Musclford
Silver Member
My 2 cents..on Justification and the Big Picture...
I ended up buying my BX, with an FEL & 60" deck. I don't regret the deck size one bit.. That cut my mowing time by a 1/3 at least...
I consolidated my Wolverine 350 4x4 Quad w/ blade, 44" simplicity mower and have already gave away 2 wheel barrows due to the loader. ( Reclaimed $4,500.00 in an ATV I had, only to plow, & $1K in the Simplicity, not to mention maintenence on 1 versus 2 machines.
I can use my Mow-N-Vac and still climb hills with it being full. Rotate my compost piles (Never did that b4).
Can dig out of the mounds that plow trucks pile at the end of the drive, and when it's all said and done, should be able to resell my Bota with no problem should I ever move / upgrade.
Yes, it's a lot of money.. But, look at it over a 10-15 yr. period..
Some people spend 1.75 / day on coffee... That's $5,900.00 in a 15 year period on coffee.... (225 days * 1.75 * 15).. That's nearly $6K on COFFEE...
One of my friends was talking about the cost of my BX...
First of all, it is like a big kids toy, it saves my back for countless other tasks, I have a number of landscaping projects that it already has and will assist in doing. Not to mention the fact that I brought up to my friend that the Chrysler minivan he bought brand new 3-4 years ago has already depreciated more than my tractor cost... + he didn't get 0% like I did.... (Free Money)
So if you can consolidate to one mid size machine that can handle most of your tasks and give you a very good cut.... That's the angle I would look at it..
Again, just my 2 cents, which is really probably not worth the electricity that it took to write this....
BTW, just another way to look at things.. I have a friend that lives 10 miles further than me out in the country because of the price of taxes are cheaper...
Here's my justification for living in the city on a comparable nearly acre lot...
My Taxes $3,000 - My round trip drive to work, 8 Miles - 15 mins
His Taxes $1,500 - His round trip drive to work, 28 Miles - 50 mins
say 15 mpg out our trucks..
My cost / year on fuel only 1800 miles = 120 gal * 2.50 = $300.00
His cost / year " " 6300 miles = 420 gal * 2.50 = $1,050.00
A difference of $750.00, and 4500 miles. Which I might add is yet another 1.5 oil changes ($35.00)
Now figure tires/brakes/ etc, not to mention add another 131.5 hours of driving time he has, and in 10 years, he has an extra 45000 miles on his truck... What does that do to his resale versus mine?
So if your looking at merely a cost basis just for WORK TIME ONLY for just one person, it isn't cheaper as it may first appear to live in the country. And again, that's just for a single outside the home income. Double that for 2 people...
I realize this example got way off the subject, but the principle is the same... Don't just look at the initial cost, try to look at the big picture and what your real intent is..
It is a lot of money, but if your lot justifies it, you like to do your own work and save some money, you really want a tractor, then don't just look at the initial cost.
I bought a yard man 11 years ago and it was seeing some wear so I upgraded to a Simpliicty that was 8 years older for the same price I sold my yard man for. Sold the simplicity 6 years later, for the price I paid for it, and then bought the Bota... I wish I would have just could have bought my Bota, way back when and basically saved me all the hassle..
If I would of bought this tractor 5 years ago, I could have saved yet another 800.00 in machine rentals and a lot of transportation hassle.
Now I just need to justify owning a lot that requires a plow, and some type of riding mower...
Man can I ramble.... Sorry... but sumthin to think about....
I ended up buying my BX, with an FEL & 60" deck. I don't regret the deck size one bit.. That cut my mowing time by a 1/3 at least...
I consolidated my Wolverine 350 4x4 Quad w/ blade, 44" simplicity mower and have already gave away 2 wheel barrows due to the loader. ( Reclaimed $4,500.00 in an ATV I had, only to plow, & $1K in the Simplicity, not to mention maintenence on 1 versus 2 machines.
I can use my Mow-N-Vac and still climb hills with it being full. Rotate my compost piles (Never did that b4).
Can dig out of the mounds that plow trucks pile at the end of the drive, and when it's all said and done, should be able to resell my Bota with no problem should I ever move / upgrade.
Yes, it's a lot of money.. But, look at it over a 10-15 yr. period..
Some people spend 1.75 / day on coffee... That's $5,900.00 in a 15 year period on coffee.... (225 days * 1.75 * 15).. That's nearly $6K on COFFEE...
One of my friends was talking about the cost of my BX...
First of all, it is like a big kids toy, it saves my back for countless other tasks, I have a number of landscaping projects that it already has and will assist in doing. Not to mention the fact that I brought up to my friend that the Chrysler minivan he bought brand new 3-4 years ago has already depreciated more than my tractor cost... + he didn't get 0% like I did.... (Free Money)
So if you can consolidate to one mid size machine that can handle most of your tasks and give you a very good cut.... That's the angle I would look at it..
Again, just my 2 cents, which is really probably not worth the electricity that it took to write this....
BTW, just another way to look at things.. I have a friend that lives 10 miles further than me out in the country because of the price of taxes are cheaper...
Here's my justification for living in the city on a comparable nearly acre lot...
My Taxes $3,000 - My round trip drive to work, 8 Miles - 15 mins
His Taxes $1,500 - His round trip drive to work, 28 Miles - 50 mins
say 15 mpg out our trucks..
My cost / year on fuel only 1800 miles = 120 gal * 2.50 = $300.00
His cost / year " " 6300 miles = 420 gal * 2.50 = $1,050.00
A difference of $750.00, and 4500 miles. Which I might add is yet another 1.5 oil changes ($35.00)
Now figure tires/brakes/ etc, not to mention add another 131.5 hours of driving time he has, and in 10 years, he has an extra 45000 miles on his truck... What does that do to his resale versus mine?
So if your looking at merely a cost basis just for WORK TIME ONLY for just one person, it isn't cheaper as it may first appear to live in the country. And again, that's just for a single outside the home income. Double that for 2 people...
I realize this example got way off the subject, but the principle is the same... Don't just look at the initial cost, try to look at the big picture and what your real intent is..
It is a lot of money, but if your lot justifies it, you like to do your own work and save some money, you really want a tractor, then don't just look at the initial cost.
I bought a yard man 11 years ago and it was seeing some wear so I upgraded to a Simpliicty that was 8 years older for the same price I sold my yard man for. Sold the simplicity 6 years later, for the price I paid for it, and then bought the Bota... I wish I would have just could have bought my Bota, way back when and basically saved me all the hassle..
If I would of bought this tractor 5 years ago, I could have saved yet another 800.00 in machine rentals and a lot of transportation hassle.
Now I just need to justify owning a lot that requires a plow, and some type of riding mower...
Man can I ramble.... Sorry... but sumthin to think about....
