Now that I have a few months and hours on the seat of the 2520 I would like to give my thoughts and comparisons of both tractors.
First the 2320, a very good tractor that I had for 5 years and 350+ hours. I used the 62D MMM and it would be about the max mower I think it could handle as mid-mount because the 62D would draw it down 1000+ rpm's if you hit some thicker grass but the mower cut pretty good. I personally think that the tractor could have run a larger mower if it was a rear 540 mower. I say that because the 647 tiller I used in thick soil didn't even grunt the tractor and the lower rpm 540 verses 2100 gives the tractor a stronger feel. The 62D mower I thought would collect a lot of clipping under the mower. The 200CX w/61" bucket, was a nice loader for the tractor and there was a thread where a member was moving an old stump and the 2320 moved one just like it (BIG). Moving snow of dirt the tractor would work all day but I always felt a little under powered if I was doing any of this work in high range. Moving gravel or snow up the driveway in high would cause a drop of about 1000 rpm's. I would also say that the hydraulics for the loader are somewhat slow especially if you are moving and steering while using the loader. This is where the single pump showed its limits. Overall I enjoyed every hour on the tractor.
The 2520, although it might not seem like a big step up, sure gives the impression that it is. First thing I noticed was the sound of the direct injected engine :thumbup1gif:. I ordered this tractor with a 72" MMM and 72" bucket for the loader. First the MMM, this thing cuts better, I think, than the 62D and there certainly is less clippings that stick to the underside of the deck. This mower goes through the same thick grass and I hardly know it was there as the rpm's may fluctuate by 100-200 versus the 1000 of the 2320. This shows me that there is substantially more torque and hp to quickly recover. Now since I went with raised planter beds I no longer needed the tiller so I used the money for a 5' brush cutter. Running this is quite impressive. The 2520 seems to really like cutting brush and it certainly can handle the 5' with ease. If I wasn't concerned with weight I bet I could run a 6' cutter, but that being said at ~500lbs the current brush cutter isn't noticeable on the back. Loader work with a 72" bucket requires your attention due to the size compared to the tractor width. But for me moving rock, dirt and now snow it sure saves me some time. The first snow I felt I was hardly outside as the increased width made quicker work of moving the snow and that is why I bought the larger bucket. Running the 2520 in high, with MMM, loader and brush cutter I can still jump right up the drive with minimal rpm loss. Now moving snow I can lose some rpm's pushing snow up the drive but I think some of this is because I do not run much over 2000 rpm.
One thing I found is that for winter work the 2320 (R4's) did the job and I never had traction problems that got in my way. With the 2520 same R4's (only 1 snow so far) I am wondering if I am going to have issues as I was losing traction quite a bit and time will tell as it might have been just the snow type. But this is the first time chains even popped into my head. With my 2320 I cheated and put my front weights on the front during the winter to help with steering and that was a noticeable addition. The 2520 I cannot put weights on the front right now because the front frame is shorter and the loader kick-stand is in the way of the front weights and I feel like I am back on the 2320 with no weights and having to brake steer a lot more.
First the 2320, a very good tractor that I had for 5 years and 350+ hours. I used the 62D MMM and it would be about the max mower I think it could handle as mid-mount because the 62D would draw it down 1000+ rpm's if you hit some thicker grass but the mower cut pretty good. I personally think that the tractor could have run a larger mower if it was a rear 540 mower. I say that because the 647 tiller I used in thick soil didn't even grunt the tractor and the lower rpm 540 verses 2100 gives the tractor a stronger feel. The 62D mower I thought would collect a lot of clipping under the mower. The 200CX w/61" bucket, was a nice loader for the tractor and there was a thread where a member was moving an old stump and the 2320 moved one just like it (BIG). Moving snow of dirt the tractor would work all day but I always felt a little under powered if I was doing any of this work in high range. Moving gravel or snow up the driveway in high would cause a drop of about 1000 rpm's. I would also say that the hydraulics for the loader are somewhat slow especially if you are moving and steering while using the loader. This is where the single pump showed its limits. Overall I enjoyed every hour on the tractor.
The 2520, although it might not seem like a big step up, sure gives the impression that it is. First thing I noticed was the sound of the direct injected engine :thumbup1gif:. I ordered this tractor with a 72" MMM and 72" bucket for the loader. First the MMM, this thing cuts better, I think, than the 62D and there certainly is less clippings that stick to the underside of the deck. This mower goes through the same thick grass and I hardly know it was there as the rpm's may fluctuate by 100-200 versus the 1000 of the 2320. This shows me that there is substantially more torque and hp to quickly recover. Now since I went with raised planter beds I no longer needed the tiller so I used the money for a 5' brush cutter. Running this is quite impressive. The 2520 seems to really like cutting brush and it certainly can handle the 5' with ease. If I wasn't concerned with weight I bet I could run a 6' cutter, but that being said at ~500lbs the current brush cutter isn't noticeable on the back. Loader work with a 72" bucket requires your attention due to the size compared to the tractor width. But for me moving rock, dirt and now snow it sure saves me some time. The first snow I felt I was hardly outside as the increased width made quicker work of moving the snow and that is why I bought the larger bucket. Running the 2520 in high, with MMM, loader and brush cutter I can still jump right up the drive with minimal rpm loss. Now moving snow I can lose some rpm's pushing snow up the drive but I think some of this is because I do not run much over 2000 rpm.
One thing I found is that for winter work the 2320 (R4's) did the job and I never had traction problems that got in my way. With the 2520 same R4's (only 1 snow so far) I am wondering if I am going to have issues as I was losing traction quite a bit and time will tell as it might have been just the snow type. But this is the first time chains even popped into my head. With my 2320 I cheated and put my front weights on the front during the winter to help with steering and that was a noticeable addition. The 2520 I cannot put weights on the front right now because the front frame is shorter and the loader kick-stand is in the way of the front weights and I feel like I am back on the 2320 with no weights and having to brake steer a lot more.
