Is there a TractorFax ?

[Gunslinger57]

Is there any records kept on tractors by Serial #? I bought a 87 MF240 with only 86Hrs. Seems hard to believe. Are there any clues to tell if its original or restored. Seller didn't know, but said it was in pristine condition when purchased in 07 and it still looks pretty dang new. Paint and decals appear to be factory. The rear tires are the wider less aggressive tires not the narrower more knobby AG tire. Were those available on the 87 or is that a clue to a restored tractor. Any MF gooroo's out there to gimme some of there expertise on this would be appreciated. Also shoot me a in the dark price on what you think the tractor is worth. So I will know if i made a good deal or not.
Looking forward to reading all comments and hopefully get some good advise.

 

[k0ua]

Is there any records kept on tractors by Serial #? I bought a 87 MF240 with only 86Hrs. Seems hard to believe. Are there any clues to tell if its original or restored. Seller didn't know, but said it was in pristine condition when purchased in 07 and it still looks pretty dang new. Paint and decals appear to be factory. The rear tires are the wider less aggressive tires not the narrower more knobby AG tire. Were those available on the 87 or is that a clue to a restored tractor. Any MF gooroo's out there to gimme some of there expertise on this would be appreciated. Also shoot me a in the dark price on what you think the tractor is worth. So I will know if i made a good deal or not.
Looking forward to reading all comments and hopefully get some good advise.

In a word, no on the tractorfax. as for what the massey is worth, I will leave that to others, however you can start here:

TractorData.com Massey Ferguson 240 tractor information

http://www.tractorhouse.com/list/li...xtraTHOSpecs=1&Cond=All&SO=2&btnSearch=Search

 

[MIKE R]

Take a look at the clutch and other pedals. If they show wear chances are the meter is not correct. Look around the serial number plate to see if there is any over spray on it. These would indicate that it has been restored. Also look at the decals and gauge faces, most that are not original will say "MADE IN CHINA" or some other foreign country somewhere on them.

I would venture to say that is worth somewhere is the $7000-$9500 range.

 

[Cherokee140]

Carfax is good to a point....but don't take it as the end all and be all.

But with the home grown nature of Tractors I really doubt such a thing could get off the ground.

 

[Verticaltrx]

Things to check for wear to determine hours:

-condition of pedals, with only 86hrs the paint shouldn't even be off the pedals. If it is check to see if the metal has been worn down on the pedal face, this could mean thousands of hours

-draw bar, if the hole is elongated at all, or there is any amount of metal worn off the top of the draw bar it has way more than 86hrs.

-3pt hitch, the balls and linkage will all have some slop in them once it starts getting up there in hours.

-PTO splines, if it has a lot of hours (like many thousands) sometimes the splines on the PTO shaft will start to get worn and distorted. You'll notice this when you try to hook it up to a brand new implement.

-tires, if they are original the tread should still be in perfect condition at 86hrs, nice square edges on the tread blocks and full tread depth. At that age they will probably have a little cracking and dry rot, which would be a good determining factor if they were original.

-slop in the controls (gear shift, etc)

-slop in the steering

I'm sure there are more visual things to look for, but those are the basics.

Basically with a tractor like you describe there are only a few options. First would be it is all original with only 86hrs, ie someone parked it in a barn for the past 27 years and forgot about it. Second is the tractor is original but the hour meter was replaced at some time (most likely). Third is the tractor has been repainted and either the hour meter was replaced then or it has 10,000+ hrs since most hour meters go back to zero at 10,000.

 

[Gunslinger57]

Thanks for all the advise. It does have overspray on serial# plate. I will check for worn parts and gauges as you described. Tires are mint.

Things to check for wear to determine hours:

-condition of pedals, with only 86hrs the paint shouldn't even be off the pedals. If it is check to see if the metal has been worn down on the pedal face, this could mean thousands of hours

-draw bar, if the hole is elongated at all, or there is any amount of metal worn off the top of the draw bar it has way more than 86hrs.

