What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.

What's your favorite color?

Define cheap.

Things like PS, live pto, shuttle shifting, ect
narrow the search a bit. And bring more $

Some shades of green paint seems to bring a bit more
on the lot than others.

Maybe a Ford 4000 might serve your needs.
See a few advertised @ 4-6K Nice solid units.


DE



On 13 Jul 2005 10:59:18 -0700, wrote:

What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.


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"DE" wrote in message
...

What's your favorite color?

Define cheap.

Things like PS, live pto, shuttle shifting, ect
narrow the search a bit. And bring more $

Like he said, but a dead PTO with an overrunning clutch on the takeoff is
OK, too. For the size you're calling out, a 50's vintage Ford 8N or later
Dexa would be fine. 'Twon't turn a hog bigger than 5', but it's a fine
tractor. VERY easy to work on, except for the damn plug wire loom.

I had one for twelve years, ending in 1998 -- 1948 motor and 1950 rear case.
Never had to do anything to it except replace the coil and replace the lift
cylinder gasket once. Both were ten minute jobs.

LLoyd

wrote in message
oups.com...
What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.


Some advice from my limited experience. Don't use the definition of "Cheap"
as a priority in your buying decision. My brother and I went in together and
bought a "cheap" $2000 tractor. I hate the thing. but he didn't want to
spend any more money. I've spent so much time fixing & repairing it to keep
it going, and parts are very hard to get. But even when it works, it doesn't
work the way I want it. We should have spend another $2-$3K and got
something better. One example is 2WD vs 4WD, my little tractor is useless
when I have a heavy load on the FEL (front end loader) and it isn't on hard
solid level dry ground. Simply no traction. It has wheel weights, the tires
are filled with water and there is even a big cement block on the read end,
but still have very hard time in uneven or wet or loose ground.

Basically, define what you need it to do and then go out and buy the right
equipment. You'll be wya better off in the long run.

Lane

wrote:
What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.

Oxymoron, no such critter. Any older tractor that's
effective and easy to work on will be popular, and
thus not cheap. Any old tractor that's cheap will
be hard to find parts for and a royal bear to work
with. Pick your poison, dealing with the aggravation
or parting with the money.

As for something in about the right size, and not too
terribly out-of-line pricewise, consider a ford 8n, 9n
2n, or jubilee. 3pt hitch, and relatively easy to get
parts for, and they made a lot of them. Prices are a
little higher in consequence, but if you're willing to
settle for one that looks rough (bad paint, dents, rust)
you may find one in your price range.

And like anything else, where you are in the country makes
a big difference. A lot more stuff is available in the
rural midwest than in, say, NYC.

HTH,
--Glenn Lyford

Lots of good advice in the other posts. No doubt the Ford 8N is one of the
easiest and cheapest tractors to repair. One thing I do not like about it is
that the hydraulic lift will will not work unless the PTO is turning. This
makes it necessary to disconnect the PTO to raise the bushhog or tiller if
they get jammed. Still probably the most popular tractor in it's size range.
Don Young

wrote in message
oups.com...
What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.

He said he wanted to run a tiller. So if you are looking at the 8N then you
have to hunt for one with a tiller gear. (I think it's often refereed to as
a "Howard gear".)

Richard W.


"Don Young" wrote in message
...
Lots of good advice in the other posts. No doubt the Ford 8N is one of the
easiest and cheapest tractors to repair. One thing I do not like about it
is
that the hydraulic lift will will not work unless the PTO is turning. This
makes it necessary to disconnect the PTO to raise the bushhog or tiller if
they get jammed. Still probably the most popular tractor in it's size
range.
Don Young

wrote in message
oups.com...
What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.

In article .com,
wrote:

wrote:
What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.

Oxymoron, no such critter. Any older tractor that's
effective and easy to work on will be popular, and
thus not cheap. Any old tractor that's cheap will
be hard to find parts for and a royal bear to work
with. Pick your poison, dealing with the aggravation
or parting with the money.

Depends on your skill level. My brother bought a just rebuilt John
Deere tricycle type for $200. Even he didn't know it was just rebuilt
when he bought it, it wouldn't start because it was missing a small part.

OTOH, I use a Farmall 240 (cost $2k) and have always been able to find
parts & fix it, it seldom breaks down. Tillers are expensive.

--
Free men own guns, slaves don't
www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/5357/
reply to nickhull99(at)hotmail.com because Earthlink has screwed up my e-mail

Is this a lower gear or somethign? What exactly is a "Howard Gear"?

wrote in message
ups.com...
Is this a lower gear or somethign? What exactly is a "Howard Gear"?



Google is your friend!
From: http://home.att.net/~jmsmith45/sherman.htm
"The Howard gear reduction unit mounts to the back of the regular
transmission housing and has a shift lever on the side cover where the
dipstick was located. The Howard did not affect the pto speed, it only
reduced the tractor ground speed. These were originally designed to be used
with the Howard Rotovator, a rear mounted rototiller. They were somewhat
fragile if abused and broke gears easily. Replacement gears for these units
are nearly impossible to find."

Lane

A 6 foot bush hog will take about 40 to 60 hp to run. That lets "cheap"
tractors out for the most part. I have heard of people using Ford 8N's
to run a bush hog but with no live power and the bad brakes that many of
them have, you can push yourself right through the barn from the
flywheel effect. (I have one)

Pete Stanaitis
-------------------


wrote:

What is a good cheap older tractor I should look for to run a small
tiller of about 40 inches and maybe a 6 foot or so buch hog? Somehting
easy to work on too.

