PeteN
Silver Member
I've been looking at 50+hp tractors all summer and had settled on either a Kubota MX6000 or a Branson 5520H. Today I actually got to see and test drive a LS MT3 tractor (42hp version) and was very impressed. I liked the layout and operation of the controls and found the loader control and HST to be very smooth - almost Kubota like. Both the front and rear axles on the LS are much larger in size and the tractor overall seemed to lay in between the MX and the Branson. I had been leaning toward the Branson for its basic simplicity but after running the other brand tractors I started to notice the rough edges. The Branson uses more mechanical controls and it shows but there's something to be said for simplicity. The Kubota is a Kubota. I'm leaning toward the MT357H and the dealer thinks they can get me one in a few weeks, which is much quicker than any other brand I have been looking at. The LS comes with a few things that are options on the rest and it actually was the lowest in price. Any advice on those who have a MT357H and its strong and weak points? I noticed a couple of things like lower PTO hp (seems to be a bigger spread in power loss from the engine hp to PTO hp than the other tractors), less ground clearance and a smaller displacement 3 cyl engine. Engine seems to run well and smooth off idle but is it more stressed because of its size and layout?