options for a 80HP tractor

squarebale

I'm thinking of getting a second hand 80 HP tractor. Any advice on the options. Should I get 2 or 4 wheel. I'll just need it for putting in silage bales, spreading fertiliser, topping maybe a muck spreader. I hav'nt had a tractor yet as a neighbour did everything at good value but he has'nt much time now. I farm about 120 acres in mixed stock.

vanderbadger

what type of ground, hilly flat? would be inclined to say go for the 4 wd, better to have than not. get yourself a fiat 80-90 or something similar, easy to drive, reliable etc

MfMan

MF390s are plentiful and a good workhorse. Tend to be pricier then their rivals however, perhaps because of their general reliability.

squarebale

Thanks. The land is flat mostly with about 30 acres of boggy going. How much should I expect to pay for something 10 - 20 years old and how many hours is a lot?

morning delight

Yeah, looking at other treads it seems to be a toss up between the Fiat and MF.
One question - why 80hp? Or put it another way, how did you decide all you need is an 80hp tractor for your needs?

rooney32

mf 390T 4wd good option parts are cheap, no electronics.

bk1991

rooney32 wrote: »

mf 390T 4wd good option parts are cheap, no electronics.

mf390ts hold there value well expect to pay at least well over 1400 for a deacent one

fig mclough

new holland tl 80 or john deere 6200

masse5455

buy a 290 do all the things ya want buy a very good one 4 9 r 10 grand

paulmallon

look for a case 4200 series
easier on the pocket than massey
i have one 4 years and shes the business
4 wd. around 85 hp
she'll even lift round bales without the weights on the front
i'm in the north,you might get them cheaper up here.

irish_bob

how much money are you willing to spend OP

if its under 10 k , i would suggest either a jd 2850 or an 885xl case

if you are willing to spend over 10 and closer to 15 , the massy 390 t

JohnBoy

what are the 885XLs like?

They're not a massively common machine here, but they seem quite cheap in the UK and they're a lovely proportioned machine.

maidhc

Unusual suggestions here.

If you are in Cork the default choice will be a Ford/NewHolland or John Deere. You can go weeks without seeing an MF, and almost as long without seeing a Fiat.

The 390T has a great rep, but they are all getting a bit long in the tooth now and are very expensive for what you get.

If I was spending around 10 I'd try and get a very clean 7610 or 7810 with a reasonably recent engine overhaul.

bk1991

JohnBoy wrote: »

what are the 885XLs like?

They're not a massively common machine here, but they seem quite cheap in the UK and they're a lovely proportioned machine.

we have an 1985 international 885xl it is the last of the internationals befor the merge with case to form caseih we got ours three years ago fully reconditioned for 6000€ we have since fitted a tanco 978 loader #

its a good little tractor very handy in tight spaces bad points in an 885 would be leaky roof on the xl cab case dident desing it well plus the handbrake band wears out if driven with handbrake on ...


my advice would be if u were looking for 885xl go for one after 86 or near the 90's with the straight 4wd drive shafts if u do alot of road work
we done the two hardy spices on both sides of front axel plus i have just fitted new hardy spices to the back drive shaft on it there the other day and its a **** to get it on with the deisel tank .

irish_bob

maidhc wrote: »

Unusual suggestions here.

If you are in Cork the default choice will be a Ford/NewHolland or John Deere. You can go weeks without seeing an MF, and almost as long without seeing a Fiat.

The 390T has a great rep, but they are all getting a bit long in the tooth now and are very expensive for what you get.

If I was spending around 10 I'd try and get a very clean 7610 or 7810 with a reasonably recent engine overhaul.

the ford 7610 was the greatest ball of ****e ever to darken a farmers yard , the 7810 was better but this was not a good period for ford at all

germanicus

the ford is as good as any massey of that age. the 7610s were fine once you find one with a reconditioned engine - they had trouble with a porous block. Stay away from massey and case of that age anyway.

bk1991

irish_bob wrote: »

the ford 7610 was the greatest ball of ****e ever to darken a farmers yard , the 7810 was better but this was not a good period for ford at all

i would agree

irish_bob

germanicus wrote: »

the ford is as good as any massey of that age. the 7610s were fine once you find one with a reconditioned engine - they had trouble with a porous block. Stay away from massey and case of that age anyway.

the 7610 with the collumn change is notorious , a horror story

DanFindy

The 7810 really are a class act, very reliable strong and tough, i must agree however the 7610 were really really bad especially the early ones with the rubix cube gearbox.........For someone that has not had a tractor in a while and needs a simple no frills machine that sreliable id be going for a 390 or indeed a zetor as they are tough reliable and also easy to fix if worst comes t worst:pac:

maidhc

Sorry, I was thinking along the lines of 7610 with a floor change and SQ cab. I know the engines went a bit porous, but other than that they were quite bulletproof. You can also fit a 7740 or 7840 engine without too much hassle if the need arises in the future.

