Buying Advice Looking for an affordable tractor for small farm/homestead in VT...give me your recs!

Perididdle · Nov 18, 2020

Hi folks!

Friends and I just bought a farm in Addison County, VT. We're taking the long way around to building up a farming operation. Nothing serious, definitely no row crops or heavy harvesting, but we know we need a tractor for a little bit of everything involved in horses, goats, farm maintenance, and a bit of food forest tending.

We have about 60/40 woods and acreage, 48 acres in total. No super steep hills, but definitely a gentle roll. We're in the Champlain Valley so we don't need to contend with mountain hillsides. Soil is rocky and sandy. We have not personally dealt with a ton of mud, though I'm sure the back rear field will threaten it plenty. About 8 acres fields have been in corn for years, we'll reseed back to pasture this spring. Around 4-8 acres would be prime for haying.

We're looking for something to assist with the following stuff:

- Brushhogging
- Snow plowing (approx 400-500 feet of driveway)
- Moving round bales/big squares potentially (anywhere from 450 to 800 lb around here)
- Fairly occasional plowing, cultivating, harrowing, once we get the ground reseeded and established (whether we do that ourselves or not is up in the air)
- Managing turf for riding horses, i.e. narrowing or box blading lumpy patches of field, harrowing a grass or sand field, etc. The most hardcore thing we'd like to do here is build a fairly groomed grass track around a field -- probably till + scrape + harrow + seed.
- If possible, cutting and baling small bales for ourselves, nothing huge, and hauling them back on a wagon or trailer.
- Post hole digging/driving
- Driveway grading
- Hauling wood, feed, hay, etc. on a trailer, maybe running a woodchipper

We also wouldn't mind being able to do some gentle earthmoving, for instance scraping out muddy paddocks with a loader or blade.

I'm *not* knowledgeable by any means, but I'm trying to do research to get a start. I would LOVE your suggestions of either:

(a) specific model ranges to look at, or
(b) what sort of things we should be looking for in general.

Feel free to talk at me like I don't know what the words mean. Chances are, I may not!

Budget probably up to $7,000, ideally less. If that's comical, then please let me know what I *should* expect.

I don't mind going slow on any of these tasks, so long as it's doable. *Ideally* that price would include a loader already, but I dunno if that's getting picky. I'm thinking there may be a perfect fit for us in the 30-50 HP tractors circa the 1970s. Would love something I could navigate simple repairs on and that has decent part availability (ok if we have to order online, though).

Some things I've seen locally that caught my eye: Ford 2000, Ford 3000, Massey-Ferguson 135, Massey Ferguson 165, Oliver 1365, International 434.

One of the Dads of our group has said we should get 4WD, but I don't know if it's worth the cost increase for us (he lives on bluffs, we don't!). He also recommended diesel, but I'm not married to it. It gets cold up here!

Whew. Okay. Hope that's enough info. Thanks everyone!

RichZ · Nov 18, 2020

Welcome to TBN!

I live not too far from you, just over on the New York side of the border, but south of you, near Bennington. First, I think 30 hp is way too low for what you have, I think you'd better stick close to at least 50 hp, so most of the tractors you're looking at are kind of small. You can get by with 2 wheel drive, but you'd better put chains on in the winter. One of my first tractors was an Oliver 1550, about 60 hp. It was a gasser and had a loader and it did whatever I needed, in fact I really loved that tractor, I regret selling it. $7000 is doable around here, but you'll probably have to stick with a vintage tractor. I rarely had an issues with my Oliver and it was built in 1967. I bought that Oliver for $5000 in the early 2000's and sold it for $5000 ten years later.

Keep checking Craigslist and local auctions. If you're new to tractors, it might be advisable to bring someone who's more familiar with them with you when you go to check them out. Vintage tractors are pretty simple, and I was able to do a lot of the maintenance myself, and I'm no mechanic.

Good luck, and don't be afraid to ask questions. There's lots of great advice on TBN.

Perididdle · Nov 18, 2020

Hi Rich, thanks for the welcome! This is SUPER helpful information and I really appreciate it.

There's an Oliver 1365 from 1975 for sale nearby, asking $5,000. Has a loader, looks like it runs 55 HP (ad says 65, but the internet doesn't!). That seems like closer to what we should be shooting for. I've seen a lot of talk about Olivers being solid handy tractors on other forums, so your reports on the 1550 only make me feel better about it!

Hope you're enjoying this little preview of winter we got today.

RichZ · Nov 18, 2020

I LOVE Oliver tractors!!! They are very reliable, and parts are easy to find. I thought the 1365 was less horsepower, so if it's around 55, that should be good for you. If you get it, consider put chains on the rear tires during the winter, they make a HUGE difference. If they're asking $5000, see if you can get them down to $4000 or even $4500. Test out EVERYTHING before you buy it. Olivers have an over under transmission, which takes a little getting used to. Make sure you check to see all the gears work. Don't forget to check out the three point hitch and the PTO.

Man!! It never even hit 30 today!!! We went from the 60's last week to winter this week, but that's typical where we live.

Keep asking questions, it's the only way to learn.

CobyRupert · Nov 18, 2020

You didn’t say how many acres you want to plow, harrow, maybe bale.
Is it’s sizable acreage (50+)?
For above tasks, I’d want a 65hp + tractor. With $7000 budget, that might be tough, but you may find an older 2 wheel drive agricultural tractor. Finding one with a loader might be tougher yet. There were some good tractor’s built in the 70’s & 80’s, but check hour meter & know when last overhaul was, or what else has been serviced, rebuilt.
Be prepared to spend some money now and then to maintain a 40 year old tractor and it will go forever.
Or consider contracting out those above tasks and get a smaller horsepower 4 wheel drive with loader for the other tasks.

