 For anyone out there thinking about putting a loader on thier "N", Don't let the nay-sayers scare you off of the loader. The Ford 8N works excelent with a loader.
I built my own loader on my 1950 back in 1984. It was built entirely out of scrap steel picked up from a local junk yard. (except for the hydraulics) Originally it ran of of the internal lift pump with the 3 point tied down. Yes it was slow, but it did work. Yes it's front heavy and hard to steer with just the loader on it, and lifting more than about 500# in the bucket will lift the rear wheels off the ground. You need the rear tires filled and weight on the back to ease the steering and let you lift a reasonable load.
So I built a backhoe to give it a counter weight.
And I installed the front mounted pump to run them on.
So now we have Rear ties filled with calcium, 300# of steel wheel weights on each rear rim, and a 1,500# Backhoe to counter balance my Loader...
What did that get me?
Bucket empty it steers with one finger on the wheel. Yes the more you load the bucket the harder it steers.
The loader will lift AND move up to 4,000# in the bucket (also have forks that bolt to the bucket)
It will lift more but then you loose traction with the rear wheels.
The Backhoe has a 13' reach from the pivot point, will lift 500# on the back of the bucket, and dig 6' down.
The loader takes about 1 day to take off or put back on, so I just leave it on, It has been on for 20 years.
The Backhoe IS removable, about 15 min on or off, it's just 2 QD's for the oil lines and 6 3/4" bolts. (it's bolted directly to the frame, not connected to the 3 point hitch.)
It has NEVER had a problem with the "weak" front axel, neither the loader or backhoe have ever bent or broken anything from usage.
It is the most usefull thing I have ever owned, and has paid for itself many thousands of times over.
As for the "normal" 8N tractor work that needs to be done... I just went out and bought a newer FORD 8N a 1952...one can NEVER have too many of them.
Oh yes, in the picture there is a 4' blade mounted on the backhoe bucket, i was pulling gravel out of the creek.
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