Jinma. Any good?

[4shorts]

Hi everyone. I have never seen a Jinma other than on the net so I haven't a clue what there like. I would like to but a 30-40 hp tractor for snow clearing so it would need a loader attachment plus I would like to have a backhoe for it. Would Jinma be worth looking at? I know there are folks who say they would never buy a Chinese anything but I'm in the repair business and I purchased a really nice reliable Chinese tire changer last year that I just love. It works as good as any I've ever used so I'm wondering if the same holds true for there tractors. Thanks for your thoughts. Paul

 

[RonMar]

I love my 28HP 4WD model(284). It is a real brute. It is a basic machine, but perfectly adequate for getting some work done. If you are familliar with machinery and can turn your own wrenches, you are probably a good canidate for succesfull ownership. The Jinma 200 series, having owned one for 3 years now, IMO is a good solid machine. It is probably the most prolific model/manufacturer and the same machine is available under several different names in this country. This make parts availability not such an issue as there are quite a few dealers available, even Northern Tool sells the 25 and 35HP Jinmas rebadged as Nortrak. The large numbers being imported was one of the deciding factors for me. There are some that don't have very many importers and may cause you problems a few years down the road when you need a part that no one in this country has...

If you put some more info in your profile, or let us know where you are at, perhaps some owner in your area, or a dealer will let you come see theirs...

 

[greg_g]

Sounds like you're mechanically inclined. That and a reasonable collection of tools are generally what it takes to be a successful Chinese tractor owner. When properly maintained - and used for tasks appropriate to a utility tractor - they're **** near bulletproof. Most of the complaints you read come from folks who don't know one end of a wrench from another, who don't understand the concept of preventative maintenance, or who push their tractors beyond design tolerances (bulldozing, demolition, swamp buggy, etc).

But since you're in the repair business, I'll bet you already know these folks.

//greg//

 

[Ranch_Hand_Supp]

Would Jinma be worth looking at? Paul

My opinion:

It must have a good prep prior to use. Then where am I going to purchased my replacement parts from? Being a mechanic you will love how smiple it is to work on. There may be times you will need some technical assistance due to the lack of info in the factory books. Thats where a good dealer kicks in. I do not recommend the China backhoe.

You are welcome to come by the shop here in Chesapeake Va. and bring some of that cool Canada air with you !!....... grin.


Ronald
Ranch Hand Supply

 

[Bob Rooks]

I do not recommend the Chinese backhoe either.

 

[4shorts]

Wow. Some great info here guys. Here in Newfoundland there's not even a dealer for these tractors but they can be ordered in. I'm looking at a few other makes of tractors and will get one before the snow gets here. I'm just going to use it for a few small lots for snow clearing.

I'm very used to wrenching. Got a good shop here with all the tooling to do what ever I need to do along with a lathe and milling machine but don't want to work on a tractor all the time either but I'm not so nervious considering one of these tractors thanks to you guys. Appreciate your opinions. Thanks. Paul

 

[SPIKER]

being up there in the cold, I would suggest you stick with the sized machines that come with glow plugs! I think the 30~40 hp versions did not come with glow plugs but the 28hp & down do. (they may be able to put glow plugs on the bigger units I don't know that?)

I have a 284 with china fel and china backhoe.
I would look around and see if there are Local Made FEL and HOES available for the tractor b4 buying that way you know what they will cost vs the china ones. they work but are not as good the tractors are great though. mine has been more bulldozer than tractor. BUT I've also broken more stuff than most using mine that way or should I say abusing mine that way...

also get a good block heater set up right from getgo. there are several that heat rad water at lower heater pipe that seem to be what every one says are best... Mine starts when ever I need it to even down in COLD temps. just takes time to warm her up with some heat lamps on injection pump and tarp ccovering to hold warm in for a while... oor more hard on the starter!

mark M

 

[Gronk]

Can anybody explain why the backhoe should be avoided? I am looking at these tractors and the backhoe is something I desire. I have not seen a Jinma in person yet.


