Go BottomTrade John Deere 4720 on 5603
 | Lwayne
Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 95 
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2008-05-07 153528
FYI: I stopped by my JD dealer this morning to explore the idea of trading off my 4720 on a 5603 because there are times I need the extra HP. He doesn't have any in stock but there is a guy interested in buying mine. I was blown away when he told me they can no longer be ordered. They are due for replacement this summer. They were in production for only two years, for crying out loud. Could this be God's way of telling me to keep my ehydro? Supposedly the replacement will be worth the wait.
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 | Chief
Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 4297 Southwest MiddleTennessee 
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2008-05-07 153538
I would get rid of it while the gettin' is good unless you use this tractor for very light use. The 4000 Series tractors have aluminum transmission cases and axle housings. They DON'T like heavy duty or even moderate farm use.
The 5603 is on a "whole nuther level" compared to your 4720. eHydro is nice for a lot of uses but a 12/12 power reverser is nearly as useful and more applicable to heavier uses such as back blading. The 5603 just has more farm useful goodies such as the 540 ePTO.
99 hp should pretty well run most everything you want within reason. Just bear in mind that extra hp is gonna drink a lot more diesel fuel. ....
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| hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-05-08 153540
Cheif; Sorry but I'll have to disagree about the transmission and rear housing issue, that wouldn't scare me away for a minute. I've posted about this before when this issue was brought up. One of my best friends is the service manager of the lawn, garden, and small tractor division of a local Deere dealership that probably would rank in the upper 75% of volume in this type of sales. I've asksd him about this a number of times, he has never had an occasion of this in either of the dealersahip branches he is connected with. Before I bought the # 48 backhoe for my 4300, (since traded for a 4310 with the hoe transferred to it) I was sent to watch one in action on a 4700 tractor, after I saw the amount of work and the conditions that the 4700 with the hoe was being used in I decided that this tractor and hoe were pretty much bulletproof. After visiting the owner of the 4700 however many years ago this has been, (my 4300 was new at the time), I have followed the 4700 I am speaking of just to see how it has held up, the original owner is now in a nursing home and his son is still using it just as his father did and has never broken anything. As I've said many times there are OPERATORS who can break an anvil with a rubber hammer and those who could haul eggs in a dump truck and never crack an egg. Frank. ....
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| Chief
Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 4297 Southwest MiddleTennessee
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2008-05-08 153542
Good to hear from you Frank, been awhile. I didn't mean to infer that the 4000 series tractors are not a good machine, they are just NOT a farm tractor. I still have my 2002 4410 which is running strong.
The backhoe installation comes with a subframe that absorbs a LOT of punishment and is well designed.
With respect to the aluminum housings, Deere did a redesign of the axle housing which substantially beefed them up. They are however still NOT up to pulling a 3 bottom plow or subsoiler or heavy back blading. For lawn,garden, small tractor, and most commerical use the 4000 series machines are great tractors.
I have some pictures of what happens to the rockshaft mounts on the axle housings when used beyond their limits I can email you if you like.
I love my 4410 because it is small, light, and maneuverable which allows me a lot of latitude for cutting forest trails and field/brush mowing. I put in about 70 acres of trees last summer and did all of the bush hogging with this tractor but when the guy with the tree planter asked me to pull a subsoiler, I had to decline, this tractor was just not designed with this type of use in mind. ....
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| hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa
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2008-05-08 153544
Cheif; I agree 100% the 4000 series was never meant to take the place of a heavy duty farm tractor, other than mowing, light tillage, backhoe work etc. I still have some regular farm tractors for that type of use. Deere does have a frame strenghting kit that can be installed with or without the backhoe subframe being on the tractor. When I learned about them here on TP, I had the dealership I mentioned in my prior post order and install one on the 4310 just as a safety measure. Far as I know it is the only one they ever sold form that dealership. The part number has been posted here on TP in the past, and I'm sure I could find it in my records if someone want's it. It isn't very expensive and is quite a massive piece of welded structure steel. The service manager's comment was that it seemed well worth the money and a couple hours to install just to be on the safe side. I've did lots of business with the dealership I'm talking about both in farm equipment and lawn and garden so The sales staff keeps bugging me to trade my 4310 for a new model, but my comment to them is that I love the tractor, it does everything I want it to do, so I'm happy just as I am. I'm pretty sure that my wife owns every John Deere adult lawn toy known to man, but that's OK she enjoys it. I've been collecting the John Deere STEEL, (the new plastic ones don't thrill me much), two wheel lawn trailers for a while now, and I have all but two of every size they ever built, most of them have never saw daylight let alone be used. They will probably never be worth half what I paid for them, but old goffers like me will collect most anything I guess. Nuff from me. Frank. ....
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 | kwschumm
Join Date: Feb 2003 Posts: 5764 NW Oregon
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2008-05-08 153545
Good to see you posting again, Randy :) A recent post mentioned that the cast iron axle housing of their orange tractor had broken. There aren't too many posts about broken axle housings, iron or aluminum, but at times people expect too much from these small machines. There are guys that would mount a 1" drive socket with adapters on a 3/8" drive ratchet, pull for all they're worth and complain when it breaks. ....
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| Lwayne
Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 95
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2008-05-16 153742
Guys: I suppose such things happen but up to now I have been pulling pretty much all the gravel a 7' box blade will carry with no problems. Last week the city was digging in some water lines and partially unearthed a piece of old concrete sewer (about 16" x 4' filled with mud) I didn't see that literally stopped me in my tracks.
Thankfully, no ill effects. That 4720 (with Loadmatch) has great strength for its size but I still need 30 more hp and 3,000 more pounds to handle a semi tractor in a worst case scenario. ....
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