MF 725

jimg · Jul 12, 2007

Im going to look at a couple MF 725 mower conditioners shortly and wondered what you all could tell me about them. From what little I can dig up theyre pretty well liked and seem to last pretty well. The rollers are a bit different than Im used to, one is rubber and the other steel. Seems like it would condition rather agressively. Any help would be apprecaited...

jimg · Jul 12, 2007

If it helps at all the 725 and 925 are only different in cut width...725 is 7' cut and 925 is 9'.

Farmwithjunk · Jul 13, 2007

I'm not 100% positive, but I'm thinking those were actually built by Hesston. You may find more info on Hesston's version of the same. My bro-in-law had a Hesston 9' cut moco that shared common parts with a simular MF model. He liked it and had good luck with it. He was rough on equipment, so it must have been a tough machine. Not sure of model # he had. (Equipment sold and BIL/sister now living in Fla.)

And that's about as helpful as I can be on the subject.

farmerjim · Jul 13, 2007

the only thing i would be leary about is the age of those machines, and the parts availibility. they're an agco product so parts are probably around. i would def look at the wobble box and the drive stuff make sure its in good shape. also check the rollers for missing rubber and dents in the steel, these are expensive to replace if they even still make them for that machine. good luck.

jimg · Jul 13, 2007

From the little I can find about it the maker was supposed to be Badger and this particualar mdl was also sold under the Badger and Vammer names. Thats about all I can find. The current owner says hes never had any problems w/ them (2 for sale) and used them until last yr when he got a discbine.

Therell be enough grass around by the time I look them over so I thought we'd power 'em up and see what that looks like.

Farmwithjunk · Jul 13, 2007

Vermeer made a few hayin' tools for Massey, so that may be right. I'd suggest PM-ing Mark @ CCI (TBN member) for his input. I believe they're Vermeer dealers, as well as his strong background in hay equipment.

jimg · Jul 13, 2007

So I copied that name from another source (ytmag). It was written that way in a couple places by diff people I think so I assumed it wasnt Vermeer.

To asnwer another point brought up about parts. This one has me concerned as I dont know how old these units are. I was going to drop by the Agco dealer and find out what I might expect. If I cant get parts then Ill have to part one machine out to keep the other running. At some point Im sure Ill run into parts that arent good on either machine and which arent available. So parts is a big issue.

Farmwithjunk · Jul 13, 2007

Being a bit of a Massey Ferguson fanatic, this thread has peaked my curiosity. And it seems that there isn't a great deal of info floating about the 'net on this one. I have found 725/925 manuals at several sites. Print dates are as early as 1978. I found a pair of 925 "parts machines" ($1000 for both) that were listed as 1982 models. So we're talking 25 to 30 years old. If that were a Massey TRACTOR, I'd say no doubt about parts availability. Being an implement, and possibly one built by another manufacturer for MF/AGCO, it's anyones guess.

Also located a used 725 in "good" condition, listed at $1500. (Murray Kentucky)

zzvyb6 · Jul 14, 2007

If you only need one mower, take the 9 footer. You'll need a rake to make good hay, and almost all rakes start at 9' accomodation. A 7 footer, even if you can put it in windrow formation mode, will be tricky to collect its output.

It can be done, just that 9', 12', and 16' mower and rake systems are the norm.

jimg · Jul 14, 2007

Farmw/junk: The current owner says hes used them for many years w/o any probs. He got the 2nd as a parts machine but uses (or did until he got a discbine) them both b/c they work OK. He thinks theyre 70s vintage. I just havent yet had time to stop by the local MF dealer to see what I can expect for parts. Ill likely do that the day I look the machines over. As for price hes willing to part w/ both for $900. While the price seems right Im concerned about age and parts availability. LOL, the last thing I need right now is a project. OTOH I will have 2 working machines.

Would you mind passing pointers to the manuals? I didnt find those when I was searching.

Farmwithjunk · Jul 14, 2007

jimg said:
Farmw/junk: The current owner says hes used them for many years w/o any probs. He got the 2nd as a parts machine but uses (or did until he got a discbine) them both b/c they work OK. He thinks theyre 70s vintage. I just havent yet had time to stop by the local MF dealer to see what I can expect for parts. Ill likely do that the day I look the machines over. As for price hes willing to part w/ both for $900. While the price seems right Im concerned about age and parts availability. LOL, the last thing I need right now is a project. OTOH I will have 2 working machines.

Would you mind passing pointers to the manuals? I didnt find those when I was searching.

Did a Google search (Massey Ferguson 725/925 manuals) and found this one.

www.manuals.us/browseproducts/Massey-Ferguson-725-925-haytender-mower-conditioner.htm

(Hope this works. Having a heck of a time posting the link)

OR... I found a couple on EBAY yesterday.

