Farmall Cub

[Anonymous Poster]

I saw an early '50s Farmall Cub with some attachments and thought,
gee I used to use one of these. Now I have a house on 5 acres with
a 1/4 mile dirt driveway. Wouldn't this be great here? I could trim
the pasture & driveway, plow some snow, haul some wood...

So, I walked around it once. Compared to the one I knew before,
I thought it looked a little tired for $2500:
Low oil, thin tires, missing grill & battery cover...
Better do a compression check. What else? Hydralics? Brakes?

And then I found this forum...
A bush hog for the pasture would be nice.
They make snow blowers? That would be better than plowing.
But I'd love to be able to grade the driveway!
Can I get a FEL or backhoe to maintain the drainage ditch too?

So now I'm wondering can I do all this with an old Cub?
Or should I really consider a more modern machine?

Thanks for any advice!!

 

[Anonymous Poster]

If you don't mind a gear transmission and are looking for a modern version of those simple 'ol cubs and 8Ns, checkout the Chinese imports. Try www.mavericktractor.com or www.taskmaster.com or www.deljen.com You can buy a 25HP 4x4 with loader for < $10k, if you shop around you can get one for <$9k.

Visit www.ctoa.net to talk to owners of these tractors, don't believe all the negative BS about these units, the ones being imported today are very rugged and dependable.

 

[RobertN]

The Cub would be great! I have a "A" I'm setting up with a mower. I love these older Farmall's!

The Cub uses a reverse PTO at a higher rpm than the modern 3-point mount 540rpm "bushhogs". So, that would be out of the question. However, a variety of mid and rear mount sickle mowers, and mid mount rotary mowers have been made. You can still buy a mid mount rotary style mower from Woods. A sickle mower would probably work great in the pasture...

I don't know about snow blowers...

A single arm loader used to be available for Cubs; I've seen them on the web and on Ebay. They are expensive, if you can find one. A backhoe is out of the question....

The Cub would be great for mowing, or for pushing snow. It could be used to make one nice sized large garden with a plow and cultivators!

One thing I liked the idea of, is the midmount grader blade for keeping up the driveway. It seems this would work nicer than a rear mount scraper or blade.

Try checking out http://ytmag.com and http://atis.net They both have LOTS of info on tractors like the Cub.




RobertN in Shingle Springs Calif

 

[ERNIEB]

I don't know much about the Farmall Cub, but I have a 9n and an 8n that I got before my TC29D. It just seemed to me that every time I wanted to do something the first thing was I had to get the darn thing started. After all they are 50 years old.
IMO, if you like tinkering with things, and you have the time to spare, old tractors are OK.

Ernie

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Baz,

<font color=blue>Or should I really consider a more modern machine?</font color=blue>

Yes

Al

 

[RobertN]

Oh, but it's fun! Heck, those 8n/9n have electric start!

My 41' Farmall A does'nt have any electric stuff on it. Get the crank out, roll it over once with the choke on. Then, roll it over once or twice with the choke off; it fires right up /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Things were so simple then /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

RobertN in Shingle Springs Calif

 

[RichZ]

Baz, I believe that the best buy in tractors is the vintage tractor. I have a 1951 Ferguson TO-20. It starts first time every time, and runs great. It has plenty of power, and a category 1 3ph. It's never let me down, never broken down in the year I've had it, and it cost a tiny fraction of what even a "modern" used tractor would cost.
As far as a Farmall Cub, there are some problems. They are beautiful little tractors, I think Farmalls are the most beautiful of all tractors ever made!/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif However, unless they've been modified, they don't have a three point hitch. With no three point hitch, you can't put modern implements on them, so you're stuck trying to dig up old implements designed for the cubs./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif A better choice would be a slightly newer Farmall with a 3ph. Of the most easily available vintage tractors the Ferguson TO-20 and TO-30, are very reliable and compatible with modern implements. The Ford N series (8N, 2N and 9N), are also very reliable and compatible with modern implements. The only problem with the N series is that their gear ratio makes them run fast, so that mowing is a little more difficult. The main consideration for a vintage tractor is always the 3 point hitch. Fords and Fergusons were the first to have them. (The 3ph was invented by Harry Ferguson.) The vintage tractors were made to last forever, so if you find one running well, you will probably have few problems, and even if you have a few, the price makes it worthwhile. I never have problems getting new parts for my Ferguson. The Ford N series, and most Farmalls also have easily available parts.
The last important thing to remember is, if you are a tractor newby (like me) the vintage tractors are so much simpler to operate and maintain. They're so much easier to learn with. As far as maintenance, I just tuned up my Ferguson myself, and I'm no mechanic by any means. Could most people who own modern tractors do that? I doubt it.
I almost forgot to mention, that vintage tractors are just plain cool. I love using a machine that's 50 years old and runs perfectly. I always wonder about all the things my Fergie has done!!/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif If it could only talk!!! Go for a vintage tractor. You won't be sorry!!

Rich

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Richie... you got me convinced... where do I sign up...? /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

The history/& learning about these tractors is very addictive... aren't they Rich?

We're going either Sat. or Sun. to Washington Cty Fair...

 

[Will]

I owned a 1948 Farmall Cub for 10 years before I got a Kubota. Even without a 3 point hitch it was easy to find equipment for it. I had a belly mower, dirt scoop, turning plow and all sorts of cutivators. Switching between implements was pretty slow. The hydraulics were enough to lift a belly mower, but not much else. If you scooped up a decent load of dirt and rocks, you had to give it a hand to get the load off the ground.

There's just no comparison between that tractor and my Kubota. For instance, the first time I hit the brakes on my new Kubota, I did just what I'd learned from the 10 years on the Cub. I gripped the steering wheel for leverage and stomped on the brake pedal. Now I know why they put seatbelts on tractors. It still amazes me that I can turn the Kubota on grass without using brakes on the inside wheel and without tearing up the lawn. Modern hydraulics are unbelievable. If you try to lift something it will either raise up or the other end of the tractor will. I kind of miss having the Cub, but a new tractor is about a thousand times more convenient.

Will

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Here's a link with pricing info on Kubota B series tractors.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I should have figgered I'd get this wide a variety of opinion.
But that's why I asked: for some perspective.

Yup, old=simple=easy. A screw driver, an adjustable, and a bit of
sandpaper was all I ever needed to keep the Cub running for 20 yrs
where I rented.

But modern... I can picture exactly the one about the Kubota brakes
And it would be nice to move up to 4WD, modern gear box, 3 pt hitch...

Thanks everybody for your advice, experience, info, pix & stories!
Baz