Tips needed on buying older tractor for brush hogg

I'm not knocking the smaller tractors, just don't think that just because you aren't farming for a living, the smaller is the only way to go. If I were farming for a living, I might figure to the penny what it costs to operate both of ours and make some changes. I do believe that in my situation, the bigger tractor has been more capable of doing about any chore we have. I do like to use the small (lighter) tractor for any work in the yard.

Indydirtfarmer has a good point about the 60 - 80 hp range. That range, I think would serve me well - but the 125 horse 1066 was cheaper at the time we purchased it.

Lot to think about - listen to all opinions - then BUY A TRACTOR - and be careful! Taking care of a place can be very enjoyable - if you have the tools to suite the job.

Mitch

There are alot of ford 3000, 3400, 4000, 5000 among others around. Also MF and JD, although not quite as common.

What is the difference between live pto and independent?

Thanks for all the input so far!

Thanks again!

As for parts, JD are more than a little % higher than others, I have to buy them too. So far on my 1964 Oliver 1800 LPG I have not found any parts I can't get from the dealer and I am sure that if there are any an aftermarket manufacturer does make them.

Now all of that said, thie person might not have the money to invest in a deere either as they generally are higher than some of the other brands. He stated that he is looking at something to use maybe 3 times a year or so then most any brand would work as he is no making a living with it.

I like my Olivers and my Deeres however if one of the things your looking at is alot of backing up then I would say go with a Deere or an IH with the shift on the side. They're alot easier to mess with the gears alot thant the Oliver, A-C's etc.

If you want to go back to something like a Super 88 Oliver or 880 or something in that line then it is alot easier as they had the gearshift in a better place. The older D series A'C's are good tractors and like a Deere you can still get prety much anything you want for them. Fords are good ones also and there is practiacally nothing you can't get for one of them. I would suggest going to one that is solid blue or newer I think like a 4000 or so.

I think he wants to buy an OLD tractor, not a new one. Up here, you can't give an old JD away, they usually have to take them out of state to sell them. Replacement/repair parts are hideously overpriced.

Here our old tractors on working farms are mostly Olivers, especially the 1550 through 1850 models. A few "hobby farmers" use old Fords, 8N and 9N.

Ron

You are way off base. I'm NOT going to get into a Oliver vs. JD thing with you or anyone else. That would be worse than religion and politics!

But I'll say these two things...

1) Even the most ardent JD fans I know will tell you that Oliver was by far the better tractor. Oliver the company made a lot of bad decisions otherwise we might be having an entirely different discussion.

2) A neighbor went to buy a replacement alternator from the JD dealer for his 5-6 year old JD tractor. He was told the price was $450! No one in their right mind would pay $450 for an alternator so he sold the tractor and bought an Oliver. That's how I learned ther story. In any event, Oliver was smart enough to use all electrical components made by Ford (Holley) and/or GM (Delco) on all their models. So an alternator for any Oliver tractor is $60 at NAPA. Same deal with starters, distributors, etc. All the parts you would expect to replace on an old tractor are cheap where Olivers are concerned. Better yet, they were basically bulletproof. This is why most of the farms here are still using 40 year old Olivers daily. There are almost no 40 year old JDs working on farms here. Even better, should you need any Oliver part, any AGCO dealer sells them. Mine is just minutes from house but there are AGCO dealers that sell the complete line over the 'Net.

If you're happy with your JD, that's great! It would be sad if we owned tractors we didn't enjoy!

Those Olivereries are kinda hard to see. Ya has to look way down underneath those old loaders. :>)

Allan

The facts are that AC introduced the D-19 in 1961, the same year JD introduced the 4010. The 4010 diesel produced 72 drawbar hp from 388 cubic inches. The D-19 diesel produced 62 drawbar hp from 262 cubic inches. It was the first American made tractor to have a turbo charger as factory equipment. John Deere I believe caught up in 1964 with the introduction of the 4020 as far as turbocharging was concerned. In 1964 AC was producing the 190. During the production run of the D-19 and 4010, JD used 32% more cubic inches to produce 14% more horsepower. I'm not sure if they caught up in 1964 with the 4020 against the 190, I know the 4020 jumped to over 400 cubic inches and the 190 grew to 301 cubic inches. If someone is in the market to trade dollars for horsepower in the used tractor ring, you won't find more hp for less dollars than with a D-19. Any tractor over 40 years old may be well worn out, or well cared for and in great shape. So you've got to be careful there no matter what the color. Gosh I wish I could justify owning one of JD's first 4 cylinder tractors, just so I could try and see for myself what some people are so passionate about. But unless I win a few million dollars, spending all the extra that a JD costs just isn't practical to me. Still if that's where someone else wants to put their money, well it is their money and they earned the right to do with it as they like. Now if you want to talk GM vs. Ford, I can speak with more experience there. I did buy a Ford once.

"I'm in farming to make money....plain and simple. Maybe those John Deeres just make us so much more than your AC's we just don't care how much they cost.....Or maybe they make us so much more we DO care how much they cost...That's why we buy'em..."

Maybe if more people used better judgement and did care about the value they got for there dollar, there would still be a lot more full time farmers around. Every year I see people spending money they can ill afford to spend and the next thing you know they've had to take a job off the farm to get by. That is a real shame because on the other hand I see a few farmers with good management skills growing and growing and growing. I've got a neighbor who bought 80 acres about 10 years ago. He worked hard and made wise purchases and investments and this spring he planted about 800 acres, I think he owns between 200 and 300 of that, the rest belongs to guys who tried but couldn't make a go of it themselves. He's farming with Case and Ford equipment from the 70's.

bill

If this darned land grab that I'm workin' on doesn't go thru pretty darned soon, I still won't be farmin' in any field. :>(

Hurmpgh! :>)

Allan

The shuttle shift is on the left side just as you drop your hand down between the seat and fender. There is a range lever and a fwd-rev. The fwd-rev lever is direct push pull so you can shuttle back and forth front and rear tractor movement. Since you want to back up a lot, I think you need to consider this.

The independent PTO lever is on the right side, same position and makes PTO in-out a snap, any time you want it, regardless of what else the tractor is doing..... .except running of course.

Mark

I was just thinking. He might even need bigger than we are suggesting.

I'd hate to have to take care of 59 acres of mowing with a little 8 ft rotary cutter.....he might even need a bat-wing? That would demand what? 80+ horse?

Allan

I am an Oliver guy through and through. But if I were you I would consider a John Deere 3020/4020. Get one with a wide front end and a loader made to fit them and you will enjoy taking care of your 59 acres. You also will have many good sources for parts if and when you need them. I am assuming you have not had a lot of experience "farming", but 59 acres can become a lot to take care of if you are doing it part time. A utility tractor such as Ford Jubliee, Oliver 55, etc. will probably do what you want , but a little bigger farm tractor will make your job a lot easier. No matter what you decide do get live PTO and live hyd.

At 59 acres, you are gonna need a medium sized unit (60 or 70 horse) and like the others have said, live PTO, live hydraulics, wide front with a fairly heavy loader and power steering.

I'm afraid that anything less is going to get very old very fast.

Allan

I'd also vote for the Oliver (I have one) and if you find one with "Hydraul-Shift" you will have 18F and 6R speeds. This is very handy for mowing.