Took delivery of the new tractor this afternoon, a Bobcat CT235. Its the same basic tractor as the new Kioti/Daedong CK35 with some improvements and with a completely different loader.
Not the best tractor on the market, but not bad, and a really good value. Honestly I loved the New Holland 2035 and consider it a much better designed tractor, but also, just as honestly, given the deal deal that I received from my dealer, combined with the manufacturer's incentives which included a free front end loader and some additional cash I simply could not justify the price difference to buy the nicer New Holland. Had the price difference been in the $2000 to $3000 range I would have grabbed the New Holland, but the price differential was well north of $6000 and frankly that is not justifiable.
I did NOT get the bucket that I ordered, its out of stock. So the dealer delivered the tractor to me with a skid-steer bucket. Not ideal, but as I'm moving dirt at least I have a bucket! The skid-steer bucket has too much capacity for this tractor, the loader can lift a full bucket, but its slow, and its very very tippy. I'm looking forward to getting the correct, smaller, bucket. Without the weightbox on the 3pt, the rear wheels simply lift off the ground, this was surprising given the 900+ pounds of fluid in the rear tires and the 3000+ pounds of tractor under my butt. Like I said, the bucket is simply too large. However they said it would likely be 3 to 4 weeks before my bucket arrives and I didn't want to wait for the tractor so I took the loaner bucket.
The seat is amazingly comfortable.
Never sat on a tractor with such a nice suspension seat. This is not the standard seat, its the upgraded commercial use Bobcat deluxe seat and its got a full suspension system. The beauty of it is it is not a 'bouncy' suspension seat, it absorbs shock but allows some 'road feel' and yet it doesn't bounce.
The 3 range hydrostatic transmission is rough to shift between ranges and gets stuck, sometimes shifting from LO to MED puts you all the way into HI, sometimes you just get into NEUTRAL between LO and MED, sometimes you pass MED but get into NEUTRAL before hitting HI. Sometimes it shifts smoothly, but that seems rare. This is one of those things that comes into the 'trade off' category for buying a value tractor.
There is a cheap plastic fuel filler cap cover that I'm waiting to break. My guess is it will last a few months? It doesn't belong on a tractor.
The ignition switch hits my right knee, I should say the key brushes against my right knee, I think its in the wrong place. Good looking placement but not great ergonomics.
There is a horn button on the dash, I guess that is there to honk the horn so my wife can run a cold beer out to me? Honestly its a nice feature, but of limited use.
I really, REALLY, dislike the 4wd lever being under my left foot and being required to bend down to grasp it for engagement/disengagement. This is just piss poor ergonomics. New Holland places this on the fender with a lever, you can work and engage/disengage 4wd without taking your eyes off your work. This lever placement is a copy of the older Kubota design and it sucks!
I like the grill guard, its well placed, sturdy and seems like it will keep branches away from the grill and front of the hood. It also does not block the headlamps, it does, however, block some access to the front of the engine compartment . . . no way to avoid that, so its not a criticism just an observation.
The loader control is in a very good location and well shaped. It does not block entry/exit to the right side of the tractor as is the case on some brands. It functions well and seems to be smooth. The control knob is also well shaped and fills the hand.
The radiator pre-screen requires you raise the hood, remove a side panel, and raise the FEL (forcing you to work under the raised FEL) to simply remove the pre-screen for cleaning. Given the fact that that screen, at least on my property, gets clogged up every 3 to 4 hours of run time, this is again really piss-poor design.
There is a hydraulic oil filter exposed under the tractor, the FEL hose Quick Connects are also exposed under the tractor. I don't like that, but since I can't find too many cases of them being reported as being damaged on any of the forums I'm going to say that while I would not have put them there, they are probably high enough and safe enough that its more an issue in my mind than anything else.
Headlights seem to be strong and well placed, there are both Low and High beams, they shine above the top edge of the bucket when transporting a bucket load of dirt. I ordered the optional rear utility light, the switch is small, its also not rubber armored like on the New Holland and some other brands, but it seems to be adequate.
Overall, despite my complaints above, I'm happy with the choice. Critical of it? Yes. Its not the best out there. However for the price it was a really good deal and for that I can overlook some of the poor ergonomics.
