Price Check Need Cheap HP

[motownbrowne]

Spend it now or spend it later .

Not really in this case I don't think. If he gets a cheap tractor (didn't spend it now) and it fails, part it out and get on with life (didn't spend it later either).

Deere made some great tractors in that vintage to be sure, but in many cases you can buy a Ford, New Holland, international, etc for half the price or less. Lots of farms still running these machines.

 

[jenkinsph]

I had a 1370 years ago and it was a good tractor. I have heard the transmissions are not as good as the Deere but I never had problems plowing up and planting over 400 acres with it. One problem with these is using the pto in reverse, that is not recommended as some of the parts can become oil starved. For cheap hp I feel these old Case tractors are a fair deal.

Have you thought about removing a few shanks on the chisel plow to lighten the load on your tractors? You could remove the outside blades from your disc to accomplish this too. That might be the fastest thing to do and would enable you to get in the field today. As long as your tractors are not overloaded they should be fine.

The third option is to hire someone to pull your implements so as to not risk damaging their implements.

 

[shibaura_4043]

I had a 1370 years ago and it was a good tractor. I have heard the transmissions are not as good as the Deere but I never had problems plowing up and planting over 400 acres with it. One problem with these is using the pto in reverse, that is not recommended as some of the parts can become oil starved. For cheap hp I feel these old Case tractors are a fair deal. Have you thought about removing a few shanks on the chisel plow to lighten the load on your tractors? You could remove the outside blades from your disc to accomplish this too. That might be the fastest thing to do and would enable you to get in the field today. As long as your tractors are not overloaded they should be fine. The third option is to hire someone to pull your implements so as to not risk damaging their implements.

I was already down to 9 shanks but I suppose I could drop to 7shanks. They pull the plows ok just slower than a 130 hp would. The main reason for buying a workhorse was to avoid any downtime on my hay tractors. Also I have thorny brush to plow up and I figured I could use an old tractor with dry rotted hard tires without worrying about the thorn punctures as much. I have good tires on my tractors and would prefer to prolong the life of them if possible.

 

[RollingsFarms]

Looking on TractorHouse there's a few decent old work horses in the 3000-5000 range. There's a TW 20 for $4000, an old IH 1066 for 4750, and a sweet MF 1100 with 3000 original hours for 4900.

 

[shibaura_4043]

Thanks rollingsfarms

 

[flusher]

My neighbors have several examples of cheap, old HP that they use to plow their hayfields.

A Steiger Super Wildcat



and an IH 4366 (made by Steiger)



Probably more HP than you want.

I've seen similar beasts go for $7-8K at local auctions.

Just a thought.

Good luck

 

[shibaura_4043]

My neighbors have several examples of cheap, old HP that they use to plow their hayfields. A Steiger Super Wildcat <img src="http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=460121"/> and an IH 4366 (made by Steiger) <img src="http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=460122"/> Probably more HP than you want. I've seen similar beasts go for $7-8K at local auctions. Just a thought. Good luck

I have considered a machine like that. A little overkill, but would be awesome to have.

 

[flusher]

Before buying any 100+ HP old iron, I'd be sure I had the shop space and the equipment needed to work on these large beasts when it craps out.

Unless you enjoy doing field repairs on your tractor.

The 1000 sq ft shop I had on my ranch would be just large enough to do repair work on something this large.

The largest tractor I owned was a 2008 Mahindra 5525 (55 hp engine, weight about 6500 lb with FEL and loaded tires). Fortunately I only pulled it into the shop for normal maintenance. But I had a lot of shop equipment for tearing down tractors since my hobby was rebuilding old tractors (under 40 hp engine).

Good luck with whatever you end up with.

 

[Soundguy]

That big Massey would be sweet lots of hp per #

 

[jenkinsph]

An older 4020 might be a good choice too. If you could buy one that needs cosmetic work and fix it up in your spare time you should be able to sell it after the hard work is done and clear your costs. Nice ones seem to command top dollar.