oliver 1850 vs case 970

hoosierhog · May 23, 2011

a friend down the road has a Oliver 1850 rebiult an painted in the late 90s. also has a Case 970 he had the power shift rebiult a few yrs ago it has 4600 hrs. he has used both for bailing big rounds and pulling a 6 row planter. I'm buying his round baler and probably one of the two tractors both have cabs and heat and ac. I need it for bailing but also would like to upgrade to 16ft field implements disc and field cultivator would either tractor be a good fit and would either be able to pull a 7 shank chisel pull type. thanks a bunch.

DeltaRed · May 23, 2011

I would take the Oliver-hands down.I wouldn't take the Case if you paid me!

Anonymous-0 · May 23, 2011

From what I understand, the Case powershift does not like being run in reverse or with the inching (clutch) pedal disengaged while the PTO is running, a likely scenario while round baling, because it doesnt lube properly. May be a Case expert on this site will verify this.

DBAF · May 23, 2011

1850's were a great tractor, If it's in nice shape and priced right I would buy it.

bison · May 23, 2011

so would i.
It's bad enough i have to fix them for neighbors.
I'm never gonna own a case,not even with money to boot.

JDseller · May 24, 2011

The Case 970 is newer tractor and has a much better cab. As for lube problems while baling, I have not seen that be an issue. Also the powershifts in the lower horsepower CASE tractors held up well. The bigger ones also did at the factory horse power. Lot of the 1370-1570 around here where turning two hundred plus horse power and guys complained the power shifts would not hold up.

If the Oliver 1850 was an open station then I might take it over the 970 but with a cab you could not give it to me. Rattle trap cabs. I have rode in too many of them.

Hoosierhog2 · May 24, 2011

So Are they enough tractor for my disc cultivatorand can they pull a chisel. Also both tractors Are priced at 7000 is this a fair price? Thanks

randallnMo · May 24, 2011

I used to own a Case 970. Nice haying tractor. I pulled a 7 shank chisel with it, but not well. Not very well at all. But, since it was the only tractor I had at the time, it got the job done. I also tried to pull a two row Gehl chopper with it........dismal failure. Not enough ponies. Nice tractor though. As for price, probably not bad. It basicly doesn't have enough horsepower to do the tillage work you describe. Nice tractor though...........did I say that?

RGMartin · May 24, 2011

We pulled a 8 shank full mounted chisel with our bone stock 970 at 6.5 mph. No issues. We used a 14' disc, but that was more because of the narrow roads/bridges around here.

Stationary PTO work is where you run into trouble with the PTO in reverse(grinding feed, running an auger...). Intermittent was fine(baling, spreading).

Anonymous-0 · May 24, 2011

Dad had one of each at the same time. Power and fuel economy were about the same. Pulled a 15' disk, 16'digger, 10 shank Ford 131 chisel plow 4b plow and a 2 row NH chopper just fine with both. The perkins might start a little better in cold weather and a hydra power is cheaper to fix but the case has a decent cab, strong engine and the power shift is just fine if maintained and not abused and the hydraulics are much faster and more user friendly on the case.Our 970 was basically trouble free.I sold my 1850 after I bought my 1070 which I use for pulling a 10rn 7000 planter, round baler loads of grain ect. I have never missed the 1850. A nice white 970 will run you $6-8K, an 1850 should be about 1/2 that give or take a little. Overall I prefer the case.

Anonymous-0 · May 24, 2011

The only thing people have to do is to remember to take the ps out of R when doing stationary pto work. Stationary being the key word.

fixerupper · May 24, 2011

Used to have a 1070. Was economical at light jobs and the governor worked well at keeping the engine up when putzing around at low speeds. The Case engine has good low end torque to go along with it. I really liked it for row crop cultivating at low speeds. It seemed to be an agile tractor. The Case cab is going to be nicer and easier to get in and out of. I would think the 970 would have all the same features.

The only reason I got rid of the 1070 is it turned out to be a rare lemon that seemed to like spending more time in the shop than in the field. Every brand has them. Jim

Anonymous-0 · May 24, 2011

Never owned an oliver, but the case would be a nice tractor. Don't listen to all the gloom and doom on the powershifts. If they are maintained and treated like they should be they will last forever. We've had many of them, and little had very little trouble with them

dhermesc · May 24, 2011

My BIL had a pair of 970s that he ran the wheels of for for almost two decades. I don't know how they are for power but for low repair bills the ones he had were great - he still has one that he only uses as a chore tractor (grinding feed, feeding sileage etc) to keep from starting his new tractors in the middle of winter.

flying belgian · May 24, 2011

Well there you have it. I bet you are more confused now then before you asked.

Schim · May 24, 2011

Take the Oliver hands down. Yes the cabs are rattle boxes but I know the case cabs arent much better. Not that it cant be fixed but the steps coming out of the 970 are straight up and down. MAJOR pain in the neck getting in and out of it. 1850 only has 1 step that is a tad high but at least the step and platform are not on top of each other. IMO the 354 perkins is one of the best motors to be thrown in any tractor. If you look around there are alot of 1850s still giving it all they got. I dont see nearly as many 970's. And oh yea I will never forget the first time i shifted that stupid power shift while driving on the road. Darn near snapped my head off. Then on the way back I downshifted and nearly went through the windshield. Hydra power on the 1850 is WAY more smoother, but have heard of it going bad here and there. In the end buy the Oliver.

D-C-741 · May 24, 2011

Stay Away From OLIVER'S ! Engine Failure All The Time We Had A Few ,There All GONE. Buy The CASE It will Out Live 10 Oliver's .

Schim · May 24, 2011

The bigger turbo charged Waukeshas did have their issues there is no getting around that. But an 1850 diesel has the 354 Perkins in it. This tractor will out live 10 cases (not likely but I had to go there). Like they say, the only good case is a case of beer.

K. Peters · May 24, 2011

Try them both and see which one you like better.

olliekid · May 24, 2011

let me put it this way.... the 970 is a newer tractor and there are more 1850's working today than there are 970's. neighbor has a 970 that ha powershift issues and hasnt moved in over 5 years.

the 354 perkins in the 1850 is a great engine. they are used in oliver, white, massey ferguson and also combines. if you need some extra hp maybe put a turbo on the 1850. might have to put a bigger clutch on it and etc but you could easily make it 110hp.

Anonymous-0 · May 24, 2011

a case cab is a rattle trap? what ever, roll em both upside down and see which one you survive in, down shifting like you did in one of the reasons case power shifts give trouble, give an idiot a rock and a rubber hammer and he will wreck them both!

aFORDable · May 24, 2011

Ask the fellow which one he'd rather keep for himself and which ever one he says, that's the one you try to buy. He knows his tractors!

Schim · May 25, 2011

So what good is a power shift if you cant downshift? Give an idiot a keyboard and see what happens.

oliver 1850 vs case 970

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