Sovereign Impressions

[Guest]

I wasn't looking for another garden tractor but it was hard to resist the offer of a Sovereign 3314 for little money. Old or used garden tractors seldom surface here in SoCal. If nothing else I figured it would be a good source for amusement to tinker with for an afternoon. Anyway, the skinny on the tractor is that it has a good 14 hp B&S engine but a problem with the driveline. So far I'm impressed with the build. It seems to be almost as heavily built as my 9020. How did these machines stack up against their competition at the time as far as quality?

[Kent]

IMO, they compared very well in quality to the John Deere, Bolens, Wheel Horse and Cub Cadet tractors of their time. The Cub and Bolens have a bit tougher driveline and the John Deere green paint holds its value better. None of them mows nearly as well as the Simplicity. The Wheel Horse rear-discharge decks mow well, though not quite as well as the Simplicity, IMO. If you're "color-blind" I think the old Wheel Horse tractors were their biggest real competition -- lots of attachments and most of them do a respectable job... With that said, IMO, the Simplicity was very competitive and catered to those who wanted their lawn to look the best... I'd summarize it another way. My three primary uses for a garden tractor, in priority order are: mowing, snowblowing and tilling IMO, the Simplicity will win or at worst "tie" for best quality results in any one of those uses... IMO, the mowing deck is clearly superior. I've not seen another snowblower that does a better job (once you learn how to use the single stage), and the tiller leaves results just as nice as my Troybilt... To see specific details of slightly older competitive comparisons, go to: http://www.simpletractors.com/models/b_series/prices/compare_features.htm

[ikipp]

Having used simplicities (allis chalmers) for some 40+ years and having tried a few other brands and having looked at a zillion other brands. I think the simplicities will hold better than their own to any other manufacturer machines. Some of my machines have been through he** and high water and they keep on chugging along, with a little care and love. Just like a lady; they usually give back more than they get.