Had a Zetor 6340 for 5 years from new. Sold it for a NH TS115. The Zetor was fine, and had a wonderful engine, but the hand clutch for the PTO and useless dry brakes were a deal breaker. Maintenance costs for the Zetor were far higher than they have been for the TS despite the Zetor only having a mere 1800 hours when sold.

vanderbadger

maidhc wrote: »

Sorry, I was thinking along the lines of 7610 with a floor change and SQ cab. I know the engines went a bit porous, but other than that they were quite bulletproof. You can also fit a 7740 or 7840 engine without too much hassle if the need arises in the future.

Had a Zetor 6340 for 5 years from new. Sold it for a NH TS115. The Zetor was fine, and had a wonderful engine, but the hand clutch for the PTO and useless dry brakes were a deal breaker. Maintenance costs for the Zetor were far higher than they have been for the TS despite the Zetor only having a mere 1800 hours when sold.

you notice some difference in fuel consumption id say since you traded up, we had a good few zetors over the years, they were good tractors i always thought but were let down by the quality of their parts, little seals going and stuff like that, replaced they clutch and brake fluid cylinder thing a good few times also, the struts on the doors and windows would never last etc, they had good old engines though and would run on air, last one we had was a 5340, she was abit too light for loader work with silage bales though

Bitten & Hisses

OP, give a look at some of the mid-1990's stuff on this site:

http://ashfieldwilson.co.uk/used.html

In terms of value for money and reliability, you'll find it hard to beat one of these Reanults. The MX and TX had a virtually unbreakable MWM engine and in terms of driver comfort are a world apart from a tractor with gearlevers on the floor between your legs: They all have synchro gearboxes and a mechanical forward/reverse shuttle. Personally, I'd be looking at an MX or a Ceres if your budget allows it. Of course, it depends on the dealer situation in your area, too. Whatever you go for, get something which is easy to support, both from a parts and know-how point of view.

germanicus

+1

irish_bob

maidhc wrote: »

Sorry, I was thinking along the lines of 7610 with a floor change and SQ cab. I know the engines went a bit porous, but other than that they were quite bulletproof. You can also fit a 7740 or 7840 engine without too much hassle if the need arises in the future.

Had a Zetor 6340 for 5 years from new. Sold it for a NH TS115. The Zetor was fine, and had a wonderful engine, but the hand clutch for the PTO and useless dry brakes were a deal breaker. Maintenance costs for the Zetor were far higher than they have been for the TS despite the Zetor only having a mere 1800 hours when sold.

the ford 7840 from the early nineties are a great tractor , as for the zetor , they always had a good engine , good as any other tractor for pulling but are let down in almost every other area , brakes especially and thier is always oil dripping from somewhere , they are also very backward compared to other tractors in how they are designed , my late dad had a zetor in the nineties , a 9540 , you had to take the step off the tractor in order to be able to pour oil into the back end , parts are cheap however ,
the new zetors look quite an improovement though

Timmaay

JohnBoy wrote: »

what are the 885XLs like?

They're not a massively common machine here, but they seem quite cheap in the UK and they're a lovely proportioned machine.

We have an 87 case 1394 and were thinking of getting a 885 or simular to replace it, however it was impossible to find any clean ones for 7/8 grand, they seem to all have very loose gearboxs, and the XL cabs all were rotting badly, and were too tall for some of our sheds anyways. I looked at a few case 4230s also, very nice narrow and low tractor and much nicer to drive than the 885s, and very very plentyful down south at the minute. However too many people advised us against them due to reliability issues.

I ended up getting the 1394 refurbished in Gregans in wexford, which was far far cheaper than i expected, and am very happy we kept her, its given us 18years good service with only the gearbox giving problems (it had a loader on and was in and out of the silage pit for years). I would say you cant go wrong with a clean 1494/1594, they dont give any problems, can be picked up cheap at the minute and wont depricate a penny more.

bk1991

case ih 885xl.856xl,895, there to be got cheep say 10 grand a 89 one in good cont

Suckler

Can you fit a front loader to a tractor with front arms & PTO or do they get in the way of each other?

Whats the minimum HP required to run a round baler and/or haul a low loader & digger?

