G1000 FWA Serial # Distinction???

My brother just bought an old MM 1000 diesel that is pretty decent shape. We were thinking about making it a FWD with my 4x4 axle. It looks like quite a job, and a local White dealer provided us with some info on the extensive work and cost of installation on a non factory FWA G1000.

We want nothing more then a versatile, and handy tractor with 4x4 for all the low riverside ground we have. (180 of our 200 acres is usually muddy). we have $3000 in the G1000 and I paid $450 for the 4x4 axle 14 years ago, so we don't have a whole lot invested and have some room to spend on improvements.

We also have a Gvi LP, and 2 model U, one LP and one "Special" diesel. all have never left the farm since dad bought them new.

The dealer told us the 4x4 front axle was pretty scarce for a g1000, and even rarer to find one intact on the tractor. I looked on the MM website and saw a topic posted about the value of a G1000 FWA!!! Wow, those are worth a lot. i would like to make ours 4x4 even if it is obviously not factory..just for our farming purposes.

Anyways, my Big question was, did MM have any seperate serial numbers, or production numbers for FWA g1000. I know there are 2 different types..the standard, and the later model with the fuel tank under the seat and all yellow paint. i have been very curious as of how many were produced? And, is there any difference between the early g1000 axle and the later? Im not trying to "clone" a rare collectors tractor, just make ours a little more handy. Thanks in advance, Michael Lehs

I still would not mind having a burly FWA tractor to work ground with. Our farm is not that big, and we sure do like our MMs. It sounds like a G706 is the entry level priced MM FWA. All the 604s, G900 and 1000 FWAs are very costly. So if i wanted to spend around $5,000-7,500 on a solid working order MM FWA would I have any other options then the G706? Or are most of them too scarce and collectable, I have not seen too many..I would need about 70hp+ to pull our implement.

I found a picture of a MM M5 with FWA that looked just like the elwood axle on the M504 picture. Are these the same tractor? They look almost exactly alike. My basic MM knowledge tells me the 504 is very scarce!!! But are there a lot of these M5 FWA floating around? I would not mind having one of those if they are abundant enough to be priced reasonably : )

I think I will try and shoot for a 706 down the road. I have also been nosing around the Oliver 4x4s as well. There seem to be a good few of them left, but they are also pretty costly. I like the MMs better, but those FWA Olivers sure do look mean.

Ya'll gave me a lot of good info to consider; so I think I will step up my search for a good FWA come spring.

I will try to attach a picture here... This is my brothers U302 with appx. 13,000 hours. It had to roll over cause the hourmeter only had four digits. Anyways it does not have a T/A??? There is just a straight 5 speed and 1 reverse. Every other 302 I have seen has the T/A. I thought the T/A would have been standard equipment by the time of the 302, this must have been ordered without one??? Anyways, I just kind of found that odd.

i don't know where the G1000 tractor the axle belonged with originally went to, it was not at the sale. But I purchased the axle at a farm sale outside of Terra Haute, Indiana in spring of 1993 or 94. They had 3 MM tractors, a G1355, M670, real nice Jet star 2, and 2 oliver combines, with lots and lots of MM parts.

I mistakenly purchased this coleman axle with aspirations of fitting it to my G-vi, unaware of the difference; and intrigued by the $450 dollar bargain I was able to get on it.

I was instead needing to aquire an "elwood" axle that was compatable with my Gvi. I was told the Gvi front 4x4 axle was only used on the Gvi, G704, and a rare one called the M504. So i had this one sitting around and thought it may go well with my brothers 1000. i looked up the SN# and it is an early G1000 "Wheatland" model which seems to be only a standard front axle opposed to the row crop model??

The Wheatland FWA does sound like a good rare MM, I would be happy to own a real one. So if my axle is truly a "G1000" axle from a factory G1000 FWA, it should fit right on my tractor? If it is off a G706,708 ect. would it still be compatible with my G1000 since the axle types are both Coleman? Thanks for the help so far!!!