Im new to the forum, and Im new to tractors.. I inherited a home which is on 10 acres and we are currently planning on moving into. Problem is, we have a waist high field in the front yard which is probably 4 acres and 6 acreas in back of the home, in the back theres saplings and thick brush, wild grapevines and pickers.. Anyways, I don't have the type of money to buy a brand new tractor. So I've been looking at old tractors from the 40's, 50's and 60's. Theres alot of old Ford 8N's and 9N's for sale and they seem to be pretty common around here. So my question is, how easy are these tractors to work on? I have alot of respect for those old tractors, **** they've been around for decades, I figure my best route in clearing this growth is with a PTO and a brush cutter. I thought about getting one of those tow behind mowers that DR sells, it looks pretty tough, but I would have to buy an ATV or something to pull it with, and I think a PTO driven blade would be more reliable. I also would need something to plow the snow off the long driveway and scrape the gravel, so I think I need a tractor. I also see Allis Chalmer tractors around alot to, im just clueless and searching for the best option to clear this land. Thanks for any help.
Buying first tractor, something Old but reliable.
- Thread starter Billb72
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TDVT
Silver Member
I was in a similar situation & bought an 8N for my first tractor & as long as you take into consideration that it's 70 year-old technology, you won't be disappointed. They are really not so different from more modern tractors & must have seemed pretty high-tech in their day.
Ours still runs fine, a little tired, but will probably be rebuilt soon. It has ALWAYS started & the odd part I have needed has been easily obtained from any number of sources. There's tons of stuff on the web & the N News magazine is pretty good for hard core information.
Since it's a regular 3 point hitch, any implements you get for it (bush hog, etc.) will be usable on another tractor down the road.
I ran chains ours year round since the tires were pretty worn & went pretty much where ever I wanted. I wish it had more power but...
If I were to buy another old Ford I'd look for an 600/800 series (mid-Fifites) The 800's (841,851,861, etc.) were around 45hp, some with power steering & could handle a loader better than an N.
We ended up buying a new Kubota as we really wanted to have a loader & the extra power is nice too (& 4WD) but we still have the N & I use them both.
Ours still runs fine, a little tired, but will probably be rebuilt soon. It has ALWAYS started & the odd part I have needed has been easily obtained from any number of sources. There's tons of stuff on the web & the N News magazine is pretty good for hard core information.
Since it's a regular 3 point hitch, any implements you get for it (bush hog, etc.) will be usable on another tractor down the road.
I ran chains ours year round since the tires were pretty worn & went pretty much where ever I wanted. I wish it had more power but...
If I were to buy another old Ford I'd look for an 600/800 series (mid-Fifites) The 800's (841,851,861, etc.) were around 45hp, some with power steering & could handle a loader better than an N.
We ended up buying a new Kubota as we really wanted to have a loader & the extra power is nice too (& 4WD) but we still have the N & I use them both.
Farmwithjunk
Super Member
How easy are they to work on? All depends on your mechanical skills I suppose. To some people, it's rocket science. Others can dive in and fix just about anything.
There's no "across the board" answer to which brands and/or models are the most reliable once they've reached 40 or 50 years old. It's all about the condition of the individual tractor at that point.
One deciding factor SHOULD be which models offer the best parts availability. Speaking in terms of smaller utility tractors, your Fords and Fergusons are ahead of the curve in that area.
Don't limit yourself to a certain age. You'll find some nice bargains in slightly newer tractors every now and then. Utilities for the 1960's and 70's aren't always a lot higher than those of the 40's and 50's. With 60's/70's technology, you stand a better chance of finding one with live power, better brakes and steering, more modern engine probably with more power, better electrical's, and little things like better seats.
Ford "N's" and Ferguson "TO's" were decent little tractors in their day. They're still usable today. But jump ahead just a few years to Massey Ferguson 100 series or Ford Thousand series tractors and you're lightyears ahead in what you have to work with.
There's no "across the board" answer to which brands and/or models are the most reliable once they've reached 40 or 50 years old. It's all about the condition of the individual tractor at that point.
One deciding factor SHOULD be which models offer the best parts availability. Speaking in terms of smaller utility tractors, your Fords and Fergusons are ahead of the curve in that area.
Don't limit yourself to a certain age. You'll find some nice bargains in slightly newer tractors every now and then. Utilities for the 1960's and 70's aren't always a lot higher than those of the 40's and 50's. With 60's/70's technology, you stand a better chance of finding one with live power, better brakes and steering, more modern engine probably with more power, better electrical's, and little things like better seats.
Ford "N's" and Ferguson "TO's" were decent little tractors in their day. They're still usable today. But jump ahead just a few years to Massey Ferguson 100 series or Ford Thousand series tractors and you're lightyears ahead in what you have to work with.