DanFindy

Loader and front linkage = hassle imo.
To pull a round baler for personal use u will need around the 100hp mark the more the better, ive baled for a few years with a Same 100.6 she is screwed up a bit and can just about cope with a class rollant 46 baler, ideally i would need 130 hp. As regards the digger it depends on the size of the digger and what kinda terrain is round your neck a the woods, Ive pulled our 60 (6 ton) with a Ford 4000 and 4610 but only small local runs and i had a mechanical braking system connected to the lift as i had no oil brakes. Anything bigger than a 60 and you will need bigger horsepower and ne sure to have a tractor with brake attachment and a loader with decent brakes too. Ive always seen 100-120 size diggers hauled round by tractors in the 100-120 hp bracket, 6 cylinder tractors are preferable as more weight and grip on steeper inclines. Hope ive been of some assistance;)

bk1991

Suckler wrote: »

Can you fit a front loader to a tractor with front arms & PTO or do they get in the way of each other?

Whats the minimum HP required to run a round baler and/or haul a low loader & digger?

loader on a tractor with front linkage woulnt be a problem !
for the baler and lowloader depends on size of em but id say ud get by with something under 130 hp better to have the power than looking for it

Suckler

Cheers lads, Its a long term plan as I'm only starting out. I'll be part time farming so couldnt justify brand new machines. I have to get sheds sorted as well so it'll cost me the guts of 100 - 150K all in by the end I'd say.

First off is a new tractor though. At the moment we have a Massey 550 which is the greatest ball of manure I've ever seen! No power, PTO clutch dodgey, and rusting like the titanic.
I was thinking Massey 390T with loader. At the moment we get the silage wrapped and baled for us but would eventually like to be able to do it myself. Someday I might take a notion ( in dreams or ten years time!) and buy a front mounted mower and dual rear mowers, Hence requirment for front PTO etc. I think 390T for now, bit of mowing and lifting bales etc. Then in a few years pick up a 140HP for the heavier work.
Planning to build a house in the next few years and was thinking of buying a digger for Fdns & would be handy round the farm to dig drains and that, but having a machine to pull the digger the odd time would be handy.

Casinoking

You must be planning on doing a lot of mowing, a set-up like that will set you back about 40 grand for the mowers and you'll need 200HP plus to carry and drive them. At least you'll have the big sheds to park them in! Fair play to you, great to see a lad planning on spending a few quid! Who says there's no money in farming?!

maidhc

Suckler wrote: »

Cheers lads, Its a long term plan as I'm only starting out. I'll be part time farming so couldnt justify brand new machines. I have to get sheds sorted as well so it'll cost me the guts of 100 - 150K all in by the end I'd say.

First off is a new tractor though. At the moment we have a Massey 550 which is the greatest ball of manure I've ever seen! No power, PTO clutch dodgey, and rusting like the titanic.
I was thinking Massey 390T with loader. At the moment we get the silage wrapped and baled for us but would eventually like to be able to do it myself. Someday I might take a notion ( in dreams or ten years time!) and buy a front mounted mower and dual rear mowers, Hence requirment for front PTO etc. I think 390T for now, bit of mowing and lifting bales etc. Then in a few years pick up a 140HP for the heavier work.
Planning to build a house in the next few years and was thinking of buying a digger for Fdns & would be handy round the farm to dig drains and that, but having a machine to pull the digger the odd time would be handy.

As regards a digger you would be better off getting a wheeled digger like a 3cx or something. I have an old Ford 550 since about 1992, and it is probably the most useful and reliable machine I know to exist. It stacks 1200 bales a year, feeds those bales, has dug foundations, lifts bags of fertilizer and everything else that needs doing.

Forget the front linkage on a 100hp tractor. You would need close on 200hp if you are thinking of front and rear mowers.

maidhc

Casinoking wrote: »

You must be planning on doing a lot of mowing, a set-up like that will set you back about 40 grand for the mowers and you'll need 200HP plus to carry and drive them. At least you'll have the big sheds to park them in! Fair play to you, great to see a lad planning on spending a few quid! Who says there's no money in farming?!

Got there before me!

Did noone tell you about the money in suckers!

Suckler

Casinoking wrote: »

You must be planning on doing a lot of mowing, a set-up like that will set you back about 40 grand for the mowers and you'll need 200HP plus to carry and drive them. At least you'll have the big sheds to park them in! Fair play to you, great to see a lad planning on spending a few quid! Who says there's no money in farming?!

Didnt think it'd take up to 200HP!! Its a long way off lads and at the moment I'm workin in my monday to friday job to save for the first tractor!I saw a tractor + silage system for sale on farm & plant but cant find it now to link it up. fine rig out.

Money in farming? if I didnt have the full time job to pay for this I wouldnt even risk it!

bk1991

Suckler wrote: »

Cheers lads, Its a long term plan as I'm only starting out. I'll be part time farming so couldnt justify brand new machines. I have to get sheds sorted as well so it'll cost me the guts of 100 - 150K all in by the end I'd say.

