Ford industrial tractors

[SAMJOHNSON]

I have been looking at some Ford industrial 445 and 345 tractors with loaders online. 4wd and 2wd. I need to replace my old tractor. I am not keen on buying anything new and full of electronics and do-dads. I don't make a living with a tractor. I don't want payments. I want something relatively simple mechanically. I do like operating these heavy tractors with their heavy axles and front ends. They get it done and are overbuilt. I like proven designs.
My intended uses around the house include cleaning/clearing in the woods, occasionally raking hay (2-3 days per year), moving round bales and plowing my garden/food plots.
Am I overlooking anything? Is it possible the 445 and 345 is too heavy for garden/food plot work? I figure is a 30k lb/300HP row crop tractor isn't too heavy for planting Iowa full of corn and beans, an 8-10k lb industrial tractor isn't too much for my vegetable garden. It's not a huge garden but way too much for a tiller.
Is the gearing suitable for plows, cultivators and harrows (spring and disc)? I plow less than a full day per year but do not want to break anything....on my implements that is.
I will use it more for loader work and mowing. How are the PTO's set up? Independent, live? I understand some older tractors need an overrun clutch, I believe it's called? Educate me more. I drove an old Ford 340 industrial last year with transmission driven PTO and and overrun clutch added for safety. While I liked the tractor, I did not like the fact that the guy stated PTO speed depended on ground speed. Might be fine raking hay but not all mowing situations.
Of course transporting and industrial tractor with implements may mean a heavy duty trailer and a dually, but that's not a worry.


Oh yeah, I notice Ford likes to add A,B,C and D to their tractor models. Can't figure what they all mean other than weight and HP changes.

 

[Sportsman762]

Welcome to the forum.
The industrial tractors are similar to the ag tractors but have been modified to make them more suited to loader work. The loaders on these units are much stronger than loaders on equivalent ag tractors.
Ford built very good industrial units, they shared many components with the ag line, so parts availability is normally a non issue on most parts that break often. However the engines are slightly different on some models. Ford did not do a good job of identifying what engines the tractor had so the only way to figure out what parts you need is to open one up and get the number off of the part itself. The front axle / steering parts are also normally special
If you do much loader work you will love the loader on an industrial. However industrial tractors are not a balanced as an ag tractor. I have a 2wd MF industrial and have to have an implement on the back. The loader is so heavy that when going down hill if I brake the tractor will continue sliding down the hill unless I drop the bucket if there is nothing on the back. I have a 1200 lb counterweight or a 800+ lb flail mower that does a great job of keeping the rear on the ground. You will not be able to utilize the full lifting capacity of the loader unless you have a heavy counterweight.
The industrial loaders sit lower to the ground because of their short squat tires, this makes them good for hills, however it also makes them worthless for round baling because you do not have the clearance to straddle the windrow.
The PTO on all ford industrials is 540, some of them might have an additional ground speed option. However none would have just a ground speed PTO. Also check to make sure the PTO keeps turning the same direction when the tractor is reversed. I think only MF instant reverse transmissions have this problem, but when you shuttle the tractor into reverse the PTO would also turn in reverse.

I would look for a 4wd unit that has a live or independent PTO, avoid transmission pto's. 4wd is nice, however a big counterweight on the rear can compensate for 2wd.

 

[RickB]

Ford industrial tractor engines are identical to those found in contemporary Ag models. There are no differences once you make the correct cross-reference between the various Ag and Ind models based on the tractor's build date. It is important to note that the power Reversing transmission evolved from manual control to electronic control with the advent of the 'C' series. I am not aware of any ground speed PTO factory install on any Ford tractor built after the introduction of the Thousand Series in 1965. The rest of Sportsman762's post is spot on.

 

[Sportsman762]

Rick,
Ford was terrible at putting different pistons and fuel injectors in the industrials when compared to the equivalent ag model. Their parts books are not always right as far as part numbers in the industrials for these engine parts.

You are right, as long as you have the part number off of the piston then you can cross it to the proper part and hope that it is in the ag offering. This is not a major issue as it is not very often you have to rebuild an engine. However I wanted OP to be aware of the potential for headache if he purchased a machine that needed a rebuild. Thanks for clearing up the ground speed PTO question.

Your signature is spot on, I can only pity you for having to follow to follow the rules that NYC makes for your entire state.