Sean

 

[Bob Rooks]

Mind you this is only my personal experience after approximately 20 hours of operation, other experiences may vary:

I found the cylinder piston cup seals to be unreliable; kept breaking down and blowing through. The material used may be incompatible with domestic hydraulic oils.

Grease points, or lack thereof.

Poor design of boom pivot pin and gudgeons.

Hydraulic operation is jerky, poor quality valves.

You may have good luck in finding hoses. All of the fittings are 18x1.5mm ORFS.

I now have a LiTW backhoe, and couldn't be happier (with the hoe).

 

[3RRL]

I have 2 Chinese tractors.
I bought a 2005 Kama 554 in 2005 and just recently a 2008 Jinma 284 for my wife. I can tell you that her Jinma is set up really nice. The workmanship is better than on the 2005 Kama and she has had no mechanical problems whatsoever. My Kama had rougher fit and finish, but it has given me 560 hours of REALLY hard work. Her 284 comes with spin on filters which is another improvement. They are also very accepting of improvements and add ons and easy to work on. I (we) do all our own wrenching.

The only drawback is I feel the Chinese hydraulic valves are not up to snuff. I changed hers out to an after market valve sold by both Affordable and Ranchhand. It is well worth it. As far as the tractor, it is a real workhorse and a bargain to boot. I have no experience with Chinese backhoes. I know you can get others with more reliable valving and perhaps better features for about the same money.

 

[Gronk]

Mind you this is only my personal experience after approximately 20 hours of operation, other experiences may vary:

I found the cylinder piston cup seals to be unreliable; kept breaking down and blowing through. The material used may be incompatible with domestic hydraulic oils.

Grease points, or lack thereof.

Poor design of boom pivot pin and gudgeons.

Hydraulic operation is jerky, poor quality valves.

You may have good luck in finding hoses. All of the fittings are 18x1.5mm ORFS.

I now have a LiTW backhoe, and couldn't be happier (with the hoe).

Thanks for the info Bob Rooks.
I am not quite up to par with all the info but I have read that the Gulin YW-6 is identical to the Jinma JW-03 but that the cylinders are better along with some other minor differences.
Jinma Backhoe - Tractor Outlet Tractors Loaders Back Hoes Implements
Could the issues you describe have been fixed with the new design?


Sean

 

[Gronk]

I have 2 Chinese tractors.
I bought a 2005 Kama 554 in 2005 and just recently a 2008 Jinma 284 for my wife. I can tell you that her Jinma is set up really nice. The workmanship is better than on the 2005 Kama and she has had no mechanical problems whatsoever. My Kama had rougher fit and finish, but it has given me 560 hours of REALLY hard work. Her 284 comes with spin on filters which is another improvement. They are also very accepting of improvements and add ons and easy to work on. I (we) do all our own wrenching.

The only drawback is I feel the Chinese hydraulic valves are not up to snuff. I changed hers out to an after market valve sold by both Affordable and Ranchhand. It is well worth it. As far as the tractor, it is a real workhorse and a bargain to boot. I have no experience with Chinese backhoes. I know you can get others with more reliable valving and perhaps better features for about the same money.

Hi Rob,

I have read up on most of your posts in regards to the Honeybee and I have seen the pics here and at CTW as well. The loader issues concern me a bit. Mostly the bent rods and you having to cut and reweld the mounts and such to clear the rods and get more bucket curl. Do you know if those issues are only with the QA loaders or if the non-QA ones have those same problems? I am perfectly capable of doing such modifications but it would be more appealing a purchase if I didn't.


