Looking at a JD 990

[Champy]

I've been looking at nearly every brand of CUT I can find around here, and after much confusion, research, and debate (and spousal approvals), I have settled on a JD990. Pricing quoted from 3 dealers I've visited has been roughly:

JD 990 - $!6,700 (MFWD)
300CX FEL - $3700
6' LX Rotary Cutter - $1700

Are these "good" prices? Should I keep shopping around? Any comments; concerns; watchouts regarding a 990? BTW - will be working on 35 acres; cleaning it up to make a tree farm; rolling and currently in soybeans

Thanks all..........

 

[BobinIL]

I think that is pretty close to list price right off of the (build your own) section on the deere website.

 

[tarscraper]

I've been looking at nearly every brand of CUT I can find around here, and after much confusion, research, and debate (and spousal approvals), I have settled on a JD990. Pricing quoted from 3 dealers I've visited has been roughly:

JD 990 - $!6,700 (MFWD)
300CX FEL - $3700
6' LX Rotary Cutter - $1700

Are these "good" prices? Should I keep shopping around? Any comments; concerns; watchouts regarding a 990? BTW - will be working on 35 acres; cleaning it up to make a tree farm; rolling and currently in soybeans

Thanks all..........

That is a decent quote. It is a value priced tractor from the start so the discount factor is not as high as the other higher margin tractors in the deere lineup.

 

[rdln]

sounds good to me, in 15 years those tractors have not gone up in price much. A 1070 woulda set you back $19,000 in 1992.

I would suggest getting the power beyond kit added now.

Somebody here mentioned that JD is having trouble stocking yanmar based replacement parts for the 50, 55, 70 series tractors if true and the trend continues, the 90 series might suffer in the future.

I am not worried about this personally but have not needed parts lately either.

Tires: if you havent searched past posts and opinions here yet and are unsure I vote for r-1s. If you think you will venture off the farm to do some landscaping or other various tractor services then I would suggest the more durable r-4.

 

[tarscraper]

Steve is right about th epower beyond. Do it up front. I just recently added an 8B backhoe to mine.

 

[Champy]

Thanks everyone for the comments......Some basic followup questions ......

> What does Power Beyond do? (why would I need/want it)
> R-1 tires vs. R-4's...which way to go?

I plan on moving snow on a paved drive in winter, should I opt for the R-4's, or use R-1's? I will also have some road time on the tractor moving from one field to another....if this matters. Otherwise it will be some lightweight FEL work; bush hogging overgrown pastures; etc... I have about 25 ac of gently rolling terrain currently in soybeans and 10 ac woods/weeds/creek.

Thanks again

 

[tarscraper]

Thanks everyone for the comments......Some basic followup questions ......

> What does Power Beyond do? (why would I need/want it)
> R-1 tires vs. R-4's...which way to go?

I plan on moving snow on a paved drive in winter, should I opt for the R-4's, or use R-1's? I will also have some road time on the tractor moving from one field to another....if this matters. Otherwise it will be some lightweight FEL work; bush hogging overgrown pastures; etc... I have about 25 ac of gently rolling terrain currently in soybeans and 10 ac woods/weeds/creek.

Thanks again

The power beyond brings hydraulics to the back of the tractor. Allowing you to easily connect a 3pt wood splitter, backhoe, 3pt snowblower with hydraulic chute adjustment. Anything you may hook up back there that needs a hydraulic feed. It will add a little expense to the tractor I would think in the few hundred dollar range. Maybe work it into the deal as throw-in. A seal the deal point.

I would say R4's are best for you. They are an aggressive tread industrial tire that is the best multipupose (pavement, woods, fields etc) tire for the machine. The R1's are an excellent aggressive agricultural tire with a softer compound. Definetly not good for pavement because they wear more easily. It is more of a single use tire. Info below from John Deere Website.

R1 tire
An R1 tire is used primarily for general dry land farming or where soil conditions are average to ideal. An R1 tire offers the most aggressive traction of these 3 designations.


R3 tire
An R3 tire is used primarily for golf course and mowing applications to minimize turf damage. An R3 tire tread is less aggressive than an R1 or R4 tire, and the tread depth is approximately half as deep as an R1 tire.


R4 tire
An R4 tire is best in industrial or highway department work applications. These tires offer excellent traction on harder surfaces such as construction lots and are less aggressive on turf than an R1 tire. An R4 tire is more aggressive than an R3 tire, however, it is less aggressive than an R1 tire. An R4 tread depth is about 70 percent as deep as an R1 tire.

 

[Champy]

By the way.......after visiting 3 different JD dealers and getting quotes, the only discounts they offered is $100 off if I buy two implements......

I even offered to pay full price in cash and got no movement on pricing!

 

[rdln]

tell them it is for agricultural use to avoid sales tax, they may ask for your SSN or fed tax id no.

You will get an automatic discount buy buying woods or landpride implements and get same quality.

have them install rear tires at wide stance and fill them with chloride or RIMGARD

 

[CWP37]

I started this same process you are at over a year ago and still haven't bought...but I've learned a lot through this site and through shopping around and testing different tractors.

Originally, I was looking at a 990. In my opinion, you should take a hard look at the JD 5103. I was recently quoted $17,800 for a 5103 w/ loader, vertical exhaust, arm rests, and R4s. You are getting a LOT more power for close to the same $$$. I drove one around the lot and was impressed about how agile they are. You will also have a hard time finding anything negative about the 03s on these boards. Depending on what my CPA says at the end of the year, I'll be getting an 03 as soon as possible.