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I am an orchard farmer. Im looking to buy any tractor new or old. Money doesnt matter. I need something that plants, mows, and harvests. I want it to last a while and to be powerful.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Where? (Dealer / part access matters)
How much acreage?
Terrain? (4WD needed, articulated needed?(popular in terraced Italy and France)
Other tasks besides orchard?
Do you already have equip? (Class 1?, class III 3 pt?)
Do you need to trailer it (To haul between sites)?
Generally for small acreage 35hp is minimal, Tallest tires and most weight is advantage for stability and function of a tractor.
75 HP is a real workhorse (and still ez to maneuver and transport)
Kubota is good quality but expensive to fix.
If buying new Kioti, has been good choice for many friends.
Make sure it has a low profile (as inside the hood) muffler. Lot of the newer tractors do. The old kind that stuck up out of the hood had a tendency to get ripped off by tree branches.
As to brand, get what has a GOOD dealership within reasonable distance to you. "Best" tractor in the world is still a big boat anchor if down for a 50 cent part.
Make sure it has a low profile (as inside the hood) muffler. Lot of the newer tractors do. The old kind that stuck up out of the hood had a tendency to get ripped off by tree branches.
As to brand, get what has a GOOD dealership within reasonable distance to you. "Best" tractor in the world is still a big boat anchor if down for a 50 cent part.
I can attest to the exhaust stack losing a battle with a tree branch --- and the branch wasn't that big -- I managed to catch it just right when I was bush hogging
Yes to the best tractor is the one with the nearest dealership with a great service department to fix things you can't . We only use our 1969 Ford 3000 for bush hogging and we can't afford downtime during mowing season.
I have no fruit trees and only 20 acres of very level grassland that I have no intention of even gardening but I have purchased several Ford 8ns in the past from small acreage tree farmers in eastern Texas. Not sure what they were using them for but, if you're not familiar with using PTOs and 3-point lifts, I would not recommend the N-series Fords for anything but mowing open pastures or maybe for use with a box blade for leveling. I used to restore these little tractors for a retirement hobby and I still have two 1951 late year models (side distributors) that run really well.
A good running and decent looking Ford 8n "red-belly" around Texas and New Mexico should sell for around $2,500 although prices, based on the mechanical condition and the rubber, can range from $300 (yard art) to $4,000 (showroom restoration).
For other things like moving dirt, and just playing, we just bought a new 3-cylinder diesel Kubota L3901HST with a FEL. Right now it only has 12 hours on it so I am not in a position to recommend any newer tractor although compared to the 8ns, there really is no comparison. I chose small Kubota over the equivalent John Deere because Kubota still uses steel fenders while John Deere and others have gone to plastic.
I really like the Kubota so far but about all I've used it for it to do some box bladeing on a 400' crushed asphalt driveway and I've punched a couple of postholes with the Land Pride posthole digger we bought with the tractor.
We have a neighbor who rebuilds tractors and gives them new life. He has had some of his projects shipped overseas where tractors may be hard to come by. Not new, but very well rebuilt, and much cheaper than new. Most of the ones he does are Fords, so nothing very difficult to find parts if needed. Let me know if you are interested in his contact information.
can you fix it yourself?
does the software "lock out"?
several neighbors have been disappointed
to find out a little "chip" is that expensive.
ask the dealer and Google the result.
We have a neighbor who rebuilds tractors and gives them new life. He has had some of his projects shipped overseas where tractors may be hard to come by. Not new, but very well rebuilt, and much cheaper than new. Most of the ones he does are Fords, so nothing very difficult to find parts if needed. Let me know if you are interested in his contact information.
I'm not sure where you are located but I still occasionally run into rebuilders around here on the Texas South Plains. Like me, most have been older gentlemen. A couple have invited me over to see their ongoing projects and their shops. At last count, in the past ten years, I have owned 40 to 45 small antique tractors that I have either simply repaired and resold or partially or fully restored as a retirement hobby. Most of that number have been 8ns because those are my favorites but I've also had a Ford 2n (yard art mostly) and a couple of 9ns. As well, off the top of my head, I've also owned a couple of Ford Jubilees (one really pretty one), a Ford 801 with FEL, a couple of Ferguson T030s, an Oliver Super 55 and even one IH Farmall 560LP.
One of the stories I enjoy telling is about one of the little 8ns I still have. A couple of years ago, I noted a recent YouTube video where a young fellow near Fort Worth was asking for help in getting his very poor running, but fairly well restored, 1951 8n running right again. It was very easy to tell his problem was simply a dirty carburetor so I jumped online and told him how to clean the carb. I guess the work was more than he wanted to do, or either he simply needed the money, I don't know, but he suddenly offered me the tractor for $2,000. Along with the tractor, he was to give me a nearly new 5' heavy duty shredder (worth about $1,500) and a box blade. That February, my wife and I fought ice and snow and a poorly working F150 heater to go get that equipment. I still have the tractor and the shredder. BTW, it was a dirty carb.
Unfortunately, my eyesight now seems to be failing badly and along with it my patience to stay with something until it's done right. I still love old machinery and there's no prettier sound than it coming back to life after years of being abandoned. However, these days I find I spend 90% of my time looking for tools I have absent-mindedly lain aside somewhere in what more and more seems to be an ill-lit shop and 10% of the time doing the work.
Because of my failing eyesight, I have sort of given up much of my former tractor work and have instead pulled my old HS guitars out of the closets and am trying to teach this old dog some new tricks. I've already been told by the VA I sorely need a hearing aid but I'm hoping my ears will last a while longer. Ha!
Your neighbor sounds like an interesting fellow to be sure.
Last edited by High_Plains_Retired; 05-13-2019 at 09:25 PM..
can you fix it yourself?
does the software "lock out"?
several neighbors have been disappointed
to find out a little "chip" is that expensive.
ask the dealer and Google the result.
This is a big concern, right here.
Try to find a tractor that is not computerized. There are still.many out there, including Kubotas. A tractor that is computer-controlled can not be repaired by the owner. It is likely to shut down on you with no warning. It will be pricey to keep running.
It's bad enough that our cars are computerized. Why on earth do our tractors have to be, also??
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