Comparison MF 1758 vs 1759 advice

[onceacop]

Down to these 2 MF tractors. I priced out the only 2 dealers within 100 miles as I am near the Canada border in northern MN. Had green and red to chose from. The JD 4052R cab with wheel weights, 3 rd control on loader for snow blade, radio, self level bucket and susp. package on loader with R1 tires came in at $49500, the 4066R was $54695.

The MF 1758 with radio, R1loaded tires upgraded to 16.9's, block htr, 3rd function on 130 loader and joy stick, radio, and some other extras is around $42500. As you know the 1758 is HST trans. I found a 1759 with the 12x12 shuttle for about the same $.

I am quite impressed with the quality of both the JD and Massey but like the metal components of the Massey. The cab works for me also.

My questions are this:

1.) I travel sometimes up to 10 miles away (one direction) to cut firewood on federal lands using a permit. I pull a trailer and take sometimes over a 1-2 chords home. Does an advantage of roading a tractor long distances go to a regular transmission over a HST or is there little difference in fuel economy and durability between the two?

2.) I am on a airplane runway mowing with this unit and on hunting trails and near buildings. Should I not load the tires and just go with a ballast box when needed? I want to R1 tires as I am not impressed with R4's for field work and muddy conditions in the woods. Dealer says to load tires and be done with it.

3,) It was -25F this am. If I am in a very cold climate would the nod of approval go to either HST or 12x12 transmission or does it matter little?

Thanks in advance

 

[walter boatwright]

The hydro is great for the fine and constant back and forth of finish cuts mowing. But hydro transmissions have been around since the late 50s early 60s. But shuttle shift and gear drive would probably be the best solution for heavy towing and field work. Also look at wheel weights too.Loaded tires are a plus but adding the extra weight can also help. And it can free up the 3pt hitch for other implements.Also adding skid plates on the underside with weight holding capabilities could also be added.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Down to these 2 MF tractors. I priced out the only 2 dealers within 100 miles as I am near the Canada border in northern MN. Had green and red to chose from. The JD 4052R cab with wheel weights, 3 rd control on loader for snow blade, radio, self level bucket and susp. package on loader with R1 tires came in at $49500, the 4066R was $54695.

The MF 1758 with radio, R1loaded tires upgraded to 16.9's, block htr, 3rd function on 130 loader and joy stick, radio, and some other extras is around $42500. As you know the 1758 is HST trans. I found a 1759 with the 12x12 shuttle for about the same $.

I am quite impressed with the quality of both the JD and Massey but like the metal components of the Massey. The cab works for me also.

My questions are this:

1.) I travel sometimes up to 10 miles away (one direction) to cut firewood on federal lands using a permit. I pull a trailer and take sometimes over a 1-2 chords home. Does an advantage of roading a tractor long distances go to a regular transmission over a HST or is there little difference in fuel economy and durability between the two?

2.) I am on a airplane runway mowing with this unit and on hunting trails and near buildings. Should I not load the tires and just go with a ballast box when needed? I want to R1 tires as I am not impressed with R4's for field work and muddy conditions in the woods. Dealer says to load tires and be done with it.

3,) It was -25F this am. If I am in a very cold climate would the nod of approval go to either HST or 12x12 transmission or does it matter little?

Thanks in advance

Talking to Randy and crew in Bemidji? I shopped him last year when i was chasing around looking for a 60ish hp tractor. The Massey forum was very helpful.

Running gear in northern winter at these temps you will need the block heater option. You will need to get a plug in for a battery blanket. You will need to pull out a clean out screen and slip on place a bit of cardboard. Play around with cutting a hole in the middle. Fuel wise, if your tractor is outside, you may want to add a loop of heater hose going into heat sink that is strapped to your fuel line right before the fuel filter to avoid waxing issues.

Diesel 2, the more you cut it with kerosene or Diesel #1 makes the engine run cooler, and the engine uses more fuel. Ask your station what they are mixing stuff at as all diesel is locally mixed in our neck of the woods.

I'm 100ish miles south of you so maybe 5-10 degrees warmer (or not).

Both the 1758 and 1759 have cruise control. The 1758 is easier to control. Ask yourself if you will use your tractor mostly at a stead speed or ig you will be constantly accelerating and slowing down--except when you are towing on the road and the answer should help steer you toward one machine over the other.

I bought a different tractor and have all four wheels loaded with Rim guard. With industrial tires, I was able to bend a CAT2 box blade and brake a scarifier shank while cutting through 2" of frost. The manufacturer has redesigned their box blade and is now making their own scarifiers to improve their product. I share this just to give you an idea how much traction you can expect if you're in 4x4 with 1250 pounds of ballast added. With the ballast added to all four wheels, my tractor empty struggles up hills in high gear with its HST. This is a direct result of added the weight to the wheels.