JoeinTX
Platinum Member
If you're looking just for something that can handle a 3pt shredder for the least money, then the old Fords and MFs are golden. As the above poster stated, they were years ahead of the others and still good utility tractors today if you're not wanting power steering, hydro trannies, FWA, etc. Simple, easy to work on, straightforward.
All that said, you can go and buy a nice 35hp Mahindra or Long Farmtrac (if you don't mind the company's financial situation, ahem) for around $10k and have a very solid rig for years to come.
All that said, you can go and buy a nice 35hp Mahindra or Long Farmtrac (if you don't mind the company's financial situation, ahem) for around $10k and have a very solid rig for years to come.
BobG_in_VA
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If this is your first tractor, and you need brush hogging in the near term, an 8n or similar tractor will do the job, BUT the PTO is run off the transmission on most all of the 40s/early 50s tractors....thats why they are known as fence busters: the momentum of the rotary cutter will overpower the brakes...in other words you put the clutch in to stop and the rotary cutter will still "push" you even though you have your foot on both brakes...for your first go with a tractor with independant PTO/two stage clutch....you won't be sorry. BobG in VA
JoeinTX
Platinum Member
"thats why they are known as fence busters: the momentum of the rotary cutter will overpower the brakes...in other words you put the clutch in to stop and the rotary cutter will still "push" you even though you have your foot on both brakes...."
They certainly will.........unless you buy a cheap, simple PTO override clutch that prevents this. They are very common, I've never run a PTO implement without one, and they work nearly flawlessly with routine maintenance and care. It's a $50-60 part that makes those $2000 tractors very usefull today versus much newer and more expensive tractors.
PTO Parts (Coupler, Clutch, Adapter, Increaser)
They certainly will.........unless you buy a cheap, simple PTO override clutch that prevents this. They are very common, I've never run a PTO implement without one, and they work nearly flawlessly with routine maintenance and care. It's a $50-60 part that makes those $2000 tractors very usefull today versus much newer and more expensive tractors.
PTO Parts (Coupler, Clutch, Adapter, Increaser)
flusher
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Billb72 said:
One neighbor has a 1942 Ford 9N that he uses with a 4-ft wide rotary mower (brush hog) to mow about 8 acres. He's pretty handy with a wrench and has that old gasser running real smooth. The 9N has about 23 hp engine and 13hp pto.
Another neighbor has a 1949 Ford 8N (27 hp engine, 23 hp pto) that he uses for haying on about 8 acres. It does everything (discing, fertilizing, seeding, running a sicklebar mower, running a side delivery hay rake). He tried to use it with his old IH 57W baler but found that even in the lowest gear that 8N moved too fast (overloaded the baler). So he had to borrow a neighbors JD 2640 to get the job done.
You need to get a $50 overrunning clutch to attach between the tractor's pto shaft and a pro-driven implement like a mower since these old Ford's do not have two-stage clutches.
You also have be careful because the transmission in these old Fords sometimes is pretty loose.
Don't know what your budget is, but these old Fords usually sell for $2-3K around here.
I have a 1964 MF-135 diesel (45 hp engine, 37 hp pto) that I bought in July06 for $3600. It will easily handle a 6-ft wide brush hog. The Perkins engine is very fuel efficient.
The old Fords and MF's have 3pt hitches. You have to be careful because most of the old Allis Chalmers and IH tractors from the 40s and 50s don't have 3pt hitches. Instead they have 2pt hitches with quick disconect features. If you bought one of these you'd have to retrofit a 3pt hitch to use more recent implements that use the 3pt hitch.
Thanks, for all the replies. After reading the posts I've decided to look into a new tractor, and take JoeinTX's advice. I found a model that I can afford and might have less issues with. Im looking at the Mahindra 3525, It seems to have enough power for what I need and appears to have some pretty good reviews. I had no idea about seperate PTO power or clutch issues to take into consideration. Im not a very good mechanic so I don't need to try and make a 60 yr old tractor run like new. Thanks
leftybob
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I purchased a 51 8n Ford about 4 years ago after some maintenance work it,s working really well. It came with a 6 foot finishing mower and the override clutch. I found that with the finishing mower I really didn't need the override clutch but don't try it with a bush hog. Most 8'ns have hydraulic lift problems until you rebuild them which isn't a real big deal. For an old tractor it does the job and parts are available.
flusher
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Billb72 said:
I bought a 2WD Mahindra 5525, a big brother to the 3525, last March. At 55 hp (engine) and 45 hp (pto) it's the tractor I plan to use for my 8 acre hayfield. I bought the ML250 front end loader (FEL) with the tractor. I only have about 30 hours on it, but so far it's worked fine. There's some double clutching needed since the tranny is pretty simple on the 3525 and the 5525. No problem. Just takes a little patience and practice. You'll grind the gears a little in the learning process.