I have a hunch that most any "Shop-Talk" guy is going to want a tool that is
a long term solution.
None of the air-cooled belt-drive "putt-putts" is a long term solution. The
ultimate is a Kubota diesel . . there is no real competition . . Gawd,
they sell more small serious tractors than everyone else combined or
something. A neat thing is that every other tractor manufacturer jumped in
and brought over Japanese diesel tractors to keep from being put out of
business by Kubota: Deere, IHC, Ford, Massey. None are as good as Kubota
but they are all tough and long lasting and supported by dealer
organizations and parts availability. All the Japanese diesel tractors are
so rugged that you can buy a good used one without fear . . It'll always be
worth about what you pay for it and if you change the oil and service the
air cleaner it'll last forever.
2 cents please . .
Tony
Dave is on target:
> I did quite a bit of research last year before buying my wife a riding
> mower. Everyone I talked to and everything I read on the Web told me to
> stay away from the mass marketed models sold at Sears, Home Depot, Lowes,
> etc, ESPECIALLY the manual transmission models, which are a nightmare of
> belts, pulleys, etc. After a lot of looking I settled on a Kubota
> hydrostatic model. What finally sold me on it (and convinced me to spend
> the extra bucks) was the one at work. I was the maintenance manager at a
> seaport/marina, and we have a LOT of landscaping to take care of. Most of
> the work is done by summer help, high school and college students. One of
> the riding mowers we have is a 10 year old Kubota hydro, the direct
> ancestor of my mower. I talked to the vehicle mechanic, and he said he
had
> zero problems with it. If the kids can't tear it up, I doubt if my wife
can.
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