Good Massey 4x4 drive tractor

raher1

I am thinking of buying a Massey four wheel drive for farm work. About ten to twenty years old.not 6 series.

john m 1

HI there,
Re. your mf 4x4,go for a mf 390/390t with 8 stud front axle and highline cab. If a loader is required purchase seperatly, ie.go for a tractor that has never had a loader fitted before.Try to find a tractor that has never been resprayed as paint tends to cover over past history.Lastly good ones take time to find, ring MF dealers or in my case my 390t came as a tradein from a JD dealer.

leoch

john why the 8 stud front axle and why the highline cab

john m 1

Hi Leoch,
regarding the MF cab and axle. The highline is better because it is a slightly quieter cab than the lowline,it has a flat floor , nicer seat and better driving and working view. The air con. option only came with highline. The height differance between high and lowline is only 4". As regards the axle,the later type 8 stud or"AG axle" was better than the early 6 stud "NG axle" because it has a tighter turning lock (handy for loader work in a tight shed) and it is the same axle that is on the 42... series massey.

leoch

thanks john for that u know ur stuff about the masseys,they are a great tractor still deer to buy a good one ,didnt like the 18/6 gearshift the 12/12 with shuttle would be better i think, also the exhaust on the bonnet is very bulky and hard to look at or threw all day its a pity they didnt come with pillar exhaust but good tractor

John J. Lyons

Cant go wrong with a 290 4x4 either

kincaid

massey ferguson 3120 dynashift is a great tractor in my opinion

john m 1

Hi all,
its true the 290 was a good tractor, I think it was the best selling tractor in the UK in 1986.It shares the same 12 speed gearbox as the early 390s which is ideal for general use ie.fieldwork,yardwork and road haulage.The later 12x12 and 18x6 gearboxs were no good for heavy road haulage(12 bales of silage) because you had to do range and a gear change for the smallest little hill and to change from high to medium you nearly had to stop.The MF 3000 series were great at heavy haulage because for instance the 90hp 3075 had dynashift (4 clutchless gear changes within each manual gear change) this made driving effortless.I own a MF3085 with dynashift, a great tractor but the gearbox gave trouble and it cost a small fortune to fix.I share kincaid's view on the MF3120, excellent tractor.

kincaid

john m 1 wrote: »

Hi all,
its true the 290 was a good tractor, I think it was the best selling tractor in the UK in 1986.It shares the same 12 speed gearbox as the early 390s which is ideal for general use ie.fieldwork,yardwork and road haulage.The later 12x12 and 18x6 gearboxs were no good for heavy road haulage(12 bales of silage) because you had to do range and a gear change for the smallest little hill and to change from high to medium you nearly had to stop.The MF 3000 series were great at heavy haulage because for instance the 90hp 3075 had dynashift (4 clutchless gear changes within each manual gear change) this made driving effortless.I own a MF3085 with dynashift, a great tractor but the gearbox gave trouble and it cost a small fortune to fix.I share kincaid's view on the MF3120, excellent tractor.

hi mate what year is your 3085

john m 1

Hi Kincaid,
the massey 3085 is a 1994.

kincaid

ok,,, i like the 3000 series, used to drive neighbours 3120 many years ago until it was sold.
IM on the lookout now for another,

raher1

What is the horse power and cylinder of the massey 3120

jimmy G M

Sonye wrote: »

What is the horse power and cylinder of the massey 3120

Check out this website for data on all types of tractors.

http://www.tractordata.com/farm-tractors/000/8/6/868-massey-ferguson-3120.html

I'd go with a 390t rather than a 390, 15 hp more and a much better starter in cold weather. Simple reliable tractor. Go for one with a 12/12 shuttle, rather than the 18/6 as the 18/6 is too highly geared in reverse for yard/loader work. They are not cheap tho but there's a good reason for this. We have a 2wd version for past 9 years with over 6000 hrs - never left a spanner on it apart from servicing.

