Strengths Very good, handy and strong Tractor has the Bradco 408 Backhoe with the Chassis attachment, the ML30B Frontendloader. A very strong and Handy Machine!! I can recommend it to everyone!! The Poershuttle Tranny is great and easy to shift!!

Weaknesses To shift from Fast to Medium Range the Gear lever has to go over the very slow range, it works the best with all other gears in neutral!!

Overall We own a 15 acre Ranch an need the Challenger 265B to perform all our Property maintenance. We trench culvert Pipes and Water and Electric lines, move Rocks, Spread Topsoil, use it for Forest work, maintaining the Driveway, ploughing snow, bushhuging, Very easy on Diesel fuel. Since we have a John Deere 997 Zero Turn Diesel Mower with a 72 inch side disc. Deck, we dont use it much for mowing. The 4x4 works great!! But should be turned off when not needed to prevent Damage to the Tranny and Front axle! The front bucket is a heavy duty 66 inch Skid steer Bucket wit a Quick attachment system as Bobcat and Cats are using it. Therefore a pallet fork and a teeth bucket are real easy to use on the 265B. The engine is an Iseki 1498cc indirect Diesel and needs to be preheated after a while not running! It’s a real diesel with a healthy Diesel Sound! The power is awesome for the size of the tractor and engine!!! We are very happy with the Unit and would recommend it to everyone thinking of buying a compact tractor.

Strengths Good power to tire size ratio for traction and ability to handle soft ground. The powershuttle and full 12 speed is particularly handy for close in loader and fork work. Skid steer bucket mount system is something I now wonder how I ever lived without for so many years. Operator view of loader is excellent. Controls are right where they are needed for ease of operation. I am 6'4+" and this is one of the few compacts that fit me.

Weaknesses Loader is too fast on down cycle and takes a bit of getting used to. Tractor was delivered with a loose transmission drain plug and leaked two gallons of universal fluid on my cement machine shed floor before I first used it and found the leak. It also has a sight glass for checking the transmission fluid level, I would prefer a real dipstick. The leak was simply poor dealer prep, and I fixed the problem and checked everything else, and found everything else ship shape. The loader quick hydraulic connectors are under the platform floor behind the right front tire, and require addition of a rubber shield to keep the mud off them (easy to make from mud flap). The OEM toolbox is an afterthough

Overall This is my first compact tractor since the early 80's and they sure have improved in that time. I will not really know how it will stand up until it has 5,000 hours on the meter.