I thought I would post a review of my 2022 MX6000 after 10 months and 110 hours of operation. I purchased this tractor for use on my 470 acre Tennessee tree farm (about 70 acres in planted trees, 15 acres in food plots, and the rest native timber). My use is about 85% mowing, 10% food plots and 5% FEL work. I retired my 30 HP JD Model 830, which was 50 years old, to buy this tractor. Although the JD has less HP, it has about the same wheelbase and weight as the MX. I am using a LP 1884 rotary mower which was under powered behind the JD, but now works nicely between the 10 foot tree rows. I will probably be adding a 3-point, PTO driven wood chipper to handle all the tree limbs that I trim each fall and winter. I would like to make it clear that I am 99% satisfied with this MX tractor which is much better that my old tractor. It is my first hydrostatic transmission tractor and is working out great for my needs. The very few complaints that I have are not to criticize the MX tractor, but to help Kubota make it even better. First, I probably should have purchased the 5400 model as my 7 foot mower does not need the additional HP, and operating the MX6000 at 2500 rpm uses a lot of fuel. It would be nice if the MX had the option of 540 PTO operating at around 1800 engine rpm. I haven’t had a regen yet, perhaps due to my need to keep the rpm high for the mower. One problem is that the PTO shaft for my mower almost contacts the drawbar on the tractor. I didn’t want to take the drawbar off and on, as it is a bit of a pain. I had a machine shop drill a new hole in the drawbar to allow it to slide forward and lock under the tractor. Kubota could easily have provided this extra hole.
The 3-point lift control lever and the cruise control lever are rather mushy. You can set the stop, but the lever always bounces back a ¾ inch or so. This takes some getting used to. I have learned to use to the speed control pedal in the forward direction, but reverse is still difficult. The tractor rides quite a bit rougher than my old one, possibly due to the R4 tires. Also, on rough ground (I have a lot of that), the pedal gets into a feed-back loop where a bump causes your foot to mash the pedal which causes a lurch forward and another bump, and on and on. Using the cruise control eliminates this problem, but you must keep your hand on the lever at all times since the lever is the only way to stop the tractor when in cruise. I added a better brush guard and side guard from 511 Design since I mow around trees a lot and can’t operate with the loader attached. The brush guards have worked well. The MX internal, removable screen that is provided to protect the radiator does only a partial job as considerable trash reaches the front of the radiator. I have not been able to blow this material off using a handheld leaf blower and it is difficult to reach with any kind of hand brush. I plan to try a long compressed air wand next. A common complaint is the small plastic tool box provided by Kubota. I welded together a steel tool box holder which clamps to the ROPS and allows a much bigger and better tool box than that provided by Kubota. It seems a lot of other folks have done the same. Because of low tree branches, I am required to operate without the ROPS in the raised position most of the time. I have noticed that if you leave the tractor outside with the ROPS down and it rains, water can accumulate in the turned down portion of the ROPS. To prevent the possibility that this water might freeze in the winter, I drilled small holes in the top of the ROPS to allow drainage. I use the four wheel drive from time to time, but can never remember which way to move the lever to engage it. Perhaps I will learn with time. It would sure be nice to have a 4 x 4 indicator light on the dash. My 1972 JD model 830 was the first tractor that I ever purchased and it served me well for 50 years. I may keep it to restore. But at my age, 81, I really don’t want to go back to using it daily versus my MX.
The 3-point lift control lever and the cruise control lever are rather mushy. You can set the stop, but the lever always bounces back a ¾ inch or so. This takes some getting used to. I have learned to use to the speed control pedal in the forward direction, but reverse is still difficult. The tractor rides quite a bit rougher than my old one, possibly due to the R4 tires. Also, on rough ground (I have a lot of that), the pedal gets into a feed-back loop where a bump causes your foot to mash the pedal which causes a lurch forward and another bump, and on and on. Using the cruise control eliminates this problem, but you must keep your hand on the lever at all times since the lever is the only way to stop the tractor when in cruise. I added a better brush guard and side guard from 511 Design since I mow around trees a lot and can’t operate with the loader attached. The brush guards have worked well. The MX internal, removable screen that is provided to protect the radiator does only a partial job as considerable trash reaches the front of the radiator. I have not been able to blow this material off using a handheld leaf blower and it is difficult to reach with any kind of hand brush. I plan to try a long compressed air wand next. A common complaint is the small plastic tool box provided by Kubota. I welded together a steel tool box holder which clamps to the ROPS and allows a much bigger and better tool box than that provided by Kubota. It seems a lot of other folks have done the same. Because of low tree branches, I am required to operate without the ROPS in the raised position most of the time. I have noticed that if you leave the tractor outside with the ROPS down and it rains, water can accumulate in the turned down portion of the ROPS. To prevent the possibility that this water might freeze in the winter, I drilled small holes in the top of the ROPS to allow drainage. I use the four wheel drive from time to time, but can never remember which way to move the lever to engage it. Perhaps I will learn with time. It would sure be nice to have a 4 x 4 indicator light on the dash. My 1972 JD model 830 was the first tractor that I ever purchased and it served me well for 50 years. I may keep it to restore. But at my age, 81, I really don’t want to go back to using it daily versus my MX.
