Buying Advice First tractor purchase. (Massey Ferguson vs RK)

[Bigpuddie]

What about the Workmaster?

They are made in India

 

[Tennsawdust]

LS does not make NH tractors under 100hp. The Powerstar and T4 tractors are made by TURK tractor in Turkey.

I believe you are mistaken. The Boomers and at least some of the Workmaster series are made by LS.

 

[Bigpuddie]

I stand corrected. Just the over 50 hp are Indian

 

[shooterdon]

I would not be too swayed by a couple of grand. Having an older machine makes me appreciate parts availability and dealer support...but then I am not mechanically talented, so I would only attempt minor work. Having said that, parts for my 30 year old JD855 are neither inexpensive or that easy to get but so far have been available. My dealer is not that supportive...he would not rebuild my loader cylinders but wanted me to buy new ones at over $600 each.

If/when I upgrade, I would likely not buy a JD from my closest dealer. I would narrow my search to a tractor model that has a good reputation and that has been around for a long time. Same criteria for the dealer. For me it will be a 20 year investment.

When asking about different machines, it helps to understand the talents and ability of those responding. Some members here do all their own work and do not need or want dealer support. The other factor to weigh are yearly machine hours. Someone who puts 75 hours an year on, may not see the issues of another owner who uses his machine for 250 hours a year.

My gut feel is that manufactures know the average owner puts less than 100 hrs a year on their tractors and design accordingly. So even the 7 year warrantees are expecting about 700 hours.

It would be beneficial if one of the profile items (that includes our location and equipment we own) would also include machine hours. I would be more interested in the opinions of those who put on a lot of hours than those of a "hobby" user with less than 50 hours of week. Not saying we cannot learn from low hours users, but it puts issues like reliability more in perspective. Of course, if a number of "hobby" users are having issues, it would a good indicator of what to steer clear of too!

BTW, I am a hobby user. Estimated 50-75 hours a year. Do not take my advice. I spend more time on this forum than sitting on my JD.

 

[Tennsawdust]

I stand corrected. Just the over 50 hp are Indian

Like most companies they source tractors from wherever it makes sense. The Boomers are LS, except for the CVT models, which come out of the CNH facility in Mexico. Compact tractors don't sell in enough volume for most companies to justify making them in house so they tend to be left to one of the handful of companies that specialize in building compact tractors.

 

[rngrrymd]

LS does not make NH tractors under 100hp. The Powerstar and T4 tractors are made by TURK tractor in Turkey.

Most if not all of the Boomer series are made by LS for New Holland. Some of the Workmaster's have Shibaura engines and the new Workmaster 55-75 HP models have a Fiat Powertrain Technologies motor in them. Trying to see where the chassis's are made for those Workmaster models. The T4 which is now called the Powerstar 65-120HP models are indeed made by Turk Tractor (A joint venture between 6 Turkish companies and Minneapolis Moline back in the late 50's I believe ) in Turkey. Turk Tractor is majority owned by Fiat who picked up most of Minneapolis Moline's shares back in the 60's after Minneapolis Moline went under. My Case Farmall 75C is essentially the same tractor as the Powerstar 75. The only difference between the 2 I could find is the steering pump gpm size (NH gets a little bigger one for some reason) and the color of the seats and paint.

 

[Bigpuddie]

Most if not all of the Boomer series are made by LS for New Holland. Some of the Workmaster's have Shibaura engines and the new Workmaster 55-75 HP models have a Fiat Powertrain Technologies motor in them. Trying to see where the chassis's are made for those Workmaster models. The T4 which is now called the Powerstar 65-120HP models are indeed made by Turk Tractor (A joint venture between 6 Turkish companies and Minneapolis Moline back in the late 50's I believe ) in Turkey. Turk Tractor is majority owned by Fiat who picked up most of Minneapolis Moline's shares back in the 60's after Minneapolis Moline went under. My Case Farmall 75C is essentially the same tractor as the Powerstar 75. The only difference between the 2 I could find is the steering pump gpm size (NH gets a little bigger one for some reason) and the color of the seats and paint.

The 55-75 hp Workmaster I am told are built in India

 

[rngrrymd]

The 55-75 hp Workmaster I am told are built in India

I see that now. That is what happens when you read a thread and forget to read page 2 before posting. Nothing like being late to the party, lol.

I wonder if that is a CNH facility in India or Mahindra making those models for CNH. I thought the CVT Boomer's might have been made by CNH so that is interesting info from Tennsawdust.

 

[metalbender]

For the op, the service facility is more important than a lower price. We have most brands within 25 miles of home. Did some online research, was ignored at the JD dealer, Mahindra and LS/Boomer not in the running. Kubota likes their orange paint a lot, seemed like they wanted to keep the tractor. Massey was my choice, ten minutes of sitting in my 1742 cab model. Didn't run or drive it, just felt right. Previous land owner dealt with them lots, good enough for me. Had a starting issue, started better not plugged in when cold, called the sales guy, he hade the service come out to check in a couple of days. Of course it didn't act up then. he did a scan, no fault codes, said problem is documented, keep in touch if it occurs again. Have 118 hrs on it so far.

 

[Jchonline]

For the op, the service facility is more important than a lower price. We have most brands within 25 miles of home. Did some online research, was ignored at the JD dealer, Mahindra and LS/Boomer not in the running. Kubota likes their orange paint a lot, seemed like they wanted to keep the tractor. Massey was my choice, ten minutes of sitting in my 1742 cab model. Didn't run or drive it, just felt right. Previous land owner dealt with them lots, good enough for me. Had a starting issue, started better not plugged in when cold, called the sales guy, he hade the service come out to check in a couple of days. Of course it didn't act up then. he did a scan, no fault codes, said problem is documented, keep in touch if it occurs again. Have 118 hrs on it so far.

I do agree...especially if this is your first machine.