@gregkon
How old are you, if I may ask? I am now almost 50 years old and unfortunately I already know what a healthy back can be worth, as my back is broken (scoliosis, spinal canal stenosis) and I have had to learn to live with sometimes severe back pain for around 13 years - with no prospect of significant improvement, lots of exercise and no more heavy lifting, but that will never heal my back.
When we bought our first West German tractor in 1990 - we had to start again as farmers in 1990 with less than 1,000 DM in our account, but with my parents' very good training (graduate agricultural engineer and agricultural economist) and with only 18 hectares of our own land + around 70 hectares of leased land.
And when we wanted to buy our first tractor, it was all about the seat. Air seat or mechanical seat. A lot of money for us to start with.
The salesman called his father over, who came with a crutch and a bent back. When asked which tractor he used to drive, he replied in surprise - Lanz Bulldog, you know that.
That day my father decided on the air seat.
Later on, it was a topic for EVERY tractor purchase and my father always said back then: Boy, I can buy you a front axle suspension, cab suspension and the best seat, but never a new back.
Without this fundamental decision, I would probably have retired a few years later with a broken back. That's how I managed at least 20 years, until one of my kidneys gave up and I had to go on dialysis for 7 years and got a new kidney in 2012 and a year later my back gave up with 3 back herniations in a row.
I'm sure I would probably be in a wheelchair today if my father had decided differently back then. He died last summer of Parkinson's after years of being cared for by his family - may he rest in peace...
What I'm getting at is - when you're young you don't notice it, but every blow to the back takes its toll at some point. If you can afford it, you should go for the more comfortable machine. That's my opinion.
