Paul - You don't need live hydraulics - but they're surely nice to have - so you may want them. Without them, you do a little dance from the clutch pedal, into neutral, lift the bucket, then back to the clutch and into gear. It's actually easy, and second nature once you've grown accustomed to it. The other point is that any letter series Farmall is likely to have a trip bucket - so the only time live hyrdaulics come into play is when you have the clutch disengaged and want to lift. Economics say you'll want to get the loader with the tractor, as any separate add-on you'll find afterwards will usually dent your wallet more than having the loader thrown in with the tractor when you buy the tractor. Also, you'll most often find loaders on H's and M's. I can't recall seeing one on a C. The factory loaders, like the 33A on mine have very small buckets -- and with good reason. They can't and shouldn't handle much load, and shouldn't be lifted very high. Think of the whole setup as a nifty way to clear the milking parlor of manure at a rate of one wheelbarrow load at a time, then lift it as high as needed to clear the side of a manure spreader; and you'll have a good grasp on the capabilities of the loader. Another bit of experience I can offer is that you'll use the loader maybe 5 to 10 per cent of the time. Rest of the time, it's in the way and generaly a pain in the rear -- so think about an overhead lifting system that will make it easy to attach and detach the loader when you don't need it. Here's my H with the loader on. No live hydraulics, and a simple trip bucket (it's either holding the loader, or it's dumped it - no angles in between). If you take your time, and know their limitations, the old style stuff can do the same jobs -- it just takes you a while longer. Good luck in your choice. Steve
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