Buying Advice Opportunity or pass on this deal for John deere 2130?

[ALFisher]

Hello - first time post but long time reader of the site. Great info available here.

For about a month I have been looking for a tractor. Will be doing about 13 acres in food plots and bush hogging and some road/loader work. I had been looking in the 40-50 hp range with 4wd/mfwd. My budget is 15 with attachments.

However, I just learned that I can get a jd 2130 for FREE from a family member. It has power steering. Catch is it needs significant transmission work. Might be as much as 2,000. Also it is 2wd not 4. Pro is that it is a much bigger tractor than I could get otherwise. 75 hp engine with 65 claimed at pto. Would also need to get a fel. Even then I could save a lot of cash I think.

My main concern is that it is 2wd and I have read if u plan on doing any loader work u really need 4wd. If you have thoughts/advice I would appreciate it. Thx.

 

[imgone52]

A tractor of the size you are talking will do OK as a loader even in 2wd. The important element is rear weight. If you have loaded rear tires and/or balast weight, 2wd can do fine as a loader. Be sure when you shop for the FEL that you don't go so large that you overload the front end components. One concern to keep in mind would be the type of ground where most of your work will be done. If you will be working in real soft, wet and uneven ground then 4wd would be far better. Good luck with your decisions

 

[Kioti Tom]

The thing is, Power steering is what makes a 2WD workable with a loader. Without PS you would have a hard time using one.

:welcome: to posting on TBN

Tom

 

[ALFisher]

The thing is, Power steering is what makes a 2WD workable with a loader. Without PS you would have a hard time using one.

:welcome: to posting on TBN

Tom

Thanks. It has power steering.

 

[crazyal]

Can you do the work yourself or will you have someone else fix it? If it was me and I'm pretty sure I could fix it I would get it and hold off on the loader for now. It'll do everything else you've listed just fine. You can always keep your eyes open or sell the Deere down the road (or keep it and get a second tractor).

 

[ALFisher]

I can do a good bit of work but probably not transmissions.

 

[mfreund]

Free is the right price. I would spend the 2k and buy a loader and use the heck out of it.

 

[AKfish]

I'd never be one to look a gift horse in the mouth... but, I'd be interested to know if it had all 4 legs! What kind of transmission? Collar shift? They're a little rough for loader work and a synchro tranny would be a much better situation. Better yet, would be a reverser transmission (although, that's where you can spend some $$$ getting it fixed)!

I think the 146-148 loaders would be a good fit for that tractor; maybe the 158. Have noticed some good 158's here and there for around $3-3.5K. You might run across a good, 146 for around $2,500 or so.

With a good set of rear chains - you'd be surprised what a heavy, ol' beast like that 2130 will do!

I'd definitely consider the possibilities... and, that tractor would get you started. :thumbsup:

AKfish

 

[crazyal]

If you can pull the tranny yourself and just bring that to a shop you'll save some bucks. My neighbor has an old Yanmar that he got real cheap. It has been welded because it broke in half, when he got it the transmission had been torn down. Another neighbor is a auto mechanic is putting it back together for him. He has a manual but it's not that detailed but he said it wasn't that hard to figure out. Maybe you know of or have a friend who works on cars or trucks that could help you out.

 

[Zebrafive]

It would help to know what trans it has and what the problem is.

 

[rdbigfarmboy]

That is an elglish or german row crop tractor made before the modernization, most had headlights on the front. So the transmission is always weak and clumsy. It probably has a row crop rear tire like a 13.6 when a 16 or 18 wide is better for loader work. some of them didnt have live pto depending on how it was ordered. The hyrdaulic pump might be a tad slow.
On the plus side
its a deere find a hood and decals for a 2030 and swap most would never know the difference and it is night and day.
Sell it and buy something more suitable

 

[ALFisher]

Transmission is std, collar shift. 8 forward, 4 reverse, 16 and 8 if you count the hi/low. It has 15.5-38 rear tires. I am going to get it, fix it, and use it for a while. If it isn't suitable, will sell it and get my money back out of it. No harm, no foul. 75hp tractor for 2000 in repairs is a bargain, really. Will easily do my food plots, roads with boxblade and bush hog. By the way, it comes with a working bush hog with slip clutch, which is a bonus.

 

[Grandad4]

Do you know the hours? Is the engine in good condition? If you'll have to split the tractor to fix the tranny, it would make sense to do a new clutch for it at the same time. If it's otherwise a healthy machine, you'll have a good old workhorse that should last as long as you need it. It makes sense for many people to have two tractors: an older one like you've found and a smaller compact with all the modern conveniences. You've maybe changed it around a bit by getting the old workhorse first, but it sounds like a great find. Share some pictures as you get it back to good health, if you can.

 

[Wyobuckaroo]

According to Tractor house*com it appears to be about an average of $7000. I would consider fixing it and trading it on a tractor loader combo.....

Good luck....

 

[jenkinsph]

Al,
That is a good find if you can fix it up as some have suggested. If it can be fixed up for a reasonable amount you can do alot more semi field work with it than the smaller tractors. With 100+ acres I think I would keep it to handle the larger jobs rather than trading as many have suggested. If you can fix it up and have a good working tractor for $5000 approximately that would be a great deal for you.

While you may still want to get a smaller tractor with fel for close work the little you would have invested in the larger tractor would save alot of strain on the newer and smaller tractor.

 

[Zebrafive]

Transmission is std, collar shift. 8 forward, 4 reverse, 16 and 8 if you count the hi/low. It has 15.5-38 rear tires. I am going to get it, fix it, and use it for a while. If it isn't suitable, will sell it and get my money back out of it. No harm, no foul. 75hp tractor for 2000 in repairs is a bargain, really. Will easily do my food plots, roads with boxblade and bush hog. By the way, it comes with a working bush hog with slip clutch, which is a bonus.

HI-LO does not give you 16 forward & 8 reverse speeds. HI is basicly the gear you are in, LO is very close to dropping down one gear. So if you are in 4th gear and HI-LO is in HI, that is 4th gear. Shift to LO and it it's almost the same as dropping to 3rd, shift back to HI and you are in 4th again.

There is a hydraulic clutch pack in the HI-LO unit in addition to the main dry clutch. Repair requires splitting the tractor. If the HI-LO is bad, I estimate $4000 to repair (by dealer)

 

[ALFisher]

Thanks so much for the information. Tractor has about 2200 hours on it. Engine in good condition. It was running fine last year until transmission starting causing problems. I am not going through the dealer, just local mechanic who I know does a good job. He will have it on Monday and give me the diagnosis and estimated cost. Will update you then.