Ford 800 or 8N

[TripleR]

Some have a fondness for the 8N, but my preference is the 800 Series and up, better 3PH, live PTO and you can put power steering on them not to mention the additional power and gears.

 

[jwalley]

What tranny does it have? The SoS (sorta automatic) can be a little scary. They worked well, but this old, if they give trouble there are 3x as many parts in one, big bill to fix up.

No comparison, an 800/801/4000 has a lot more features and a size bigger than an N series. Note that there were many options in the 800/4000 series, be best to look over the machine to determine which tranny it has for live pto, number of gears, etc. I'd pay an extra $500 or more for a good live pto, and I'd pay about $1000 less for an SoS tranny because I just don't trust them at this age.

--->Paul

saw one listed as 5x1 tranny. I haven't gone to see it. Don't know what that means.

 

[kf4uda]

That means it has 5 forward speeds and 1 reverse speed.

 

[whodat526]

saw one listed as 5x1 tranny. I haven't gone to see it. Don't know what that means.

how far or you from giddings they have a tractor auction on the second saturday of every month sometimes you can get a really good deal on a tractor there

 

[strum456]

If priced equally and the condition of both tractors is the same, the choice is easy. In my area, hundered series tractors are generally atleast 1000 more than N series tractors. Thousand series tractors are usually atleast 1000 more than hundred series tractors.

From your description of pulling a small plow for your garden and using a back blade, an 8n would be a nice little tractor. I have a few hundred series tractors and one 8N. For light work, the N does just fine, and it uses way less gas.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Another good little tractor from Ford that is often overlooked is the 600 series.

With a 8N they had basically 2 series. The newer with the side distributor is much more desirable than the early ones with a front mounted distributor.

Chris

 

[strum456]

Another good little tractor from Ford that is often overlooked is the 600 series.

With a 8N they had basically 2 series. The newer with the side distributor is much more desirable than the early ones with a front mounted distributor.

Chris

2x Agreed on both points!

 

[CaptJCHill]

I have never seen an 8n that wasn't for sale.( or 9 or 2n for that matter)

John

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have never seen an 8n that wasn't for sale.( or 9 or 2n for that matter)

John

True. You can not drive a 1/2 mile without seeing one in a barn or back yard around here.

Chris

 

[flusher]

All things considered equal, which would be a better purchase to shred 5 acres, pull a grader, and maybe a single row plow for gardening? There are several 8Ns around the San Antonio area and a couple of 800s to look at. Better options for reliability, usability and price/availability of parts??

I'd be wary of 8Ns--some of them have been worked to death and need major repairs (clutch, tranny, hydraulics). Two of my neighbors have 8Ns. One has been fine; the other has been a big headache requiring clutch and tranny repairs. Check out the performance of the clutch, transmission (all gears), brakes, and hydraulics before buying an 8N.


Also be careful of later model Fords with Select-o-Speed (SOS) transmissions. These were late 1950s/early 1960s attempts by Ford to develop something akin to modern shuttle shift trannies. SOS trannies are complex and expensive to repair. There's a recent TBN thread describing the problems one member has had finding parts for his SOS.