MF 135 Diesel - What to look for

[SethWilliams]

I'm going to look at a MF 135 tractor tomorrow. It has the Perkins diesel, power steering, aux hydraulics. Not sure on hours, tires look to be in good shape. I'm not sure of the year either; I'll check the serial number when i look at it tomorrow. What should I be looking for in particular? This will be my first tractor. I have 46 acres that I will be using it on - I mainly need it to bush hog, run a box blade, move round bales of hay using the 3 pt hitch, rake hay, and pull a bin with fertilizer in it. Here's a picture that the seller posted of it:

 

[flusher]

Tires look OK from the photo.

Serial number will tell you the year. It might be on the dashboard. My 1964 MF135 diesel had the serial number on a tag attached to the right side of the battery tray. You had to remove the air filter housing to read the number.

Check the bottom of the clutch housing. There's a small weep hole that generally has a loose fitting cotter pin. Check for fluid leakage. A few drops is normal. More leakage might mean a leaking rear main engine seal or a leaking transmission seal.

Check to see if your tractor has Multipower. If it does you'll find a lever on the lower right hand part of the dashboard. Lever down is MP Low range, lever up is MP High range. MP changes the 135 tranny from 6F/2R to 12F/4R via a hydraulic clutch. The MP lever control a hydraulic valve that changes the MP range. The MP on my 135 was stuck in Low range. Didn't stop the tractor from operating. I sold the tractor before I got around to fixing that problem.

With the engine cold, start it and watch the exhaust smoke. Diesels will smoke a few seconds on startup and then the smoke stops. However, if the exhaust smoke continues, check the color. Blue--engine is burning oil (rings, block crack). White--coolant in the cylinders (head gasket, block crack, warped head). Black--fuel system problem.

Carefully check the two stage clutch. You'll find that the clutch pedal is somewhat awkward and takes a lot of leg effort to depress until you get used to it. Check that the pto shift works (three positions--normal, off, ground speed). In pto normal, pto shaft speed is tied to engine rpm. In pto "ground speed" position, pto shaft speed is tied to tire rotation (useful for jobs like seeding).

Check the instrument panel. The Deluxe model has 5 gauges. The Standard model has two gauges. Make sure the gauges are working, especially engine temperature and oil pressure.

Drive the tractor. Run the tranny in all gears. Check the pto and the three point hitch. Get the seller to show you how the draft control works.

Good luck

 

[murphy1244]

Tires look OK from the photo.

Serial number will tell you the year. It might be on the dashboard. My 1964 MF135 diesel had the serial number on a tag attached to the right side of the battery tray. You had to remove the air filter housing to read the number.

Check the bottom of the clutch housing. There's a small weep hole that generally has a loose fitting cotter pin. Check for fluid leakage. A few drops is normal. More leakage might mean a leaking rear main engine seal or a leaking transmission seal.

Check to see if your tractor has Multipower. If it does you'll find a lever on the lower right hand part of the dashboard. Lever down is MP Low range, lever up is MP High range. MP changes the 135 tranny from 6F/2R to 12F/4R via a hydraulic clutch. The MP lever control a hydraulic valve that changes the MP range. The MP on my 135 was stuck in Low range. Didn't stop the tractor from operating. I sold the tractor before I got around to fixing that problem.

With the engine cold, start it and watch the exhaust smoke. Diesels will smoke a few seconds on startup and then the smoke stops. However, if the exhaust smoke continues, check the color. Blue--engine is burning oil (rings, block crack). White--coolant in the cylinders (head gasket, block crack, warped head). Black--fuel system problem.

Carefully check the two stage clutch. You'll find that the clutch pedal is somewhat awkward and takes a lot of leg effort to depress until you get used to it. Check that the pto shift works (three positions--normal, off, ground speed). In pto normal, pto shaft speed is tied to engine rpm. In pto "ground speed" position, pto shaft speed is tied to tire rotation (useful for jobs like seeding).

Check the instrument panel. The Deluxe model has 5 gauges. The Standard model has two gauges. Make sure the gauges are working, especially engine temperature and oil pressure.

Drive the tractor. Run the tranny in all gears. Check the pto and the three point hitch. Get the seller to show you how the draft control works.

Good luck

Excellent write up there. That tractor looks like its been restored a bit.

 

[SethWilliams]

Flusher, wow! Thanks for the great write up. I took a look at it, drove it, and tried all of the controls. The seller said that aftermarket power steering had been added. The tractor would turn left really well but struggled turning right - that was a bit concerning. The seller said it leaked power steering fluid, which is not a big concern because I think that should be an easy fix.

He was asking $3,200 with 2,400 hours on the meter and I decided to sleep on it. I'm sure it would have been a fine buy but I wasn't fully convinced to buy it then and there. Turns out he sold the tractor over the weekend. Thanks for all the help guys. You all are a wealth of knowledge.

 

[murphy1244]

Flusher, wow! Thanks for the great write up. I took a look at it, drove it, and tried all of the controls. The seller said that aftermarket power steering had been added. The tractor would turn left really well but struggled turning right - that was a bit concerning. The seller said it leaked power steering fluid, which is not a big concern because I think that should be an easy fix.

He was asking $3,200 with 2,400 hours on the meter and I decided to sleep on it. I'm sure it would have been a fine buy but I wasn't fully convinced to buy it then and there. Turns out he sold the tractor over the weekend. Thanks for all the help guys. You all are a wealth of knowledge.

There are plenty of MF 135s around as it was a best seller for decades.

 

[flusher]

Flusher, wow! Thanks for the great write up. I took a look at it, drove it, and tried all of the controls. The seller said that aftermarket power steering had been added. The tractor would turn left really well but struggled turning right - that was a bit concerning. The seller said it leaked power steering fluid, which is not a big concern because I think that should be an easy fix.

He was asking $3,200 with 2,400 hours on the meter and I decided to sleep on it. I'm sure it would have been a fine buy but I wasn't fully convinced to buy it then and there. Turns out he sold the tractor over the weekend. Thanks for all the help guys. You all are a wealth of knowledge.

Sorry you missed that 135. It looked like a nice one.

I paid $3600 in 2006 for my 1964 MF135 diesel with 4600 hours showing. My 135 was in a lot rougher condition (sheet metal wise) than that 135 you were eyeballing. I would have grabbed that 135 in a flash at $3200 even with the steering issue.

Good luck in your future tractor quests.

 

[TomSeller]

Those A152 and AD152 Perkins run for a long, long time properly maintained. They made variants of that engine for what seemed like forever. In good condition that one could fetch $5k.

I have 2 MF245s which are from the series that replaced it and they are work horses. 45 HP and 43 of that to the PTO.. Nothing at all fancy, a bit of a pain to operate with a loader, but they are brush hog kings in my opinion.

 

[fish938]

Auxiliary hydraulics aren't really a bonus on these tractors. They are an aftermarket add on and use the internal pump for the 3 point. They are really slow. If you are needing remotes, another tractor may be a better choice. It doesn't make the best platform for a loader either if that is a possibility in the future. Other than that, a MF 135 is perfect for the chores you listed. One with a Perkins diesel will run all day and then some on a tank of fuel and still start easily in cold weather.
I have one. I restored it when I got it 14-15 years ago and am about to put it up for sale. I want a loader and a cab, otherwise it would be staying with me.