Sean

 

[3RRL]

Hi Sean,
Unfortunately I can't help you with that question because I only have the QA on the Jinma. So I don't really know about the non QA situation. In that thread, I was making an assumption that the non QA loaders might not have that problem and when they (the Chinese) added the QA design, perhaps it was copied from other QA systems. But the FEL mounting locations for the cylinders were not visited ... it was not designed properly for the Jinma like in my case. Perhaps Tommy, Ronald or Chip can comment on that? My Kama has a Koyker FEL which is American made and really good. No problems with it ever.
BTW, thanks for bringing that up since it completely slipped my mind that I made that change to her tractor. I do so many changes that I forget. But as far as the rest of it goes, it's a really good little tractor. (Unless I forgot something else).

 

[doxford jim]

Hi Paul,

You have been given some good information here by the other members.
I guess it boils down to what you want and what you can afford plus, being prepared and able to do your own repair and maintenance work.

I have a Jinma 554 which I bought as a crate deal - sight unseen. As far as assembly goes, it is very straight forward. Cost wise - I am sure that the cost of a major brand 55hp 4x4 tractor would be in $40,000 range - with FEL.
I could not afford that sort of money and I wanted to eventually replace my old 1959 MF65 (it all works fine, just old). To me the only option for a new unit of that size was going with a crated deal on a Chinese made tractor.

I have had a few things go wrong and have always been able to fix them. A good preperation helps as does checking all of the nuts and bolts for tightness. Just don't expect a John Deere or a Massey cos you an't gonna get one.

They work (mine does) just fine for my needs - I have just the ZL60 loader. If I could afford it I would get a Lite backhoe (Korean), however there are some good NA units at varying prices out there.I especially like the gear ratios I have on my machine 16F and 8R. The 4x4 feature is a must if you want to do snow clearing with it. On the snow clearing - don't purchase the Chinese snow blower as they are not near as good as the Canadian ones, yet cost close to the Canadian ones in price.

As far as starting goes, my starts just fine with a shot of ether (some say it is a no-no). An engine heater (plug in) would help no end for starting. Hydraulics work fine but the oils all need to be changed for the cooler Canadian weather - I went to AW32 oil as it gets to -35C easily where I live.

In a nutshell, I couldn't be happier with my purchase - I might not feel that way if something serious was wrong with it though.

Good luck with your choice - the Kama 554 and the DF554 looks like good machines for the money.

J.

Hi everyone. I have never seen a Jinma other than on the net so I haven't a clue what there like. I would like to but a 30-40 hp tractor for snow clearing so it would need a loader attachment plus I would like to have a backhoe for it. Would Jinma be worth looking at? I know there are folks who say they would never buy a Chinese anything but I'm in the repair business and I purchased a really nice reliable Chinese tire changer last year that I just love. It works as good as any I've ever used so I'm wondering if the same holds true for there tractors. Thanks for your thoughts. Paul

 

[jswisc]

I've been reading this post this morning and remembered seeing 500 hrs. click over on my Jinma 204 w/ Koyker loader last night. It's on it's 5th summer. No problems to speak of. I was doing loader work last night. One drawback to these tractors is the lack of hyrdostatic drive. I've gotten so good at shifting w/o syncro and moving between ranges that I really don't notice it anymore. I also have a skid loader. It would be difficult to compare any tractor to the skiddy for loader work. But yesterday included some steep terrain and the skiddy was useless. All in all, very pleased with the Jinma. I don't have a backhoe but my friend bought the Korean backhoe. Has it on a 45 h.p. Deere. Works very well.

 

[bjr]

Okay, I'll do it, you know be the devils advocate (aka wet blanket). Do some some searches here on the Chinese Tractor Site for front axle problems on jinmas and you'll find some of the loader related drive train issues, not to mention some broken flywheel housing/transimission cases, broken in two tractors. Now I'm sure you never gonna purposely abuse your tractor and won't know you did, until after the fact. The front end loader and especially the backhoes "CAN" cause grief. I am a proud Jinma JM 354 owner for about five years now and it's been a good tractor. I do not have a FEL or backhoe just for the reasons I've mentioned. I did my homework and decided not to take the risks with those attachments. I have had to rent tractor loader backhoes occasiontionally because of this. I have a rototiller; disc; plow; boxblade; angle/straight blade; landscape rake; rotary field mower and a few other attachments. Mine was a crate tractor and I've replace the alternator; modified the hydraulic suction strainer; replaced all the gauges with mechanical style except the tachometer; adjusted the clutch and engine valves. I'm still using the original batteries and never had to replace the key switch and have very rarely use the glow plugs and I live in Eastern WA state and it gets cold here. I just wanted you to be aware of the possible breakage issues. The Jinma in my case is a good value. MY thoughts. bjr

