LS MT122

Owners are unusually clear-eyed about what this machine is, and the warnings come from people who own one rather than from rivals. One who spent about $25,000 on his with a loader, grapple, mid-mount mower and tiller tells a buyer with more land outright that it would be an awful choice for him - his own runs 4-foot attachments and has to go slowly, which suits three and a half suburban acres where the tractor is partly for enjoyment, and would be close to useless on a larger property. Another owner sold his to buy an old Ford and a 6-foot flail specifically to keep nine acres mowed, and a third advising a buyer who wanted digging capability says it lacks the lift capacity and that its backhoe leaves a lot to be desired, suggesting a rented mini excavator instead of an underwhelming machine that cannot quite do the job.

Where it wins is money, and owners who cross-shopped it are specific. One who looked at the Kubota, New Holland and Deere subcompacts alongside it says the Kubota was noticeably less powerful than the rest, that this was essentially the same machine as the New Holland for a few thousand dollars less, and that the Deere's paint was a large upcharge - he reports it lifting a 500 lb white oak log without trouble and doubts the Kubota would have managed what he wanted. Another puts the performance slightly ahead of the Kubota at roughly 10 to 15 per cent less money. Resale is the other pleasant surprise: a mechanic who owned the loader-backhoe version paid $19,500 and sold it for $19,000 at 260 hours, in the same week he listed it, and puts that down to new prices rising quickly. That trend has accelerated - an owner reports a 20 per cent tariff pushing the loader-backhoe version to around $26,000 and revising his own asking price upwards as a result.