The choice of tractor

[DieselBound]

If you don't need a loader, I would look at buying an antique tractor. Far cheaper than new, tougher, more reliable, simpler to work on.
I can almost guarantee my 1955 Allis Chalmers will still be working when the new tractors are wore out.

As long as you have the tools and time...

Further, lots depends on whether parts will continue to be available. In another thread someone with as slightly older Massey is having difficulties finding a replacement loader cylinder. I've had no such issues with my newer tractors (2006 and 2016), which, at the rate I've killed hydraulic cylinders AND the rate of my aging, I likely will never have to engage in again.

I suspect if/when things get really difficult that our current activities are going to be different. I've game-theory'd things to the n-th degree: you'd be surprised to find how many blind spots people can have; my "solution," approach, is not to have one's eggs all in one basket (diversity is the key to survival). Having a survivable tractor is nice, but if you don't survive then the value of the equation is, I'd say, a bit different...

BTW - A loader on/for a CUT is what makes a CUT: it puts the "Utility" in CUT!

 

[Hay Dude]

Deere seems to be the best at carrying parts for tractors from long, long ago.
You can get parts for 30 series Deeres from 40+ years ago. Many still in use.

 

[LD48750]

Deere seems to be the best at carrying parts for tractors from long, long ago.
You can get parts for 30 series Deeres from 40+ years ago. Many still in use.

Hummmm......

I can rebuild my Ford 2N from the ground up with aftermarket parts today and it has been in use for 75 years.

 

[Hay Dude]

Hummmm......

I can rebuild my Ford 2N from the ground up with aftermarket parts today and it has been in use for 75 years.

I wasn’t excluding other brands, just giving the OP ideas of a brand and model that has available parts.
Yeah, Ford is another one!

 

[fried1765]

I am a new farmer with little experience. I have just contracted a piece of land. The soil is dry. I want to improve the quality of the soil and plow the ground. Which tractor is more cost-effective and suitable for traction disc plows?

Please add your general location to your profile!

 

[DieselBound]

Hummmm......

I can rebuild my Ford 2N from the ground up with aftermarket parts today and it has been in use for 75 years.

Hat's off to you! (I have factored in wrecking yards into the equation for keeping my cars alive- my MKIV VWs are some of the most ubiquitous cars ever made, lots of parts in the wreckers; for tractors?) BUT...

That's NOW. No one can predict what things are going to be like in the future*. If things are pretty much like they are now then, yes, the future should be fine. But, I have figured that there's ZERO chance that the future will resemble the current*: of course, this forecast depends on the time-frame (my figuring is for a mere 10 years; further out and the odds drop out even further!

* OK, I can, but only when that time-frame is out MANY years. Because perpetual growth on a finite planet isn't possible we will therefore collide with the point of zero growth. Given that our economic system (under which parts manufacturers operate) is totally reliant upon growth it is certain that the system will collapse or be replaced by something else (which will NOT be based on growth): as the quote goes, "It happened slowly, then all at once!" It is at this point that I have my doubts as to whether small-time CUT-level folks are going to be running tractors; cost of parts, if they're even sill produced, are going to be quite a bit higher (affordability level reduced). Grim? Well, it'll be different: MANY folks around the planet already live in the "grim" world (we're NOT immune).

There's what I WANT to see in the future and then there's the actual future. Most folks will miss the actual target, as most fail at applying the most basic of inputs into their forecasts. No argument that being able to repair one's own equipment is a meaningful/proper endeavor, but it's long-term effectiveness as a hedge is highly speculative owing to the uncertainty of the future (and parts availability).

Speculations and forecasts... Sometimes I'm wanting to wager, but there's the possibility that it wouldn't provide a return for me because the other party will have succumbed to self-hubris.

 

[Williy]

People say older JD's were reliable but they don't tell you
that Yanmar made the older JD tractors and JD still uses
Yanmar diesel engines and now Yanmar is making tractors
for the U.S.A. under their own name. Yanmar diesels are in
a lot of equiment encluding ships, boats etc. I have this YT235C
and really enjoy using it! All the controls are at your finger tips
very convenient to operate. I'm old and cranky so want ease of
use and the seat is very comfortable! I just added the tint film to
the windows the kind you put on your car/truck windows I don't
need a sunvisor and it keeps the sun off of you and your arms
are less likely to get sunburnt!

willy