-3pt hitch, the balls and linkage will all have some slop in them once it starts getting up there in hours.

-PTO splines, if it has a lot of hours (like many thousands) sometimes the splines on the PTO shaft will start to get worn and distorted. You'll notice this when you try to hook it up to a brand new implement.

-tires, if they are original the tread should still be in perfect condition at 86hrs, nice square edges on the tread blocks and full tread depth. At that age they will probably have a little cracking and dry rot, which would be a good determining factor if they were original.

-slop in the controls (gear shift, etc)

-slop in the steering

I'm sure there are more visual things to look for, but those are the basics.

Basically with a tractor like you describe there are only a few options. First would be it is all original with only 86hrs, ie someone parked it in a barn for the past 27 years and forgot about it. Second is the tractor is original but the hour meter was replaced at some time (most likely). Third is the tractor has been repainted and either the hour meter was replaced then or it has 10,000+ hrs since most hour meters go back to zero at 10,000.

 

[Code54]

Good summery - also look at bolt heads, drain plugs, etc for rounding or wear.

Things to check for wear to determine hours:

-condition of pedals, with only 86hrs the paint shouldn't even be off the pedals. If it is check to see if the metal has been worn down on the pedal face, this could mean thousands of hours

-draw bar, if the hole is elongated at all, or there is any amount of metal worn off the top of the draw bar it has way more than 86hrs.

-3pt hitch, the balls and linkage will all have some slop in them once it starts getting up there in hours.

-PTO splines, if it has a lot of hours (like many thousands) sometimes the splines on the PTO shaft will start to get worn and distorted. You'll notice this when you try to hook it up to a brand new implement.

-tires, if they are original the tread should still be in perfect condition at 86hrs, nice square edges on the tread blocks and full tread depth. At that age they will probably have a little cracking and dry rot, which would be a good determining factor if they were original.

-slop in the controls (gear shift, etc)

-slop in the steering

I'm sure there are more visual things to look for, but those are the basics.

Basically with a tractor like you describe there are only a few options. First would be it is all original with only 86hrs, ie someone parked it in a barn for the past 27 years and forgot about it. Second is the tractor is original but the hour meter was replaced at some time (most likely). Third is the tractor has been repainted and either the hour meter was replaced then or it has 10,000+ hrs since most hour meters go back to zero at 10,000.

 

[Code54]

Good summery - also look at bolt heads, drain plugs, etc for rounding or wear.

Things to check for wear to determine hours:

-condition of pedals, with only 86hrs the paint shouldn't even be off the pedals. If it is check to see if the metal has been worn down on the pedal face, this could mean thousands of hours

-draw bar, if the hole is elongated at all, or there is any amount of metal worn off the top of the draw bar it has way more than 86hrs.

-3pt hitch, the balls and linkage will all have some slop in them once it starts getting up there in hours.

-PTO splines, if it has a lot of hours (like many thousands) sometimes the splines on the PTO shaft will start to get worn and distorted. You'll notice this when you try to hook it up to a brand new implement.

-tires, if they are original the tread should still be in perfect condition at 86hrs, nice square edges on the tread blocks and full tread depth. At that age they will probably have a little cracking and dry rot, which would be a good determining factor if they were original.

-slop in the controls (gear shift, etc)

-slop in the steering

I'm sure there are more visual things to look for, but those are the basics.

Basically with a tractor like you describe there are only a few options. First would be it is all original with only 86hrs, ie someone parked it in a barn for the past 27 years and forgot about it. Second is the tractor is original but the hour meter was replaced at some time (most likely). Third is the tractor has been repainted and either the hour meter was replaced then or it has 10,000+ hrs since most hour meters go back to zero at 10,000.

 

[/pine]

IMO...the thing that would come the closest to what you asked about and possibly a whole lot better...would be a dealers service record/logs...A lot of tractor owners rely on their dealers for all regular and unexpected service etc...