RKO & MF??

I was looking at the paper this morning before work and RKO (rural king ohio) has an ad on the back of their weekly flyer that says COMING SOON and 6 different pictures of MF tractors/mowers.  Does anyone know if they are becoming a dealer or what may be going on.  Our local MF dealer thats been there as long as I remember is just maybe 2 miles east of the RKO store.  Seems kinda odd to me especially if AGCO is doing this and taking possible sales away from dealers.  They have added another MF dealer here in Wayne CO when Maibach's added that line after the Orange was gone.  Just rambling this morning, have a great day everyone..

They also had the 230 size and a 45hp 4wd with loader advertised also, so it seems as if they may be selling bigger tractors.  The more I thought about it, I wondered if the dealer is in on it as another "market" forpeople that otherwise would not visit a dealer.  i know the local repair/tire mechanics at RKO are not going to be doing well with repairs.  I can see that coming

It said MF "branded" products not MF products, so at best another Murry/ MTD painted red & silver or more likely imports built to meet select price points. I'm not sure how this is supposed to get NA farmers to buy tractors? If they really want to sell lawn mowers they should make Challenger mowers with the CAT logo. Probably out sell Deere at the big box store.

John, the ad shows theor mowers and even a Z-Turn also.  I did not know Massey made z-turns.  When I was a kid, dad had a Massey Ferguson 8 lawn tractor.  That thing was built real good, and I remember him really liking the shaft driven mower deck.  It was a good machine.  My neighbor has a Massey 14 hydro with a 3 point set up on it and about every attachment one could buy.  he bought it from a man in the area that had bought it all new.  The older machines were built good, just as AC,IH,JD did in the late 60's, early 70's

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't the massey lawn and garden tractors made by 

Rural King has been Selling the MF lawn line in selected stores for a number of years. It is a Simplicity built tractor. Ever since the mid 1960's there have ALWAYS been Massey Ferguson lawn and Garden tractors. First built by moto-mower, then AMF/Badger for the MF7 through 16, next was Snapper, then Ingersoll, and in the mid-1990's, Simplicity (a former AC company) began building the MF lawn and garden tractors. They were the same as Simplicity models with different paint and decals, just as the AGCO lawn line.

www.masseylawn.com

 

 

www.simplicitymfg.com

 

The Zero turn is a really stripped down Ferris (aslo a brand acquired by Simplicity) and the Lawn tractor pictured above is a Simplicity Broadmoor. Its still built pretty decent, metal hood, 1" diameter front steering spindles (some of the MTD are only 1/2") 

 

As far as the impact on Massey dealers, at least around here there are no dealers for about 100 miles in any given direction.  I found it funny that RK had signs taped to the tractors which read : "serviced by MF dealer" thinking, who is going to drive 100 miles for service, But what they fail to explain is that Simplicity dealers will probably do warranty service on these tractors, since they built them.  Not all Massey Ferguson AG dealers have a Lawn and Garden contract, just as not all Agco dealers had a Lawn or Simplicity contract (even though many did) 

 

It seems the Rural King stores do these products a disservice. They do not keep any literature on their mowers and the store associates are often incapable of answering questions and just refer you to MF's website, which they do not even provide.  Even at HD, Loews or Sears, you can get product literature.

Edited by ACmowerguy - 05 Apr 2011 at 8:49pm

It's not that AGCO couldn't promote their orange tractors they just decided not to and try and kill the brand. 

Yes, Briggs acquired Murray first, through Murray's bankruptcy settlement.  Then they acquired Simplicity Manufacturing which owned Snapper, Giant Vac,  and Ferris.  This has caused them to lose some engine sales as MTD, Husquavarna, and others see them as a direct competitor. MTD is now using chinese engines on some models.

CIH has a line of Farmall tractors from around 35 to 85 HP.  I looked at some at a farm show several years ago.  I believe they are made in Turkey.
Who builds Husquavara?
Kind of funny how the small tractor/mower companies keep the brand name and even ad new brands (AC) instead of dropping them like some companies we know do.
I just checked where the nearest MF lawn and garden dealer is - Loup City Ne, 338 miles away.  The nearest Simplcity dealer is 36 miles away in Denver.  Guess that's why I never see either brand around here.


Edited by JohnCO - 06 Apr 2011 at 12:44am