Case Farmall 75A review

[Bryan 45]

Not a lot of info on the A series utility tractors on the net- so I'm going to update this as I use the tractor.

Purchased back in either Jan or Feb from my local Case dealer. They had this 75A in inventory at the time. This particular tractor has the following options- cab, front end loader, MFD, 12x12 transmission, power shuttle, air ride seat, rear weights, and a buddy seat. I bought it for general farm maintenance- mostly brush cutting hilly fields. Sale price was about $15K off listed retail.

To date, I've put about 30 hours on it. The only issue I've had with it is the "low fuel" warning light. It comes and goes intermittently. I've spoken with the dealer and he's talked to Case support. Says it's either a grounding issue, a software update issue, or an instrument cluster issue. It's covered by warranty either way- I'll get them to fix it when it goes in for service.

What I like- the power, weight, cab, controls, POWER SHUTTLE, seat comfort, and A/C.

I've brush cut some pretty steep hills with it so far, and either going up forwards or backwards with a 8' Woods mounted cutter running I haven't lugged the engine. Most of the material I'm cutting is just grown up weeds and grass, so the cutter isn't working too hard, but the tractor handles it with ease. With the loader and rear weights, the tractor weighs almost 9K pounds. The weight has been a big help with the hills I've mowed. That's one of the reasons I went with such a large tractor for my use.

The cab is wonderful. So much glass makes visibility excellent, and keeps the bugs and branches off me when mowing. I'm amazed how quiet it is with the engine turning 2K RPM and the mower going too. The A/C blower is louder than the engine. Speaking of the A/C- it works fantastic. I've mowed on 92 degree days so far and it keeps me plenty cool. The controls are all easy to reach and conveniently placed. There is a quick up/down selector for the three point. You can set your lower limit with the 3 point up/down lever, and then when you hit the quick button, the 3 point raises all the way up. Pressing the other side of the quick lever lowers the 3 point back down to your preset position. I don't use this feature when mowing though because I rarely raise the mower all the way up. Also regarding the controls- the power shuttle works great. To change direction, flip the lever into neutral, apply brake, flip the lever to the new direction of travel, release brake. This makes mowing the small fields I have easy.

What I don't like- loader cycle time is slow, turning radius is large. Visibility for connecting skid-steer loader attachments is poor.

So far most of my loader work has been clearing some downed trees at the perimeter of fields as I'm mowing. With RPMs up, I haven't noticed the slow cycle speed as much. But moving a little dirt a couple weeks ago, it was obvious. The up/down speed isn't bad, but the bucket curl speed makes it seem like I'm waiting for it to happen. No more loader work than I do, it's bearable though. I changed out the bucket this past week for a set of forks and it almost requires a groundman to get lined up. When the loader is low, the QA brackets are mostly behind the horizontal brace between the loader arms. It takes a little stabbing, wiggling, and some luck to get things lined up well enough to change implements. It'll probably get a little better with more experience, but as well thought-out as most of this tractor is, this easily stands out as something that should have been improved. I also unloaded a 2,000# ditch bank mower the other day. Loader capacity is listed as just shy of 1,900#s. The mower was a workout for the tractor. But, I got it off safely. Wish I had a short video or picture of it.

And turning radius. I know- it's a fairly large sized utility tractor, with big MFD tires. And traction has been great with these big MFD tires. But it really takes some planning on turning around. Again- most of my fields are small- anywhere from .5 acre to 4 acres. And the bigger fields are long and skinny. I've found myself mowing backwards because at times it's easier than turning around. I wouldn't trade the size and weight of this utility tractor for a Compact tractor's maneuverability, but it certainly changes the way an operator has to go about a task.

And a couple pictures, because everyone likes pictures.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Nice tractor!

SR

 

[EddieWalker]

Thanks for the review. I'm hoping to buy a cabbed tractor in the next couple of years. I'm trying to pay off my wife's mini van and our new HVAC system as quickly as I can, and then when that is done, I'll be more comfortable financing another tractor. Case makes the nicest looking tractor out there in my opinion. I really like that shade of red.

What type of smog system do you have and is there any issues with it? Since you are under the 75 hp barrier, I'm thinking that you should be OK with what they have on it.

I appreciate the pictures too. I wasn't aware of how limited the view was with the loader arms in the down position. Turning isn't an issue for me, but visibility is big on my list. I'll have to pay attention to that when I actually get serious and start looking at different brands.

Are you in a state with high humidity and heat? I'm in East Texas, and I know of some friends with cabs that struggle to keep cool during the worse months of summer. Keeping the filters clean is also a big issue, and depending on the brand, a lot of work. How easy is it to keep yours clean?

 

[deserteagle71]

Great review!

Personally I prefer taking the loader off when mowing - heck, it takes only about 5 minutes. I need the extra visibility - terrain I mow is very rough with big holes I have to steer around.

Must be nice to work in so much greenery. My place is all dry desert and the mower stirs up a lot of dust and debris - at times I can barely see with the cloud of dust surrounding me. So at the end of every day of mowing I have to clean the radiator screens and cab air filters to keep the a/c working well.

