Buying Advice Need Some Pre-Purchase Advise Please

[beersngars]

Hi all. Been reading this site for a few weeks now and need some advice. I am looking for a tractor to do brush hog work and driveway maintaince at our cabin. I have looked at about 40 units so far and found one that seems nice and clean. It's a Massey 135 with the 3 cylinder gas engine and power steering. The front tires are brand new and the rears are like new but are a turf type tire. Sheet metal is the best Iv'e seen so far. The present owner just had the gas tank "lined" because he had some rust show up in the carb. Everything else seems tight and right. Now the part that scares me a little. It has been converted to an alternator and the tach cable is disconnected and probably has been for a while. The hour meter shows 6500. Is this too much? The present owner buys and sells tractors and has a good rep. He states the previous owner used it as a mower and kept it inside. The price is 3700.00 with an older 5 foot brush hog he has laying around. What do you guys think. It seems everyone loves the 135's but most rant about the 3 cylinder deisel.

Thanks

 

[mlauk]

Does it smoke much at start up or when the engine is revved up? Look at Big Dean's Massey Ferguson sight for things to look for.

 

[beersngars]

Thanks for the response. I did not hear it run because the fuel tank is not back in yet. He says it's OK. The guy is to call me as soon as it runs and let me drive it. Big Deans site??

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Hi all. Been reading this site for a few weeks now and need some advice. I am looking for a tractor to do brush hog work and driveway maintaince at our cabin. I have looked at about 40 units so far and found one that seems nice and clean. It's a Massey 135 with the 3 cylinder gas engine and power steering. The front tires are brand new and the rears are like new but are a turf type tire. Sheet metal is the best Iv'e seen so far. The present owner just had the gas tank "lined" because he had some rust show up in the carb. Everything else seems tight and right. Now the part that scares me a little. It has been converted to an alternator and the tach cable is disconnected and probably has been for a while. The hour meter shows 6500. Is this too much? The present owner buys and sells tractors and has a good rep. He states the previous owner used it as a mower and kept it inside. The price is 3700.00 with an older 5 foot brush hog he has laying around. What do you guys think. It seems everyone loves the 135's but most rant about the 3 cylinder deisel.

Thanks

Not a bad price for a decent 135. Not sure about early gas Perkins, but diesels ran the tach off the back end of the camshaft. Connection is at rear of block just below head. Originally a generator means before 1969. 6500 hrs is a bunch, but those engines could go 10,000 hrs without much attention. Turf tires is probably an indicator that it was a mower tractor. That in and of itself doesn't alway mean much. Could have been a mower tractor on a golf course with 5000 different operators or it could mean an carefull old guy used it to mow his lawn.

Check for a couple weep holes under the bellhousing and tranny housing. There should be a cotter pin sticking through each. (to keep them from plugging up with dirt) Look for oil dripping there. SOME oil isn't out of the ordinary. That engine has a history of rear oil pan gaskets leaking. A LOT of oil could mean rear main seal. If it's tranny oil, you have input shaft seals OR Multipower seals (if equipped) leaking.

Does it have a 2-stage clutch? Not ALL 135's did. (Push clutch pedal. Should be a noticable "hard spot" about 1/2-way through travel. No 2-stage clutch lowers value considerably.

 

[beersngars]

Thanks much. I will check that stuff out. My info on the tach cable maybe off as another guy told me about the generator driving it. I bekieve that tractor was a MF 175. On the one I'm looking at it's also disconnected and I made the assumption. Thanks for the heads up on the clutch. Maybe I'm putting to much emphisis on the overall appearence and need to keep looking. I look at it as a car and if theres a bunch of dings and dents, maybe thats the way the restb of it was taken care of.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Thanks much. I will check that stuff out. My info on the tach cable maybe off as another guy told me about the generator driving it. I bekieve that tractor was a MF 175. On the one I'm looking at it's also disconnected and I made the assumption. Thanks for the heads up on the clutch. Maybe I'm putting to much emphisis on the overall appearence and need to keep looking. I look at it as a car and if theres a bunch of dings and dents, maybe thats the way the restb of it was taken care of.

I may be thinking wrong about the tach drive too. My 150 is alternator equipped from the factory. I've workeed on a few 135's with generators, but don't remember the location of tach drive. Earlier models, (ie MF35/MF50, ect) did run the tach off the generator. So that may well be the case with earlier 135's. I SHOULD know that.

Over-all appearance can tell you a lot. Or it can be misleading. I've seen tractors that appear almost new that have been in the custody of an end user who didn't take care of the IMPORTANT stuff, even though he kept it waxed and indoors. But visable damage is USUALLY a good indicator of abuse and EXTREMELY hard use.

Massey made quite a few economy models of the 135. They came without lights, a spartan "pan" seat, no 2-stage clutch, and limited gauges. They were marketed to compete with Fords "2000". The dressed up 135 was competing with the 3000 Ford.

 

[mlauk]

I have a 1968 MF with Z134 continental gas engine that originally had a generator/tach cable setup. It had been upgraded with an alternator and so I have no idea how many hours it has.

Just google Big Dean Massey Ferguson and it has a list of items to look for when buying a used MF.

 

[Grrrr]

The MF 135 is a superb little tractor when looked after properly and has regualr oil and filter changes.

It is quite rare to have PS on this tractor and it is a nice addition. We have one we use on the farm and it is on it's second clock. The clock that came with it was stopped at 8300 and the old owners said it had been like that for a while.

The perkins diesel is probably the better of the engines, but I have never seen a gas one as they are very uncommon in the UK. The two stage clutch is definitely a good thing to have as it makes a lot of PTO jobs much easier.

Another thing to look out for is the TPH reaction. If it is very slow to lift or takes a while to start lifting it probably suggests the tractor has worked hard. It can normally be fixed with new seals and a pump overhall. When working properly the TPH has a surprising ammount of lift and ours will lift a 5 x 6 silage with a bit of weight on the front no problem.

Does the tractor have Multi Power as this can be hard to fix if their are any problems with it?

One other thing is you might want to think about getting a roll bar for it if you are going to be using it on any sort of slopes for safety.


Hope you find a good tractor.

Big Dean's Massey Ferguson tips

 

[beersngars]

Found Big Deans site. Great info there. Thanks. I may pass on this tractor and keep my eye out for a deisel. We have owned our property for 14 years and never had a tractor so a little while longer won't hurt. Besides, with what I'm learning from the good folks on this site, I'll be able to land a really good one. Thanks all.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Found Big Deans site. Great info there. Thanks. I may pass on this tractor and keep my eye out for a deisel. We have owned our property for 14 years and never had a tractor so a little while longer won't hurt. Besides, with what I'm learning from the good folks on this site, I'll be able to land a really good one. Thanks all.

Find you one of these! This is my 150. It is, for the most part, a rowcrop version of the 135. This one is a diesel, 8-speed, and one owner....me. I bought it new in 1971. They haven't printed enough money to wrestle this thing away from me either.

Fuel efficient, quiet running, good power, well balanced, and as dependable as the sun coming up every morning. I'll go toe to toe with anyone that these were the best utility tractors ever built.