First off is a new tractor though. At the moment we have a Massey 550 which is the greatest ball of manure I've ever seen! No power, PTO clutch dodgey, and rusting like the titanic.
I was thinking Massey 390T with loader. At the moment we get the silage wrapped and baled for us but would eventually like to be able to do it myself. Someday I might take a notion ( in dreams or ten years time!) and buy a front mounted mower and dual rear mowers, Hence requirment for front PTO etc. I think 390T for now, bit of mowing and lifting bales etc. Then in a few years pick up a 140HP for the heavier work.
Planning to build a house in the next few years and was thinking of buying a digger for Fdns & would be handy round the farm to dig drains and that, but having a machine to pull the digger the odd time would be handy.

u have her well planed out

Suckler

bk1991 wrote: »

u have her well planed out

Thats the easy part- paying for it all and keeping it al going is the hard bit!

maidhc

Suckler wrote: »

Thats the easy part- paying for it all and keeping it al going is the hard bit!

I would be inclined to keep buying stuff and general investment to a minimum.

I am a partime farmer along with my father, and while we have a reasonably good set up now, it took 25 years to build up. We do all our own silage, but with a 20y.o. baler and 15y.o. mower. I also maintain all the machinery, and no mechanic has been needed in 20 or so years (but even still there can be fair maintenance bills...e.g. I spent the bones of €500 rebuilding the front axle on the digger during the winter and about €400 on rebuilding the pickup on the baler... I enjoyed the work so I assume no labour charge!).

The farm (dry stock) always makes a profit, and we have a substantial SFP, but none of that is ever reinvested. You have to make money at the end of the day.

bk1991

maidhc wrote: »

I would be inclined to keep buying stuff and general investment to a minimum.

I am a partime farmer along with my father, and while we have a reasonably good set up now, it took 25 years to build up. We do all our own silage, but with a 20y.o. baler and 15y.o. mower. I also maintain all the machinery, and no mechanic has been needed in 20 or so years (but even still there can be fair maintenance bills...e.g. I spent the bones of €500 rebuilding the front axle on the digger during the winter and about €400 on rebuilding the pickup on the baler... I enjoyed the work so I assume no labour charge!).

The farm (dry stock) always makes a profit, and we have a substantial SFP, but none of that is ever reinvested. You have to make money at the end of the day.

i am only 18 and trying to get fininace to start out contracting ...its very easy dreaming and buying :Dpaying it the hardest part :eek::eek:

Suckler

maidhc wrote: »

I would be inclined to keep buying stuff and general investment to a minimum.

I am a partime farmer along with my father, and while we have a reasonably good set up now, it took 25 years to build up. We do all our own silage, but with a 20y.o. baler and 15y.o. mower. I also maintain all the machinery, and no mechanic has been needed in 20 or so years (but even still there can be fair maintenance bills...e.g. I spent the bones of €500 rebuilding the front axle on the digger during the winter and about €400 on rebuilding the pickup on the baler... I enjoyed the work so I assume no labour charge!).
.

Thats exactly the plan. I dont want to go down the "loans" route do plan to just keep adding over the years

maidhc

bk1991 wrote: »

i am only 18 and trying to get fininace to start out contracting ...its very easy dreaming and buying :Dpaying it the hardest part :eek::eek:

Would you not think of doing something else? College, trade, any thing?

Can't see how doing contracting can ever make money. It is something I wanted to do when I was 18, but utterly glad I didn't.

Casinoking

bk1991 wrote: »

i am only 18 and trying to get fininace to start out contracting ...its very easy dreaming and buying :Dpaying it the hardest part :eek::eek:

If I were you, and I was in that situation myself once upon a time, I'd consider working elsewhere for a while and save a few quid first. If you go out and borrow all the money you need for your gear from the start it'll be a noose around your neck for years to come. Besides, now isn't a particularly good time to be trying to start out as a contractor, there's an awful lot of competition since the building work stopped. Anyone with a tractor and baler, or any kind of gear, is out trying to pick up hire work with it and cutting each other's throats in the process. Maybe try working for an established contractor first, get to know the ins and outs of the trade, suss out what services there's a demand for and try to line up a few potential customers before you take the plunge.

jamie2000

i am looking for a four wheel drive tractor around 100 hp.make not important some thing around the mid eights price

bk1991

Casinoking wrote: »

If I were you, and I was in that situation myself once upon a time, I'd consider working elsewhere for a while and save a few quid first. If you go out and borrow all the money you need for your gear from the start it'll be a noose around your neck for years to come. Besides, now isn't a particularly good time to be trying to start out as a contractor, there's an awful lot of competition since the building work stopped. Anyone with a tractor and baler, or any kind of gear, is out trying to pick up hire work with it and cutting each other's throats in the process. Maybe try working for an established contractor first, get to know the ins and outs of the trade, suss out what services there's a demand for and try to line up a few potential customers before you take the plunge.

cheers for the advice