I'm around to updating my experience with this purchase. I've now had the opportunity to mow the yard several times with this tractor, and frankly I'm somewhat impressed. Mainly meaning this unit is way more fuel efficient than the Cub ever dreamed of being, I've probably saved ten gallons of fuel (gas) already.
Tried doing some digging with with the FEL and found performance somewhat disappointing as I suspected I would. Previous experience with backhoes frustrated me also years ago. This led me searching for a solution and I'm hoping I chose wisely. Anyway I ordered one of these:
It seemed that everything I could find was positive for this unit and frankly I find the tooth design kind cool anyway. If anyone is interested I ordered it from here:
http://bxpanded.com/
Hopefully soon I'll find out how well my new attachment allows this machine to move some earth.