 

[TSO]

First, general comparison... The JD cabs (4066) are very plush and comfy, probably the nicest cabs in this segment, though they seem a little on the "small" side. The Massey cab materials are good quality, but I think they should have redesigned the layout a tad and added more storage, since they basically haven't changed anything in years (I have the 1648 HST cab).

The Massey is a pretty significantly heavier machine, with seemingly more robust components, and the loader is stronger as well. I've put about 400 demanding hours on mine in the last year, and she's never skipped a beat, and nothing has ever broken.

So, even though I like the JD cab better, the Massey seems to be a better overall machine and clearly is the better value. Most of the Massey tractors 100 HP and under are built by Iseki (including the 1600's/1700's) and Iseki has a good track record.

...

Now between the 1758/59, even though I'm a huge HST fan, and personally I couldn't be without it for the applications I use my tractor for... I think for your applications, the 1759 with PowerShuttle and dynaQPS would be a good choice. For long distance road traveling, I'd rather have the PowerShuttle than HST, especially because with the Massey, the HST foot pedals are linked to throttle control (which is a good thing 95% of the time) ... So to go top speed with HST, the Massey will have you at full RPM's even if you have the hand throttle all the way at idle. Conversely, with the PowerShuttle, you can dial in your preferred RPM's with your preferred ground speed.

As for snow plowing or mowing, either transmission will work well, just depends on personal preference. Both tractors are rated at 59 HP, though the PowerShuttle will have a few extra HP at the PTO.

 

[TSO]

Also... I'm not sure if you remembered to mention to the dealer that you board horses, or produce hay, or something along those lines ... But AGCO (Massey's parent co) offers an "equine savings" discount, up to 35% in some cases, for folks that have anything to do with the horse industry. And FYI, they don't fact check.

Be sure to post back with the updated pricing ... I'd like to see what the 1758 gets priced at after the discount.

 

[RichardGD]

For the prices you are talking about I have seen posts on the forum of people qualifying for equine savings getting 4608's with Loader/Cab. And a 4608 is a whole lot more tractor for the money. I was in a lower price range and recently upgraded my 1533 open station to a 1742 Cab/hydro. Not a whole lot of hours yet but like it so far. But I sure wish I could have justified the 4608 but I also have a compact track loader to do my heavy work. Maybe my next upgrade.

 

[TSO]

For the prices you are talking about I have seen posts on the forum of people qualifying for equine savings getting 4608's with Loader/Cab. And a 4608 is a whole lot more tractor for the money. I was in a lower price range and recently upgraded my 1533 open station to a 1742 Cab/hydro. Not a whole lot of hours yet but like it so far. But I sure wish I could have justified the 4608 but I also have a compact track loader to do my heavy work. Maybe my next upgrade.

That 4608, 09, 10 is one heck of an upgrade over the 17xx machines, power wise.

One thing we haven't heard is what machine the OP is coming from. I mention that because the 4608 is a size and weight step-up from the 17xx tractors, so if transporting the machine is a concern, then the jump to 46xx might be overkill. Also, no HST option with the 46xx tractors, IF that's a concern as well.

 

[onceacop]

Thanks for the responses fellers,
looked into the 4600 series. They are too large as I need to be fairly nimble for trail systems in the woods. Called on the Equine contact number after I emailed them, they wanted to talk to me person to person. I own 240 acres and 1 horse. I have a hay crop as well and the neighbor owns or boards 7 horses and at some point will pasture on my land since there is such a limited amount of Ag ground in my region, with this info they said I didn't qualify. They really wanted to hear that I show the horses, am involved with 4H, of FFA, etc... I have no children so was honest with the direction the inquiry went.

I have pulled the pin on the 1758 HST with three function joystick/loader. I guess I am loading the tires as the dealer said I would be crazy not too. (Beet Juice). I will be running a Bobcat 96" snowblade on it which will put the weight maybe a little farther out there. I also move pallets of firewood and these can be very heavy at times. The tractor might not lift green wood I dunno?

I asked the dealer based on TSO comments on the HST. He thinks?? that when the throttle is advanced a certain point the anti stall feature in disabled on the HST trans. My desire when roading a tractor is to bring back the throttle to maybe 2200 RPM but be in the highest gear, in the case with a HST trans I would have that mashed to the floor and the cruise control set. I sure don't want to engine at 2600 RPM as I need to anticipate for potholes and bumps. If I cannot override the feature I will just need to deal with the feature, I also have another tractor to use as well.

