I love my tractor

[super sappy]

I just wanted to say that I love my Kubota 3400 that hauled 140 gallons of sap in 50 gallon lots today. That tractor was up to the oil pan in clay mud and water with the rain and snow coming down and it got the job done. Oh yea the case 430 with oversized flotation tires is still stuck on the back side of the garden. That little tractor has some balls for its size and I have to say it has been the best money I have ever spent. -ss

[Fred Henderson]

I wouldn't know what to do without my L3830 Bota. If the machine does what you want it to do then they are all good.

[Big_Eddy]

I see you have an RTV900 as well. Do you rave about it as much as the L? I have often thought the old 4x6 gators would be pretty good sap haulers but my JD 855 meets my needs so I have never looked to buy one. I remember the old days - hauling 100 buckets worth of sap out to the road on a toboggan. God almighty that was work!

[325abn]

I use a 47 Ford wish I had a 4X4 .

[davey]

I discovered today that my 1940 Farmall H with bald slick tires is actually really easy to climb off of when the drawbar is on the ground. It was one of those special runs where I was pretty sure I was going to get stuck and just hoped I had enough chain to be reach it eventually. Its pouring rain and dark here now so I guess I'll see what tomorrow brings. I gave up while I could still go back and forth so I'll get it out then.

[Fred Henderson]

I see you have an RTV900 as well. Do you rave about it as much as the L? I have often thought the old 4x6 gators would be pretty good sap haulers but my JD 855 meets my needs so I have never looked to buy one. I remember the old days - hauling 100 buckets worth of sap out to the road on a toboggan. God almighty that was work!

The RTV 900 is doing all the work right now. It is outfitted with Soucy tracks( one per inplace of the wheel) A 55 gal tank in the bed. I am renting taps from two adjacant landowners a don't want to make ruts on their land with the "L". We collect with the RTV and dump to a larger tank on the "L".

[forester1]

I just bought a Kubota 3400 too. I wasn't sure about the hydrostatic transmission but they had a new one in stock so I took it. I really like it. 0% interest for 46 months, almost like free money.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

SS,

I have a Kubota L3400 and I love it too. I bought it just for syruping which entails hauling all of my sap and hauling all of the wood in the summer. My dad had a big 4x4 JD, but when he sold and moved, I had to build a sugarhouse and buy a tractor unfortunately or I would be making a good profit now. LOL.

I have a 125 gallon leg tank on the rear of the tractor on a carryall, actually it holds 140 gallon and a 65 gallon leg tank in the bucket on the front. Just a note, don't try to pick up 140 gallon on the rear of the tractor completely full, it's a lot of weight. I don't usually fill mine quit full and I have the lift fully raised on the rear. This shifts the weight more forwards towards lift point and it is already raised and not raising it from ground zero. I can easily haul 200 gallon on mine as the front tank holds 70 and I can put 130 in the rear. I can put 140, but don't like to. I try to keep it under 130. Make sure you keep the sway linkage on the rear as tight as a drum. That is what will tear up something fast is any sway back there.

Jerry,

You will love the hydro trans. Wish mine had it as it is a DT 4x4. Hope you both got a loader, best investment you could make and the entire loader quickly sits off the tractor if you need to take it off. Besides, it adds another 500+ lbs to the tractor and fluid in the rear tires is good as this tractor is an ecomony model with no bells and whistles and is a little light. I bought mine a little over 2 years ago and they wanted $ 1900 more for a loader. I would have been crazy if I hadn't gotten it. It costs about $4,000 seperate, but usually a lot cheaper in a package. 28 months later, mine has 75 hours on it. Tells you how much it gets used. Hope it outlasts me and I am 32.

[forester1]

Yeah Brandon, I bought a loader with it. Also a 5' snoblower because my plow truck is almost dead. Got the rear tires filled with beet juice and a block heater. Like you said it's cheaper if you get it done all at once. Also in my case it could all be financed at 0%. They said the beet juice won't freeze and is non-corrosive. The dealer also said they see less problems with the hydrostatic than the direct drive. Mostly I think because most people don't know how to use a clutch anymore.

