First Tractor Purchase - Looking for advice

[jeff9366]

Buy bigger heavier than you think you’ll need.

 

[Bill Guenthner]

Buy bigger heavier than you think you’ll need.

I have a negating corollary to that rule. “First time buyers almost always think they need more tractor than they really need”

 

[sea2summit]

First time buyers will always by the tractor they think they need within their abilities, and I bet 99.5% of the time that's not the optimal tractor for them. Sometimes it's what you don't know, sometimes it's a new task, sometimes it's local dealers, ability to transport it with their current vehicle/trailer combo, weight, hp, attachments....But I bet the most common is budget.

 

[3gunr]

Budget now for sure , Tractor prices here are as much as 5to7 thousand more than two yrs ago, My buddy and i have same Hp tractors of similar size but his will lift and move way more weight than mine .We have tested them side by side on several projects and i was very surprised at what his could do.If you can afford it buy bigger,

 

[rScotty]

View attachment 744826
This is a friends tractor. JD 5310, it’s around 20 years old. It’s a clutch and stick shift. I personally wouldn’t want that system but he is good with it to the point you would swear it’s an HST. The advantage of something like this used is it’s around 60 hp and 2500 pounds of lift capacity.

About loader capacity. Look at the specs carefully. The lift I quoted above is at the pins. Sometimes they list the lift so many inches in front of the pins. In the real world you aren’t lifting at the loader pins but things in the bucket or on forks. Just make sure you know how the loader is speced.

Dalton, this was back on message #12. If I was doing the work you are describing this is EXACTLY the kind of tractor I'd be looking for and hoping to find. Not beat up, 4wd, JD, powerful, manual tranny & clutch, and 20 years old. Look at that heavy front drive axle... & it even has decent tires. Smallish loader, but heavy 3pt lift. My guess is it will go for somewhere at the top of your dollar range.
rSoctty

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Budget now for sure , Tractor prices here are as much as 5to7 thousand more than two yrs ago, My buddy and i have same Hp tractors of similar size but his will lift and move way more weight than mine .We have tested them side by side on several projects and i was very surprised at what his could do.If you can afford it buy bigger,

My tractor mechanic is doing a deep dive on our Massey Ferguson 265 the wife's Dad bought new in 1976. Compared to our Ford 3000 and 3600 this tractor is massive more of a work horse in part due to it's weight.

The tractor is not mint but only has 1500 actual hours. I was discussing with him the cost of this deep dive with the view it will me staying in the family.

He said when he finishes with no internal engine or transmission work or new paint he could find a buyer at $15,000. Blew my mind because that is at least 2x what it sold for new.

 

[rScotty]

So without the "deep dive" how did it work at 1500 hours and what would be your estimate of a selling price?

 

[etpm]

Doing what you are, if I wanted to spend 10 to 15K I think this is a pretty good time to buy used larger equipment.
You are talking about some long, heavy, and tippy logs and building materials. This is a good time for larger.

In particular I would look at a Case 580 backhoe/loader or a John Deere 310 pre-"G" series. The 580 Case has a reputation for being home & rancher friendly, and the JD is probably the world's most popular backhoe/loader. I'd look roughly in the 1995 to 2005 era and under 5000 hrs. That old will usually be manual 4 speed shift combined with a power reverser and a torque converter. Very bulletproof. 2wd of course. Has no emissions and no computer. The problem there is always finding a good one, although even an average one will do your work. Put a thumb on the hoe is a wonderful thing for picking up and placing heavy things accurately.
But I would be very careful not to buy a junker or needing work. Your budget is enough to buy a good honest machine in either of those that is old and tired but still will work for what you need. Old but usable machines are a drag on the selling market today. Most people want new.

It may have a cab, everything should work including heater and batteries for that price. I always expect to replace tires. That's roughly $1000 for 4 if the tire shop does it all. A full fluid and filter change is another $500.
Those machines will lift over 5000 lbs without getting tippy.
The trick is finding a good one like I said. I'd stay away from anything advertised for sale. Instead, I'd go ask at a few shops.
Check you local school district shop, the local utility provider's shop, and maybe some larger churches. All of those tend to have good older machines. I'd stay away from auctions, sales, or been used for road construction. That still leaves lots of good ones. Oh, and ask the shop foreman at your local yellow JD and or Case dealer. They just might know of one.
I do better asking in the shop than asking salesmen.

I did that, and was directed to an old farmer who had an old yellow backhoe loader that the dealer knew about and also knew the old boy didn't use for much. It was easy to arrange a change of ownership.
rScotty

I have a Case 580 CK backhoe/loader from the mid 70s. Even though it was beat up when I bought it I have used it for tons of stuff. One great feature is the Shuttle Shift. This allows going from forward to reverse and back again without using the clutch. I cannot stress enough how useful this feature is. I also have a Yanmar YM2310. It has the Power Shift feature which is similar to the Shuttle Shift in that it doesn't require using the clutch to go from forward to reverse and back again. It also allows shifting to 3 forward speeds without clutching. The main 5 speed tranny feeds the Power Shift, so there are 15 forward speeds and 5 reverse speeds. Any tractor you get should have some sort of way to go from forward to reverse and back without stepping on the clutch.
Eric

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Besides front end shimmy, diesel flowing out of injection pump and the right rear wheel locking up if the right brake was tapped it was Okay for a $5000 tractor.

 

[5030]

I have a negating corollary to that rule. “First time buyers almost always think they need more tractor than they really need”

Just the opposite holds true for me. When you buy a weenie tractor, it will always be a weenie tractor. I always by larger than what I need. That way I'm never plagued by the weenie syndrome.