New farm owners: CUT or UT?

[tjkadar]

Depends on which specific model in a series line-up you're looking at... The Massey Ferguson 5600 series is far and away better than anything its competitors have on the market. From fuel consumption. to hydraulic flow/lift capacities, cab comfort, options, etc., etc. It is a better engineered machine that performs very well. I have owned several Kubotas - the last being a M6800. Owned a John Deere 5425 for 4 years... the Massey blows 'em all away by a very large margin.

Does this hold true throughout the entire model line? No. Each manufacturer is going to have a specific model that will probably be a bit better than their competitors. Each manufacturer has a model line that is built to a specific price point.

The best way to tell which is your tractor is to try and see 'em all in the flesh. Really wish they had more Farm Machinery shows... glad I got to see the one in North Carolina this year. It is an eye opener to walk from one tractor manufacturer to another and see the vehicles back to back.

I hate to say it, but after doing that, I thought the Kubotas and Fords were rather crudely finished. I was disappointed in the finish of the Kubota cabs (70 hp to 110 hp tractors).

Again, your best option is to look at the machines in the flesh.

 

[MESSMAKER]

Nothing wrong with a utility tractor but probably not necessary. Don't need a 7 foot cutter for 15 acres. A 5 footer should be plenty. You can mow everything you have in a days time. Round bales can be managed by most any tractor over 3000 pounds. Does not take a monster to run a seeder or a post hole digger. A 35-45 hp tractor would be ideal but you could get by with less. I would rather have a 30-35 hp 4wd compact with a loader than a 45 hp utility with 2 wd and no loader.

 

[GManBart]

I hate to say it, but after doing that, I thought the Kubotas and Fords were rather crudely finished.

Ford hasn't made a tractor in decades, and New Holland hasn't been owned by Ford since 1991 when Fiat bought them.

When you mention Massey, and compare them to Kubota and Deere, I think we have to be fair and point out that Massey doesn't make many of their own machines, and that can cause some long-term problems with sourcing parts. It seems all of the manufacturers eventually have issues supplying parts for machines they didn't make themselves. Kubota makes all their own stuff now, and Deere makes most of their own machines (and I'm pretty sure everything in the range the OP is looking at). It's not a huge factor, but something to consider when doing a direct comparison.

 

[tjkadar]

Ford ~ New Holland, same blue paint.

Agco owns Challenger, Massey Ferguson, Fendt, and Valtra. They also bought Sisu. My 5609 was made at a Massey Ferguson plant in Beauvais France (which is owned by Agco). Massey builds the majority of their tractor line. It is no different than John Deere (some of the 'cheaper' John Deeres are made in India and the smaller ones are rebadged from other lines). Parts availability for any Agco product is not a problem. I have no idea where you get the idea that owning a Massey will result in a parts issue. Perhaps in the older models? In the newer lines, no such issues exists of which I am aware.

 

[RickB]

Ford ~ New Holland, same blue paint.

Sorry, that's not even correct. The blue changed on Jan 1, 2000.

 

[RickB]

Parts availability for any Agco product is not a problem.

Now there's a pretty broad statement.

 

[tjkadar]

Sorry, that's not even correct. The blue changed on Jan 1, 2000.

Who cares? It was Ford. Then it was Ford/New Holland. Now it is New Holland. Same line of tractors. Name changed. Big deal. All are under the CNH Industrial umbrella which is majority owned by Fiat Industrial.

 

[RickB]

Who cares? It was Ford. Then it was Ford/New Holland. Now it is New Holland. Same line of tractors. Name changed. Big deal. All are under the CNH Industrial umbrella which is majority owned by Fiat Industrial.

Now you are showing your ignorance of the lineup. There is zero Ford heritage in the New Holland offerings, and nearly zero Shibaura content. You might want to stick to your Masseys rather than broadcast what you don't know about other brands.

I'd be interested in hearing where the Massey/Challenger/AGCO compact tractors are built.

 

[tjkadar]

OMG!!! I don't know the exact lineage and history of Blue tractors!!!

Fact is it was Ford/New Holland. Now it is just New Holland. They are all owned by CNH Industrial, which is majority owned by Fiat. I'm very happy you know the exact date blue changed. I don't really care. I see a blue tractor, I use the name Ford and New Holland interchangeably. Usually call it Ford because that is how I grew up. Blue is Ford. Doesn't matter. The blue tractors I looked at when I was tractor shopping were crude, poorly engineered, and simply not up to par with other tractors in the same price and/or horsepower range.

Where did I ever mention Shibaura?

I don't have a brand loyalty. I've owned Kubota, John Deere, Massey Ferguson, White, and Harry Ferguson. Until a manufacturer starts paying me, I am going with the best product for my needs at the time of purchase. I don't need to learn the entire history of a brand to do that. Frankly, I have other things to worry about.

I do vaguely remember something about a clean split from Ford when New Holland took control. Didn't really make enough of an impression on me to remember.

 

[GManBart]

Ford ~ New Holland, same blue paint.

Similar paint, but no common background, and a completely different company now. Calling a current NH a Ford is no different than calling it a Deere....it's not remotely correct.

People come to this site for help, and to learn things, and making a statement that is completely incorrect, about a topic that can be confusing to new folks, does them a disservice.

Agco owns Challenger, Massey Ferguson, Fendt, and Valtra. They also bought Sisu. My 5609 was made at a Massey Ferguson plant in Beauvais France (which is owned by Agco). Massey builds the majority of their tractor line. It is no different than John Deere (some of the 'cheaper' John Deeres are made in India and the smaller ones are rebadged from other lines). Parts availability for any Agco product is not a problem. I have no idea where you get the idea that owning a Massey will result in a parts issue. Perhaps in the older models? In the newer lines, no such issues exists of which I am aware.

Other than a few of the smaller machines made by Yanmar, I don't think Deere has anybody else making any of their tractors. That is not the case for Massey.

Parts availability isn't a problem on new models for almost any brand. I was talking about machines that are made by other companies, and go out of production...getting parts for them becomes a problem in many cases. Even machines that are only 10 years old can be an issue. My Massey 241 was made in Turkey, and they made a nearly identical model, the 231S in Poland. Even when you're really careful, and get the correct part number, there are times when the original, correct part, is no longer available, and that's a machine that isn't even 15 years old yet. I ordered a fitting for the power steering pump...the original was "replaced by X" and they show it as being compatible....nope, not even close. Outsourcing has costs, and parts availability is one of them.

My point was that if the OP wants to look at a Massey, he should try to find out if it's one of the models actually made by Massey, because that can be a plus down the road.