BX1880 or 2380

I have the 1880 and can't say enough good about about it, I am pleased with my decision to buy it. It has done everything I had hoped it would do and more.
It mows and moves dirty and what ever else i can fit in the bucket plus it runs my four foot bush hog
I have the turf tires (back tires are loaded) and they preform well for my use and when I add the chains it will be on snow duty with the loader and 60 inch rear blade. I did make a small 300lb weight barrel for the three point when using the loader.
I was in the same place as you torn between the 1880 and 2380 but it came down to do I really need the extra hp for the extra money? I have never yet ran out of power and don't think I will based on my use so far.

They look like pretty much like the same machine with the only difference being horsepower, tire size and 90lbs of weight. 1880 has about an inch less ground clearance (due to smaller diameter tires). Specs can be found here on the last pages:

https://www.kubotausa.com/docs/default-source/brochure-sheets/bx80.pdf?sfvrsn=c4a4e85b_8

Regarding tires...I had bars (Ags) on my BX23 and still was able to mow with it without issue. If you're mostly doing dirt work, I'd opt for the 23 or 26 horse machine and get bars or industrial tires. You'll definitely need rear ballast with a full loader. I used my bx23 a few times without the hoe on it and even with rear wheel weights, it could get sketchy very quickly when running with a loader full of anything but mulch.

Don't forget to add a tooth bar too. Makes a big difference especially with these smaller machines (any machine really).

Not sure what the difference in price is, but maybe kubota is still offering discounted implements and 0% financing...maybe that would allow you to select a slightly more powerful machine.

The old BX23 I had was a brute and very reliable.

Best of luck in your decision.

You can download all owners manuals for free on the Kubota Canada site.

Just select the machine model and it gives you all the free downloads when you scroll down to the bottom.

Sorry.....they have them for every model except the B80 series. Maybe because it is still pretty new?

For what it,s worth, I,ve never heard anyone say, Jeez, that,s to big. For the small extra bit of cost, get the BX2380, you will be glad you did.

I'm not one of those guys that preaches "go big" as I get big work done with my little B and enjoy the low cost of operation.
But I agree with Orangeglow.....get the most h.p. in the size class you choose.
The 1880 has a slightly smaller footprint if you have a small lawn to mow, but you don't have that problem so I would go with the higher h.p. if the extra cost is not an issue to you.

But then again I don't follow my own advice because when I bought I went with the B2620 over the B2920 and the money I saved bought me an extra implement.
And so far, clearing the 13 foot of total snowfall last winter with the blower, box blading on my hills or running the wood chipper/shredder I have never bogged down or run out of power with my 26.

Someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe the 1880 comes with tilt steering wheel, arm rests, or cruise control. The 2380 does and 5 more HP to boot. Seems like there was a thread or two on here of someone wanting to modify their 1880 to have those niceties with the exception of the HP.

Your right they don't come with those options, they can all be added from dealer I was told. But the tilt steering I didn't need or the cruise control. I would have liked to had the arm rests though. I guess it's all what you want.

Kevin1 said:

Can anyone tell me with the FEL can raise and roll the bucket at the same time? I had read on the JD1023e you can only do one function at a time.

Click to expand...

You can do both at same time.


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Hello, New member! I just picked up a 1880 and im hoping I made the right choice. I have 10 acres of heavily wooded flat ground with 1 acre of grass and .025 of future garden, the price difference on the 2380 in my area was 2100 bucks- My neighbor has a JD 1025R and it does EVERYTING I can throw at it just fine- even slips the tiller clutch before it even thinks of bogging- even tilling in high range I think the little D722 engine should till my fluffy soil just fine. The only thing that worry's me is that all my friends have larger 2320 and jd 2025R tractors and we share the implements... from what I can read, and see on youtube is that the cat 1 on this tiny 1880 has the same strength as the 2380 with just less HP? I don't want to hurt my cute lil 18 by carting around huge blades and box scrapers.

jrm said:

Hello, New member! I just picked up a 1880 and im hoping I made the right choice. I have 10 acres of heavily wooded flat ground with 1 acre of grass and .025 of future garden, the price difference on the 2380 in my area was 2100 bucks- My neighbor has a JD 1025R and it does EVERYTING I can throw at it just fine- even slips the tiller clutch before it even thinks of bogging- even tilling in high range I think the little D722 engine should till my fluffy soil just fine. The only thing that worry's me is that all my friends have larger 2320 and jd 2025R tractors and we share the implements... from what I can read, and see on youtube is that the cat 1 on this tiny 1880 has the same strength as the 2380 with just less HP? I don't want to hurt my cute lil 18 by carting around huge blades and box scrapers.

Click to expand...

With 10 acres what made you decide to buy the smallest garden tractor on the market?

$$ and iv been getting by with just my Honda ATV and a x300 mower quite well. EDIT- well not true, I blew the rear diff on the ATV pulling a large harrow at full throttle in low range with 4 sacks of cement on the rear rack. I can switch my order to the 2380 if needed

If I was aiming to share implements with guys who have JD 2 series and Kubota B series, I might have looked at a machine in that size range, even if it meant I needed to buy second hand. I'm assuming there's not an option to ask the dealer to swap for a B series (either because the dealer won't, or because you can't afford it?)

You have it now, so work with it. If it lifts it it'll move it, lifting things won't break it, it'll just run out of lift. The hydraulics are identical to the BX2380, so it'll lift the same - that's driven by pump pressure not by HP. So swapping to a BX2380 won't help other than maybe for the tiller.

You might have to go slower when driving implements that use PTO HP, so a tiller might just need a slower attack on your ground, you might have to do two passes one at a shallow depth, or do the second row a little overlapping the previous row so that it's not working so hard.

Box blades and the like your problem will be traction. Again the BX 3ph will either lift it or it won't. If it doesn't lift it you can't use it, if it lifts it then you won't break the tractor lifting it. But when it comes to pulling it, you may find you don't have enough weight/traction to drag what you want to drag. Again you can work around this by taking smaller bites.

Be aware that you're asking a lot of a small machine, and don't abuse it. So don't go rocking things back and forward, or slamming into stuff to get it to move, that's when you break things. If you're applying steady power then things shouldn't break, they should just fail to work. It should spin the wheels or stall the engine long before the breaking point of any component - again unless you're shock loading it somehow.

Bottom line, try to do all the things you want to do. If it does them then it'll be fine, you're unlikely to break it doing tasks like you've outlined. But if there are things you can't do that you want to do, then swap the tractor before you've had it too long - the dealer can still sell it as new or near new if you've not put hours on it, but if you wait too long the cost to change will be substantial.

In my overall opinion buying a tractor is similar to buying a car. It is an investment. If the price is $2k difference today, what will it be in 5 years when you realized you should have went bigger. 5 years the difference could be $4k. I understand everyone has a budget but I would buy as much tractor as you can today, service it, keep it clean, and keep it forever. A properly maintained piece of equipment should last for years to come. Just my opinion. How much more is a B series?