I dont kno much about the 3000 series - french built higher spec versions, seem to be a few thousand cheaper than similar hp 300 series, rust issues with cab, occasional transmission problems on some versions, engines, hydraulics solid. Generally a heavier longer tractor than the 300 seeries

John J. Lyons

the 3000 dont have the best eletronics either

raher1

John J. Lyons wrote: »

the 3000 dont have the best eletronics either

What type of tractor do you like?

John J. Lyons

Sonye wrote: »

What type of tractor do you like?

Every man to his own- we have had Renaults for years and find them great work horses- light on diesel great performance and they are very comfortable to drive- and can be bought at handy money- alot of people think they are soft and cause alot of trouble- any lads that have had them will have mostly praise for them, We also have had a few John deer's the likes of 30 50's 36 50's - great tractors also - main fault is the hydraulic pump but bullet proof other than that !!,

raher1

Yeah, I would only use the tractor an hour or two a day or a week in the winter. The Massey 3 series are very expensive now.

raher1

Any views on fords 4wd drives from the 1990 onwards?

John J. Lyons

Sonye wrote: »

Any views on fords 4wd drives from the 1990 onwards?

The Ford's 7610 and 7810 are good reliable machines, I would stay away from Ford 7840, 8240 SLE white roofs - SLDP are ok and are capable of long working hours

raher1

John J. Lyons wrote: »

The Ford's 7610 and 7810 are good reliable machines, I would stay away from Ford 7840, 8240 SLE white roofs - SLDP are ok and are capable of long working hours

You know your stuff John

raher1

Would it best to avoid fords with white top cabs?

littlevillage

Hi Guys,

I am in the exact same situation as 'Sonye'... looking to buy a cheap-ish reliable tractor with 4x4 and a loader. Something in the €10-12k bracket

Massey 390t was top of my list too .. but the decent ones are expensive and lots of them are 20+ years old now and are looking a bit 'old school' and tatty.

I know owners swear by them and the used prices back that up .. and on the farm capability and reliability are the key requirements ..

But I am now flirting with a few other options.

- Ursus (Cheap and uses old MF technology),
- Zetor, Fiat, Renault (Cheap and can get a fairly modern tractor with high spec for smallish money)
- Belarus (Cheap)

What do ye think of these ?

John J. Lyons

littlevillage wrote: »

Hi Guys,

I am in the exact same situation as 'Sonye'... looking to buy a cheap-ish reliable tractor with 4x4 and a loader. Something in the €10-12k bracket

Massey 390t was top of my list too .. but the decent ones are expensive and lots of them are 20+ years old now and are looking a bit 'old school' and tatty.

I know owners swear by them and the used prices back that up .. and on the farm capability and reliability are the key requirements ..

But I am now flirting with a few other options.

- Ursus (Cheap and uses old MF technology),
- Zetor, Fiat, Renault (Cheap and can get a fairly modern tractor with high spec for smallish money)
- Belarus (Cheap)

What do ye think of these ?

Test drive a couple of different types - alot of scrap heaps out there- you should be able to pick up a nice tractor with that budget, take your time if ya can and pick one to your taste that suits your needs.

raher1

Is it good to buy a 4 wd drive with a 2 wd drive option for the road and have a 4 wd drive for man. U see it on quad bikes,SUVs etc.

himwdah

littlevillage wrote: »

Hi Guys,

I am in the exact same situation as 'Sonye'... looking to buy a cheap-ish reliable tractor with 4x4 and a loader. Something in the €10-12k bracket

Massey 390t was top of my list too .. but the decent ones are expensive and lots of them are 20+ years old now and are looking a bit 'old school' and tatty.

I know owners swear by them and the used prices back that up .. and on the farm capability and reliability are the key requirements ..

But I am now flirting with a few other options.

