Shopping for new tractor

EMS503 · Oct 3, 2008

Started my window shopping. I went to two different dealers, they both deal with MF & Kubota. The first one had no 1540's and said he would have to look around for one. He showed me what he said was the 1540 equal in Kubota L3940 2008 model, this thing had more bells and whistle then you can shake a stick at. I had him write up a price sheet while I was playing with this in the parking lot. He came back with these prices, Tractor L3940HST w loaded R-4 tires $19,500, LA724 QA loader $4,500, 6' box blade BH SBX72 $690, GDT72 rotor tiller &1,610, Woods RD7200 finish mower $1,850 Total $28,150 and would give me $8,500 for my GC2300 with out seeing it

The second dealer not really up on his tractors had a 1540 kind of plain compared to the Kubota but im sure that is just more to go wrong.
I had him write up a price sheet also while I was playing with this tractor.
MF 1540 2008 model, small R4s loaded, Synchroshuttle SSQA $22,600 (loader included), same rear finish mower $1,800, woods BB GB72 $1,050, woods tiller GTC60-2 $1,650, toothbar $375, Total $27,475 Trade in $ on my GC2300 $8,750 but wants to see it before giving me a firm price.
Next to the rear PTO control was a yellow push button he did not know what it was for,I still dont know either.
Both of these tractors are very close in all of there specs and handled very well. But I really dont know much about Kubota. What do you guys think the boss says with the monthly prices at 0% intrest I can get it now instead of next year

Ivan1547 · Oct 3, 2008

The little button on the Massey is "If the engagement is too aggressive the modulation button to the left of the PTO control can be pushed (light will come on to indicate engagement) which will make the PTO engage even slower (1533, 1540, 1547, 1552 & 1560 models only)."

I tried both makes, the Massey dealer up here in Canada was much more informative and knowledgable.

Drive both and pick the one that suits you. Also, make sure you trust your dealer first.

You will like either machine. I just love my MF1547.

art · Oct 4, 2008

Kubota has had no issues with the bells and whistles as you call them! They do make life easy for many people that are not always the best operators. I find it interesting that you have doubts about the Kubota's when their quality is the one manufacturers try to compare to in this industry.

EMS503 · Oct 4, 2008

Not having any doubts about Kubota, I just dont know much about them.
As my signature states New to tractors. I did EMS work prior to retirement so I did not have any exposure to tractors in NJ. I am just trying to find out which tractor will suit me best, I compared the spec sheets and really didnt see much of a difference so I am asking people with experince on tractors for help making a decsion so I dont buy a tractor again that will be to light for what I am doing with it.

Ivan1547 · Oct 4, 2008

I do think either will be good.

There are no problems with either.

Hop on them and drive them around first, pick the one that feels better for you. Our Massey dealer had a gravel pile that you could test drive all the models. This helped out to figure the right size for me.

tractorworks · Oct 4, 2008

For the difference in price I would definately go Kubota. Learning curve is a lot easier. Not as hard on the fel using a hydro. You will be more productive using the hydro- backing in and around trees mowing, ability to slow down using a tiller. I have over 2000 hours on gear tractors (still own one) and several hundred on hydro. No comparison on productivity. Like you said it has all the bells and whistles-go for it.

Samandothers · Oct 6, 2008

I have a Kubota L4240HST. I use it on a farm in the mountains. The HST is great for moving around obstacles. The 'bells and whistles' makes the tractor very easy to use. The auto throttle and its ability to down shift automatically makes using the loader very simple. I am not familar with the Massey but have enjoyed the Kubota, and would buy the same again.

EMS503 · Oct 8, 2008

Well decsion has been made. I am going with the GL3940 over the MF1540, after much research here and other areas I took a trip back to see the 3940 with the quote for the 1540. The dealer went over everything again. I still couldnt swing the $$ for the HST+ so I am going with the GST even though the HST would have been a little easier to use around my chicken houses.
I also had to drop my rotto tiller for now, I will get it in the future The only other change we made was to go with the woods LDR 108 loader w/ QA instead of the Kubota LA724 QA. The dealer states the woods is slightly stronger then the Kubota loader. I will still be getting the BB and the RFM.
Now all I have to do is wait and see if my buyer for my MF buys it or not. If not I will use it as a trade. Hopefully I will know next week and sign the papers and wait for it to be delivered. Thank you all for your input it did help alot.