 

[Diamondpilot]

I would not worry about the front axle or the bell housing area. If you go to the New Holland and John Deere section they have had a few break just the same. I all has to do with abuse or just a bad casting. I personally use the **** out of mine and have had no problems but if I ever do it I will not be foolish and blame the tractor, it will be my fault for abusing it over and over.

Also I have a 48 HP tractor with no FEL and could not imagine just having that tractor now and not have my Jinma with the FEL. I use the FEL 80% of the time I use the tractor. It just seems like this size of tractor with no FEL would be worthless.

Here is just one example: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1477355#post1477355

Chris

 

[Gronk]

Okay, I'll do it, you know be the devils advocate (aka wet blanket). Do some some searches here on the Chinese Tractor Site for front axle problems on jinmas and you'll find some of the loader related drive train issues, not to mention some broken flywheel housing/transimission cases, broken in two tractors. Now I'm sure you never gonna purposely abuse your tractor and won't know you did, until after the fact. The front end loader and especially the backhoes "CAN" cause grief. I am a proud Jinma JM 354 owner for about five years now and it's been a good tractor. I do not have a FEL or backhoe just for the reasons I've mentioned. I did my homework and decided not to take the risks with those attachments. I have had to rent tractor loader backhoes occasiontionally because of this. I have a rototiller; disc; plow; boxblade; angle/straight blade; landscape rake; rotary field mower and a few other attachments. Mine was a crate tractor and I've replace the alternator; modified the hydraulic suction strainer; replaced all the gauges with mechanical style except the tachometer; adjusted the clutch and engine valves. I'm still using the original batteries and never had to replace the key switch and have very rarely use the glow plugs and I live in Eastern WA state and it gets cold here. I just wanted you to be aware of the possible breakage issues. The Jinma in my case is a good value. MY thoughts. bjr

I guess every situation is different and I can't expect you to know all the details of each and every breakage but for the ones you have seen, do you know what type of backhoe was used? I have talked to a few salespersons and they always recommend using a subframe backhoe and not a 3 pt unit, often stating that they have seen some types of breakages with one but not the other. From what I have learned about the Jinma tractors, there subframe BH also ties into the loader frame to reinforce the assembly. Do you (or anybody) know of any documented issues (post a link if you can) with this type of setup?


Sean

 

[Bob Rooks]

Could the issues you describe have been fixed with the new design?
Sean

Good question. I would have to see one and operate it to tell you for sure. I purchased it in '06 along with the dozer & FEL. It was a LW-6 which I believe is a Guilin.

 

[bjr]

I will elaborate and try to keep it short. I was financially at my limit to aquire a 35 hp tractor, so the added expense of FEL and Backhoe was beyound my budget. A further issue for me was maintenance access FEL are rather restrictive for the engine area to work on. I agree that the Full frame mounting for the backhoe would benefit the strengh issue versus the 3 pt. for farm style tractors. In my case I needed full access for 3 pt. attachments for farming activities and did not want fight the backhoe on and off. Years ago, I had a old Ford 800 series with FEL and it was a pain to work on the engine with the loader frame in the way. The more hydraulic attachments the more chances for hydraulic leaks. I was a construction mechanic for many years and, now, I like very simple tools that don't leak expensive oil. A older commercial construction style loader backhoe may have some merit if your soley looking at loader and backhoe operations. Look at all your options. bjr