case ih farmall 55a

[Teaspoon]

Hello I am new to the forum and I'm wondering if anybody has a farmall 55 A tractors in agriculture use. I need to know if these tractors are capable of picking up 6 foot rolls of hay. 1200 to 1500lb rolls. I am interested in four-wheel-drive loader tractors and abilities in this size. Please let me know any pros and cons of this tractor.

 

[Mdejoode]

I have the 2011 65A and it has handled big bales easily. I can't remember the weight deference between the 55A and 65A but am sure the 3 pt will handle them. I do remember the 55A does have a deferential fel and may be marginal for use with big bales.

 

[Teaspoon]

Thank you for the input. How well do you like your 65a? I like these tractors. The only reason I'm considering the 55a is it is small enough to do garden work, easy to haul, & fuel efficient need to make sure that it will be able to move 1000 to 1500 lb rolls. How much would one of these tractors weigh with fluid inn the rears, loader,& rear weights?

 

[mbmrang]

I am actually looking at the same tractor right now. I don't have the specs in front of me but if I remember right, that the load rating for the FEL was around 500 pounds more than the Kubota MX5100. Which would put over 2000lbs if I remember correctly that is. I was leaning towards the MX5100 but after finding a good deal on a 55a, I will go that route. I also am just wanting a tractor for feeding round bales and the occasional food plot work.

 

[Teaspoon]

I definitely agree! The Kubota 7040 isn't much heavier in weight than the CIH 55a. I would say that the 5100x is quite a bit smaller than the 55a. What kind of deal are you getting on one?

 

[mbmrang]

The salesman pointed out the 7040 to me since it is so much more tractor than the 5100. And realistically for the extra money it is a good deal. But, I have access to several 100 HP tractors and I just need something to keep at my house to feed the cattle I have on my place.

As far as a deal goes, it is a tractor just coming off lease from the local university. Only ~200 hours but I would get the same warranty and finacne options as a brand new for a substantial discount. I will go look at it tomorrow I hope and then I will give the salesman my demands. I am hoping to add a brush hog and a second remote. I don't want to jenx myself on any numbers right now, but if all goes well tomorrow, I may be there on Monday to sign the paperwork.

 

[Teaspoon]

Boy, that sounds good! They tell me that of you find a tractor that has just came off lease then that's that the way to go. If you get to test drive one please keep me posted.

 

[Mdejoode]

Teaspoon

My rears are not filled and I carry only my 6 ft blade on the 3 pt usually, my guess is the 65 A weighs in at about 6000 lb. I've loaded 1500 lb plus bales two high on goose neck flat beds with no problem.

 

[mbmrang]

Well, I went and drove the tractor today. It is a very nice machine. No loader on it but there is a L530 sitting in the shop waiting to be mounted. Hopefully Monday I can talk to the salesman and get a $ amount to start the negotiations with. To be honest though, I'm afraid I might say yes before I even give a counter offer. I know one of the best parts about buying a piece of equipment is the "getting a good deal" with haggling, but if it is anywhere close to where I think it's going to be, it will be a good deal.

According the to the brochure, the L530 is capable of 2k lbs at the pins and maximum lift hieght at the pins is 98.4 inches. Should be more than enough to handle the round bales we put up. The shipping weight on the 55 4WD is 4078 lbs. That would not include the loader or ballast of course.

 

[Teaspoon]

Well, that's pretty good! If yours will do that then surely a 55a will do that loaded in the rears and wheels weights. What do you think? Another thing has me bothered....specs say these tractors are parent bore in the block, the same size in J D says they are wet sleeved in the block. If in the future does this mean the 55a will have to be bored & sleeved of it's to be over hauled?

 

[Teaspoon]

So, how well did the shuttle work? Did the main shifter work good? Can you shift it on the move? How big are the rolls you put up?
LOL!!!! Sorry for so many questions!
Anything you didn't like?

 

[mbmrang]

I didn't try to shift on the fly. I didn't want to grind any gears when someone was watching me. The shuttle had a little catch going to the forward postition, but I only noticed it on the first time I used it. But the only left hand shuttle I am used to is a 10 yr old case back hoe and that thing is fairly loose so it wasn't any comparison. I liked the main shifter and the pattern. Was not hard to figure out which gear it was it without looking at it.

Our bales come out of a 5x6 case baler that was bought new last summer. We try to keep the bales 5x5 though so they stack more evenly in the barn. We figure the bales weigh about 1400 fresh in the field.

Don't worry about the questions. I've had a lot of questions through out this process as well. The only thing I didn't like about the tractor was the fact that I couldn't take it home with me today. They picked it up from the lease yesterday at 3 so they haven't had time to go through it, service it, and mount the loader. Oh well. It would be easier to have it delivered anyhow.

 

[Teaspoon]

That sounds great! Now you have me wanting to go test drive one. Did you notice any whine in the transmission? Thank you all for any input and comments!
Mbmrang,
If you don't care look at the post I wrote about how the block is bored and let me know what you think.

 

[mbmrang]

Regarding the cylinders, I am not going to speak to whether I think it is a good thing or bad thing. One of the main reasons I am purchasing new (or **** neared new) is I expect to either wear the rest of the tractor out or trade up to a bigger one before I would have to worry about rebuilding the engine. But, in my opinion, the JD uses wet sleeve because they expect it to be rebuilt. (Just kidding, I don't want to bash any brand here) Actually, every motor has it's advantages and I really like the motor Case uses.

 

[Teaspoon]

Ok. Can you tell me what you like about this motor Case uses over others? Did you notice any whine in the transmission when you drove it yesterday?

 

[mbmrang]

Well, I can say what I really like about the motor is that as of either this Friday or Monday it will be my motor. I still have to sign the paperwork but they should be able to get the second remote installed and delivered in a few days. I'll be starting a thread about it soon. I can't wait till it gets here!!

 

[Teaspoon]

Congratulations!
Do you have any specifics on the motor as far as likes or dislikes?

 

[dieseljay]

I bought a 55a last April and have put 430hrs on it since. These are great tractors, easy on fuel, quiet, and comfortable. It will handle 4.5 x 5 dry bales with no real problem but we do some silage bales and as long as you don't mind the rear tires coming off the ground once in awhile it handles them as well. The rear tires are loaded but I do not have wheel weights. Which would likely make it much more stable when moving the silage bales. I do find there is a whine in the trans but its not bad. ( straight cut gears). You can shift on the fly in high range without grinding gears, it just takes a little fineness. I'm extremely happy with this tractor and would recommend it to anyone looking for this size of tractor

 

[Teaspoon]

Thanks so much for the post! How well do you think it would do with lifting dry, 5 x 6, grass hay? I really appreciate the post.

 

[dieseljay]

I think it will do ok. I'd just make sure that you have enough ballast on the rear to compensate for the weight on the loader. I only have the tires loaded at this point but have priced the wheel weights and IMO they are over priced for what you get. For now I carry a bale around on the three point hitch when I'm gathering hay in the fields and for most of the winter for feeding there is a winch mounted on the tractor which is enough to keep the rear tires on the ground.