each their own. Anyway you will be pleased with your new tractor, Enjoy. Donnie

 

[BlackOps]

congrats and enjoy your new machine! so you go back and forth between mass and tn? what region of tn?

 

[webweary]

The property is in Putnam County, wedged between Centerhill Lake and Cordell Hull Lake.

 

[mike69440]

I'm getting to appreciate our little Max28 bought new back in 2014, it now has +90 Hours.

Max28 has been back once for warrantee work, cold start issue was resolved, but the flaky solenoid had dealer / Mahindra stumped for a while..

I do wish it had about 200 Lbs. more steel in the frame and loader to stiffen things up, and the Loader needs a 40mm vs. factory 35mm bore curl attachment cylinder when working a pile.

The loader control valve is really course, (i.e. Ag. quality, not industrial.) I'm spoiled by my large equipment.

But:

No other machine has as beefy a 3 Point hitch for its size, and the loader is near as strong as some L series Kubota's. I'm impressed.
I love it's small footprint and the nice shuttle shift.
What a big difference to a straight gear I had on my old Little Kubota. It is sure nice to have Power steering, no more broken thumbs! but PS could be a little stronger.
All in all they did have to keep the weight down so guys could mow their lawn, but it's a fine little farm tractor.

Good luck with yours.

(P.S.I don't quite buy Mahindra's specs numbers on the loader.) I'm working to see about a custom 40mm bore Loader cylinder for the bucket attachment that would be an exact fit, so if anyone want's to PM me, I'll try to do a 'group buy" to keep costs reasonable. A 40 mm bore will increase curl capacity 37%.
For comparisons, a 37% increase would make it have 95% of the curl force of the loader on the new 1526 tractor.
I'm old school, I figure specs at bucket edge, not "at the Pins" After all, the bucket wedge is where a tractor loader is doing the work.
It really pisses me off that specs. are given at the pins, as the numbers look better. Both values should be stated.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/327912-custom-3-point-attachment-2-a.html

 

[arrow]

Not to convolute the matter but I am a little puzzled as to why you were not considering the in-between tractor (Mahindra 1526). To me, maintaining trails might also include cutting into a hill to lessen side angles so as to mitigate roll overs. It sounds as if you could use the extra weight and heft of the 1526. 40 acres I think can warrant a tractor of larger size.
The 1526/33 kind of even look like the Max 26 at a bit larger scale.
You are correct to think it's torque that does the work but even more importantly, traction is king. The weightier machine will provide better traction.

 

[webweary]

Arrow, that's a great question. I immediately discarded the 2538 and saw the Max series but what I didn't share is the mental back and forth, back and forth, back and forth between the 1500 series and the Max. I honestly don't know if I made the right decision yet, but in the end felt more comfortable with the Max. I won't know for sure until I actually have the tractor on the trails on the property. What finally got me comfortable with going smaller (thus the Max) was that I had rented a kubota bx from the local home depot a few times and it was about the right size for these trails I keep talking about. Since the Max is slightly bigger than the BX, I just decided the 1500 would start to put me dangerous territory when I finally start the trail reclamation project.

And a point of clarification on the 40 acres in TN... there's a 1/4 mile gravel (rain washed) driveway from the road to a ~3.5 acre clearing. The entire rest of the property is a heavily wooded hill nestled between two creeks.

 

[mike69440]

Arrow,

Not to convolute the matter but I am a little puzzled as to why you were not considering the in-between tractor (Mahindra 1526). To me, maintaining trails might also include cutting into a hill to lessen side angles so as to mitigate roll overs. It sounds as if you could use the extra weight and heft of the 1526. 40 acres I think can warrant a tractor of larger size.
The 1526/33 kind of even look like the Max 26 at a bit larger scale.
You are correct to think it's torque that does the work but even more importantly, traction is king. The weightier machine will provide better traction.

For ground engagement weight, the is 1526 better, but it is a lot bigger than the Max26/28, while being a relatively light duty tractor for it size. With 40 Acres the OP might want to consider adding another larger tractor, maybe used, but something around at least +6000 lbs. I'd have destroyed several 15XX or any other small Ag CUT doing the type of work I've done My L39. Unless it is a "nice" 40 acres, he is going to need a bigger tractor. Don't sell the Max, as it is too handy.

PS: for torque/ HP ratio, My Max28 does not have the pure grunt as my old 16 HP Kubota. I was always amazed what grunt a 16HP tiny diesel could have. The Max 28 has a lot more HP, but just a little more torque than the 16 HP diesel.

 

[dickfoster]

After all the shopping and churning this stuff though your mind, sometimes waiting is the hardest part. But, that just makes finally getting it all the more fun.

 

[arrow]

Arrow,



For ground engagement weight, the is 1526 better, but it is a lot bigger than the Max26/28, while being a relatively light duty tractor for it size. With 40 Acres the OP might want to consider adding another larger tractor, maybe used, but something around at least +6000 lbs. I'd have destroyed several 15XX or any other small Ag CUT doing the type of work I've done My L39. Unless it is a "nice" 40 acres, he is going to need a bigger tractor. Don't sell the Max, as it is too handy.

PS: for torque/ HP ratio, My Max28 does not have the pure grunt as my old 16 HP Kubota. I was always amazed what grunt a 16HP tiny diesel could have. The Max 28 has a lot more HP, but just a little more torque than the 16 HP diesel.

Not selling the Max short. If I did not have to skid tree stems, I think the Max as outfitted is a more handier tractor to have for the homeowner and I'd be no exception. You can do just about anything with the little sucker outfitted properly. I bring my 3016 (which is a bit smaller than the 1526) through some pretty rough and hilly terrain and with it's wheels spread, it has been very stable. I've cut into hillsides with a tooth bar mounted with good success with it. I think because of its rather high fel rating for its size has certainly helped in regard to this. No, it will not do the ground engagement that your L does but if he is to be a two machine family, I think a dozer for those woods might be great to have.