Hope this helps.

jimg · Jul 14, 2007

Thanx, the link didnt work but I did find it after some sorting around. I was looking for info aside from manuals and didnt even think of ebay or searching for that.

That mower looks exactly like Hesstons current line!

jimg · Jul 22, 2007

Had a chance to look over the mowers this w/e and what I saw looked OK. He had both out, ran them and mowed w/ one. Wet grass doesnt seem to bother this mower. It turns out the original owner (sellers father) was a Massey mechanic. So, I think theyre well maintained....at least to my eye. According to the seller parts are still available thru MF and Badger (original maker). I still need to verify that most wear parts can still be gotten. Both have suffered from mowing too close to immovable objects.

These are belt driven and to my mind thats not all bad. Slippage will occur before they tear themselves apart. I think replacement belts are expensive though. The conditioning rollers are heavy duty! I think they might never wear out. One part I didnt like is the disappearing drive line (thru the draw bar). If that ever went bad I think repairs might be difficult and expensive. I would have preferred and exposed driveline. I have no idea how problem prone they might be after almost 30yrs.

Here are some pics...

farmerjim · Jul 24, 2007

from the pics that machine doesn't look 1/2 bad. granted it has its sheet metal flaws but the knife and rollers look in good shape. does the machine end of the drive line have an opening to gain access to the wobble box? if it does it looks like all you would need to do would be remove the u joint and pull the drive line out from the tongue side for any repairs or a new driveline. the drive belts can probably be had from napa by matching them to the ones currently on there. good luck, jim

jimg · Jul 24, 2007

Hi Jim
No, I didnt see any access to the wobble box. Im sure it was there but nothing looked obvious. Im not sure if the owner knew or not. I should follow up on that though.

I did call the local MF dealer yestreday and all common parts are available...but most arent in stock.

threetrees · Aug 6, 2007

Did you end up buying these machines? I've been running a 725 that works pretty well. I need to adjust the guards so that it cuts a little better. Occasionally the right side of the cutter bar will get kind of clogged and will not cut about 6-8" and push that hay down. Most of the time, if I see that the right side is not cut clean behind the machine, I can stop and raise the machine up a little and it will chug a big clump through the rollers and be fine. I think it is better if the crop is good and dry. If I'm still cutting when the humidity goes up in the evening, it occurs more frequently.

Anyway, do you know of any 725/925 machines around that are being parted out? I need the sheave that drives the rubber roll and the knife pitman. I've broken it a little in trying to remove it to get to the bearing behind it. It is threaded on (or so I believe), rather than being keyed, and I just can't get it off. Is anyone aware of procedure for removing this sheave? BTW, MF says they can get this part for me through Badger but it won't be cheap.

Thanks for any help!

jimg · Aug 6, 2007

I did (both of them). The seller demoed both and they cut well as far as I could tell, at least nothing I saw raised any flags. I was thinking about borrowing a tractor and running both at once.

Ive heard that stub guards help in regard to mowing wet grass but, as you said, the best idea is to wait for things to dry out a bit. The seller also mentioned about clearing slugs. As you said he also stops and raises the head to separate the rollers and let the slugs pass thru.

I dont know of any parts machines BUT from my research all of the parts youll need are still available from MF. I know the pitman arm is and one of my machines has a replacement. Id call the local MF dealer and see if they can help. I think also Badger has parts. I say this b/c the rubber part between the cutter bar and arm is new on one of my machines. The owner said he recently got it from Badger. He also said it wasnt fun to replace.

BTW are you using bolts or rivets to mount the sections?

ETA
Look at the last pic I posted. Thats the replacement arm.

rdbigfarmboy · Aug 7, 2007

You can probably find a sickle bar mower to be a better machine. Most of the hay just doesnt need conditioning. I have had 2 Mower conditioners and now dont know why I bought them cept thats what everybody else had. Sickle bar mowers go from 200-1500 used. I might go with one of the new double action things CCM sells.
I personally would buy a used disc mower. The smaller 5 to 7 ft models sell between 600 and 2000. I know dealers always ask more but, at an auction thats all.

rdbigfarmboy · Aug 7, 2007

theres a Badger at a local yard its been there several years. I dont know the condition. Looks OK from the front

rdbigfarmboy · Aug 10, 2007

The local dealer Rays Equipment Sales has a 1000 M badger it looks good he said it needs a belt and will work it looked 9 or 10 ft wide. He asked $450 on the phone and has 350 wrote on it.
I just dont need it.
I looking at trading or buying an old used bushhog he has.