[mapleman3]

But does she think your tractors sexy???

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Oh yeah!!!!!! It really turns here on!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL! LOL!

They filled my rear tires with winshield washer fluid which is noncorrosive too. Never heard of beat juice. They used to use calcium which is a lot heavier, but it is corrosive. Wish I had gotten the hydro as it was $ 1200 more but I thought the DT would outservice it. The only problem I have with it is that you have to start from stopped anytime you chance gears as it has no shuttle shift, so starting out in a higher gear has got to be harder on the clutch.

[tessiersfarm]

Maybe you could fill them with syrup 11lbs per gal LOL!

[matrob]

I've been looking for a 4wd tractor. I have an Allis D-17 now. I can relate to stepping off of the drawbar on to the ground when they are level.

Maybe you guys have some experience with the Kubota that could help. I see that the 3400 is rated at 30 hp. Is there enough PTO horsepower to run a haybine and baler. I also want to run a hydraulic motor on a pulp loader. Is the hydraulic flow rated high enough for this. ( The allis turns the motor at about 5 rpm due to it's high pressure, low flow volume pump.)

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Matt

[forester1]

On a 3400 Kubota the PTO horsepower is 29 on the Direct trans or 27.5 on the hydrostatic. You would have to see what the implement runs at. Kubota makes bigger tractors too. One interesting thing is that the dealer said when he toured the Kubota factory in Japan, the same factory was making John Deeres on another line and another brand on another line. He wasn't allowed to take pictures.

[Fred Henderson]

I can assure you that 29HP at the PTO will not run a haybine very well. I would want at least 35 HP and 40 would be even better.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

The HP of the tractor is 34.7 with the PTO of aprox 5 to 6 less HP.

[hholt]

double post oops!

[hholt]

I got a JD 4710 a few years ago with a loader and the 45 hp comes in handy. I couldn't really afford it at the time, but now that it's paid off I'm sure glad to have it. When I was shopping around for it someone told me to get one a little bigger than I thought I needed and they were right.

Some day I'd like to set up my property with sap hauling trails that avoid the mud and use something like a Kawasaki Mule or a Gator for hauling sap and firewood through the timber.

[PerrinFarm2]

We've got a JD 4500 in the woods with a loader, and we use a trailer from the thirties with a 200 gallon tank. only time we have problems is when we take it on the road and forget to put it back into 4wd in the woods.

At home i've got a NH 4630 DT (60 hp) its got 4 huge filled tires loader and a Woods BH9000 Hoe. Its a beast it weighs in at about 11,200 and on dry ground will pick up or pull just about anything. It weights so much though that it has a tendancy to get stuck in really soft ground. But i really cant complain about the 1 CY bucket.

-Both are nice tractors.

[twigbender]

Well, someone's gotta stick up for the Ford's on this thread!! I've got a '96 Ford 3415. Wish it had front wheel assist but even with plain ol' rear wheel drive it gets the job done. Runs right at 38 hp and has a bucket and loader. I also have log tongs for it as I do some pine thinning too. Got a 5' JD brush mower that I use to keep the trails groomed with. With all that said, I still use the Polaris 400 for hauling sap -- easier on the woods trails than the tractor.

[dano2840]

i have got a 2007 jd 5203 that i borrowed from a good farmer friend of mine. He didnt have room for it under cover for the winter and i said i did. so in return for keeping it under cover i get to do what i like with it.
Its 2wd w/ posi. traction i had a set of chains that fit it perfectly. Ive been pulling 18"x8' logs up one of the steepest hills we have on our farm. It spins but once it digs down it just goes. The thing has 55 horse power but it feels like 65 or 70. Its almost unstoppable. The creeper gears work great for hauling sap with an open top tank w/ ply wood cover. I havent spilled yet.

I for one have always liked the good ol John Deeres havent found any thing better.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I would rather have bought a JD too, but they wanted about $ 2,000 to $ 3,000 more for the green paint and orange looked good to me.