I will post a few photos here on this thread. I have sold as of yesterday a terex PT60 which was jointly owned by me and a brother. He wanted me to buy him out but I don't want it; hasn't the versatility a CUT has, so we split the sale $$ having been purchased for our business. I need a cab replacement versatile machine so the Massey is the replacement. I know it will not work as fast as this skid steer did in some of its duties but do you guys think that my Frontier disc with push plate will be usable with the Massey 135 loader. I have the three point hitch on there as well and can pull it but it worked quite nicely having a skid steer plate welded on the back for very tight food plots in the woods. It weighs about #1000 at 7'5"

#1000 disc, will a 135 loader handle that much weight out front or should I stick to the 3 point only for discing??



Will it be hard on a HST trans on the road to pull this fire wood trailer weigh?? In High range??



Worried that I wont be able to lift this much with a 1758





Thanks guys, Eric

 

[onceacop]

Eric the Oracle,
Yes talking with Randy in Bemidji, have dealt with them before and they have even driven out to service my stuff way out in the woods. Having a local dealer was very important to me. I am no mechanic and with a 5 year warranty on the MF I can take full advantage of a full service dealer.

 

[TSO]

Thanks for the responses fellers,
looked into the 4600 series. They are too large as I need to be fairly nimble for trail systems in the woods. Called on the Equine contact number after I emailed them, they wanted to talk to me person to person. I own 240 acres and 1 horse. I have a hay crop as well and the neighbor owns or boards 7 horses and at some point will pasture on my land since there is such a limited amount of Ag ground in my region, with this info they said I didn't qualify. They really wanted to hear that I show the horses, am involved with 4H, of FFA, etc... I have no children so was honest with the direction the inquiry went.

I have pulled the pin on the 1758 HST with three function joystick/loader. I guess I am loading the tires as the dealer said I would be crazy not too. (Beet Juice). I will be running a Bobcat 96" snowblade on it which will put the weight maybe a little farther out there. I also move pallets of firewood and these can be very heavy at times. The tractor might not lift green wood I dunno?

I asked the dealer based on TSO comments on the HST. He thinks?? that when the throttle is advanced a certain point the anti stall feature in disabled on the HST trans. My desire when roading a tractor is to bring back the throttle to maybe 2200 RPM but be in the highest gear, in the case with a HST trans I would have that mashed to the floor and the cruise control set. I sure don't want to engine at 2600 RPM as I need to anticipate for potholes and bumps. If I cannot override the feature I will just need to deal with the feature, I also have another tractor to use as well.

I will post a few photos here on this thread. I have sold as of yesterday a terex PT60 which was jointly owned by me and a brother. He wanted me to buy him out but I don't want it; hasn't the versatility a CUT has, so we split the sale $$ having been purchased for our business. I need a cab replacement versatile machine so the Massey is the replacement. I know it will not work as fast as this skid steer did in some of its duties but do you guys think that my Frontier disc with push plate will be usable with the Massey 135 loader. I have the three point hitch on there as well and can pull it but it worked quite nicely having a skid steer plate welded on the back for very tight food plots in the woods. It weighs about #1000 at 7'5"



Will it be hard on a HST trans on the road to pull this weigh?? In High range??



Worried that I wont be able to lift this much with a 1758





Thanks guys, Eric

Cool Pics. Congrats on ordering the 1758... I love my 1648, but I'd like the extra HP that comes with the 1758. Ironically, that Terex PT60 (or the older ASV models, particularly the ASV100) is among the tracked skid-steers I'm drooling over for the hopefully-soon-to-be future when I expand my landscaping business to include more robust land clearing.

Regarding pushing that disc ... it's worth a shot, but I don't think you'll have much luck. Skid-Steers push, tractors pull. I foresee that your back tires will just be-a-spinning and turning will be nearly impossible. I do alot of grading work, and pushing freshly tilled dirt is difficult enough. I also have a front snow plow which I love, but get too much weight on the plow, and turning becomes extremely difficult, even with 4wd engaged and the fronts trying to turn.

Regarding pulling that trailer in High, it might be ok. I do 95% of my snow-plowing in High range, and I have 25% less HP than you will have, with the same driveline otherwise.

Regarding lifting that wood --- I think you should be ok. Wood isn't particularly heavy. Do you know what that pallet weighed by chance? I have lifted 51 bags of 40lb salt (2040lbs) evenly and fairly loaded on the pallet, with my 350# forks. So, I think you'll be ok with that load of wood. A CUT definitely won't lift anywhere near the weight of a good SS, including your Terex. Make sure you have the dealer check the loader PSI and ask him to tune it to the highest PSI in spec, so you'll enjoy the highest possible lift capacity.

But, you're right when you speak of versatility... and I feel that you made a great choice with the Massey, based on my ownership experience anyhow. Getting the tires filled is a plus. I just recently added wheel-weights to mine, approx 540lbs total, and it made a big difference in stability during loader work, and traction while plowing snow. Beet Juice in those sized tires (which are larger than mine and hold more volume) will add some great stability to it.

Best of luck, and post pics when it gets in!