My New J2023 Initial Review

whiz · Apr 3, 2014

Nice tractor, thanks for the review. Just stopped over to my local LS dealer on the way home from getting feed. He didn't have any 2023s on the lot but said he'd be getting at least one on the next load, in about 2 weeks. I did like the fit and finish of what he had there but too big for my use. Quoted $13,000 cash price, tractor and loader only.

He wasn't a fan of the mid mount mowers because they tend to get in the way and are difficult to get on and off. I know on my lawn tractors they are a bit of a pain even being smaller and lighter. He said he's had guys get them, take them off and never use them again, and he's sold them at the twice yearly consignment auctions he runs. He is a fan of the 3pt hitch finish mowers as being more practical but doesn't stock them because he's been stuck with them before and ends up selling them wholesale. Any thoughts and/or experiences around that, especially on the LS?

Olympus · Apr 3, 2014

That's a little high on the price quote. I paid $12,200 cash. That's before tax.

If you're going to use the tractor as a dedicated mower, the MMM from LS is very nice. If you plan on unhooking from it frequently, a rear finish mower might be better for ease of removing. I don't know if LS makes a rear finish mower though. I found out that I hated a rear finish mower. They are a lot harder to edge with around obstacles like trees. Less edging equals more weedeating.

GManBart · Apr 3, 2014

Olympus said:
That's a little high on the price quote. I paid $12,200 cash. That's before tax.

If you're going to use the tractor as a dedicated mower, the MMM from LS is very nice. If you plan on unhooking from it frequently, a rear finish mower might be better for ease of removing. I don't know if LS makes a rear finish mower though. I found out that I hated a rear finish mower. They are a lot harder to edge with around obstacles like trees. Less edging equals more weedeating.

I wouldn't bother with a finish mower from LS (or any other tractor brand) because they just buy them from another company, paint them blue, and throw stickers on them (most brands do this). I use a large finish mower (90") for my open areas, but a zero turn for everything else. For most folks, a ZT will be faster, and do a nicer job for true mowing.

TSO · Apr 3, 2014

I would also skip the MMM. Not sure exactly how much they cost, but I've heard as much as $1500-2000. That's half the cost of a zero turn (ZTR) right there.

As stated, a ZTR is much better and faster than practically anything else available. And, due to the efficiency of a ZTR vs a tractor, with a belly mower OR rear finish mower (RFM), you can get a smaller deck on a ZTR and still be much faster.

For example, if you are looking at a 60" Tractor Mower, you can easily use a 52" or even a 48" ZTR and still cut better and faster. A decent quality 52" ZTR can be had all day for $5k & under. I'm not talking about the box store versions like Husqvarna, Cub, Swisher, Dixon, etc... look instead for Hustler, Gravely, Exmark, Scag, Ferris, Dixie Chopper, etc.

Most of those mowers can be financed at a low interest rate for 4-5 years, for around or less than $100 per month.

Good luck!

Olympus · Apr 3, 2014

It all depends on your situation. If you have 3 acres or more of yard, you DEFINITELY want a ZTR. If you have less and you have plenty of time to play around and take your time, then MMM on a LS is not a bad idea, especially if money is tight. $1500 to $2000 for a MMM is a lot cheaper than a ZTR.

I bought my first tractor and rear finish mower to use on my 3 acres of yard. Took me two mows to realize that crap is for the birds. By the next summer I bought a ZTR.

In my area, $5k would get me a highly used commercial trade - in mower with about 1000 hours. Or I found out I could get a new residential grade ZTR and just plan on scrapping it after about 5 years because it would cost more to replace sluggish trannys than the mower would be worth. All the mower shops I talked to told me the same thing, lawns over 3 acres really need a commercial grade ZTR. So I saved my pennies a little longer and bought a used Grasshopper with the Kubota diesel engine. It's a flat out mowing machine! It will mow faster than I can hang on or keep it going in a straight line. My yard is junk grass and weeds mostly, but that mower will make it stripe like a baseball field! I spent about $6500. Lot of guys in my neighborhood have 3 acre yards and they have subcompact Kubotas with MMM as their dedicated mowers. They cut good, that just take longer to finish the job compared to a ZTR. It's a trade - off with time and money.

whiz · Apr 6, 2014

Thanks for the replies.

Wanted to clarify that I'll be using the finish mower to mow about 6 acres of pasture late in the season. No yard would be done with that, I have a 54" Husqvarna and an older 46" Huskee for the yard (about an acre and a half). A ZTR would be great for that and will consider that when it comes time to replace the current mowers. My buddy has been telling me too how great the zero turn is for mowing. I have to use a 60" "bush hog" type on an 8N in the spring to knock down the weeds and tough grass in the pastures that gets out of hand. Even with all the llamas we have (41!) they don't eat it down enough so it has to be mowed a couple of times early. Later in the year the "bush hog" mower doesn't cut fine enough or low enough, my thought was a bigger finish mower on a tractor would be the ticket, especially if I'm going to get a new machine anyway. I've tried using the Husqvarna and end up just doing just next to the fences, the ground it generally too rough for doing the whole area and I do need it for the lawn areas so don't want to destroy it on the pastures.

The tractor though is intended primarily for the loader work, moving manure, gravel, dirt, etc... all those great things you do with a FEL. So until they are putting loaders on ZTRs and with our limited budget, that's not an option right now. We are looking for a small tractor in the L2023, JD1023-25, Bx2360-70 size to get inside the barns and maneuver around the pens (most are about 20'x60') to load the daily "production". Getting too old and tired to be loading it into big trash cans and lifting and dumping in the spreader, especially in the winter!

Again, thanks for all the input, gives me some more to think about.

Olympus · Apr 6, 2014

In that case, a rear finish mower would be just fine. They are good for mowing wide open areas with little to no obstacles to mow around. Pasture work would be prime conditions.

windcatcher · Apr 7, 2014

Olympus, that is a good looking tractor. I was out scouting a J2023H again this weekend. I'll probably end up going with the G3033H if everything works out well though. Both tractors seem to be well built.

Olympus · Apr 7, 2014

Thanks.

So I've put about 5 hours on my tractor and found out some things others might want to know before purchasing.

1. Filling the tires will be a must. I lose tractor in loose gravel and even ground that is the slightest bit soft. Right now I'm keeping it in 4wd pretty much nonstop.

2. I can't seem to get the 3pt set right. One problem is offset. It had an offset from the factory. I figured out how to adjust the turnbuckles, but now it's too far the other way. So I'll have to make another adjustment. And now I'm noticing that one side of the implement is higher than the other. So I'm going to have to adjust the arm to level it out. My previous tractor required no adjustments on the 3pt. Maybe that spoiled me.

3. The lack of position control on the 3pt is the biggest thing I miss. Not to much the actual stop adjustment, but the way a position control lever can be slid up or down in small increments. The 3pt on this tractor takes a lot of getting used to. You can only adjust the downward rate of the implement, but not the upward rate. Pull the 3pt lever back and the implement practically jumps up. It takes a special touch to get the implement to ease upward. I find grading with a blade to be very difficult. I'll get a blade full of gravel and then lose traction. I'll start spinning and digging ruts in the driveway. If you don't ease back on the lever just the right amount, you'll either not pull back enough and nothing will happen and you'll continue to spinout, OR you'll pull back too much and your blade will completely dump the full load of gravel in one spot.

Maybe I'll still getting to get the hang of it, but I sure miss the other style of 3pt lever.