[wolc123]

I wish our M was still in that kind of condition but it is pretty well worn, probably because it was the only tractor we had for around 25 years and put in a lot of long hours doing tough work. We would actually run it all day and into the night with the lights at times, stopping only to add gas and change operators. We used a 2x12" plow on it and my dad used that combo this year to work his 1 acre garden. It still runs well, even starts good on 6 volts, and now wears new rear rubber and rims but the steering is getting loose. I would be afraid to guess at how many hours it has accumulated, needing only (2) valve jobs and (1) clutch besides normal maintenence, but it must be well over 10,000. I hope they still make them like they used to and I can get that kind of service out of the new JD 4120 I picked up a few years ago. Time will tell I guess. I will admit that the switch for the first time to 4wd has resulted in almost as much productivity gain as the switch from horses to tractor power because of my muddy ground. Leaving the cultivators on your M will make it easier for you to get on and off (makes a nice step), but will make it tough to load on a trailer for taking to shows (they dont lift very high).