What to ask when looking at a used tractor?

[Work horse]

We're probably going to take a look at a little tractor, it's a 2009 JD 24hp 4x4 the model # is X748. We know nothing of tractors; any tips on questions to ask, etc. Also any experience with this particular model? We want to be able to put a little FEL on the front, also we will need a snowblower attachment, a brush hog and possibly some kind of "dragger" thing for my riding arena. Also we need it for mowing and we hope to be able to pull our swisher pull-behind with it (the swisher can be offset so you are mowing a wider path with each pass. Any comments appreciated. And the price isn't listed in the ad -- what would you expect to pay for this? Just says it comes with 54 INCH MOWER, HYDROSTATIC DRIVE, ALSO IS READY FOR A FRONT 54 INCH SNOWBLOWER ATTACHMENT WITH MID SPLINE DRIVE.

[salmonslayer]

The JD X748 is a very nice machine but its not a tractor IMO. Its a very high end garden tractor that you can do a lot with but for what you are describing I would move up to a Compact Utility Tractor.

Those are not cheap even used and for the same price or less you could get a tractor with a FEL and a lot higher ground clearance and capability.

[Allen W]

Call your local JD dealer or better go buy and talk to them and price before you buy. Around here they sell packages with the tractor, loader, brush beater, box blade and utility trailer.

[Nimrod]

http://www.tractorhouse.com/list/lis...RE&mdltxt=X748

It depends on what you want to use it for, how much you want to do , and how much room you have but you could buy a good used tractor with a 3 point hitch, live hydraulics, and a PTO with the attachments for what you want to do for the same money or less.

Have a mechanic go over it unless you can do it yourself. The tires can cost hundreds of dollars if you have to replace them. Do a compression check on the engine to be sure it's good. Check the engine oil and the tranny fluid to see if there is something wrong with them. Try all the controls and make sure they work smoothly.

Good Luck.

[rambler]

Yea, that is a nice big lawn mower tractor, but I would not really call it a tractor.

For the money I too would look at a good used actual compact tractor, then you can add all sorts of cheap 3pt attachments.

These lawn tractors you need to find stuff that only fits that model line, and they are not quite as robust as a real small tractor.

Paul

[K-9]

I don't have anything to add about that particular tractor, but I notice the fellow that I get my equipment from always has several smaller tractors/big lawn mowers there used with attachments usually for a cheap price. I asked him one day why and he said that a lot of people buy them because they are small and "less intimidating" to people who aren't familiar with tractors and then they shortly return and trade them in on a bigger machine because they learn that the "little tractor" will not do the work of a true compact utility tractor. Most people don't want to mow their yard with a machine with ag tires on it but turf tires will not work for most other uses. Also front end loaders on these little machines are really limited in their capabilities, people get mislead by their lift capacity, the problem is the tractor doesn't have the size/weight to handle the capacity. Since I have no idea of your circumstances I don't know if the tractor in question will meet your needs or not but just something to consider, also there are only 4 reasons to sell a 4 year old tractor, 1 it is too big/small for your needs, 2 you can't afford to pay for it anymore, 3 you are moving somewhere that you don't need it anymore, or 4 there is something wrong with it, well I guess there is actually a fifth reason and that is you have more money than you know what to do with and you like trading tractors every 3 or 4 years like some people do vehicles. I know there are a lot of people whose blood runs green and yellow but take a look at the Kubota and Mahindra tractors as well, they are less expensive and easier to work on. I know a lot of people say they don't want to buy a foreign tractor but the small JDs are made in India now.

[Work horse]

Thanks for the input. Will take it into consideration. We would like to have something small enough to mow around the house, which is why we're looking at the small lawn tractors.

[davel745]

If I am not mistaken the 748 is 4 wheel drive and if so it will go anywhere, but it is a high end lawn mower. If you plan to do more than just mow I suggest you look into a subcompact tractor.