[dano2840]

i cant say i [I]dont[I]like kubotas
ive run a few and i like them almost as much as jd
i dont have any bad things to say about them, theyre good tractors

[Fred Henderson]

Brandon, I had JD's all my life and loved each of them. Then 5 years ago I wanted a new compact 4X4 and when I went to look at a JD they could even get it to start. If it would not start brand new then I kind of thought that I might having a starting issue a few down the road. I then went orange and after I got use to it I never looked back. I would buy another Kubota.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I wanted the most tractor for the least amount of $$$ and I found what I was looking for in the L3400. I would have like to had more, but it met my needs. Like I said earlier, I use this tractor aprox 30 hours per year or less and no sense in sinking a lot of money into something for that.

I did a lot of research and looked at a lot of different tractors. Good thing about orange is that they make more compact tractors than everyone else put together and they hold their resale value as good as green if not better.

[gmcooper]

Here on the farm we have a couple green ones (retired 3010 and a 4430 fwd) a big Massey and a cute little Kubota 4330. Dad bought the Kubota this summer in PA. 4x4 with loader. We bought a set of forks from Zimmermans on the way home. We bought the tractor to put round bales in one barn with limited head room. It really works great for that and the hydrostatic drive is really nice. I really wish they would run larger front tires on them. They would sure be a lot smoother out in the field if they did.
Mark

[VT maple maker]

I love my Kubota 2900. I made sure it had a loader. It came with a snow plow to hook up where the bucket goes also. Its a 98 that only had 300 hours on it when i bought it this summer. It has the shuttle shift and its a fantastic small tractor. I dont have a large farm or anything so im using it to haul sap and keep the driveway clean and skid a few trees here and there. So far i couldnt ask for a better rig. And the great thing is if i need a larger one my uncle is a dairy farmer and he has about 6 tractors of all sizes, some with loaders, and some with 4x4. Anytime i need a bigger one i just drive down the road a mile and he gives me the keys. JD is a great tractor but so far im very happy with my kubota.

Kyle

[tapper]

I have owned 2 different New Holland compact tractors and now have a 45 hp Cub Cadet. All of these tractors have served me well for the cost of each and the 200 hrs per year that I put on them but, none of them would hold up to everyday use.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I do think my is made well enough that it would hold up to everyday use for a long time.

[VT maple maker]

I have used mine more days than not since i bought it and its holding up great. Seems like a tough little tractor.

Kyle

[Mike]

I looked at Kabota tractors.....They where ok but i wanted something a little bigger with a little more HP.....I also looked at the real reason to pick what I did........I bought a 53 hp Massey with a HEATED cab......After 3 yrs of hauling sap in the wind,rain and snow, I wanted a little more comfort....I also have a 600 gal hauling tank.....The 53 has plenty of power and when we plant our food plots in the spring it works great.....I would of bought orange but with a cab........way more than I wanted to spend.....Mines a 2002 and had 240 hrs on it when I bought it.....

[Dill]

Well I finally got a tractor for the house this summer and man did it pay for itself this winter. We got more snow than NH has had in over a 100 years and it was nice to fire it up and plow the driveway in the morning.
Anyway I picked up a pair of IH 606s at a couple of auctions this summer, a running 62 and a non running 64 with a nice loader. Spent some time putting the 2 together and now I have a great 55 hp tractor with a loader for under a grand. Yes its a gasser but that means I don't have to plug her in. And yes its not new and pretty but that means no payments.
The funny thing is in the last year 3 of my friends and I have all bought 1960-1975 vintage IH tractors. They are built like tanks and will last forever. And without they don't come with the premium price green paint commands.
I was raised on a green farm and enjoy running my folks equipment but when it comes down to a tractor to plow the driveway and yard out logs, I just can't justify the price.

[the old guy]

Love My Kubota L3400. Built A 3-point Hitch For It To Pull Logs With, Works Great. Ain't No Mud Too Deep, Or Hill Too Steep For Sap Hauling! Great Machine, Well Worth The Cost--i Bought It Used With Less Than 300 Hours(283)--$3800 + My Old 4000 Ford And 1550 Kubota Mower. Now If I Could Just Figure Out How To Extract The Oil From Soybeans Cheaply And Simply To Make Bio Diesel Fuel (paying $4.09 Per Gallon For Road Diesel) Ouch!!!

