Kubota L35 or New Holland T1520

Greetings:

I need to do some dirt work and my tractor is way undersized. I have a 2010 Kubota BX2660. Tough little tractor but way undersized for it is 26 hp and FEL. I need to buy a new tractor that will handle slightly heavier loads, have a backhoe for digging trenches, and one that is capable of handling Arkansas rocks and light clay. I have found two very different machines and I am having a hard time deciding. Couple of quick notes: I don’t want to rent or hire the work out. Yes, I understand the benefits but I would rather own the machine and use it to dig a pond and do many other chores around the three pieces or land my family owns.

Machine one is a 1999 Kubota L35. It has over 2600 hours but has new tires and looks to be in descent shape. I am paying $13,000 but the owner does not have the three point hitch, so I will need to spend $1300 for Kubota to replace it(ouch), so roughly 14,300 total cost. It is a 35 horse glide shift transmission with a FEL that will lift 1600 lbs with a breakout of 2745. The backhoe has a 108 in depth and it boasts a whopping 4970 breakout force. It comes with a 12 inch bucket.

Machine two is 2010 New Holland T1520 with 418 hours going for 16,500. It is also a 35 horse but has a hydro trans. The FEL lifts 875 lbs with a breakout force of 1602. The backhoe is a 920GH with a 90 in depth reach and 2785 breakout . The backhoe comes with two buckets… a nine and sixteen inch.

Both tractors being equal, the Kubota is the clear power winner; however it is 11 years older, higher hours, and a transmission that will slow me down slightly…albeit longer lasting I am sure. I am scared the hours may indicate it was a rental, and I have no way of determining that…so it may have just been used a lot by the first owner.

I have learned lots on this forum and I look forward to contributing to others as I learn my tractors ability.

Bryan