4020 fix it or forget it?

[amartha]

Don't do it, she will be a leather bag with no bottom.

 

[plumbyII]

Dont get an orchard tractor - take it from a person who owns one. I purchased an NH TN80F that was originally owned by a well known winery in CA. Everything is designed with tight working room to fit the narrow profile and cab. That is unfortunate because this particular tractor has a funky PTO design (discussed on some posts here) that keeps eating control cable and preventing PTO from disengaging (and restarting due to safety) for upwards of a half hour. What is really bad is the cab which makes getting to the cable pivot impossible and keeps me from working on it in my garage (low door ht). I am the crazy guy you seek. I would keep the 4020 for backup, build a shed, and buy another working 4020. Why? Cause the farm used a 4020 at one time and you likely have attachments for it; it was suited to the work at one time; parts value way exceeds scrap value; and if you get a newer unit - welcome to the world of safety interlocks, chip/electronic failures, etc. If you prefer an orchard tractor though - I will sell you my TN80F cheap. It starts and pulls like a dream. If you are looking for a partner - I am up for that and will throw in the TN80-F in for starters.

 

[yanmars]

I think you would have more time, money and troubles trying to get it back up and running.

 

[Forgotten_Orchard]

Very Tempting! Which island? As long as it's not all work and no play.
A 4020 seems way too big for orchard work. What does the used tractor market have to offer in Hawaii?

The big island, and you'd need 4wd to make it from the orchard to go play

 

[Forgotten_Orchard]

By the way, what are you growing in your orchard?

Macadamia nuts

 

[OrangeRidge]

That's not a viable equipment situation . It's a heap of skip fill . Buy something old , decent and functioning .

 

[MHarryE]

Give up on the 4020. First you mention the climate of your area on Hawaii are not mountaintop dry, so everything open is corrosion damaged. Got a lot of partially stripped for parts tractors on a farm I rent for the acreage. I have asked people whose work is restoring old tractors of which these would be excellent when repaired and they all say no - anything open to the elements has too much corrosion damage to be of value as there are many other tractors available for parts that are not in such shape. Second, you probably want to get to work in your orchard. Not sure what you need to do since apparently its been inactive. You need 4wd (and I assume the 4020 you have doesn't have it). Macadamia trees don't need much other than lots of nitrogen and lots of pickers and big wallets to hold all the money you will make once you are in operation.

 

[MossRoad]

Macadamia nuts

MMMMmmmmm!!!

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

Best bet would be get another 4020 and you can use it and look at it to put the other one together. Im finishing a JD skidder now. Jimmy Carter was president when it was bought new. Had it all apart. Sandblasted and painted the parts individually before assembly. It is worth it. Im trying to teach you a lesson that you dont have to learn yourself. Just go out and buy s newer one that has adjustable timing, plastic fuel tanks with rubber hose and lift pumps, computer, regen, etc...Our oldest is an 81 and newest is a 91. Will use any one all day weeks on end. Never been to any type of shop. I would use a big tractor for little things before Id use a little tractor for big things. Got a call about another machine abandoned 20 years ago. Wheels torched off and parts missing. Yeah im gonna get it if its gettable. Have you priced new skidders lately? Have you priced a new tractor that size? With a slush box tranny? This new stuff is over complicated. I worked as a mechanic at a dealership. You could end uo with two tractors that run good. Dont worry about the main and rod caps not being marked, if they are not. Just turn the crank as you tighten things down. It will stop if the parts are not right, move them around. Put several werengines together out of buckets and nothing was marked. They ran fine and still are running. If it was a off brand tractor I would get rid of it. But with it being name brand, I would run it. Those were gas or diesel engines in 4020, gas usually propane, seen them with carbs too. Find one just like it that is usable and also use it for a looker to put the other one together. Find a crank, hone block, put new rings, lap the valves, and put together. Or you can call a salvage place and get an engine. Ive bought too many that had trees grown up through them and chain sawed them out and come alonged on a trailer. I have never parted anything yet. In fact, i have a 58 Fordson power major diesel that had been passed through 15 people that couldnt get it running. Nobody could figure out that vacuum governor system with a butterfly like a carburetor. Glad i stopped listening to other people a long time ago. If that was my 4020, Id be using it before they knew what happened. I went and fixed a fork lift for a guy once. Worked for JCB at the time. He had 300 of those JD tractors. Big ones and most were 4 wd. All were ready to go. Not any for parts. Funny, he wanted me to remove all the electric junk so it would just crank and die with the key and a kill. The electronics things get old fast.

 

[Tx Jim]

I'm going to reiterate IF ENGINE ROD/MAIN BRG CAPS AREN'T correctly marked/identified Forgotten Orchard can't SUCCESSFULLY REBUILD present ENGINE without some unknown added expenses. It would be an eye/wallet opening experience to spend the time/$$$$ to get that engine running & a rod or main brg FAIL and a large hole appeared in the side of the engine block!!!