The Old Guy

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

You bought a L3400 for $ 3800????????????

[the old guy]

Brandon

Read Again! I Traded Two Tractors For One + $3800. The 4000 Ford Was Valued At $3500 And The Kubota 1550 At $7000. I Had To Shell Out $3800 More. So I Wound Up Paying Just Over $14,000 For The Tractor. I Think I Got A Little Discount Because I Had Helped The Salesman Get Started Maple Sugaring!!!!!! By The Way The Dealer Does Have An L3400 For $3500. But It Has No Motor And The Front Right Assist Is Shot. For me, The L3400 Is Just The Right Size for Maple Sugaring And As Handy As A Pocket On A Shirt For Just About Anything Else.

The Old Guy
200 + Taps

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Ok, my fault. I thought I was reading something wrong or the dealer was selling hot tractors. LOL.

[maple flats]

Don't ever think your sractor can go thru any thing. Years ago my brother bought a new Belarus 4x4, 60 HP, and was pulling a corn picker. He bought it because the MF 65 would keep getting stuck (2 wd) . Well The Belarus spent the first night in the field. In 4 WD he hit a spot that was real soft ground and before he realized it the tractor was stuck and 4x4 stuck is real stuck. Fortunately the tractor had down pressure on the 3 point hitch.
the tractor was litterally setting on the ground, with the oil pan and rear ax below the surface a few inches. We got some heavy 8x8 timbers and put one under the 3 point arms, after forcing the hitch pin out to unhook the picker. The Down pressure lifted the tractor up enough to get some plank under the rear tires and the bucket loader picked the front to put plank under the front. We were able to drive a few feet and repeat this until the tractor got out. A couple of chains back to the picker got that out and that section of field had to be picked by hand, about 1/2 acre.
For any tractor to get traction it must hit solid bottom and this time there was none close enough to the surface. When it was stuck the 38" rubber was about 24-28" down and still on mud. Drainage eventually helped this field. I have also seen one farm near here with huge tractors with duals front and rear that had to have another tractor the same size pull it with a chain to pick some of the wetter fields.

[DOlson]

I love my mules way better than any tractor no fuel or oil just home grown hay and homemade scoot.

[Fred Henderson]

I would love to own a team of mules. Where do I start looking to buy?

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Kawasaki!!!

LOL! Sorry, I couldn't resist!

[Fred Henderson]

That will be enought out of you Brandon!!!!!!!!!!! Go cut some wood to get rid of all that energy. I think I would like the Tenn red mules better.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

It would be an insult to the RTV to put to Kawasakis beside it wouldn't it?? LOL.

No offense towards a Kawasaki mule, they don't quite compare to a RTV though.

[Dill]

How did the Belarus work out for your brother? I've looked at them at a few auctions. They are built like a russian tank, simple, heavy and ugly.
But the idea of a huge 4x4 tractor for under 4 grand interests me for a woods rig, and if you drop a tree on them, I'm not sure if they would dent.
Was his an aircooled?

[DOlson]

Hi, Fred PA has a fairly good mule population in the amish community should be some large horse and mule sales in spring and fall. A good team of mules can be more loyal than the best dog you have ever had.

[Thompson's Tree Farm]

Dill,
I have had 4 Belarus tractors over the years. Still operate 3 of them. The fourth is sitting on the hill and has been cannabalized by myself and several other owners. Most parts are interchangeable. I am well satisfied. Inexpensive to buy and inexpensive to operate. I use them in the woods and for general farm work. Have a 3 point hitch skidder to increase the versatility. As with any 4 wheel drive, the turning radius is wider than the 2 wheel drive which can limit maneuverability. Mine are the 80 and 90HP so are water cooled. Any specific questions, ask. I'll do my best to answer.
Doug

[Dill]

I guess my main question is, are parts available?

[Thompson's Tree Farm]

Yup! I get mine through Bob Baker in Clay NY. He will UPS parts right to your door. Also talk you through problems over the phone. He will travel to work on them but of course you have to pay for the road time. (315) 699-2459.