 

[Bigpuddie]

Check to make sure your steering stops are turned in. This may dramatically improve your turning radius. Lift from wheels off ground with loader, adjust turning stops in until clearance is an issue when turning stop to stop. Make sure to articulate axle to take into account axle articulation.

 

[Bryan 45]

On the emissions- there is no DEF or filter. Nothing to be maintained.

Funny a couple of you mentioned filters. The about the third time I used the tractor, air temp was about 90. I had been mowing for only an hour or so, and noticed the air conditioner was not nearly as cold as it had been. Engine temp started rising beyond where it normally runs. When the temp gauge crept on up towards the red line, I shut the tractor off to check things out. I raised the hood and noticed the radiator screen was covered in junk- mostly grass and weed seeds. The radiator screen is removable, but only with the loader in the raised position. I cleaned as much of the junk off the screen as I could out in the field and fired the tractor back up. Engine temp immediately started to cool back down, and A/C was a little cooler. I mowed for another hour or so, and took the tractor back to the barn. After shutting it down and letting things cool for an hour or so, I popped the hood again to see how bad things were covered.

There is an oil cooler for the power shuttle, intercooler for the turbo, coil for the A/C, and the radiator. Things are pretty well stacked one in front of the other, without a lot of clearance. But, the A/C coil is removable. There is one thumb screw that retains the coil on a set of rails. Removing the screw allows you to slide the coil out from in front of the radiator. The hoses connecting it are long enough and flexible. I washed everything off, as per the maintenance instructions, and put it back together. A/C was ice cold again, and engine temp ran just below 12:00 on the gauge. Now I clean it all about every 8 hours of mowing.

I did notice the in-cabin air filter is noticeably dirty. It's retained by two screws. I'm going to clean it before the next use.

Bigpuddie- thanks for the tip on the steering stops. I'll check those this weekend. Hopefully that will give me a little tighter turning.

 

[GSVette]

On the emissions- there is no DEF or filter. Nothing to be maintained.

Funny a couple of you mentioned filters. The about the third time I used the tractor, air temp was about 90. I had been mowing for only an hour or so, and noticed the air conditioner was not nearly as cold as it had been. Engine temp started rising beyond where it normally runs. When the temp gauge crept on up towards the red line, I shut the tractor off to check things out. I raised the hood and noticed the radiator screen was covered in junk- mostly grass and weed seeds. The radiator screen is removable, but only with the loader in the raised position. I cleaned as much of the junk off the screen as I could out in the field and fired the tractor back up. Engine temp immediately started to cool back down, and A/C was a little cooler. I mowed for another hour or so, and took the tractor back to the barn. After shutting it down and letting things cool for an hour or so, I popped the hood again to see how bad things were covered.

There is an oil cooler for the power shuttle, intercooler for the turbo, coil for the A/C, and the radiator. Things are pretty well stacked one in front of the other, without a lot of clearance. But, the A/C coil is removable. There is one thumb screw that retains the coil on a set of rails. Removing the screw allows you to slide the coil out from in front of the radiator. The hoses connecting it are long enough and flexible. I washed everything off, as per the maintenance instructions, and put it back together. A/C was ice cold again, and engine temp ran just below 12:00 on the gauge. Now I clean it all about every 8 hours of mowing.

I did notice the in-cabin air filter is noticeably dirty. It's retained by two screws. I'm going to clean it before the next use.

Bigpuddie- thanks for the tip on the steering stops. I'll check those this weekend. Hopefully that will give me a little tighter turning.

You do have a DOC, I believe in order for your machine to be tier iv final compliant. A DOC can ‘plug’ as I understand it much like a DPF.

 

[todd92]

There are very limited reports of DOC's 'face plugging'. A DOC is an almost trouble free device. It is not 'much like' a DPF. DPF's plug up often. On ALL tractors with a DPF it is preceded by a DOC. They serve very different purposes.

 

[Bryan 45]

Big thanks to Bigpaddie- I looked at the steering stops this morning and sure enough, on each sides bolt there were two shims. One thick and one thin. I took the thin one Off each side and it made a big difference! I mowed about 5 hours afterwards and have no issues w articulation or rubbing, so I may try swapping the thick for the thin to improve things a little more. But what a difference!

Low fuel warning is becoming less intermittent. I mowed for at least an hour today before it went off. Still aggravating though. Not a lot of pics because they mostly look the same from the operators seat, but here are a couple.

 

[Bigpuddie]

Big thanks to Bigpaddie- I looked at the steering stops this morning and sure enough, on each sides bolt there were two shims. One thick and one thin. I took the thin one Off each side and it made a big difference! I mowed about 5 hours afterwards and have no issues w articulation or rubbing, so I may try swapping the thick for the thin to improve things a little more. But what a difference!

Low fuel warning is becoming less intermittent. I mowed for at least an hour today before it went off. Still aggravating though. Not a lot of pics because they mostly look the same from the operators seat, but here are a couple.

Great news. Lad to help. Enjoy the new tractor