what tractor to buy

mondeoman1708

Hi. I have a new piece of ground, 30 ac, boggy. I need a tractor, not too heavy, not too complicated, but can carry round silage bales. I could spend 43500 max, what should I buy that won't let me down?

mondeoman1708

Oops, that should read €3500, not 43500.....ha, ha, don't let the missus see that!!

_Conrad_

Now i'm biased towards old stuff in general (although there have been some great things that have come with modern technology), but why not go old school if you don't want complication?

mantua

Massey 165 all the way if all your doing is carrying bales!! should get a fairly nice 1 for 3500 and their fairly hardy tractors and easily maintained and serviced!!

mondeoman1708

Thanks

what about a 4000 or 4600? or international?
what about a cheaper zetor or leyland?
theres a lot of Zetors in the west

mantua

Neighbour of ours has had ford 4000's for years and had to rebuild the engine on both of them and he doesnt do much with it just carrying bales!! 135 or 165 Masseys are the perfect tractor for you if your just bringing bales and very reliable and so easily maintained!!

mondeoman1708

Is the round axle 203 good enough for me or is it getting a bit long in the tooth, having seen too much hardship (it would be a child of the 60's just like myself, and I'm not as reliable as I once was). Should I be looking at the newer 165's? They tend to be a bit dearer for good examples.

Ford4000

mondeoman1708 wrote: »

Is the round axle 203 good enough for me or is it getting a bit long in the tooth, having seen too much hardship (it would be a child of the 60's just like myself, and I'm not as reliable as I once was). Should I be looking at the newer 165's? They tend to be a bit dearer for good examples.

Older 165s would be getting tired, brakes bad etc etc, as my username suggests i would be biased towards ford but have had a 165 and a 178 not a pile wrong with them but i still prefer ford. A ford 4000/4600 is a lighter more nimble tractor than a 165 and much better suited to traveling boggy ground, i found my 165 pig heavy at the front always digging ruts, old zetors are pretty good, buletproof engines great big cab for u and the dog, easy started but brakes can be a bit of an issue, if u buy 1 i would overhaul the brakes when i get it not just new pads now but springs pins and all, they last much better then. Its a bit of a lottery in your budget you could get a good tractor but then again u could get scrap pained up, i wouldnt rule out a David Brown either tough old things and unbelievably good on bad ground !
Examples
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1691730
Very original and tidy
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1776879
this would be very nice i would think clean tidy soundproof cab etc, very tempted myself
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1776914
bit cheaper but with a lick of paint would be mint
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1600877
Tidy wee farmers zetor

colm_mcm

the cabs on that Zetor looks like a conservatory!

Ford4000

colm_mcm wrote: »

the cabs on that Zetor looks like a conservatory!

Good for the dog and whole family

maidhc

Vote for a Ford 4000/4600 here. I have three, two are on their original engines (one from 1968, and the other from 1981). Fantastic reliable tractor with good power and very cheap to run. Also easy to start and work on.

We have had a 4000 or 4600 on the farm for the past 30 years. We sold the original one in 1995 to fund a Zetor 6340, and I'd love to buy it back if I saw it.

snowman707

mantua wrote: »

Massey 165 all the way if all your doing is carrying bales!! should get a fairly nice 1 for 3500 and their fairly hardy tractors and easily maintained and serviced!!

unless you are to put floatation tyres on it a 165 is a disaster on boggy ground,

any IH, zetor , or DB, would be far better balanced and have better traction. however the DB tend to be a bit light in front and may need weights if the bales are heavy

reilig

Ford4000 wrote: »

Older 165s would be getting tired, brakes bad etc etc, as my username suggests i would be biased towards ford but have had a 165 and a 178 not a pile wrong with them but i still prefer ford. A ford 4000/4600 is a lighter more nimble tractor than a 165 and much better suited to traveling boggy ground, i found my 165 pig heavy at the front always digging ruts, old zetors are pretty good, buletproof engines great big cab for u and the dog, easy started but brakes can be a bit of an issue, if u buy 1 i would overhaul the brakes when i get it not just new pads now but springs pins and all, they last much better then. Its a bit of a lottery in your budget you could get a good tractor but then again u could get scrap pained up, i wouldnt rule out a David Brown either tough old things and unbelievably good on bad ground !
Examples
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1691730
Very original and tidy
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1776879
this would be very nice i would think clean tidy soundproof cab etc, very tempted myself
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1776914
bit cheaper but with a lick of paint would be mint
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1600877
Tidy wee farmers zetor

Don't forget the oil leaks that all zetors seem to suffer from

marzic

we had a 4000 (with power steering) until about 10 years ago, nice machine to operate v's the 165 but was a bit light for bales unless they were well wilted. Our particular one had lift trouble eventually and also became hard to start in the cold. Had a 165 (later model) as a second tractor more recently and though it was a bit of a pig to operate, had a better lift and felt more bullet proof than the ford and a very good starter. IMO go MF.

agriking101

Ford4000 wrote: »

Older 165s would be getting tired, brakes bad etc etc, as my username suggests i would be biased towards ford but have had a 165 and a 178 not a pile wrong with them but i still prefer ford. A ford 4000/4600 is a lighter more nimble tractor than a 165 and much better suited to traveling boggy ground, i found my 165 pig heavy at the front always digging ruts, old zetors are pretty good, buletproof engines great big cab for u and the dog, easy started but brakes can be a bit of an issue, if u buy 1 i would overhaul the brakes when i get it not just new pads now but springs pins and all, they last much better then. Its a bit of a lottery in your budget you could get a good tractor but then again u could get scrap pained up, i wouldnt rule out a David Brown either tough old things and unbelievably good on bad ground !
Examples
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1691730
Very original and tidy
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1776879
this would be very nice i would think clean tidy soundproof cab etc, very tempted myself
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1776914
bit cheaper but with a lick of paint would be mint
http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1600877
Tidy wee farmers zetor

We used to have Zetors at home, they were much better than Masseys on soft ground for whatever reason. A mechanic once said you shold never leave a Zetor ticking over, the vibrations were hard on the Zetor; drive on or turn it off. Zetors had great cabs, front drawbar (that was seldom used but very occasionally was a great asset), compressor, ten speed gearbox, ground drive PTO. I liked the column gearchange a lot.

I didn't know David Browns were so good in the bog. The Zetor and DB both had the back wheel on a crank from the drive housing, was there some weight transfer effect that helped them or am I just making up rubbish in my head? Older DB gearboxes were clunky and noisy, why was that from a company that was a specialist gear maker befor ethey ever made tractors?

Are the 1390's etc as good as the 995/996/990, I know the engine is the same. The Q-cab on the 995 type seems a better arangement than the old clunky floor gearshift but I haven't much experience with it.

ronaldo84

http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1830024 the 1410 is a fine big tractor. bit of ease carrying even the heviest of bales. and its not me thats selling it

maidhc

ronaldo84 wrote: »

http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/tractors/1830024 the 1410 is a fine big tractor. bit of ease carrying even the heviest of bales. and its not me thats selling it

most beautiful sounding engine on those DBs!

agriking101

would a great big 1410 not get stuck in this man's bog? He hardly wanted something that size?

agriking101

For the record, I have looked up that a DB 996 is 59 PTO hp and weighs 2.6 t, a DB 1212 is 64 PTO p and 3.1 t, and a DB 1412 is 81 PTO hp and is 3.2 t in weight. For contrast, a Zetor Crystal is 85 hp, and weighs 3.7 t.

I would have had it in my head that there was a bigger gap between the 996 and the 1212 and the 1412.