MF 1155

thinking about buying a MF 1155. can anyone tell me what they know about these tractors? it is supposed to be low houred , well cared for tractor. I know very little about Masseys and have even less experience with them.

Easy for me - not one thing !

540 V 8 Perkins 140 hp. The 1100 series had issues with the differentials, something about a bearing and carrier going bad and resulting in major repairs. If this has been updated, they are a decent machine. Ben

My two cents, I spent most of my youth on the neighbor's farm with a Massey 1100. That was late 70's / early 80's. That tractor is still farming the same ground today although much smaller acreage than back in the day. A well cared for 55 would be sweet, but the multi-power thing can take a little getting used to if you're not familiar with it, assuming the one you reference had that option.

I have a friend who has one that is a 'project tractor'. He tells me that some parts for the Perkins V8 are scarce. Not sure what parts but I'd do my research on that aspect. He otherwise gets along well with his 1135, 1105, 1085 and 285.

(quoted from post at 16:45:09 04/29/16) thinking about buying a MF 1155. can anyone tell me what they know about these tractors? it is supposed to be low houred , well cared for tractor. I know very little about Masseys and have even less experience with them.

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I'd take an in-line turbo charged 6 over a V8 every time....in my trucks too!

Bought one new in fall of 1977. At the time it was our main horse and has served us well. Has the same tranny, rearend as the 1100/05, 1130/35 and 1150. We still have it and is now basiclly a yard tractor. When it layes down it will go to the salvage yard as engine parts are almost imposible to get. If you can buy it right go for it but plan on scrapping it if it lays down.

(quoted from post at 19:04:21 04/29/16)

(quoted from post at 16:45:09 04/29/16) thinking about buying a MF 1155. can anyone tell me what they know about these tractors? it is supposed to be low houred , well cared for tractor. I know very little about Masseys and have even less experience with them.

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I'd take an in-line turbo charged 6 over a V8 every time....in my trucks too!

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While I agree on a tractor I don't have the experience with truck engines to make a judgment. My question is I know that the V8 powered IH tractors had a reputation of being gutless fuel hogs. How were the V8 Massey's by comparison?

Rick

(quoted from post at 16:45:09 04/29/16) thinking about buying a MF 1155. can anyone tell me what they know about these tractors? it is supposed to be low houred , well cared for tractor. I know very little about Masseys and have even less experience with them.

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Have a very good friend that snatches up every old 1155 he finds it seems like.. Last I knew he had 9 he ran in the fields and 2 set up to "run down the track". Since I have changed shifts I don't associate with him near as much as I used to, but I know he's bought a couple more in the last year or so. I know one that he uses in the fields stays hooked to their DMI anhydrous toolbar. It has a M&W turbo kit on it, and is juiced up quite a bit.. I believe he bought that one new and it was juiced shortly after purchase. A couple years ago he said the multi-power is starting to show its age.

Some of the parts for that engine are indeed becoming obsolete.. What parts exactly, I am not positive of, but I recall him ordering 2 exhaust elbows for the 1155's a few years ago because our local agco dealer told him there was 3 available in a warehouse somewhere, and when they are sold they're done.. He figured he needed one, and would need the other sooner or later, and leave the last one for someone else in need.

Anyhow, if you'd like to email me, I will provide you with his telephone number (provided he gives me permission to disclose it) and he can tell you much more than I can about them as far as trouble spots, what to look for, etc... I go by his stories, he uses them, and uses a couple he has pretty hard.

Brad

Hi As others have said motor parts are getting scarce, The motor shop I used for Ag stuff closed down but the year before they did, I tried to get bearings for a guy here on the forum. it took all their contacts 30 seconds on the phone to say no, so basically you are hunting for parts unless you get lucky.

If that tractor is low hours and not done heavy tillage the rear end and trans should be ok, as long as the low hours aren't round the clock. like it says 5600 but is really 15600 hrs. I had an 1135 like that it had issues with the issues. The weak points are the drive couplings from the flywheel through to the pto, and the main drive one from the gearbox to the rear axle. They can both strip splines, you only know this when it looses drive to the wheels or pto.

The the final drives can loose teeth and start break up to, usually you don't know that until scrap starts coming out when you change the oil / it starts making a noise, or it goes bang one day under load . if you stand on the brakes while driving and it grinds chances are filings are going through the hyd system ,Like with the JD's when the discs wear out.
You probably won't get chance to pull the trans/hyd drain plugs and see what comes out with the oil when you look at it to buy. If the hyds have filings in that can be a complete expensive night mare my 1135 was when it went wrong, it destroyed the whole system of valves and pumps, the charge pump was a reman and $750 3 years ago. If it's multi power the discs can wear in the drum and cause it to hang up between the low and high shift. My 1135 had that issue and i know of a 55 doing it as well.

There are guys here will tell you there are none of these issues with these tractors But I found lots of them in wrecking yards round me in Canada when I was looking for parts to fix my 1135. Those and the 55 use many of the same components and had the issues and was why they ended up there .

I looked at 20 tractors before I got enough usable parts for the trans and the front hyd pump . I used to also work in a wrecking yard that closed down. there was 5 or 6 in there back 15 years, that had these transmission issues when we started tearing them down, when customers called for final drive parts for theirs.
If its genuine like you said it "should" be ok for a while, if it looks rough or wear doesn't add up for the hours on the clock, you either buy it cheap and hope or run Forest run as it could turn into a total headache real quick. After my experience with the lower power 1135 I personally wouldn't but another massey from those 2 ranges of tractors, I went through mine fixed it sold it and it was still a pain inthe butt for the new owner. Regards Robert

Have a 540 non turbo in a 2745, fuel hog, yes, gutless, far from it!

MF 1155 Diesel built between 1973 and 1978, original price about $25000. Nebraska Test #1134, June 5 - June 15, 1973. Weighed between 14906 and 20460 depending on ballast configuration. Produced 140.97 HP and pulled a max of 15630# with a Perkins 540 cu in V8 engine. 15.57 Hp/Hr/Gal on PTO test. I never owned one although knew several who did. A real horse of a tractor although I advise you take heed of warnings on parts availability. I don't know about that.

we had one that spent most of its time running a lagoon pump on the hog farm. It started well and run good but it was pretty much gutless in the field. If you can keep the rpms up it does fine but has no lug at all!

"Lugging ability" is in the eye of the beholder and, as I stated, I never owned one, but, when I look at Nebraska Test #1134 I see it pulling the same load at 1100 rpm as it did at 2200 rpm (rated rpm). That was in "5th" gear or 3 Lo Lo MP. 4.4 mph @ 2200 rpm vs 2.17 mph @ 1089 rpm. Same wheel slip Pulling ability peaked @ 1749 rpm but was still greater at 1316 rpm than it was at 2200 rpm.