Not the best tractor on the market, but not bad, and a really good value. Honestly I loved the New Holland 2035 and consider it a much better designed tractor, but also, just as honestly, given the deal deal that I received from my dealer, combined with the manufacturer's incentives which included a free front end loader and some additional cash I simply could not justify the price difference to buy the nicer New Holland. Had the price difference been in the $2000 to $3000 range I would have grabbed the New Holland, but the price differential was well north of $6000 and frankly that is not justifiable.
I did NOT get the bucket that I ordered, its out of stock. So the dealer delivered the tractor to me with a skid-steer bucket. Not ideal, but as I'm moving dirt at least I have a bucket! The skid-steer bucket has too much capacity for this tractor, the loader can lift a full bucket, but its slow, and its very very tippy. I'm looking forward to getting the correct, smaller, bucket. Without the weightbox on the 3pt, the rear wheels simply lift off the ground, this was surprising given the 900+ pounds of fluid in the rear tires and the 3000+ pounds of tractor under my butt. Like I said, the bucket is simply too large. However they said it would likely be 3 to 4 weeks before my bucket arrives and I didn't want to wait for the tractor so I took the loaner bucket.
The seat is amazingly comfortable.
Never sat on a tractor with such a nice suspension seat. This is not the standard seat, its the upgraded commercial use Bobcat deluxe seat and its got a full suspension system. The beauty of it is it is not a 'bouncy' suspension seat, it absorbs shock but allows some 'road feel' and yet it doesn't bounce. The 3 range hydrostatic transmission is rough to shift between ranges and gets stuck, sometimes shifting from LO to MED puts you all the way into HI, sometimes you just get into NEUTRAL between LO and MED, sometimes you pass MED but get into NEUTRAL before hitting HI. Sometimes it shifts smoothly, but that seems rare. This is one of those things that comes into the 'trade off' category for buying a value tractor.
There is a cheap plastic fuel filler cap cover that I'm waiting to break. My guess is it will last a few months? It doesn't belong on a tractor.
The ignition switch hits my right knee, I should say the key brushes against my right knee, I think its in the wrong place. Good looking placement but not great ergonomics.
There is a horn button on the dash, I guess that is there to honk the horn so my wife can run a cold beer out to me? Honestly its a nice feature, but of limited use.
I really, REALLY, dislike the 4wd lever being under my left foot and being required to bend down to grasp it for engagement/disengagement. This is just piss poor ergonomics. New Holland places this on the fender with a lever, you can work and engage/disengage 4wd without taking your eyes off your work. This lever placement is a copy of the older Kubota design and it sucks!
I like the grill guard, its well placed, sturdy and seems like it will keep branches away from the grill and front of the hood. It also does not block the headlamps, it does, however, block some access to the front of the engine compartment . . . no way to avoid that, so its not a criticism just an observation.
The loader control is in a very good location and well shaped. It does not block entry/exit to the right side of the tractor as is the case on some brands. It functions well and seems to be smooth. The control knob is also well shaped and fills the hand.
The radiator pre-screen requires you raise the hood, remove a side panel, and raise the FEL (forcing you to work under the raised FEL) to simply remove the pre-screen for cleaning. Given the fact that that screen, at least on my property, gets clogged up every 3 to 4 hours of run time, this is again really piss-poor design.
There is a hydraulic oil filter exposed under the tractor, the FEL hose Quick Connects are also exposed under the tractor. I don't like that, but since I can't find too many cases of them being reported as being damaged on any of the forums I'm going to say that while I would not have put them there, they are probably high enough and safe enough that its more an issue in my mind than anything else.
Headlights seem to be strong and well placed, there are both Low and High beams, they shine above the top edge of the bucket when transporting a bucket load of dirt. I ordered the optional rear utility light, the switch is small, its also not rubber armored like on the New Holland and some other brands, but it seems to be adequate.
Overall, despite my complaints above, I'm happy with the choice. Critical of it? Yes. Its not the best out there. However for the price it was a really good deal and for that I can overlook some of the poor ergonomics.
. Mine is mounted on the side of the gearbox & I dont know if its the newness that makes it so hard to move in & out of 4WD but I cannot do it from the seat , I have to dismount off of the tractor shift it , Very unhandy . 
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Believe it or not, I actually like this tractor. I'm planning to put a large toolbox behind the seat, not really looked at how I will do that, but I had one behind the seat of my New Holland it was in constant use, this tractor will get one too, when I figure out what will fit and how to mount it back there. Its not a high priority job right now. I'm also looking at adding some lights to the ROPS for snowblowing season. If I do that I'll have to get cracking on that project soon.