Or get two tractor’s....it’s easy... for us to spend other people’s money.

LouNY · Nov 18, 2020

I like the old Oliver tractors, the transmission shift pattern could have used some help.
However I believe the 1365 is the Fiat tractor, parts may be a bit harder to come by for that unit.
I'd say that an IH 706 or newer or the Oliver 1600 or newer would be a decent choice.
Chained up they will do a good job.
Even the IH 574/674 will work but they are not a series I'd recommend.

eagle628 · Nov 18, 2020

What I learned from buying something similar earlier this year, also in VT, was that you have to be prepared to move pretty quickly if you find a machine that you're interested in. I suppose it may have slowed down a bit as the weather turns, but it appeared to very much be a seller's market over the summer. I ended up paying $10k for an older 50 hp four wheel drive with loader.

I don't want to second-guess too much, but are you sure about "rocky and sandy" soils? Because the first thing that comes to mind for me in Addison is clay, and for that you would find four wheel drive to be advantageous for sure.

Perididdle · Nov 19, 2020

CobyRupert said:
You didnç¨š say how many acres you want to plow, harrow, maybe bale.
Is itç—´ sizable acreage (50+)?
For above tasks, Iå£‡ want a 65hp + tractor. With $7000 budget, that might be tough, but you may find an older 2 wheel drive agricultural tractor. Finding one with a loader might be tougher yet. There were some good tractorç—´ built in the 70ç—´ & 80ç—´, but check hour meter & know when last overhaul was, or what else has been serviced, rebuilt.
Be prepared to spend some money now and then to maintain a 40 year old tractor and it will go forever.
Or consider contracting out those above tasks and get a smaller horsepower 4 wheel drive with loader for the other tasks.

Or get two tractorç—´....itç—´ easy... for us to spend other peopleç—´ money.

Oops, I totally missed adding my actual acreage! We have about 15-18 acres of "pasture", probably only half of which we would hay at most. Not much, but enough to supplement our own animals. The other half would be our plowing, harrowing, etc. endeavors. We're hoping to build a food forest, so I don't anticipate a ton of plowing once things are established, but having the ability to do what needs to be done is the idea.

Two tractors sounds nice.

There are four of us, so it's a little easier to spend money than if it were just me, but the operation isn't making any of its own money yet -- so we're leaning toward utility first, even if it's going to be slower going.

Eagle628, I understand your second guessing, but aye, it's true -- we are on a hilltop in northern Addison and according to the soil maps we have almost 100% Nellis Stony Loam or the even more exciting Nellis Extremely Stony Loam. We can't put t-posts in the ground by hand in spots for all the massive rocks and gravel underneath! The farm across the street is all below us and is just 100% sticky clay. Blame the glacier, I guess.

I've been keeping an eye on the market and it's definitely slowing down now from the summer, but you're right, we're not in an ideal spot. I get so jealous seeing the auctions in Kansas and Indiana. Tractors are thick on the ground out in the midwest!

LouNY, thank you for your thoughts! I had seen the Fiat built element but wasn't sure how that would hurt/hinder us. I'll keep an eye out for some of the ranges you mentioned.

RichZ, you're speaking my language! The $5,000 Oliver has been up for a bit and he let me know it's diesel, too. Hmmmm! May have to go check it out. Unfortunately we're not a VT based bunch in terms of family, so we are short on tractor experts. It may need to be a FaceTime guided inspection from a Dad out in Missouri. Hopefully it'll do the trick!

mred2 · Nov 19, 2020

4 acres of pasture will not support many large animals. And I am not sure if I would ever consider buying hay equipment for 4 acres. I have 37 acres of pasture and would not dream of trying to hay any of it. And make sure the budget has room in it for sheds and building for all the animals. Used attachments can be had cheap at times, but a lot has been used up and in need of repair. The good part is that you can buy one at a time as you find them. The bad news is you need them to start off.
I understand making some money off the goats and chickens. I never made a penny off horses but have paid out a lot. But I do love them. I have about 150 acres of trees but down here, timber is cheap. Good luck with all of it.

Perididdle · Nov 19, 2020

mred2 said:
4 acres of pasture will not support many large animals. And I am not sure if I would ever consider buying hay equipment for 4 acres. I have 37 acres of pasture and would not dream of trying to hay any of it. And make sure the budget has room in it for sheds and building for all the animals. Used attachments can be had cheap at times, but a lot has been used up and in need of repair. The good part is that you can buy one at a time as you find them. The bad news is you need them to start off.
I understand making some money off the goats and chickens. I never made a penny off horses but have paid out a lot. But I do love them. I have about 150 acres of trees but down here, timber is cheap. Good luck with all of it.

The farm came with barns and outbuildings we are working on fixing up. We're seasoned horsefolk, so we know that there's just a money pit and have NO plans to make a cent.

But the goats and some of our other endeavors are business-inclined. We have that all under control, and lots of time to make it do its thing. We also have friendly neighbors and friends nearby with hundreds of acres, so there's a lot 'behind the curtain' for expansion, etc etc. If the horse habit chooses to eat up all our grass, hah.

The hay isn't the most important factor by any means. It's more to do because we can and we enjoy the idea of it, and not necessary for the very right now if it is cost prohibitive, which it very well may be. The rest -- tending to the fields for riding/keeping them fit for grazing, plowing, moving, etc -- much more important. We can always buy hay...but this year we're awfully short here in the Northeast, so having alternatives makes us feel better. It's just another factor to consider as we move forward!