"spaco" wrote in message
...
A 6 foot bush hog will take about 40 to 60 hp to run. That lets "cheap"
tractors out for the most part. I have heard of people using Ford 8N's to
run a bush hog but with no live power and the bad brakes that many of them
have, you can push yourself right through the barn from the flywheel
effect. (I have one)

So?? Get an overrunning clutch for the PTO shaft. They only cost about
$40, and positively prevent that dangerous activity. I had one for 12
years. Never got pushed anywhere. My neighbor had one, too, and didn't get
the clutch. Drove right through his pump house the second time out G.

And bad brakes are intended to be fixed. You can't do tight headland turns
without brakes.

LLoyd

So is an 8n too fast to till with?

Is it better to have a diesel than a gas engine older tractor?

Is it better to have a diesel than a gas engine older tractor?

wrote:
Is it better to have a diesel than a gas engine
older tractor?

Yes and no. Diesels are nearly indestructible and have
a lot of "grunt" at low engine speeds, and are also
relatively inexpensive to keep fed. You pay a price
premium for them up front for this desirability, though.

Gas can be easier for a novice to work on. Also,
most of the older, less expensive tractors will be
gas powered.

Only you can set your own priorities as to whether
the long term desirability of the diesel offsets the
damage to the checkbook.

--Glenn Lyford

"spaco" wrote in message
...
| A 6 foot bush hog will take about 40 to 60 hp to run. That lets "cheap"
| tractors out for the most part. I have heard of people using Ford 8N's
| to run a bush hog but with no live power and the bad brakes that many of
| them have, you can push yourself right through the barn from the
| flywheel effect. (I have one)
|
| Pete Stanaitis

I've had a six foot brushhog on both the Ford 4000 and the 8N. The 4000
will outwork the 8N, but with the blade still spinning, you can merely tap
one brake and the tractor spins on a dime. For mowing orchards and among
trees and such it's well worth it. Keep your remaining fingers way away
from the steering wheel and watch for stuff you might hit. The 4000 never
had the turning radius of the smaller one (for some odd reason, it was a
rare one without power steering) but it had the oomph for the big turning
plow fully buried. I will admit that I did use the 8N to lift the 4000 out
of the dirt after having sunk it to the axles from not paying attention.
They each had their uses, but the 8N never got the maintenance it needed, so
it's still in my mother's barn after the 4000 long ago got sold. Futz with
it enough, get some jumper cables, and it'll still start twenty years after
being parked. Tires are all flat, though....
Wish someone in northeast Texas could talk my mother into selling it,
though. She's getting stubborn in her old age. They're plentiful there, so
the price isn't as high as along the northern coasts.

wrote in message
oups.com...
So is an 8n too fast to till with?

Not if you find one with the split-range transmission. Some models have an
additional two-position range lever on the left side of the gear case.
They'll do a "double granny" if you need it.

LLoyd

I picked up a Ford 2000 (this is the older style) for $2500, runs very good
and all the stuff works. Nice machine, but the SOS transmission isn't loved
by many. The transmission works great and has a very low first gear, power
shifting is also nice, I just hope it works like it does now as long as I
own it. here is a picture

www.fordtractor.net

"carl mciver" wrote in message
ink.net...

"spaco" wrote in message
...
| A 6 foot bush hog will take about 40 to 60 hp to run. That lets "cheap"
| tractors out for the most part. I have heard of people using Ford 8N's
| to run a bush hog but with no live power and the bad brakes that many of
| them have, you can push yourself right through the barn from the
| flywheel effect. (I have one)
|
| Pete Stanaitis

I've had a six foot brushhog on both the Ford 4000 and the 8N. The
4000
will outwork the 8N, but with the blade still spinning, you can merely tap
one brake and the tractor spins on a dime. For mowing orchards and among
trees and such it's well worth it. Keep your remaining fingers way away
from the steering wheel and watch for stuff you might hit. The 4000 never
had the turning radius of the smaller one (for some odd reason, it was a
rare one without power steering) but it had the oomph for the big turning
plow fully buried. I will admit that I did use the 8N to lift the 4000
out
of the dirt after having sunk it to the axles from not paying attention.
They each had their uses, but the 8N never got the maintenance it needed,
so
it's still in my mother's barn after the 4000 long ago got sold. Futz
with
it enough, get some jumper cables, and it'll still start twenty years
after
being parked. Tires are all flat, though....
Wish someone in northeast Texas could talk my mother into selling it,
though. She's getting stubborn in her old age. They're plentiful there,
so
the price isn't as high as along the northern coasts.

Looks to me like you stole it for $2500. One like that around here would go
for about $5000. Real nice looking tractor.

Richard W.


"Waynemak" wrote in message
...
I picked up a Ford 2000 (this is the older style) for $2500, runs very
good
and all the stuff works. Nice machine, but the SOS transmission isn't
loved
by many. The transmission works great and has a very low first gear, power
shifting is also nice, I just hope it works like it does now as long as I
own it. here is a picture

www.fordtractor.net

Waynemak wrote:
I picked up a Ford 2000 (this is the older style) for $2500, runs very good
and all the stuff works. Nice machine, but the SOS transmission isn't loved
by many. The transmission works great and has a very low first gear, power
shifting is also nice, I just hope it works like it does now as long as I
own it. here is a picture

www.fordtractor.net


The Select-O-Speed transmission was slick, very slick. You'll be unhappy
to get the bill if it breaks but if it doesn't you'll probably like it a
lot.

John