- Ursus (Cheap and uses old MF technology),
- Zetor, Fiat, Renault (Cheap and can get a fairly modern tractor with high spec for smallish money)
- Belarus (Cheap)

What do ye think of these ?

if i was u and sony id be tempted by the renault 34 series or ceres series as massey in that price would probly invove repairs, altought easy to work on can get annoying and mount up in the pocket.

i anit a fan of renault but for ur usage should be good reliablity and nice simple work horse, better spec than early 300 series and no electric to worry about

ps we have had 2 mf 399 4wd, mf 3125, a renault 106-54-never again and a 110-14-good simple bus but unhandy, currently have a 390 4wd and a 265 2wd, mf 6180 and 8400 valmet. however neededing a handy 40 km 4wd tractor for general farm work in summer when others are contracting and renault ceres seem to be the top of the list, if more money prob valmet or 43 series mf, would happily buy back any mf we have sold, good tractors.

John J. Lyons

himwdah wrote: »

if i was u and sony id be tempted by the renault 34 series or ceres series as massey in that price would probly invove repairs, altought easy to work on can get annoying and mount up in the pocket.

i anit a fan of renault but for ur usage should be good reliablity and nice simple work horse, better spec than early 300 series and no electric to worry about

ps we have had 2 mf 399 4wd, mf 3125, a renault 106-54-never again and a 110-14-good simple bus but unhandy, currently have a 390 4wd and a 265 2wd, mf 6180 and 8400 valmet. however neededing a handy 40 km 4wd tractor for general farm work in summer when others are contracting and renault ceres seem to be the top of the list, if more money prob valmet or 43 series mf, would happily buy back any mf we have sold, good tractors.

Just curious did the 106-54 give cam trouble?

himwdah

John J. Lyons wrote: »

Just curious did the 106-54 give cam trouble?

started funny one day and oiled the water ever since, then got gearbox overhaul, was turboed before us and was bought for replacing 399 on 9ft mower/co, on warm days it wouldnt stay cool and often the harvester was lifting faster than it could mow, coll evening no probs, 399 could hold out on hills dew to lack of power but. serviced well by us and only good oil. sold cheap and it cost us in the region of 9000 sterling for three years ownership-about 900hrs when u count repairs and loss from buying price, sold as we scaled down and it wasnt being used as much valmet and 3125 were kept because of powershifts.

cam trouble dont know think it was a liner problem but the heads had been off before we bought it so it who knows full story? oil in water is a common fault as we found out when it happened but not before,, however its only on ones used for the purpose they were turbod for, general farmers no probs.

John J. Lyons

Alot of them hat turbos put on them and were wound up to 130 hp- in generally the MWN(Dietz) were bullet proof engines as were used in the Fendtz, we had an older 103 14 and drove the **** out of it and it couldnt kill her

himwdah

John J. Lyons wrote: »

Alot of them hat turbos put on them and were wound up to 130 hp- in generally the MWN(Dietz) were bullet proof engines as were used in the Fendtz, we had an older 103 14 and drove the **** out of it and it couldnt kill her

yeah 110 14 was like that and was a 40km, pick a gear and away u went, diesel for two days and not a lot of money tied up, bro sold it as it was his and i couldnt afford it, we thought the 106 would be better, it was dynoed at 137hp but the 3125 would leave it for dust and the 6.354 engined mf 399 could match it with a good driver-it reved out to 2900revs:D.

raher1

John J. Lyons wrote: »

Every man to his own- we have had Renaults for years and find them great work horses- light on diesel great performance and they are very comfortable to drive- and can be bought at handy money- alot of people think they are soft and cause alot of trouble- any lads that have had them will have mostly praise for them, We also have had a few John deer's the likes of 30 50's 36 50's - great tractors also - main fault is the hydraulic pump but bullet proof other than that !!,

Are valtra any good? They look like big work horses.

himwdah

Sonye wrote: »

Are valtra any good? They look like big work horses.

only have a 8400 valmet, it we had the money we wouldnt look at anyother make but it has to be the second series of electric shuttle, bit bouncy on road, light foorprint, easy on diesel, very handy and anyone can step in and drive. parts are ok but buying price is high which is whats putting us off.